Suggestions for Android phone

[fuzzymath10]

My contract is up for renewal (Telus, Canada), and I have the opportunity to choose a new phone. I've been a Blackberry user for ages (9700, 9900, Z10) and am very comfortable and satisfied with their layout, design, UI, etc. I have used both iOS and Android devices (tablets and phones) but am largely unfamiliar with the landscape, other than cursory glances at reviews mostly from this website. I'm doing research as we speak but would welcome forum opinions.

The options are as follows (prices are $Canadian for a 2 year contract)

HTC M9 32GB, $200
Galaxy S6 32GB, $250 (+$110/$220 for 64GB/128GB)
Galaxy S6 Edge 32GB, $350 (+$110/$220 for 64GB/128GB)
Galaxy S5 16GB, $100
Sony Z3 16GB, $100
Blackberry Classic 16GB, $50
Blackberry Passport 32GB, $200
HTC M8 32GB, $100
Nexus 6 32GB, $280
Nokia Lumia 830 16GB, $50
Nexus 5 16GB, $0

Key priorities for me are daylight visibility of screen, battery life, ability to fit in pant pocket, and still camera quality in no particular order. Nice to have would be memory card slot, drive letter access, wireless charging, and micro HDMI. I'm not big on games (byproduct of Blackberry) so my guess is that raw performance is not a big priority.

In case it matters, my computers and tablet are all Windows and I rely heavily on Google products.

 

[Zaap]

Personally I love the S6 Edge more than any other phone on that list. Its just such a sweet device. IMO the most impressive/best looking smartphone currently available. The only reason I don't have one is the Note 4 was a much better fit for my personal needs. But I still wish I had a reason to own an S6e.

Of course if you need SD slot or removable battery then look elsewhere. (Not sure yet I can give those up as I make use of them every day. I keep tons of work files on my phone on SD card, and a rem.battery is a no-brainer to me.)

But I think the S6 has built in wireless charging which has made me care a lot less about the removable battery. (added it to Note 3 and 4).

If I were going to give up my SD/rem battery, the S6e is virtually the only phone I'd consider it for based solely on the weight of just how damn good it looks and feels in hand.

Also, I can't say anything about the non-Samsung choices as I'm not up on any of them.

 

[paperwastage]

From the list, scratch off

Nexus 5 (poor battery life/camera)
S5 (S6 is better)
HTC M8 (s6 is better in every way)
HTC M9 (s6 is better in every way)
Nokia Lumia 830 (this is a midrange phone, and not android, bad if you want google services)


What's left

(Front runners- well rounded in everything except microSD/ removable battery)
Galaxy S6 32GB, $250 (+$110/$220 for 64GB/128GB)
Galaxy S6 Edge 32GB, $350 (+$110/$220 for 64GB/128GB)

(If you want microSD...)
Sony Z3 16GB, $100

(If you want physical keyboard)
Blackberry Classic 16GB, $50
Blackberry Passport 32GB, $200

(If you like to tinker with no bloatware)
nexus 6(probably too big to fit into people's pants)

 

[soccerballtux]

My contract is up for renewal (Telus, Canada), and I have the opportunity to choose a new phone. I've been a Blackberry user for ages (9700, 9900, Z10) and am very comfortable and satisfied with their layout, design, UI, etc. I have used both iOS and Android devices (tablets and phones) but am largely unfamiliar with the landscape, other than cursory glances at reviews mostly from this website. I'm doing research as we speak but would welcome forum opinions.

The options are as follows (prices are $Canadian for a 2 year contract)

HTC M9 32GB, $200
Galaxy S6 32GB, $250 (+$110/$220 for 64GB/128GB)
Galaxy S6 Edge 32GB, $350 (+$110/$220 for 64GB/128GB)
Galaxy S5 16GB, $100
Sony Z3 16GB, $100
Blackberry Classic 16GB, $50
Blackberry Passport 32GB, $200
HTC M8 32GB, $100
Nexus 6 32GB, $280
Nokia Lumia 830 16GB, $50
Nexus 5 16GB, $0

Key priorities for me are daylight visibility of screen, battery life, ability to fit in pant pocket, and still camera quality in no particular order. Nice to have would be memory card slot, drive letter access, wireless charging, and micro HDMI. I'm not big on games (byproduct of Blackberry) so my guess is that raw performance is not a big priority.

