I’m looking at buying a new mobile. My old one (an LG G3) is getting very flaky, and I fancy a change. I like gadgets, and I want something that’s going to last a few years. I also don’t want to spend a small fortune (but I don’t mind spending a bit).

I’m looking at something in the c£300 price range. For that I can get a Nokia 7 Plus which looks pretty decent – 64mb of storage plus 4gb ram is a little low, but it takes an SD card so that’s fine, and the processor is upper mid range which should be good for most stuff (apart from top end games) for a good while. It has a good big screen, acceptable camera and runs Android One which is a bit plus in terms of updated.

But. If I go to a Chinese seller like eGlobal, I can get the new Xiaomi Mi A2 with 128gb and 6gb and the same processor for £230, and I’d be unlikely to need an SD card (which could then go in my Faux Pro to replace the one that flew away in my drone). So a big saving AND a slightly higher spec phone. No headphone jack but it comes with an adaptor so I can live with that, and it doesn’t have NFC but I’ve never used Android Pay so not too fussed there either.

Option 3 is to push the budget a bit and get something like a Mi Mix 2 with 128gb / 6gb (or even the 8gb special edition) for around £325. No SD card slot but it does have NFC and – more importantly – a fairly current 835 chipset, which should run higher end games and such a lot better. Or I could get a 64gb Mix 2 for £260, but I’d worry about running out of storage there – I currently have a 64gb card that’s nigh on full, but then do I really need to carry that much music around with me?

There’s not really a question here, just wondering out loud… But input / experiences (of these phones or other options) is much appreciated.

Nokia 7 is on the Android One programme, isn’t it?  That’d be a compelling reason to go for it for me.  I recently got a Nokia 6.1, the camera is a bit weak and the fingerprint reader is awkward, other than that it’s about perfect, I can’t really fault it.

Yep, both the 7 Plus and the Xiaomi A2 are on Android One, which is definitely a big plus point for me.

I’m not one for tinfoil-hat conspiracy theories but I’d be ever-so-slightly wary about buying a wholly Chinese phone, given the volume of personal data that goes through them and the Chinese government’s attitude towards controlling its populace.  Plus, it wouldn’t be the first time a manufacturer did something dodgy.

Slightly hypocritical perhaps as I have a Huawei smartwatch, though I’d hope I could trust what is the world’s largest smartphone manufacturer after Samsung.  Hm.

Reviews on the Nokia 7 aren’t hugely favourable, there’s a big reason I didn’t buy one but can’t remember what. I’d advise against Xiaomi phones that aren’t on Android one. Miui (their OS) isn’t very good, unless you buy from somewhere reputable you also fish having an unofficial rom on it which means no updates among other things. I was looking last week (replacing a Mi5 I feel off my bike into) and I’ve wound up with an honor 10, I’m happy with it.

Yeah, I’m well aware of the risks of buying from China. I’ve no experience with MIUI so it’s interesting to hear you’re not a fan. I definitely prefer ‘clean’ Android, which has put me off Huawei and Honor in the past (amongst others) – how are you finding it? The GPS issues put me off a little bit too.

The main negatives I’ve found about the 7 Plus are the camera (especially the bokeh mode, which I really couldn’t care less about and the low light performance) but I reckon it’ll still be a step up from my old G3, and I usually have a proper camera with me anyway. Also mixed things about the battery, some seem to say it’s great, some rubbish.

I have a Mi A1, it’s fantastic for the money, no way I’d buy anything for the name again. I’m not sure the Chinese government are spying on me, or if android one would even allow them to spy on me if they wanted to. I think it’s far more likely the ones that come with manufacturer supplied android with all the crap bundled are likely to be dodge.

Huawei Mate 10 pro with 128gb/6gb can be had from CPW for £339, a bit over budget but the RRp when released was twice that!

You might need to sign up for a 1 month contract but cancel that asap. Even with the ~£15 added for the contract its a cracking deal on a great phone. Battery life is exemplary and the Leica camera takes great photos.

https://www.carphonewarehouse.com/huawei/mate-10-pro.deal.html

I definitely prefer ‘clean’ Android, which has put me off Huawei and Honor in the past (amongst others) – how are you finding it?

