I was just wondering, what's an OzBargainer's current phone and what made you buy it? Price? Nice specs?
Also, what phones have you had in the past and how does your new one compare?
I've included some big brand manufacturers in the poll, comment your phone model.
*Other is mainly OnePlus One or Microsoft phone
iPhone 6. I've been an iPhone user since the 3GS and though I've dabbled in Android and Windows phones I've kept coming back to Apple.
Main reason I prefer it over Android is the simplicity - while I like some of the features of Android the tasks I do commonly seem to take me less time on the iPhone.
I like Windows Mobile but moved away due to the smaller number of apps available.
I've invested a bit of money purchasing apps for IOS so I probably won't change anytime soon unless a competitor releases something groundbreaking
my last 3 phones, from oldest to newest:
- Nexus 5: Loved it in every way, smashed the screen
- LG G3: Was ok, battery life issues, water damaged after 3 months (Sweat from running, while sitting in an armband)
- Galaxy S5: Is doing an OK job, camera sometimes doesnt focus, HATE the physical home/back/app buttons. prefer onscreen.
Hoping google brings out another Nexus 5".
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 - bought for around $600 in April last year. I wanted a larger screen (5.7"), decent battery (3200mAh, lasts 1 - 2 days), and higher processing power (3GB RAM) compared to my old Samsung Galaxy S3.
Used to always have nokias (pre smartphones) but due to poor customer service I will never go back.
Used to hate iTunes and apple but loved the iPhone, so I've had….
iPhone 3G - still going (think its in a draw somewhere)
iPhone 4 - still going - folks are using it (had a free replacement from apple, can't remember why)
iPhone 5 - still going - folks are using it (another free replacement -last week- due to power button issue under consumer warranty)
iPhone 6 - still going - 1 week old!
Great customer service and support. Happy to pay the money for the phone due to the service I've received in the past.
I have the Xiaomi Mi4, powerful, cheap, and quite a user friendly UI
Shame it's not easily available in Australia.
Moto X (1st gen)
Pros: basically stock with minor additions that are actually useful, motomaker (was in US at the time), just works, alrdy have lollipop
Cons: camera could be improved, no SD slot, having bought a US version I don't have lte that works outside of US
Other comment: battery life a bit low but I'm hesitant to blame the phone bc I'm not unconvinced its an app keeping my phone awake too much
Planning to get the upcoming moto X 3rd gen later this year especially if they have motomaker in aust (or at least make the US model compatible with more INTL lte bands) and put SD card expansion
Moto G. Best I can afford.
Samsung Galaxy s2. Still going strong after 4 years and will probably last another 4 years before replacement.
That was my first upgrade phone after the Nokia N95.
I LOVED that phone! Perfect size and it was bulletproof! It died on me for no reason :( took it to a few repair shops who said it wasn't worth fixing [graphics chip blown - most common cause of its death]
If it hadn't died I think I'd still be using it now
Oh, and I'm using a OnePlus One now. Great phone for the price.
Samsung Galaxy S4
+Compact
+Extendable memory
+No cracked screens though its been dropped a few times
+S view cover
+Samsung store service in Sydney was very good. 1.6 years after purchase, I was getting an issue with the screen display. It was very quickly dealt with by Samsung. I was pretty impressed.
-Picture quality was below expectations. My previous HTC camera took better pics.
I went from a Nokia E71 > iPhone 3G > HTC Desire HD > iPhone 4S > iPhone 5 > Nexus 5 > iPhone 5.
At first, I gave the android a chance, I was impressed, but at the same time, it let me down. I swore never to go back to an Android after the bad experience with the HTC, I was a fool and gave the Nexus a chance which also let me down with GPS issues and constant application crashes despite not rooting it and keeping it update always and even wiping it fresh.. I'm back at the iPhone because I'm sick of the problems, I just want a phone that does a great job and the iPhone does exactly that..
After having the Iphone 4S for a few years and realising just how difficult it was to simply transfer music, movies and other files to the device I gave up learning how to use Itunes, and switched to a Samsung Galaxy S5. Other than storage capacity I have had few troubles with the phone itself. Although the thumb sensor has stuffed itself up and stopped working the rest of the phone works great…
Lg Nexus 5, Was cheap compared to other flagships and stock android and was 5"
Xperia Z, bought it when they first came out, still going strong, although I know for a fact that it's not waterproof anymore.