In case it matters, my computers and tablet are all Windows and I rely heavily on Google products.

LG G2 is your best bang for buck from ebay/slickdeals when it goes on sale for $190 IF you can get on a no-contract MVNO plan. since you're in Canada, that might not exist. We have Straight Talk, for example

 

[soccerballtux]

Personally I love the S6 Edge more than any other phone on that list. Its just such a sweet device. IMO the most impressive/best looking smartphone currently available. The only reason I don't have one is the Note 4 was a much better fit for my personal needs. But I still wish I had a reason to own an S6e.

Of course if you need SD slot or removable battery then look elsewhere. (Not sure yet I can give those up as I make use of them every day. I keep tons of work files on my phone on SD card, and a rem.battery is a no-brainer to me.)

But I think the S6 has built in wireless charging which has made me care a lot less about the removable battery. (added it to Note 3 and 4).

If I were going to give up my SD/rem battery, the S6e is virtually the only phone I'd consider it for based solely on the weight of just how damn good it looks and feels in hand.

Also, I can't say anything about the non-Samsung choices as I'm not up on any of them.

so I got one of these for my LG G2 since I had the Nexus 5 and didn't want to give up Qi wireless charging:

http://smile.amazon.com/BLUBOON-Uni...32186495&sr=8-1&keywords=qi+charging+microusb


that said, having put in a $10 wireless charger in front of the coffee table in front of TV where I set, and one to the left of my keyboard, I'm basically never without charging. I had to move back to my Nexus 5 for a couple days because I broke the screen and ... I don't use my phone as much, but I did get down to 30% several times and was able to take back up to like 90% each time just by nature of what I was doing.

So: mindless wireless charging any time you're at the desk or at the TV, solves the weak-battery problem of the Nexus 5.

 

[soccerballtux]

The M9, the S6, the Nexus 6 are the most future proof. The Nexus 6 is too darn large. The Your Nexus 5 option is going to be limited on storage, which matters because you guys don't get lots of data, which is a problem if you want to use the cloud. So you probably don't want to use the cloud probably want to take music with you, so 32GB is a must without an SDcard, or 16GB and having an SDcard.

 

[zerogear]

If you want the latest -- M9 if you want SD Card
S6 if you don't
S6 if you want a great camera (Though beat out by LG G4)

HTC One M8 and Sony Xperia Z3 are about on-par -- as they both have SD Card support -- M8 has superior front speakers, but Z3 is waterproof -- so its up to you which is more important

 

[Commodus]

As one of the Canucks here: I'd seriously look at the Xperia Z3.

The GS6 is the better phone in most ways, and definitely get it if you like it, but the battery life isn't that great. It's fine if you don't thrash your phone hard, but if you do, it goes downhill quickly. The Z3 is good all around, but its battery life is superb. Just be sure to hold it in your hand and otherwise give it a try before you use it. It's a fairly hard-edged design, and not everyone likes that.

 

[fuzzymath10]

I recently broke/destroyed my Z10 in a bout of frustration so I made a move and decided on the LG G4. $100 cheaper than the S6 (much less the Edge) and get to keep microsd and a removable battery (which have been blackberry staples for ages).

Any thoughts on the wireless charging situation? It seems LG made it especially confusing for the G4 and I'm somewhat eager to experiment with it since I usually get a case for my phone anyway.

 

[Dulanic]

Any thoughts on the wireless charging situation? It seems LG made it especially confusing for the G4 and I'm somewhat eager to experiment with it since I usually get a case for my phone anyway.

Not a huge fan of what they did with the G4 in that aspect myself. But the phone is great. Just get a $10 sticker on amazon. That's what we did with my wife's G4.

http://phandroid.com/2015/07/08/how-to-add-wireless-charging-to-any-lg-g4-for-just-10/

 

[Zahid Iqbal]

Galaxy S6 Edge 32GB choose this