Re: Android Thread: Phones / Apps / Mods I own a 3 and a 1/2 year old LG G6. A few key features that made me go in for the G6 were the excellent camera, IP68 rating and affordability. We lost an iphone once due to accidentally dropping it in water, so ip68 was important.
My usage is not very high. Mainly photographs, whatsapp, podcasts, some occassional browsing and emails. No games. However over the last year or so, the phone has become dreadfully slow. It would often take several seconds for the phone to respond, even when there werent any background apps. Recently I did a full factory reset and that that has improved things substantially. Still I occassionally find that the phone takes a couple of seconds to react. Also the camera got scratched due to my carelessness, so the quality of pictures isnt that great these days. I can live with that but the slow speed is really starting to annoy me.
I started checking for some options within the Rs 50K mark. My initial criteria was excellent camera, IP68 rating and 3.5 mm headphone jack. I would want to keep the phone for at least 3-4 years, so I dont mind paying a bit more for better hardware now. I understand that 5G is still a grey area in India so it might be prudent to wait and watch before deciding on a 5G phone. Fingerprint sensor doesnt matter to me. Latest Android version doesnt matter to me. I just need the phone to run well for the next few years. Somehow I feel a new (unopened) Samsung S10 (or E) will fit my requirements very well.
Im not keen on the One Plus series and prefer going with Samsung. I have owned Lenovo, Apple, LG and Samsung in the past. For this money, I prefer going with a Samsung. However, I couldnt really find any decent options that met all my criteria and this is making me reconsider. Due to Covid, I cant and dont want to go out and check out these options in stores. So, for the first time, I might end up buying the phone without trying it out myself. Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Lite + Big 6.7" screen
+ 3.5 mm jack
+ Relatively affordable. The 6GB RAM version is retailing for Rs 27,999 on Amazon.
- Exynos processor
- Front facing camera is poor (not really a big issue)
- No IP68
+ / - S Pen is useless to me Samsung A72 + Big screen
+ IP67
- Mid range processor
- Overpriced at Rs 35K ? Samsung S10 Lite + Big 6.7" screen
+ Snapdragon processor
- No IP68
- No 3.5 mm jack
+ / - Price at Rs 41K (Flipkart), Rs 50K (Amazon), no price on Samsung site Samsung S20 FE 4G (Current)
+ Big 6.5" screen
+ IP68
+ Price of Rs 37,999
- Exynos processor
- No 3.5 mm jack
+ / - Camera seems to perform similarly to the S10 Lite Samsung S20 FE 4G (Expected based on reports)
+ Big 6.5" screen
+ IP68
+ Price of ~ Rs 40K (guessing)
+ Snapdragon processor
- No 3.5 mm jack
+ / - Camera seems to perform similarly to the S10 Lite Samsung S20 FE 5G
+ Big 6.5" screen
+ IP68
+ Price of Rs 47,999
+ Snapdragon processor
- No 3.5 mm jack
+ / - Camera seems to perform similarly to the S10 Lite
On paper, the S20 FE 5G meets all my requirements except for the 3.5 mm jack, but Im not very sure if I need to spend more money now for a 5G phone. If I wait, the expected S20 FE 4G will be an even better VFM proposition. Either way, I will have to use an adapter to makes use of my Marshall headphones.
However, the excellent price of the Note 10 Lite is highly appealing, considering my limited usage. I will lose out on waterproof rating but other than that, it meets all my requirements very well and saves me a good chunk of money. I saw some good feedback on the Note 10 Lite on this thread.
I plan to keep the LG G6 as a backup phone and use it for navigational duties when I am riding in the rains etc. With the G6, I have only used the phone in the water (for photography) a couple of times.
What would you guys recommend? Should I go for the Note 10 Lite at 70% the cost of the updated S20 FE 4G and enjoy it for the next few years until 5G gets rolled out? Or should I just wait for the updated S20 FE 4G and forget the Note 10 Lite? Any thoughts and feedback would be appreciated.
Also any feedback on buying LG phones in 2021? I know they have discontinued their mobile business, but I saw a couple of their phones being recommended on this thread. I checked the models (Velvet, Wing etc) and they meet my requirements even better than the Samsungs do. But I do not know LGs future in India. |