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No CUSTOM ROMs, beware. Even if you could do without official updates, lack of custom ROMs will make your phone unusable and obsolete sooner.

Need to buy a new smartphone. Previously used Motorala X Style and currently using Samsung Galaxy J7 (yes, update is long due I know :)). My usage would be Social Media, WhatsApp, watching videos (Youtube, Prime), listening to music, reading articles and taking (lots of) pictures. Do not play games. After some search on internet, narrowed down to two models, S10 Lite & OnePlus 7T. Am confused as to which one should I go for. Have seent OP 7T at store and phone looks good however am not able to get a display unit of S10 Lite anywhere so far. Quick comparison which I could figure out is:
- OP 7T is better due to stereo speakers, UFS 3 (which should make it faster in day to day usage) and a better android experience.
- Samsung is better due to display (sAMOLED) though not sure how much of a difference 90hz vs 60 hz makes. Recall seeing a video comparison in which the display looked better on Samsung (blacks were more black and colours were better) as compared to OP, but could not locate it. While going through the specs of OP7T, the website mentioned that the display came from Samsung. And yet Samsung did not give 90 hz display on S10 lite... strange.
- Samsung seems to be better here in natural day light but night time OP seems to be better (based on you tube videos)

Except for camera & display, everything seems to suggest OP 7T is a better pick. Any other points which should be considered? Any recommendations? Feedback on new Samsung One UI.

Please help.

Since you seem to be someone who does not change his phone very frequently, I reckon you should only go for the latest and the greatest.

Why don't you explore the Samsung S20 series, if budget is not much of a constraint?

Thanks for responding Oxy. Yes, I prefer to not change frequently and hence would prefer something which can last long. Budget is a constraint and I do not want to spend more than 40K on a phone at the moment. While I am sure there are use cases for high end phones for heavy users, my usage does not seem to justify that. Hence the budget and these two as choices. Both these phones would get two OS updates as I understand so from that perspective we should be good either ways. Or is that understanding incorrect?

You will not go wrong with either the OP 7T or the Samsung S10 Lite. My wife uses the 7T and she seems pretty happy with it, but the S10 Lite has the wide Samsung service network going in it's favour which OnePlus lacks in my opinion.

Regarding the screen, I might be wrong but 60hz vs 90hz should not make much of a difference for casual YouTube viewing, the difference might be very obvious while gaming. And I assume you have had a trouble free experience with your J7, so all the more reason to stay with the brand.

Also, Oneplus is after all a Chinese company, and I am not sure how the recent Corona virus outbreak over there is going to impact their operations. If I was in your place, I would stay away. Just my 2 cents.

I started using the Note 10 lite a couple of weeks ago. I bought it only because of the SPen. But now I think underestimated the software suite that Samsung bundles with their phones. I have gotten addicted to smart popup views which I think is the best take at OS level multitasking after the Symbian and Maemo days. The apps keep running in a small window and not just maintain their state. I can keep a youtube video running and at the same time reply to whatsapp or mail without the video getting paused.I disabled the app level notification of whatsapp since this one allows me the full whatsapp experience in a small unobstrusive window without the default split screen multitasking. Last time I could do that in a mobile OS was 10 years ago. Dont know about apple though since I have never used them. There are numerous such features inside the one UI.

Any take on the new S20 range of phones? They didn’t seem to create any buzz albeit the high end specs they pack; especially the S20 Ultra. Personally I think the best bang for buck would be the S20+. Any views about the same? Also the last Samsung phone I had was the erstwhile S3. Wasn’t too keen on Samsung phones thereafter due to lacklustre updates & boring UI. But the new range of S20 phone got me interested yet again. Any reviews about the new One UI and the overall usage experience, maybe those using the S10’s?

The software has been running on the last two generation of Samsung phones for a few months now.

A definite improvement over the TouchWhiz. Its fast, reliable and feature loaded. You will not mistake it for any other OS other than Samsung though.

The phones are the usual yearly update Ultra or no Ultra. A little faster, a little more polish, some design alternations but still a Samsung through and through.

Need a new phone for mom.

1. Lots of reading on the phone. Bigger crisp screen helps.
2. Lots of YouTube.
3. WhatsApp.
4. Needs a big battery. Tons of usage.
5. Needs lots of onboard storage. No storage maintenance, hence phone goes to the dogs.
6. Will retain said phone until it dies.
7. Takes lots of pictures. Pixel level cam is a must.
8. Budget is at about 30k. I am wary of exceeding that considering she throws the phone around.
9. Would like to stay away from chinese if possible.
10. Would like 3 years of updates.

Which phones meet these criteria? I use a pixel 3a, couldn't be happier but i think she will want a bigger screen and more onboard storage.

Currently rocks a moto z play first gen :Shockked:

Phones that come to mind:
1. S10 lite
2. OP7T

Wait one week for the Samsung M31 or get the Samsung A51. Those come closest to your requirements minus the Pixel level cameras.

The best bang for buck considering your budget though would be the Samsung S10 Lite. Currently Flipkart is running an offer of 3k discount on ICICI cards plus another 3k exchange bonus, so that effectively reduces the price to 34k.

A couple of Chinese flagships are available at heavy discounts currently namely the Honor 20 and the Oppo Reno 10x Zoom. Check those out if "avoiding Chinese" is not too big a criteria.

Thanks oxy. For some reason i just dont trust the security levels of the Chinese stuff. Since we keep our phones for three years or up until updates end, i think a good phone is okay to spend on.

I do feel the s10 lite seems best value. I don't have an ICICI credit card, and the exchange system with Flipkart is pretty notorious. Maybe i should order it, and just return the phone if the exchange guy makes a fuss. What would be annoying though is i would have erased the existing phone off all the data.

I wait for approval of the exchange, offer him tea / water and do a reset. You may try that.

Why note a Note 10 lite?

I would recommend you to wait and pick up the Samsung M31. It would suit all your requirements. Main camera is 64 MP. 6000 mah battery. Samsung cameras are among the best though not Pixel level. It is more abuse friendly as well compared to higher models of Samsung which would be an overkill for this use case. Pricing for this phone should be around the 15 k mark. You get the same processor as the A51, a bigger battery (6000mah vs 4000mah) and a better camera too (64 MP vs 48 MP). You lose out on the in display fingerprint reader though.

@sheel the note is too big man. Dont need that pen etc.

Ok so two recommendations for the m31. Alright will wait for the launch price and hit it.

If screen size is a problem, then you cannot go for S10 lite as well. S10 Lite, Note 10 Lite and Note 10 + are of the same size. Galaxy A 51 is the best bet.