smartphone suggestions

[Raptorpat]

I need a new phone, I have a Moto G7 because it was affordable but now I'm consistently butting up against a lack of storage and I think the SIM card is fried so the signal is shit when not connected to wifi. I use it for work, doomscrolling, and like pokemon go, so I don't need a powerhouse that can take hyper-detailed timelapse images of uranus while mining crypto or whatever the heck else phone-centric people do.

I know jack about phone brands etc. so what do y'all like and/or not like?

[UwPp]

I love my galaxies. Never had issues. Never ran out of storage. 

I have the s24+.  

I want the flip 7 though. It's flip phone styled. 

[André Toulon]

moto g stylus. It does what i need it to and i have no clue what anything better offers. 

It was there, it wasn't 600 bucks and it had enough storage for my 3 main games....not much else mattered 

[Raptorpat]

1 hour ago, André Toulon said:

moto g stylus. It does what i need it to and i have no clue what anything better offers. 

It was there, it wasn't 600 bucks and it had enough storage for my 3 main games....not much else mattered 

that was pretty much my logic when I got the g7, which may have been before COVID at this point. basically asked the verizon kid "can it do all the basic smartphone things, and also run "pokemon go?" and the price comparison was just so extreme.

[-Ninja_Jesus-]

I don’t know how to use anything other than an iPhone. Personally I really want the Fold, it looks super cool.

[Insipid]

Just get a Samsung Galaxy. You clearly don't need the ultra, so that saves you several hundred bucks. If you wanna save  a little more and don't need the latest version get the Fan Edition. Anything below that is budget and comes with hardware compromises. Just shell it out. It will last at least 3 years.

[Raptorpat]

that's kind of the bluntness I was hoping for

I'm perusing, the naming conventions for all the different lines and models is completely not helpful which i assume is on purpose. 

 

is buying a phone from like best buy or wherever and showing up with it at verizon preferable to getting it from verizon? my understanding is it's cheaper plus no carrier bloatware. both smartphones I've had I think were from verizon store directly.

[Insipid]

I think you answered your own question if you're gonna call your carrier's apps "bloatware." It can be a hassle for some people to inititialize things, but it seems you have the patience to set it up yourself. I used to do that, back when LG still made phones. My past two Samsung phones have been bought directly from my carrier though.

[Raptorpat]

did you go through the carrier out of convenience and/or some sale?

 

to be clear - things like "bloatware" are my secondhand understand (beyond things I'm not allowed to uninstall on my carrier-provided phones), and I have the capacity to be monumentally stupid

[Insipid]

Mainly out of convenience, I suppose. My carrier is Cricket. They don't allow as many outside phones to accept their SIM cards as they used to 10 years ago. Always make sure your carrier accepts the phone you are buying. If you are gonna buy one of the Samsung Galaxy phones I suggested that are US region based, this won't be an issue. Iphones, although you don't seem to want to become an apple guy, rarely have that issue with carriers too. Outside of those phones, you'll have to do your own research.

You can generally uninstall any bloatware, and you don't really need any specific apps to use a carrier. The SIM card just needs to be accepted. It's not a hard process to set up yourself. If it does seem too confusing, just buy a phone through your carrier.

[molarbear]

3 hours ago, Raptorpat said:

that's kind of the bluntness I was hoping for

I'm perusing, the naming conventions for all the different lines and models is completely not helpful which i assume is on purpose. 

 

is buying a phone from like best buy or wherever and showing up with it at verizon preferable to getting it from verizon? my understanding is it's cheaper plus no carrier bloatware. both smartphones I've had I think were from verizon store directly.

!remindme

Yo! Let me get back to you on this. I believe, this is how my last phone was acquired. 

[Top Gun]

When I needed a cheap-ish phone in a hurry a few years ago I went with a Google Pixel 6a and I've been mostly satisfied. I specifically wanted an unfucked-around-with relatively stock Android experience, because I hated dealing with all the UI bullshit Samsung adds to their stuff whenever I had to help my parents with their phones. Personal mileage may vary though. 

