I went with the 2GB. Only problem is, its already back ordered like 3-4 weeks. My has a ship date of Aug 25th :-(
pay for the extra $.... it's worth it (phone will last longer before you feel like upgrading.... if you are going to upgrade in a year or two, then maybe not)
as for moto g 3rd gen vs zenfone 2:
moto g - water resistant, looks like better battery life (need more reviews/test), less skin/bloat and more dev friendly, better for use on T-mobile
zenfone 2: higher res display, processor
As for stock Android, that's opinion and I for one think it's overrated
Water resistant... eh, who cares?
The ZenFone is clearly superior of the two, but eh.
More dev friendly is debatable.
I gave (mostly) facts... you (and other people) can give their opinion
(I have no opinion on this issue)
Less skin /bloat is a true fact... I didn't say its better ui with less skinLOL, sure... it's the other way around, dear. Your argument of better UI is as subjective as they come. Higher resolution, bigger display is not. Neither is 3x faster processor.
BTW Motorola removed band 12 support from the moto g specs page... (due to no VoLTE support.... 911 calls won't go through properly if you only have band 12 LTE)
Looks like T-Mobile got their way... Sigh
Less skin /bloat is a true fact... I didn't say its better ui
Some people do like touchwiz
I was referring more of bloatware... (Removable, but still a hassle)That depends on whether you can define the additional things as bloat. Some people find 'em useful. Again, subjective.
You can use that argument and I can just as easily say ZenUI has a much better quick settings and battery management system/app.
I was referring more of bloatware... (Removable, but still a hassle)
Anyways, my whole point was that I was reporting facts... Whatever...
You can root it and remove all of it if you don't like it as well. Or you can take stock Android and add features with different ROMs. It's not like you're forced to have to use it.
BTW Motorola removed band 12 support from the moto g specs page... (due to no VoLTE support.... 911 calls won't go through properly if you only have band 12 LTE)
Looks like T-Mobile got their way... Sigh
Can someone please tell me how is the gaming experience with 2Gb version
But the issue is that it exists and for SOME people that is a bad thing.
Why?
Because it means FOR CERTAIN that OS updates will take longer than they would on stock AOSP devices because the manufacturer now has to redo every future version of Android to have those same "features" or risk confusing their user base. That is why it takes Samsung or HTC or anything not a Nexus or GPe so long to roll out OS updates. They have to redo the quick toggles every time (plus more).
I completely agree with your point that not all people like stock Android. I would go so far to say it's INAPPROPRIATE for most people, as AOSP has some rough edges that a Touchwiz chops off. But for those who value stock Android it isn't really about if the extra "skin" is worthwhile, the issue is that ANYTHING that delays updates is seen as a negative. Anything a skin gives us we can get for ourselves in an app or something like Xposed.
The "you can root it" argument doesn't really fly because even the BEST third party CM roms aren't as solid as say a Nexus rom. There really isn't a replacement for recompiling the needed binary drivers for the proper version of the Linux kernel you are using. Only the manufacturer can do that.
They always take longer if they're not Nexus devices. No matter if they have a near-stock version. Always..
Some people also don't care about OS updates; ask average Joe and I'm sure 80% of them would tell you they don't notice or don't care. .
Nowadays most updates are very incremental in what they do: some bug fixes here and there, maybe a slightly different menu for settings or something else. In short, it's not as substantial as it used to be two-three years ago... not by a longshot..
What you say isn't really that clear-cut when you look at it rationally.