I don't understand who's the target market

[ChuckG73]

The target audience is the same audience that has bought Nexus/Pixel, but wants a better version of Android and to pay less than what the Pixel XL with 128GB of storage will cost.

 

[Mooncatt]

You mean aside from wired having better audio than Bluetooth?

Don't forget wired working 100% of the time. Bluetooth audio for me works perfect about 90% of the time. Of the remaining 10%, about half of those failed connections require me to simply cycle my phone's Bluetooth off/on. The other half require me to do either a soft reset of the headset (meaning digging out the charger and plugging in for a brief second) or occasionally completely re-pairing. Wired, just plug and play with no need to mess with settings.

Granted, Bluetooth has benefits, but wired has still been superior in my use.

 

[jhimmel]

Wired never needs charging. I do have a few sets of Bluetooth headsets though - and I don't have an issue with the sound quality.

 

[Ry]

The target is Andy Rubin fanboys.

 

[modifier]

The target is Andy Rubin fanboys.

Meh. Very few here couldn't care less about the people behind it, myself included. Google could have released this exact same phone and sold the daylights out of it with a backlog of orders, assuming the camera app was sorted out, of course.

Some of us are buying it for the design and minimal software. The feature set is personal preference.

 

[Doug Moffat]

You mean aside from wired having better audio than Bluetooth?

I'm with you. Just once I'd like to see a Bluetooth device that plays music with the quality of a wired device at a comparable price. Talking on the phone or playing podcasts is cool. But how does one listen to music with no bass and a limited battery life?

 

[Kizzy Catwoman]

Yes there is. All of the cardio machines at all 3 gyms I use have 3.5mm headphone jacks for you to listen to the TVs. That's why I still use Bose Sport wired headphones with my workout iPod touch. That's right, I still use an iPod. My phone stays in my locker in airplane mode while I workout. Some things are still sacred!!

I use Bose QC35s. They are so comfy and battery lasts for hours (20 hours). I am not bothered by headphone jack.

 

[Kizzy Catwoman]

Exactly. So many get angry and defensive over the choices we have. If a new phone is missing features that one person wants then it must be a terrible choice for everyone, not just the person complaining. If they can't afford a phone model then they complain that the price is too high, ignoring the fact that no one really needs a flagship phone. It's a luxury, period. Or, they drone endlessly about how their current phone is so much better than something just announced, trying to push their grocery list of needs as fact for everyone, not just themselves.

It's black or white, never grey. You either agree with the herd or you're wrong. It's a bizarre trend.

^^ best post on thread. I have a £240 Umidigi Z1. Cheap Chinese phone leaves my iPhone 6s standing in terms of quality and features, including stock android. But I don't begrudge people buying S8 or Note 8. Just not a phone I would spend £1000 even though my husband likes Samsung. He hates a curved screen. He would probably like the essential phone except for the cutout where the camera is. He is thinking of a Chinese phone next when his Note 4 gives up.

 

[LGman072]

I always use a BT headset

While that's fine if you're happy with the sound, but, BT is inferior to a wired headphone set up in terms of audio quality. It's a lossy way to transfer audio

 

[gibsonb2]

I'm wondering if it will support all carrier features. Namely Verizon's VoLTE or WiFi Calling

From what I've read, it is supposed to do both.