[Raptorpat]

I forgot google even had their own line of phones, which is kind of embarrassing given they are the android people

[1pooh4u]

I just get iPhones they’re easy to use. Easy to update and they’re ideal for me because I don’t have a computer at home. Are they expensive? Yeah kinda but no more expensive than the Galaxy or the top tier Google phones. 
 

I like the iPhone also because they support older models for a while. I had my last phone for like 5 years and upgraded because I needed more storage and not because it was being obsoleted 

[SwimOdin]

I have an iPhone 13  mini. Was a great choice for me at first, but now that the old 40’s and macular degeneration is happening, I can’t see shit.

[ghostrek]

the one that you can get an app so you can corder 50 pizzas to someone you don't like

[1pooh4u]

On 9/8/2025 at 3:17 PM, SwimOdin said:

I have an iPhone 13  mini. Was a great choice for me at first, but now that the old 40’s and macular degeneration is happening, I can’t see shit.

They have bigger models and you can adjust font size on the iPhone 13

*AI generated post*

Yes, the iPhone 13 has a number of built-in accessibility features to make the font and screen easier to see for people with sight impairment.
Here are the primary ways you can make the font bigger:
1. Adjust Text Size and Bold Text
This is the most direct way to change the font size for most apps and system menus.
 * Go to Settings.
 * Tap Display & Brightness.
 * Tap Text Size.
 * Drag the slider to the right to increase the font size.
2. Use Larger Accessibility Sizes
If the standard "Text Size" isn't big enough, there's a setting that allows for even larger text.
 * Go to Settings.
 * Tap Accessibility.
 * Tap Display & Text Size.
 * Tap Larger Text.
 * Turn on the Larger Accessibility Sizes toggle.
 * Use the slider at the bottom of the screen to adjust the font size to your preference.
Other Useful Accessibility Features for Vision
In addition to changing the font size, you can also use other features to improve visibility:
 * Bold Text: This makes the font darker and easier to read. You can find this in Settings > Display & Text Size.
 * Zoom: This feature allows you to magnify the entire screen, acting like a digital magnifying glass. You can find this in Settings > Accessibility > Zoom.
 * Display Zoom: This is a separate setting that enlarges the controls and overall display on the phone, making everything on the screen appear larger. You can find this in Settings > Display & Brightness > Display Zoom.
 * Increase Contrast & Reduce Transparency: These options can make text and on-screen elements more prominent and easier to distinguish from the background.
 * VoiceOver: For those with more significant vision impairment, VoiceOver is a screen reader that speaks aloud everything on the screen, allowing you to use the phone without seeing it.
 * Magnifier: This feature uses the camera on your iPhone to act as a magnifying glass for real-world objects and text. You can add this to your Control Center for quick access.
You can also customize the text size for individual apps if you find that some are harder to read than others. You can do this by adding "Text Size" to your Control Center.
 

[viperxmns]

I started on galaxy and that's what ive been used to

[discolé monade]

honestly...for what i need..i just wait for whatever smart talk/galaxy offer. 

but i want that sleek looking fold phone. 

[rpgamer]

On 9/7/2025 at 10:38 PM, Raptorpat said:

that's kind of the bluntness I was hoping for

I'm perusing, the naming conventions for all the different lines and models is completely not helpful which i assume is on purpose. 

From my last purchase, the important part I remembered, basically just stay away from anything "flagship." The mainline stuff, the things everybody knows because they're the only ones to get all the ad space and shit. For galaxy, that'd be the S series. The number of people that will actually ever utilize the top-of-the-line models to their fullest potential is probably triple digits or less.

I personally like hitting up mid-range models, the A series. Some hardware compromises you'll probably never even notice, saves big money.

Then I think there's some region specific lines you wouldn't need to worry about.

[scoobdog]

My mom has a base iPhone SE and it's lasted five years with only having to replace the camera module.  It will do just about anything you ask of it.  Not sure what the current base model is, but, between the two of us, I've generally done pretty well either iPhones.