New phone

[Mags]

Looking to get a new phone soon. Appreciate suggestions. All, uninformative responses will be rewarded with a mongoose and cobra placed in their shorts.

[Thorin]

Assuming you're talking about a mobile phone and not a land line...

Do you care what OS you're running?
In my house the girls wanted iphones because that way they could join the imessage chat groups that their friends would set up to group-chat.  The rest of us have android and it's alright (Samsung S2X, S3, S5; they all have that TouchWiz interface that slows things down).

Do you care about the size of the phone?
Newer phones are getting bigger, which I actually don't like.  I prefer the smaller form factor that takes up less space in my pocket.

Do you care about the price of the phone or the plan?
I've been happy with Koodo and they offer cheaper plans and phones, but the phones are typically not the absolute latest.

Also, data is getting stupid expensive these days.  It's almost like the carriers have figured out what people actually want to use, and are making sure to charge extra for it.

[Tom]

I just bought a OnePlus One. Hardware wise its a really nice device. I should get it in a couple days (It just shipped today). I've been using a Nexus 4 for the past couple years and I really love it, so I was tempted to go with a nexus 5, but the nexus 5 is already year old hardware, and the nexus 6 is "supposed" to be out soon, except my current phone is dead /now/, so I can't really afford to wait for the next nexus.

I don't think I can recommend the OPO for regular people though. The support they give is pretty much non existent from what I'm reading. In order to get any kind of response from their "support" within a reasonable time frame requires you to file a paypal dispute, and you can only do those within 45 days of purchase.

I do highly recommend the nexus devices though. As well as the devices they are based on. (Nexus S -> Galaxy S, Nexus 4 -> LG Optimus G, Nexus 5 -> LG Optimus G2) Google's support is second to none. I broke my Nexus 4's usb port 11 months in, and they cross shipped a new one in about three days with very little fuss. They are cheap, high quality, and don't require you to ransom your soul to one of the big providers.

[Mags]

Yeah Thorin I realize I was unspecific on my wants, but I was looking for what people would chose for themselves and why. Sorry.

[Lazybones]

I have stuck with iOS devices since the 3G came out. I have owned the 3G, 3GS,4S and currently a 5C.

iOS Pro:
- large app collection
- top apps are very mature and polished
- very consistent touch UI
- excellent customer service / support (often get an over the counter replacement on the spot)
- more predictable / dependable than some other phones I have owned
- direct over the air OS updates from OS vendor (not delayed by manufacture or carrier testing)
- 3 year OS support cycle

Con:
- some functions over simplified or hidden
- 3rd party app functions have some seemingly arbitrary restrictions
- near zero 3rd party app customization ability
- costly
- semi fragile.

[Mr. Analog]

I'm actually looking at the Galaxy Note 4. The Note 2 has been an exceptional phone but is starting to show wear and tear after only a couple of years. I find that I use my phone as a tablet more than my tablet, as well the huge display works for me. Samsung is generally a reliable platform and the Note series has been good to me so far

My only complaints revolve around accessories and the motion sensor. The Motion sensor isn't all that sensitive and/or the screen will automatically shut off at certain angles (presumably so your ear doesn't press buttons) but if you have to use the numpad to navigate something on the phone the screen will turn off when you go to press the button, the only workaround I've found for this is to use speaker phone (not ideal). As for accessories I lost the stylus late last year and I have not yet been able to find a replacement either through Telus or through the likes of Amazon. A more standard smartphone will make finding accessories easier.

Pros (based on the Galaxy Note II)
-Android UI easy to use
-Good speakers / mic / voice recognition
-A lot of control for things like individual apps / memory usage, etc
-Google integrates with just about everything
-Despite it's size actually a handy form factor
-Screen is very durable, has survived more than one drop

Cons
-Accessories are hard to find and expensive
-Battery drains fast (expect to charge it daily with average use)
-Large form factor makes it somewhat awkward
-Motion sensitivity isn't very smart
-Google integrates with just about everything

[Melbosa]

Well lets see... I've owned a Nexus 5, Samsung 4, Blackberry Z10, iPhone 4s, and now I have a Nokia Lumia 1020.  Out of all of them I like the Nokia the best.

Pros:
* Fastest interface and applications out there
* Nicest screen out of all the phones I've owned
* 41MP camera with RAW pics
* Complete Exchange Integration with all Features
* Complete Office 365 Integration with all Features
* Works awesome with GMAIL
* Great Social Network built in apps (great one screen view of Facebook, Twitter, etc - lot better than others on other phones)
* Size is not that of an S4, but bigger than an iPhone 4s - just right for me
* Some nice built in features for WiFi connections, Home screen options, etc
* Battery life is phenomenal, best out of everyone above listed

Cons:
* App store is Windows Store - so not as much to choose from, although the big apps are there and work just fine
* Camera can be bulky on the back for some people - fine for me but I know that is a bit of a complaint of them
* Does not take an additional memory card for added space
* No Cortana YET!

