Which of these phones should I buy?

[Android Central Question]

I'm looking to get a new phone and struggling to figure out which is best between a few options, so would love opinions on which of these to get:

Huawei P30 Pro
Huawei P40 Lite
Samsung Galaxy A71
Nokia 8.3 5G

They all cost more or less the same and I don't really care about 5G so those aren't factors. I'm hoping to have it for 2 years until I'm due another upgrade so longevity is important.

Thoughts or advice very much appreciated!

 

[hallux]

Where you live and how important Google services are to you play an important role in this decision. Based in the US - I'd suggest the Samsung or the Nokia, leaning to the Nokia to avoid the bloat that Samsung loads but that means accepting a trade-off on long-term software update support.

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[Smokeaire01]

I'm looking to get a new phone and struggling to figure out which is best between a few options, so would love opinions on which of these to get:

Huawei P30 Pro
Huawei P40 Lite
Samsung Galaxy A71
Nokia 8.3 5G

They all cost more or less the same and I don't really care about 5G so those aren't factors. I'm hoping to have it for 2 years until I'm due another upgrade so longevity is important.

Thoughts or advice very much appreciated!

You should also look at the Google Pixel line of phones. Those offer the purest form of Android. They get on time monthly security updates on the first Monday of the month, plus a couple of years of guaranteed Android updates. There are Pixels in all price ranges and sizes. The Pixel 6 series will be released around Sept. or so.
My wife and I switched to the Pixel 4a and couldn't be happier.

 

[WhySoQuerious]

Thank you very much for your response.
I'm in Ireland, so while I'm (vaguely) aware of the issues surrounding Huawei, I don't think they would affect me as much as they might if I lived in the US - though please do correct me if I'm wrong.
I'm using a Samsung S8 at the moment and getting along fine with it, so the bloat wouldn't worry me too much.

 

[mustang7757]

Thank you very much for your response.
I'm in Ireland, so while I'm (vaguely) aware of the issues surrounding Huawei, I don't think they would affect me as much as they might if I lived in the US - though please do correct me if I'm wrong.
I'm using a Samsung S8 at the moment and getting along fine with it, so the bloat wouldn't worry me too much.

Hi, welcome to AC!

Both Huawei phones on that list I think is better option but don't know if they come with Google service which mean can have impact on you not just in US. Do they have ways around it to install Google service but something if you want to deal with it, another thing is how's their warranty and customer service compared to the others on the list ?

 

[WhySoQuerious]

So just to be sure, the Huawei phones are better hardware-wise? And is one better than the other? The extent of my tech knowledge is that 40 is better than 30, but Pro is better than Lite, so I'm stumped!

I had a Huawei P9 and Google services were fine on it. but that was about 5 or 6 years ago and obviously things have changed with Huawei since then

I would be buying whichever phone I choose from the same provider, so warranty and customer service would I think be the same.

Thanks for your help!

 

[mustang7757]

So just to be sure, the Huawei phones are better hardware-wise? And is one better than the other? The extent of my tech knowledge is that 40 is better than 30, but Pro is better than Lite, so I'm stumped!

I had a Huawei P9 and Google services were fine on it. but that was about 5 or 6 years ago and obviously things have changed with Huawei since then

I would be buying whichever phone I choose from the same provider, so warranty and customer service would I think be the same.

Thanks for your help!

Yes hardware side , cameras,batter life etc..
We have dedicated forum for p30 and p40 I'll post here the links to check out, I'm not sure what are the major difference between them but I'm sure you cant go wrong either way .

https://forums.androidcentral.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1868

https://forums.androidcentral.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1809

 

[WhySoQuerious]

Sorry I just Googled it and you're dead right, no Google Services on Huawei anymore. I thought that was just in the US, but it looks like it's all over. So I'm going to discount those 2 unfortunately and go with one of the other 2.

 

[hallux]

That's because Google, a US company, would have had to do business with a Huawei, something they're not allowed to do even for a device sold in another country.

 

[mustang7757]

Sorry I just Googled it and you're dead right, no Google Services on Huawei anymore. I thought that was just in the US, but it looks like it's all over. So I'm going to discount those 2 unfortunately and go with one of the other 2.

I recommend the Samsung

 

[smvim]

Here's a nice one-to-one hardware comparison between the Nokia and the Samsung models you posted:
https://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=10142&idPhone2=9995
Left out your Huawei models, if only because of the problems Huawei is currently trying to cope with as far as Google services. Note that its tarnished reputation (only by some) is for the most part a political, bias issue, not a real substantive hardware issue. That is, Huawei manufactures good phones, it just got caught up in a very messy political quagmire.)
Anyway, that link is just a hardware comparison but it does make it easy to just read through and see if one phone has a feature you find more appealing than the other. Take into consideration each category to see if it stands out in some way, a feature that would clearly distinguish one model from the other. That said, both phones do have a notable number of similarities so maybe the list is helpful to you, or perhaps not at all.
Hardware differences are something to consider, but probably just as important or even more than would be the user interface. It's the UI that you directly interact with every day. And that's something that's much more esoteric -- what I find most appealing and/or useful may or may not match up with what you find to be important. We all use our own phones in different ways and have different expectations. But Nokia phones tend to use a 'cleaner' version of Android, with only a minimal number of branding alterations, while Samsung phones always come with heavily branded changes (i.e. the Settings menu has added and/or altered options so it still has a very recognizable 'Android' appearance, just with a lot of variability.) And that includes several factory-installed Samsung apps. So the Nokia will have a more Android-only 'persona' while that Samsung will be close to that too but with a lot of Samsung-only 'enhancements'. Some people hate and get fixated on those Samsung 'features', some people just don't care, and some people really like using Samsung alternatives instead of Google's. It's a really subjective issue, and all boils down to what you yourself wants in a phone. Oh, and depending on where you reside, before actually purchasing it, be sure to check and double-check whichever phone you do end up with is fully compatible with your chosen carrier. Different phone models will work with some cellular networks, but not with every cellular network.