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PaperclipPerfector  1mo ago (text post)   2401 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for March 24, 2024

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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Phones!
After six years I finally need a new one, and after being out of the market for so long I could use some Motte advice.
For starters, is there anywhere that actually lets you shop by features? Most searches will include different versions, like international models without US band support.
My current spec is:

  • 6-8GB ram: is that enough these days? I don't play games, but I'm a heavy multitasker with a serious tab addiction
  • 128-256GB drive: last phone had 32GB, which was dreadful.
  • CPU/GPU: capable of running android without too much lag is all I ask, why does that seem to take a supercomputer now? Ideally good H265 hardware decoding, but apparently that's asking for a miracle.
  • microSD slot: do modern OSes handle these well? It only worked on my last phone as an integrated drive, and performance was awful.
  • Camera: ideally a simple one, why do they all have 5 different ones now?
  • Screen: bright and 1080p, who cares about 144GHz refresh rates, seriously. Large and not excessively long is best: I hate this new 22:9 stuff.
  • 4G Band 12, 71, optionally 5G n71: T-mobile and its VNOs are the only local option. Is 5G any improvement? I only use data for browsing and messaging, so latency matters more than speed.
  • Extras: As few as possible. I will never use wireless charging, and NFC makes me nervous.
  • Cost: Looking at low end phones mostly because I feel retarded carrying around a thousand bucks of easily crushed hardware in my pocket.

Current Options:

  • Moto G Power '23/'24: top contender, but Motorola has so many different versions with some heavily gimped that I'm hesistant.
  • Samsung A15: probably off the list because the US version with 600-700MHz band support only has a 4GB option. Obnoxious price discrimination to stop us buying the cheap 8GB international version.
  • Galaxy A5x/A3x: again the US versions seem to be gimped, but it's hard to find out.
  • Nord N30: positive: skyrim jokes, negative: ???
  • Pixel 6a: ugh, please don't make me use this thing

Anyone have recommendations?

I played that game for a while. It is a much better deal to just get the flagship and trade in every 2 years. Almost zero cost.

No, I don't have a cell phone plan, because $10/mo prepaid works so much better. So I don't get all the trade-in offers that (honestly) seem like more trouble than they're worth)

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