I’ve hidden all the honor apps and changed settings to be like stock, I also use Nova launcher on any phone anyway and that’s running fine.

Might have to have a closer look at Huawei / Honor then. Though I’m not keen on the contract / cancel as I’m trying to build my credit rating at the moment!

At that budget I would favour an older Samsung like a S7 Edge. It can prove cheaper through a contract too.

The Honor version of the Mate 10, the View 10, is £349, probably some Quidco cashback and £15 off if you can be bothered to subscribe to which and cancel it.

https://www.appliancesdirect.co.uk/p/51092cpx/honor-51092cpx-view-10-smartphone?tduid=02909c6d53c808295ed166fb47501dea&utm_source=digidip+UK_2142931&utm_medium=tradedoubler

Might be worth looking at CEX for second hand stuff. I wanted a phone with a good camera, and got a mint quality 64Gb Pixel 2 for £400, which is £200 less than the new retail price. Latest version pure Android, and the phone was in perfect condition, still in the box with all the bits.

That’s more than your budget, but they had cheaper options available, depending on the second hand quality, and lots of other models.

Carphone Warehouse has got the Honor 9 Lite for £149 at the moment.

Save come cash? Still going to get Android P apparently.

https://www.laptopsdirect.co.uk/refurbished-google-pixel-quite-black-5-32gb-unlocked-sim-free-a2-g-2pw4100-32blk/version.asp

I’ve been down the buying from China route, I was a big LG fan, and I’ve bought three this way, but the last one played up and the warranty is only 90 days, was just over that. So I lost out big time, So I’ve gone back to the Amazon Motorola Moto G series as they work so well and have a better warranty.

I bought a refurbed googled pixel XL for around £300 a few months back and I’ve been well impressed with the interface and camera. Also a fan of how well it sinks with google docs/chrome on my computer. Seems durable as well given my prior history of never having a phone last more than 18 months before destruction.

Not impressed with my girlfriend’s Huawei P9, which felt like a big step and similar to a samsung S5 in terms of feel and speed. Definitely feels cheap to touch and the battery degraded fast. The dual lens camera is superb though.

I’ve had the Nokia 7 plus since launch (May). Very happy with it overall, although I’ve managed to smash the screen already. The only negative I’ve encounted so far is that it’s quite a heavy lump, which I think might have contributed to the screen smashing (it flew out of my trousers whilst putting them on, I think a lighter phone might have stayed put). I’ve read about the camera not being great but it hasn’t been an issue for me and I’ve not noticed, but I don’t take many photos. Ref the battery, the LCD screen aint that bright so it needs to be cranked up IMO, so battery life can be very good but not if you have to crank the brightness up, I still get a good day+ with regular use or easily two days with just occasional usage.

Android one (which I’d never heard of until now) looks a bit gimmicky. I guess the intent is the security / OS updates, but as far as i know that’s mostly been addressed via project treble from 8.0 onwards (https://source.android.com/devices/architecture/) which means the main draw of Android One is dead in the water AFAICS.

I’d much rather have a better phone without that (I’ve always thought Nokia’s etc are a bit shit).

Personally I’d stay away from imports for a mixture of reasons (they seem good value but think of difficulties returning if it goes wrong, customs, elevated perceived risk of malware). I’m using the 2017 Galaxy A5. It’s great and does everything I need it to. It’s also a good size for a phone it’s not a slab. I don’t need to root the device either.

I got a grade C Google Pixel off laptopsdirect for £150 last week.

In great condition, I couldn’t tell it wasn’t new other than no box or charger.

Great phone and am on Android P already and is actually really good. Normally I don’t care, but the UI is noticeably better

I was fairly dead set on a pixel v1 but it wasn’t waterproof which put me off a bit (biking routinely in the pissing rain it’s going to get wet and probably die).

The Samsung phones seemed to have better screens at the time, were waterproof and the build quality felt far superior in comparison.

I happen to work as an app developer and therefore a number of physical devices grace my desk from time to time. The pixel 2 is blisteringly fast however the build quality still isn’t as solid imo.

