Really stuck on which phone to get

[D4v30]

Hi Everyone,

I've been looking over phone reviews and the like for the past week and I just can't look at another one so I thought I'd get some advice.

We're looking to buy a new phone, hopefully one that will satisfy for 3-5 years. I know, that's an eternity in smartphone years but who has the money to drop a grand every year or two?

The biggest things for us are the camera, display and battery life. Want a top notch camera, large display and solid battery life. Can't stand phones that you have to constantly charge and are always about to die.

Our budget around $1000 CAD, open to open box phones. For around this price 3 have stood out, the Note10+, S20+(but Exynos version) and the S20FE.

If the note 10+ had at least a 90hz display I would have orders it already but with the 60hz and just the vanilla 855 I'm a bit hesitant. Plus last years model which means one year less of software support.

We almost purchased, well ordered and then canceled, the S20+. Would have gotten it until I realized it was the Exynos version which everyone says is terrible. I'm not so bothered by the gaming performance as I game on a TV but the terrible battery life was a deal breaker. Has Samsung resolved any of the issues with this chipset?

Then there's the S20FE, looks OK but at $1000 it's a little hard to swallow when the other two can be had for around the same price., Not crazy about the thick bezels or the general look of the phone, plastic back isn't great either. Camera's on the phone are just OK, screen is a touch smaller then I would like. Not understanding all the hype around this phone, it's an A series design with slightly better specs. It's really only got the better chipset and a slightly better camera than the A71 but costs 2x the price so I just can't bring myself to order it.

Considered the OnePlus phones but the strange and somewhat underwhelming camera setup is a bit of a put off. Would get the 8 pro if I could find it for a good price.

Huawei is out as there is too much uncertainty with their continue presence and software support over here.

Xaiomi has some nice phones but harder to get here and no warranty.

We briefly had the LG V50 ThinQ but couldn't get multimedia sms working as the seller wouldn't provide the service codes. It was a decent phone but the battery life wasn't the greatest and the camera was just ok.

Am I missing anything" I sure hope so, really hoping someone has some good suggestions as I can't stand to keep looking at phone reviews.

Thank you ever so kindly in advance for any advice you may have and sorry for the super long post.

 

[Mooncatt]

I know you weren't impressed with the LG V50, but have you considered the V60? LG use to lag on camera performance in auto mode (their forte is manual mode), but the V60 is getting rave reviews for the auto mode improvements. Battery life is one of the best you can find, and has a large display. It also has the dual screen case option (not sure if it's still included free), and compatible with Wacom AES stylus similar to the Note S-pen.

On the down side, it's a 1080p60Hz display, but even that doesn't seem a big issue. Colors are rendered great and 1080p is more than enough for any phone screen. I have used 90Hz and 120Hz screens before, but I personally had no issue going back to 60Hz, and I've yet to see a complaint about the display quality. Plus that lower resolution and refresh rate helps with battery life.

 

[D4v30]

I know you weren't impressed with the LG V50, but have you considered the V60? LG use to lag on camera performance in auto mode (their forte is manual mode), but the V60 is getting rave reviews for the auto mode improvements. Battery life is one of the best you can find, and has a large display. It also has the dual screen case option (not sure if it's still included free), and compatible with Wacom AES stylus similar to the Note S-pen.

On the down side, it's a 1080p60Hz display, but even that doesn't seem a big issue. Colors are rendered great and 1080p is more than enough for any phone screen. I have used 90Hz and 120Hz screens before, but I personally had no issue going back to 60Hz, and I've yet to see a complaint about the display quality. Plus that lower resolution and refresh rate helps with battery life.

Hi Mooncatt, thank you very much for the reply. The V60 does look like a great phone and I would probably snatch one up if I could find them here in Canada. All I've seen is some refurbished models on Amazon, I think Bell and Koodo carry them but I'm not with either of those providers.

 

[D4v30]

Well, I just (perhaps somewhat impulsively) ordered a "renewed" per-owned v60 from Amazon. For only $599 CAD that's abot $500 less then the other phones would have been after taxes. I'm going to keep looing for a decently priced new one, though, as who knows what's been done to this one. It won't be shipping for about a week so I have some time to consider other options.

The v60 does look like it strikes that balance that I'm after, maybe I'll get lucky and find a well priced new one in the meanwhile.

 

[Mooncatt]

Well, I just (perhaps somewhat impulsively) ordered a "renewed" per-owned v60 from Amazon. For only $599 CAD that's abot $500 less then the other phones would have been after taxes. I'm going to keep looing for a decently priced new one, though, as who knows what's been done to this one. It won't be shipping for about a week so I have some time to consider other options.

The v60 does look like it strikes that balance that I'm after, maybe I'll get lucky and find a well priced new one in the meanwhile.

Good luck. I was going to say another possibility would be the G8X, if that is available. I don't have personal experience with it, but I ran across a lot of positive comments on it when I was researching the V60 before my purchase. Hopefully the one you ordered works out well, because that would be a great price on a current model flagship.

 

[D4v30]

Good luck. I was going to say another possibility would be the G8X, if that is available. I don't have personal experience with it, but I ran across a lot of positive comments on it when I was researching the V60 before my purchase. Hopefully the one you ordered works out well, because that would be a great price on a current model flagship.

Thanks, Mooncatt, I'm hoping that since the phone just c ame out this year maybe I'll get lucky and get one that hasn't been used too much. I can actually find the G8X new for about the same price but I really like the looks and specs of the v60, it ticks all the boxes and the main camera seems lie it has tons of potential. Still going to try to find a new one unless something else comes along but fingers crossed.

 

[sulla1965]

Then there's the S20FE, looks OK but at $1000 it's a little hard to swallow

The s20 FE isn't $1000, its $699 but can be got much cheaper if you have a trade in.

 

[D4v30]

The s20 FE isn't $1000, its $699 but can be got much cheaper if you have a trade in.

Here in Canada it's $949, after tax that's well over $1000.