I'm not going to buy a new one until this one dies,does everything I need it to.
i have LG G2 super phone doesnt warm up battery lasts forever and quick and reliable phone
Apple - been using one since Iphone4, currently have the 6. Its been easier to transition to the new one instead of trying out something different. Besides Apple is my favourite fruit, so the brand with it namesake always helps.
for all the apple bashing on this forum suprised to seee most people have iphones o.o
Nexus 5. Pretty self explanatory I think.
Huawei Ascend Mate 7.
Currently, Xperia Z3 Compact. Awesome battery life, and also good to know it's sort of "waterproof". I hate big phones. Was previously using a HTC Desire S, then moved to a HTC One SV. Thought HTC was awesome until I kept running into "low memory issue" which I couldn't fix…
If I had more money I would have wanted to get an iPhone 6 though :/
s5 here.
Love samasung.
Have a Samsung Galaxy Note 4. Previously a Samsung Galaxy Note 3 and Iphone 5 before that. Love the phone. Never go back to Iphone. My partner however, went from Iph 5 to S6 and back to Iph 6 plus. He hated Samsung and i mean hated. Depends on what you want from a phone i think.
Note i hated big phones too. Until i got one! Way better.
Sony Xperia Z2. Got it as part of a $40 plan with Virgin. Bought it mainly because of the battery life, waterproofing was a nice bonus. BUT, would advise anyone buying this phone or the Z3 to get tempered glass protectors for the back glass-doesn't take much to break.
I have a THL T100s. I bought it for its screen (size and resolution), its dual SIM capabilities, and the mobile frequencies it supports.
I've dropped the phone a number of times and the case shows this, but the screen is still perfect.
My next phone will probably be another import, but I think I'll go more mainstream. That's because THL don't seem to do OTA updates and finding a ROM that worked took weeks of trial and error. Want to know the least buggy ROM for the T100s? Ask me!
iPhone 5 and iPhone 5S.
Used to have a Note 3 and before that a SII as a work phone. Hated the Android experience, especially since I was running it side-by-side with my personal iPhone.
It ultimately comes down to personal preference, but the iPhone just works for me and does what I want with zero fuss. With Android I was always fudging around with it trying to make it behave and do what I wanted.
S4 and recently the s6 Edge, upgraded for my plan on Vodafone.
Nokia Lumia 1520, best phone I have ever owned by far. I dropped my first Lumia 1520 in march this year and broke the screen badly. I went looking for a new phone, but found nothing that really stood out to me as an upgrade from my broken Lumia 1520 (especially in terms of camera), so I purchased another Lumia 1520. Sure, it's missing a few apps that I use on my android tablet, but I get by without them, the amazing battery life and almost slr quality camera make up for the lack of apps.
I have it on a Telstra friends and family cap (14gb per month) and it constantly pulls faster speeds then my home 100/40 nbn. Really happy. :)
iphone 5s.
they just work. i thought about jumping ship to a samsung but my brothers galaxy 5 despite being higher specked than the 5s and newer just lags after a year of use despite having been reformatted & i find the same happens to friends android devices shrug
I'm using iPhone just because the autocorrect works better than Android.
Hahahah nice
Mpie G7 - value for money, 4g,2gb ram, quad core, 4.4 android (at the time), massive battery etc
S5, as someone who is very mobile and a power user i find a removable battery extremely handy (way better than those recharge packs). It's sad that LG is the only one who still does it, hope they stick with it for a while.
From iPhone 3GS to iPhone 6 as my main phone now.
Used to have a Samsung Galaxy S2, Sony Xperia V but now i have that Huawei Ascend Y550 as my 2nd phone i carry with me all the time.
I like IOS and Android if one doesnt perform well then the other will so that works for me :)
I think if i go a 3rd phone in my pocket would be the next Windows Phone that can be transformed into desktop mode but i will need to find one that isnt bigger than something like a S5 i reckon.
A man-purse could come in handy.
iPhone 5, because it was $5 a month on Telstra business plan. See no real need to upgrade, it works.
iPhone 5S, still running as smoothly as day 1. Other android phones I've had start lagging after a few months
Galaxy S5 as it ticks every single box…..Expandable storage, Replaceable battery, 4K Video and waterproof!! Unfortunately the way it's all going there won't be another phone like it :(
Good. Expandable storage is slow, never had to replace a battery, and you have to be an idiot to drop your phone in water.
I went for a swim in the pool with my s3. It actually still works! :)
In-use - iPhone 5 main sim and Huawei Y550 secondary monthly sim.