Basically, £3-400 should get you a good phone. I would highly recommend deciding what features you need and actually demo different phones in a physical shop before deciding on one. It’s easy to critique specs etc online but sensors, cameras, build quality are easier to compare if you have the devices in front of you. So I’d recommend paying the £X carphone whorehouse tax and get something you’re definitely happy with rather than gambling with an online purchase.

the main draw of Android One is dead in the water

Whilst you’re right about Treble, a) that doesn’t mean devs will be any more proactive just because it’s easier, it’s a good foundation but it’ll take a couple of generations for them to catch up, and b) the other side of A1 is to present a clean implementation of Android without bloatware.

It’s essentially allowing OEMs to act like Google.  Something people are prepared to pay a large premium for.  Far from being dead in the water, I expect Android One to Apple-ise Android in terms of conformity.

But yes.  Project Treble is a Big Deal.

I asked a similar question a few weeks back and went for the Honor (not the view model) 10, and am very pleased with it so far with the exception of taking several screenshots a day due to the location of the power and volume buttons. I didn’t really like the default launcher so I’m using Evie, the camera with the AI function is superb.

Android pay / nfc should be an essential requirement for you  Cash and wallets seem a right pita once you start using android pay.

Bike, phone, ride, coffee and cake, pay and repeat

Well, I managed to bag a Mate 10 Pro for £350 in the eBay 15% offer. Seemed worth the extra over the Honor 10 / View 10 for the improved lenses, better battery life and better screen. Hopefully I’ll be able to tweak EMUI to my liking, but I’m fairly sure it’ll be a big step up from my old G3 anyway.

Moto G6 Amazon version – £240 for Android Oreo, 64GB and 4GB RAM, good battery, great cameras. Very clean, all round great performance OS wise.  Yes at that price point you can always find some other phone that is better in one or two areas, but not overall.

Unlocked Dual SIM and SD slot (not often found)

No worry about warranty issues and all that too.

Hopefully I’ll be able to tweak EMUI to my liking

I put a different launcher on my honor and it feels completely different now. Only annoyance is that it resets the default launcher on upgrades (it seems to get one every couple of weeks).

News on Moto phones that the G5’s won’t get Pie .

Could be a good time to buy a G6 – single Sim £199 on Amazon currently .

I’ve a new work G6 and while OK, it’s got a couple of minor issues. The YouTube app constantly buffers and the camera response is slow. I’m not feeling the love unlike my old G3.

Suggest me a: compact, water resistant & robust, good camera and as close to stock android as possible phone, on a budget…. So far I’m thinking Moto X4 or Xperia XZ2 compact…

I have a Xiaomi MiA1 and it is a great phone, camera, OS, build quality, storage etc. I wouldn’t hesitate to buy another.

I have heard less than positive things about eGlobal. Do a search on them and see how comfortable you are with purchasing from them.

I bought my Xiaomi from their Spanish retailer, so at least it is being purchased in EU.

Moto Gs are always good.

MI A1 here too – great budget phone but some downsides:

– The regular Google One upgrades are slow to reach it. Just got Oreo 8.1 last month.

– The camera has no image stabilizer and is not as good as my old vodaphone smart ultra 6 (which to be fair was a hell of a good phone and camera)

– Google are more likely to be spying on me than the Chinese government.

Just to add balance to the Moto G6 love, mine was pants – poor mic, laggy and slow camera. I’d been using a 5S for previous few years so hardly a fussy sort but it was worse in all areas. And it’s effin’ massive.

Got a new pixel for £200 off ebay and it’s unbelievably good (apart from the first one which had a duff fingerprint reader).

My G5 was annonigly laggy and camera was mediocre. Battery barely made it to 7pm

This Pixel cost less and is much better

X

Could be a good time to buy a G6 – single Sim £199 on Amazon currently.

Dual sim available from John Lewis for the same.

Quite happy with mine, though as my first smartphone I have little to compare with. Battery life is better than I had expected and it charges very quickly compared with my friend’s phones.

I moved from g3 to an xz2 compact. It’s OK, but the ui isn’t as good as the g3. It’s also a bit bloaty.

On the bright side, it’s small and waterproof