I am picky about the features I look for in a smartphone. Hopefully this post can be a good resource for myself and others who have similar preferences. For reference, I am using a Oneplus 7 Pro with a non-functional camera and flashlight.
Very important features
Battery life
It should handle a day's worth of general usage before charging. Heat kills batteries, so decent heat dissipation is important too.
Durability or repairability
I recently bought a Google Pixel 5a, a phone I greatly enjoyed before I dropped it 5 feet and the display decided its work was done. My top priority is to have a useable device for ~5 years before needing an upgrade.
Storage
I like storing my music collection (30 GB and growing) and expandable storage would save me from having to carry a DAP (mp3 player). Without expandable storage it should have 256 GB storage.
Price
Electronics aren't meant to last a long time; I'd prefer devices costing ~300 USD, but I would gladly pay a little more for reliability.
Microphone
Please let me be intelligible on phone calls. Please? Pretty please?
Software updates or custom ROM support
OS updates for 3+ years or resources on XDA for flashing a custom ROM. Ideally LineageOS.
Would be nice
Root capability
It's a bit dated nowadays, but I really do appreciate having that extra bit of control. This also ties into custom ROM support.
Fingerprint Sensor
I loved the dedicated fingerprint sensor on my Pixel 5a. Power button fingerprints are worse, but better than nothing. Typing in my passcode every time is a bit of a pain.
Speakers
Preferably dual front facing stereo speakers. Having some decent output for videos when I don't have anything else with me would be nice.
OLED/AMOLED display
Makes stuff WAY easier to see when the sun's all sunny.
Processing power
I don't play phone games. I watch a lot of media and I message people. Must be capable of simultaneously running muliple apps and background services.
IPA ratings
It'd be pretty sick if I could bring it with me in the shower without worrying about water damage.
Fast charging
Won't always use it, but it'd be great to have.
Cutting corners
Screen resolution
I don't need a 4K display. Hell, I don't need a 1080p display. If it cuts costs, 720p is just fine so long as it looks okay.
Size
It can be big or small, thick or thin. Not picky.
Other features I don't need
Headphone jack, NFC, 5G, wireless charging
The phones I am looking at right now are as follows
- Sony Xperia 10 V - No custom ROM support, long term durability is unclear.
- Fairphone 4 - Slightly out of price range.
- Samsung Galaxy XCover6 Pro - Way out of price range. I would appreciate any input or questions.
EDIT: As of 4/13/24, I decided to pick up a Samsung S20 FE. It's been treating me well, and for the low low price of $280 NEW, I'm very pleased with what I got. My complaint is that the vibrate is seriously weak. Use it on sound mode if you don't want to constantly miss notifications.
I'd you can find one, the LG Velvet 5G is solid bang for the buck, especially at clearance prices.
As someone currently using a Velvet 5G, and genuinely does not hate the experience, I have real trouble recommending a company that is no longer producing phones. However, being that I forget to charge the phone constantly and both the front and back have been demolished for over 18 months of my ownership, it certainly meets the top 2 criteria.
I've never been one for brand lockin. I did the same journey OP doing. Here's what I want; and here's everything on gsm arena that comes close. The lgv5g simply blew the rest out the water and because it was discontinued I got it for a quarter of the price. This was two years ago when 5G was just starting to hit towers in my area, so 5G phones besides Apple and Samsung were slim pickings. Getting something with an sd card, headphone jack, USB c port, wifi6, and waterproof all in one box? End of discussion. I'm tempted to grab another for when this one dies.
It's still getting updates and when that stops I'll use a custom ROM if I can.
That's fair, like I said my screen is demolished so either I'll get tired of that, my bank will quit working on it, or it'll just quit lol. If my screen wasn't demo'd I probably would be more interested in modding it, but I just feel like it's not worth the investment at this point.