On hold Lumia 630 and
on edge of retirement - Huawei X2
Reason for iPhone - I want to experience the hype and got good deal. iPhone is good but not worth the money if paid in full. If I get similar deal on 20% eBay, then surely prefer iPhone.
Y550 is the surprisingly good phone. After using iPhone and then using Y550 in restrictive mode like iPhone (no system changes), it feels fast and battery last 2 days.
I have an iPhone 4. Does the job for me. I find iTunes annoying however. Does anyone know if there is an external non apple program I can use to backup my iPhone?
Thanks for the negs to remind me I shouldn't have replied to an OT post.
Your mum's, because she left it on my bedside table. :p
But mine's a Nexus 4. Like it except for a few annoying minor issues.
One plus one simply the best!
Used to be an iPhone user but moved to Android (Note3 with Note4 ROM) for the following reasons:
-iTunes is absolutely horrible and I hate being forced to use it
-Very frustrated with the lack of customisation and options in iOS - it was made for 5 year olds
-iOS has a terrible interface (thought it was OK until I saw android and realised what I was missing)
-Couldn't browse or manage my files through iOS
-Cost of apps in Aus vs US. Why was I paying more when dollar had parity?
-As a capable adult who understands technology, was sick of being associated with a product that was 'style over substance'
-Apple is great at coming up with the initial concept but is terrible at innovating beyond that and then just trys to use its legal muscle to stop others doing so at the expense of the customer
Sony Xperia Z1…Sony Xperia Z1 4G $0 Handset Repayment on Virgin $30 Plan back in September 2013.
From this https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/115611
Price error but they honored it, very happy :)
LG G3 (3GB RAM version) grey version. By far the best phone during its launch period. Got a good deal from ebay last year with extra 20% off… worked out to about AUD501. Very pleased with it. Had an xperia Z1 prior. Ignoring specs, since they're different gen, I prefer the LG experience better than Sony's..
When I upgraded by TV I also made sure I bought a 4k TV so I can watch my 4k vids! Awesome! The details are astounding.
Note 3 from Samsung. Got it used for $300 from ebay. Top Notch specs and Android Lollipop. Love it
OnePlus One all the way. Competes with the big names at a not so big price!
Iphone 5s like the size and weight,
Phillips Savvy
ASUS Zenfone 2 ZE551ML.
Galaxy s3 + cm11. Have had it for over 3 years. Can't justify buying a new phone until my s3 is completely dead.
Motorola Moto G 1st gen
Bought it when 2nd gen was already out, but I much prefer smaller screen size
Was less than $200 and I am still struggling to find what makes it so inferior to the $500 or even $1,000 phones… who even wants to walk around with a $1,000 phone??
iPhone 6+. love this phone. too many reasons but one that hasn't been mentioned is that majority of the education apps recommended by the school is only on IOS. There are some on Android but it takes ages to come out. So long that some parents loved the apps so much that they went and bought iPads. My kids school uses iPads in early yrs. Kids can either byo or if they dont have one then they can just use iPads supplied by school. With android teachers waste precious time doing IT support, helping kids sign on etc With apple it's so much easier for both teachers and kids.
majority of the education apps recommended by the school is only on IOS.
True that. For some reason the schools have been sucked into the Apple world. But one thing to note is that even though the iPad is preferred device at schools, a lot of Google apps are used by the schools.
Lenovo K3 ($210) from the recent deals, before that THL W8s ($260), before that original Galaxy Mini ($140) and before that Xperia X10 Mini Pro ($150). I also have a $25 ZTE from HN.
You can see I've never paid too much for a phone. I really don't need the honour of saying I have the latest Samsung with a fingerprint scanner, TV remote and a cup holder and then pay a premium on top for their decal, I have better things to spend money on than something I will replace in 2 years.
OnePlus One.
As a bit of a tech nerd, who spends a lot of time on mobile phones and gadgets, I've been through my fair share of flagship smartphones from most of the major brands. Some of the more recent being Samsung S4 Active, iPhone 5S (for a short time, couldn't stand the screen size after S4) and the HTC M8 One.
I can admit that all the decent smartphones and operating systems/skins get you from A to B, just in different ways.
Having used a HTC M8 One phone last year, I have come to the realisation that although equivalent Android flagship phones are generally a bit cheaper upon release, iPhones overall hold up better value over time; therefore selling for more when you decide to upgrade.
My HTC experience was quite good, with the speakers and construction materials of the M8 being excellent quality, yet over time the speaker quality diminished (I had used them alot, but within a year you would expect them to last longer.)
