Is the Pixel 3 the 2018 Phone of the year?

[anon(10092459)]

I think what really good is the price point right now and what they offer

I agree with that.

 

[anon(10092459)]

He did make a case. He said value for the feature set that encompasses both hardware and software features for the price.

...right now. But does that still apply when it was $800 at launch?? I mean, if the Pixel 3 was on sale for $250, would he then say it's best phone???... IMO, price should be a nil factor on all devices.

 

[mustang7757]

...right now. But does that still apply when it was $800 at launch?? I mean, if the Pixel 3 was on sale for $250, would he then say it's best phone???... IMO, price should be a nil factor on all devices.

You have a point and a good one..

 

[Itsa_Me_Mario]

The essence of the review above was what that the value proposition of the feature set you get with the S9 and S9 Plus for their given prices is greater than other flagships.

Right, that's the part that's extremely subjective. The most important features, at least to me, are things that Samsung consistently does the same or worse at than their two best contenders. That isn't to say they're not doing a great job, it's just not as good as the best.

 

[Itsa_Me_Mario]

...right now. But does that still apply when it was $800 at launch?? I mean, if the Pixel 3 was on sale for $250, would he then say it's best phone???... IMO, price should be a nil factor on all devices.

Price is not a component of quality of device. It is a component of value, and quality of device is the other component. We can rank phones independently of price and categorize them by price to find the best values in various tiers, but if we do that and price is one of the criterion for quality of device, then it's being more than double weighted. The best phone is the best phone, whether it costs $100 or $10,000 and that price tag has no influence at all on whether or not it's the best phone.

 

[Milt K]

...right now. But does that still apply when it was $800 at launch?? I mean, if the Pixel 3 was on sale for $250, would he then say it's best phone???... IMO, price should be a nil factor on all devices.

Most of the OEM "flagships" base configured start out at around that price (minus the Note and iPhones). If price wasn't part of the equation, then take a look at the combination of hardware and software experience. At the end of the day, these rankings should be based on the value of the device, basically do you get what you pay for. At base configurations, it should be clear what devices are overpriced compared with competitors and what devices do offer good value. Of course there is a lot of subjectivity thrown in there but what can be objectively measured are hardware specs and features, even if they don't matter to some reviewers (which is opinion).

 

[Itsa_Me_Mario]

Most of the OEM "flagships" start out at around that price (minus the Note and iPhones). If price wasn't part of the equation, then take a look at the combination of hardware and software experience. At the end of the day, these rankings should be based on the value of the device, basically do you get what you pay for. At base configurations, it should be clear what devices are overpriced compared with competitors and what devices do offer good value. Of course there is a lot of subjectivity thrown in there but what can be objectively measured are hardware specs, even if they don't matter to some people

Price can't be part of the equation for determining the quality of the device. It should only be considered when determining value. Value, from a monetary sense, is not always the most important factor for a purchase. Some people want to buy the best quality, even if it costs more.

Adding price into the equation, aside from the more than double weighting that it enforces, as detailed earlier, also is forcing an untrue assumption on the readers - that they want to spend as little as possible, or to somehow "get the most bang for their buck". If that were true, no one would be buying anything but the Chinese knockoff phones that MSRP for $150. They probably do 60-80% of everything the flagships do... and getting 70% effect for 20% expense is definitely more optimal than getting 100% effect for 100% price.

 

[anon(10092459)]

Most of the OEM "flagships" base configured start out at around that price (minus the Note and iPhones). If price wasn't part of the equation, then take a look at the combination of hardware and software experience. At the end of the day, these rankings should be based on the value of the device, basically do you get what you pay for. At base configurations, it should be clear what devices are overpriced compared with competitors and what devices do offer good value. Of course there is a lot of subjectivity thrown in there but what can be objectively measured are hardware specs and features, even if they don't matter to some reviewers (which is opinion).

So Pocophone F1 is your 2018 Phone of the year, then?

 

[Milt K]

I personally feel value, or "bang for the buck," should be taken into heavy consideration for what makes a phone "Phone of the Year." That was also Dave2D's take on it as well in his view.

Differing opinions is what make these comparisons fun so it's all good.

 

[Milt K]

So Pocophone F1 is your 2018 Phone of the year, then?