If I had to pick a second choice it would be the Nexus 5... although the battery life on most androids really suffer compared to iPhones and Windows Phones.

[Mr. Analog]

Somewhat OT but contrary to popular belief the Windows App Store does actually have a lot of apps, more than most options, the trouble is there is a lot of crapware clogging it up, not unlike Google Play, so many crappy clones make it hard to find decent apps

This is where Apple's Byzantine app policies sort of work in the customers favour.

[Tom]

I have to agree, Apple's insane dev restrictions do keep apps feeling more polished. I kindof wish Google would get a little more strict in the "feel" area. I don't care too much about "look" however, though a lot of android apps are horrendously ugly, and don't need to be. The stock UI stuff actually looks pretty good when you put more than 5s of effort into it.

I just can't deal with iOS. It just rubs me the wrong way, and I'm pretty locked into the google ecosystem at the moment, so android is the most convenient, so Windows Phone isn't really an option.

Android wise, you're usually best off with a phone that doesn't run bloatware. If you go samsung, you may be stuck with TouchWiz, and I hear, the latest version of it is less bloaty, and newer devices won't be including it due to google "forcing" the issue, so Samsung devices should be more "stock" in the future. But you'll still be stuck with Carrier and Samsung delays on rom updates

I like to stick with Nexus and other Stock-ish devices. Google's customer support, while not super slick, is excelent. Have a hardware problem? Call them up, and they'll likely get you a RMA cross-ship within a day.

[Lazybones]

Still not sure I would even consider a Windows Phone, but with every iPhone upgrade I have made I have compared the current Androids. Having to pick not having any investment in ether platform I think I could go ether way now..

However since I already own a number of iOS apps that simply move with me between devices (OTA restore over wifi) I have gotten lazy and find it just easier to stick to my current platform.

I also have a number of favorite apps that I am not sure have the same level of polish on other platforms or an equivalent:

- Colloquy IRC client, works great with my ZNC bouncer and supports push notifications..
- Whiteboard Capture - use your phone to take a photo of a white board.. this app applies filters to remove all glare, flatten the image and make a highly readable PDF you can email at the end of a meeting.
- Remoter VNC (VNC, RDP and Telnet/SSH client) all rolled in one... Supports macros and has some nice on screen work arounds for dealing with touch on a non touch remote OS.
- Transit - I have an app that i open.. it immediately calculates what buss stop I am at and shows the ETA and realtime tracking of buses (it is very specific WAY better than using the maps apps)
- Various iOS only mobile shopping apps. (really good responsive sites are rare, some native apps are REALLY good.) Native apps often have barcode scanning of items or other nice features

[Tom]

About "Transit", google now/maps does that itself It will pop up a notification of bus times on google now telling me where the stop is, and how long it'll take to get "home" from where ever I am. And if I search in google or maps for a specific location, it'll remember that and add a now card for that instead.

[Mr. Analog]

The only thing I'd warn about the ETS integration with Google Maps is that sometimes route changes can take a few days to update.

[Lazybones]

About "Transit", google now/maps does that itself It will pop up a notification of bus times on google now telling me where the stop is, and how long it'll take to get "home" from where ever I am. And if I search in google or maps for a specific location, it'll remember that and add a now card for that instead.

This app is a little different IE I can see JUST the routs at the stop I am standing as soon as I open the APP (no interaction required no destination selected), the next X buses is displayed, the ETA for the buss based on its scheduled time AND tracking time (they update the buss location every 2 min or so) etc.

I can select a route.. It only shows me the route and it will display WHERE each bus on the route is (accurate to about 2min)... IE I can literally see if I missed the buss or if it is just a few blocks away from arriving.


Edit: Looks like it is on Google Play as well http://thetransitapp.com/ also supports Edmonton Transit / St. Albert... I highly recommend it.

Edit 2: Only launched on Android this year... A lot of apps launch first on iOS which is nice.

[Tom]

I tried using that app I think at one point. It was horrible

The google now card actually tells me the route I need to take, the shortes/best routes. In general it is correct. It even told me the transit route/times for taking the bus from Fragapalooza. lol.

[Lazybones]

I tried using that app I think at one point. It was horrible

The google now card actually tells me the route I need to take, the shortes/best routes. In general it is correct. It even told me the transit route/times for taking the bus from Fragapalooza. lol.

I use google maps for routing, I use this to find out when and IF the next bus is going to arrived or has already left... It is MUCH handy er for stops you frequent and know the route numbers you could take... You may be correct about the routing part, but that isn't why I use that app. Hell I use the app most mornings because there are two buses that stop at my house that will get me to the station, however depending on traffic the buses can be held up or sometimes a buss will not even have run at a time. I can open the app and SEE where the buss is.