When it came to selling the phone i got a third of what it was worth new, at the time i saw iPhones of similar age and condition fetching quite a bit more, this, combined with the stability of apps on iOS compared to android, made me want to try iPhone again. (Androids smash iPhones in raw specifications of processing power and memory, but the stability is compromised due to the number of handsets available; with app developers having to stretch their resources in order to make sure they work on all, which is sometimes not always achieved.)
Upgrading to Android Lollipop on my M8, which took ages to get released by Vodafone; brought about with it some battery and stability issues, which i knew would take ages for a patch to be released, and didn't want to have to put up with it for any longer. (Compared to the ease of upgrades directly through Apple.)
There are negatives of both though, iPhone's are annoying in the way that it locks you down so much to the apple 'ecosystem' of products; lacking some of the ability to share things between different apps or OS's without walls such as iTunes, although they have come a long way (copying a lot of cues from android) - now they have customisable keyboards and bigger screens, which for me now puts them both in a much more even playing field.
Although making fun of the 'futile' fingerprint sensor when it came out on the iPhone 5S, it actually had impressed me quite a lot upon using it and was one of the reasons i revisited iPhone when the 6 came out. I was about to go for the Samsung S6, but having had bad experiences with my S4 active being faulty (compared to the swap and go service of Apple) and knowing that the fingerprint sensor wouldn't work if i flashed the OS to change to a less bloated version of android, ultimately determined my choice between them.
I was at first worried about the battery life of iPhone 6, but it has seemed to last quite easily on my day to day so far, with a battery size increase, as well as the reduced screen resolution and size probably having a bit to do with how its able to save battery (resolution change from 1080p not too noticeable). Apple seems to take into consideration the stuff that matters rather than focusing on pumping up the specs which don't, although a 2gb ram size increase is the only thing i could say would improve the experience slightly more so, yet iOS seems more efficient in handling resources anyway.
In the long run I'd like to see Android advance further, but in a way a part of the 'locked down' ecosystem that Apple has (which is viewed mostly in a negative way) should somewhat be adopted by Google in my opinion, a 'happy medium' of having the ability to run the OS as stock on all Android devices released, as the differences between manufacturers without this option is holding back what Android could eventually take on as a 'standardised' user experience for those who wish to have it! (besides, who actually spends money on the Samsung app store besides people who did it by accident? - lol)
I'm most likely going to keep jumping between the two as i like to see how they both change and improve, and the competition between them is a good thing.
Sorry for wall of text…
TL;DR - Pick the phone you think looks the nicest, or has the coolest features for you. If you are concerned about returns on your purchase at the time of sale, or you are someone who drops their phone a lot, (needs screen replaced often) or wants overall ease of use go with iPhone; If you prefer complete access for customisation and the ability to share across devices and operating systems with ease, go for Android, although I'd recommend waiting to buy second hand or at a reduced price (HTC recommended). I don't consider Windows Mobile OS up to scratch as of yet with the other two, although hopefully it will become a bit more interesting with the release of Windows 10.
Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime because I lost my S4 two days into my trip and it was the only phone at the airport I could afford on my budget.
LG G Pro 2. Bought it last June in the eBay 20% off sale from Kogan. Was tossing up between this and many others, but decided on this because of the specs and huge screen. Previously had a Galaxy S2 which was obviously old and turning to crap, so it was a fantastic upgrade.
I've never known anyone who has bought one of them. How is it?
Last time I checked, it wasn't being sold in Australia, so I haven't known anyone else who has had one either. To me, it is the perfect phone. When I bought it, it had only been released two months earlier, so it was great to have such a new phone. Received Lollipop a while ago. Probably won't be getting 5.1 any time soon, but I'm happy for now with 5.0.1.
Great specs at the time, and I absolutely LOVE the 5.9" screen. Felt a bit big when I got it, because nobody else really had such big screens yet apart from the Notes, but you see heaps more out and about now, especially with the release of the iPhone 6+. It's still a bit big for my girl-hands, so I do require two hands to use it. MicroSD slot and removable battery are both great. I find the camera to be pretty average, but I still like using slow motion video. Great sound and it gets quite loud with the volume right up. Tapping the screen to unlock the device is beyond useful, but if you're carrying your phone in your hand, you can accidentally end up unlocking it and looking down to see yourself trying to call someone in WhatsApp :/ It's a great feature though, and I'm glad it's becoming more popular.