No need to get flippant. If you want an average screen, mediocre camera, and a cartoonish software experience then sure. Hardware is not up to par with the flagships except for the SOC.

 

[the_boon]

I wouldn't trade my KEY2 LE for any glass slab, but if I wanted to dual carry it with one, I'd choose the Pixel 3 non-XL or Pixel 2 XL.

One excels at communication, the other excels at media capturing/consumption.

Best of both worlds can't be had with just one device.

 

[anon(10092459)]

No need to get flippant. If you want an average screen, mediocre camera, and a cartoonish software experience then sure. Hardware is not up to par with the flagships.

Not being intentionally flippant at all. Litereally trying to follow you line of thought. You just said,

At the end of the day, these rankings should be based on the value of the device, basically do you get what you pay for.

Pocophone has been hailed by more than one as the best value on market right now.

 

[J Dubbs]

I think that's the main issue I have with the review and I'm a huge fan of Dave Lee. He didn't even make a case for why, outside of "It's cheap right now" (more or less).

Unfortunately as much as us forum folks may disagree, for most people price is a huge factor in deciding which phone to buy. Those monthly payments climbing higher and higher are having an effect... and even folks who like to pay their phones off outright are thinking twice. So it makes sense to me that it would be factored in to a phone of the year review ;-)

 

[Milt K]

Not being intentionally flippant at all. Litereally trying to follow you line of thought. You just said,


Pocophone has been hailed by more than one as the best value on market right now.

If the lower-quality hardware features aren't important to you then sure. But when we're talking about "flagships," value should also be taken into consideration and not disregarded. Again, just one man's opinion. Hell, maybe the Pocophone F1 will win phone of the year in some reviews.

 

[anon(10092459)]

I wouldn't trade my KEY2 LE for any glass slab, but if I wanted to dual carry it with one, I'd choose the Pixel 3 non-XL or Pixel 2 XL.

One excels at communication, the other excels at media capturing/consumption.

Best of both worlds can't be had with just one device.

Lol! You're really swinging hard for the KEY2...

 

[Milt K]

Lol! You're really swinging hard for the KEY2...

Michael Fisher (Mr. Mobile) voted for the KeyOne as his phone of the year in 2017 so there is precedent for a Blackberry.

 

[Itsa_Me_Mario]

Unfortunately as much as us forum folks may disagree, for most people price is a huge factor in deciding which phone to buy. Those monthly payments climbing higher and higher are having an effect... and even folks who like to pay their phones off outright are thinking twice. So it makes sense to me that it would be factored in to a phone of the year review ;-)

You're correct that it influences the purchase decision, but that doesn't mean it influences which is the best device. People have budgets and tolerances and value does drive purchases for a lot of people. But not everyone.

 

[the_boon]

Lol! You're really swinging hard for the KEY2...

I developed "smartphone fatigue" lately as I started getting bored of them all looking the same and the boring iterative annualization.
Form factors have stagnated and everything is a giant rectangle of glass.
As for the KEY devices, I just feel like many are missing out on such a satisfying experience.
However most seem to primarily care about display and camera these days, and on those fronts, it's admittedly just not the best.
Feels good to have a device that's primarily geared towards communication and not yet another multimedia powerhouse. It seems we're not getting anything exciting anymore as OEM's ran out of creativity so they just slap more camera lenses on their devices and shrink the bezels even more than needed, as if it really makes any real difference in real world usage.

Michael Fisher (Mr. Mobile) voted for the KeyOne as his phone of the year in 2017 so there is precedent for a Blackberry.

This year he did it a bit differently it seems, he voted for the KEY2 in the "captain 2 phones" award lol.

I would dual carry exactly like him, a small and one handed manageable Pixel 3 for photos/videos/movie watching and the KEY2 for literally everything else.
The battery life of the latter is obviously superior, I'm quite disappointed in Google for cramming such a small 2915mAh in a device with a fairly big OLED display.
Won't do wonders in the endurance department.

 

[booboolala2000]

For everyday users and an uncomplicated, fully fleshed out experience, the Pixels are hands down the best phones out there. Camera and Security updates along with customer service are winners for sure.

 

[booboolala2000]

Price would be a factor if these phones wee priced out if the premium category. Say if they were $2000, or $200. But they are priced right here with the best of them for a reason. Because they are the best, and among the other best's.