My only gripe is not as many cheap cases on eBay as iPhones, but you get that! I would totally recommend this phone to anyone who wants a phone with a large screen. I'm not looking to upgrade any time soon, whereas I used to drool over every new smartphone that came out. So yeah, sorry for the shitty mini-review - I really do get enthusiastic about this thing!
Currently: Sony Xperia Z2 Previously: Samsung Galaxy S3 i9300, Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S LT18i, Samsung Galaxy Icon i7500, Nokia 2730 Classic
Love the Xperia, it's got an awesome display, best-in-class design, great speakers, waterproofing, an AMAZING camera, great performance and the list goes on. Still better than most phones out there.
and the sony software is great too.
It's absolutely phenomenal, feels very stock with just the right amount of features and design. Love it.
NOKIA 3310……:)
Xiaomi mi4i, good battery, good form factor, decent camera, dual sim cards,actually loud loudspeaker, android lollipop and only cost me about $250 Australian brand new on a trip to China. Highly recommend
dont forget high SAR rating too
Ah wasn't aware of this 'controversy', I'm no radiologist so I'll refrain from comment. Guess we just have to wait and see how soon I die from a brain cancer. But until I do, this is probably the 2nd best phone I've ever owned after the much more expensive HTC One M7.
Elephone P6000. Under $200 and so far very happy with it.
Wow, in the statistic list, where is the ingenious, to-be-world-no-1 Xiaomi phones? Are you kiding me, even Huawei is on the list but Xiaomi? - Speaking for the Xiaomi fans.
I have a Xiaomi Mi4
Samsung Galaxy G6. I used to like the Nexuses but the new one was too big for my paws, so now I am fly like a G6.
$729 was decent at the time (May), but not anymore.
G6 or S6?
Typo. I meant Galaxy S6.
Guess I was thinking about being fly like a G6…
I have a galaxy s4 because I desperately needed a new phone and my friend was happy to sell it to me for $150.
lg google nexus 4 is a nice and ok never stopped working ao did nt think buying orher phones happy bt wanted to upgrade because bored now
Probably the only one who has a Xiaomi Mi4 :P
Nokia Lumia 830. Awesome phone. It's fast, great screen, brilliant camera and does everything I need it too with aplomb.
I have an iPhone 4 as a back up, but it mostly gets used as an iPod since the Windows phone UI is just perfection.
s6 edge …upgraded from a iPhone 4s…I miss my iPhone. The only plus I like on the Samsung is that it has a great camera. A negative is that it likes swimming in the bath. It survived …mostly.
Microsoft Lumia 535. Perfect phone with a perfect price.
iPhone 6 plus because
- I have a MacBook Pro and i like messaging from that too
- I have the apple watch
- family sharing of the App Store account
- FaceTime (especially with tech illiterate family like dad)
- it comes with everything the way I like it out of the box
- when I upgrade my phone, everything syncs to the way I like it on the new one
- it just works
What a waste. $1400 for an iPhone and $2K+ for the Macbook. $10 for the Telstra Cruise I use and $600 for the laptop including the mSATA SSD I stuck in it. Forget about upgrading, when its obsolete next month spend another $1400.
Apple products retain a significant portion of their original value compared to other brands and are remarkably easy to resell so you really aren't comparing "apples to apples."
You have to consider the total cost of ownership. Aside from that, there are many operational benefits to OS X or dual booting both operating systems like I do.
Anything you can do on a $600 computer, I can probably do with my phone. People who buy on price and/or spec rarely value service, the overall experience or the lifecycle of owning the product.
It's not a jab, it's just a different perspective. Eg. New iPhone comes out, if I want it, it'll cost me a couple hundred to upgrade at most which is how it has been for the last 7 years and now $0 thanks to the new Telstra contract
Its a phone. It calls and texts. The end.
samsung galaxy s6, hate it. freezes. dies fast. having problems with cam not focusing right. thinking about getting a LG G4 instead but they have a lot less but a removeable battery , should I replace my phone or wait for a better to come out? I dont know what to do i just know im getting sick of this phone kinda, apps keep closing on me. not sure if its the apps or the phone.
are you running a custom rom? Maybe just try a different Rom or even a vanilla android rom.
Obviously now with the 2nd Galaxy Note 7 saga, Samsung users might dip:-(
Nokia Lumia 530. My Galaxy S3 died suddenly and I'm waiting for my replacement Elephone p3000s to arrive. I'm actually really enjoying the Nokia for the most part though.