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I need a new phone, I'm not a "power user" but the cheapy Moto G31 I bought almost 3 years ago is slowly giving up, for what I paid it's been a solid phone, but it's 4G (and we live right by some shiny new 5G masts that I currently get no benefit from) I'd ideally like wireless charging, and the Moto's battery is on the way out.
Mostly because I'm being diddled for an out of date contract and thus need a new plan, I've been browsing my upgrade options with Vodafone, if I stick with android the pixel 9a looks pretty affordable and is new so should be supported for a while. But I did watch a tear down video the other day where they specifict noted the battery is seriously glued in and therefore a bit hard to replace (which is a slight concern to me these days).
Then I noticed that Vodafone are now offering various refurbished iPhones at similar prices to that new pixel, older yes but all 5G with wireless charging and while I am not an apple fan (quite the opposite) but more than half my family are now apple users, and things like the regular group facetime call might be easier if I wasn't the only one joining via a crappy link on an android device... A bit of a "if you can't beat them join them" thing, plus am I helping that there environment by going refurb?
My main worry is the battery, the website seems to be avoiding any statements that could be interpreted as saying they replace knackered batteries... So would it be mad to opt out of a shiny new android device for an old iPhone (anything from say a 12-14)?
iPhone 13 mini here that I bought 3 years ago as a refurb from gifgaf. Battery showing 85% health. I’m not yet at the point where it can’t cope with normal use (if I was train commuting I might think differently) but when that day comes Apple will do a replacement battery for £80 which I think is a good deal for a guaranteed part rather than some sketchy third party.
im fully onboard with Apple devices (iPhone 13, iPad, Mack book and Mac mini) but for me the benefit with them is you don’t have to do a load of research - their entry level devices are always great value and last for years
When did you last replace a phone battery? I note you're not considering it as an option on your current one. It's simply not an issue, by the time the battery's dead you'll be wanting a new handset anyway. Plus there are many, many options for external batteries.
What I'd do - indeed, what I did - is sack off a lengthy contract, get a Pixel Du Jour directly from Google (you can pay on the drip) and get a SIM from somewhere like Smarty (I can give you a referral code for free stuff).
5g is crap IME
A new Pixel 9A user here. I'm mnawh about it. The battery life is so much better than my outgoings Samsung S21, but the screen seems a bit unresponsive sometimes, and it acts a bit weirdly with Spotify on occasion. Still, I did get it for her haw with a boosted trade in on my S21 directly from Google.
5g is crap IME
In my experience it certainly seems to be, yes. I've had a 5g phone and contract for about 2.5 years and so far , while travelling all over the UK, have only had a 5g signal 4 times, and then I didn't notice any difference to a reasonable 4g
Got Mrs Epic a refurbed Samsung from Samsung Official and thinking I might do same as my battery is looking a bit dodge
When did you last replace a phone battery? I note you're not considering it as an option on your current one. It's simply not an issue, by the time the battery's dead you'll be wanting a new handset anyway. Plus there are many, many options for external batteries.
What I'd do - indeed, what I did - is sack off a lengthy contract, get a Pixel Du Jour directly from Google (you can pay on the drip) and get a SIM from somewhere like Smarty (I can give you a referral code for free stuff).
I'm not keen to stump up £500+ today, I've done the whole buy a phone outright and have a SIM out of contract thing for a bit, I'm not just replacing the battery because the phone has other aging and obsolescence issues and I want some specific features I'd get with the phones I'm looking at under contract, I'm not in contract at present, hence they're just ripping me off monthly to month and I need to either bin Vodafone or pick a new deal so I might as well go another round, to get a decent phone on tick this time rather than another cheap one, laziness is prompting me to not bother looking beyond skodafone TBH but these offers have piqued my interest enough...
As for the battery replacements, it's more me thinking about when this issue comes back round, right to repair and all that, last phone I bothered to replace a battery on was a Galaxy S2 I think, when the backs still came off and phones weren't all glued together, that must have been about 15+ years ago(?), are we not supposed to be trying to reduce our E-waste (while still being good little consumers).
Actually, I've just logged into smarty (I pay for a SIM for my youngest) and the deals are pretty good, not only that they've got a partnership 'reboxed' for refurbed phones, I'm now very tempted to bin Skodafone for a 12 mini and a smarty SIM...
Actually, I've just logged into smarty (I pay for a SIM for my youngest) and the deals are pretty good, not only that they've got a partnership 'reboxed' for refurbed phones, I'm now very tempted to bin Skodafone for a 12 mini and a smarty SIM...
I changed my sim to a call & data only one a few years back - It's usualy the way to go. I'm still on a contract butwithout the price of the phone rolled up into the contact costs, I just buy a new phone cash, whenever now.
Make sure you take what network works best in your area into consideration (Smarty uses Three).
Surprised to hear people say they don't get an advantage out of 5G. On EE I get a good 5G signal in most places. It's the improved latency over 4G that makes the most difference, but the higher speed is nice to have.
I’m an iphone user but not sure how i got here. But here are a few factors
I had one sit in the rain for 4 days then got run over by a lawn mower. It worked for another year. A friend is a swimming instructor. She takes photos under water with an iPhone, without a case
I’ve just checked. Apple could not be more transparent about replacement battery costs. I see that as a plus even though it’s not cheap
https://support.apple.com/en-gb/iphone/repair/battery-replacement
I’m using a 4 year old iPhone 11 Pro - bought as a refurb, still going strong. Mrs DB has a 12 mini again all good. Mine gets regularly dunked sea kayaking and I even take underwater shots. Fully committed to Apple with 2x MacBooks, iPad and 2x iPhones - it just works, storing and sharing stuff across the cloud.
Yep, total about face in the space of an afternoon, 2nd smarty SIM has just been ordered, PUC obtained from Vodafone, I'm definitely binning them and probably ordering a refurb iPhone 12 or 13 mini once the number is moved over...
Youngest has had her Data bumped by me cos there was a deal on (I told her she'd been really good lately), Eldest Daughter is still on Vodafone (with an iPhone 11) and I've told her she'll be moving over soon, the Boss is still being utterly diddled by O2 (yet again on an iPhone 11), Once I've proved to her smarty works she'll be getting moved across I think...
I'm on Voxi (Vodafone) and have pixel 8pro. I'm happy. £12 a month for 75gb of data and the usual unlimited calls and socials etc. other deals may be better / cheaper.
I got my phone on 0% PayPal credit and I'm paying it off awee bit quicker.
Less than a contract. I'm happy
If you’re looking at refurbs check out the Apple refurb store. They have the advantage that they will basically be a new phone. They don’t always have that many but worth taking a look.
I see that as a plus even though it’s not cheap
I don’t think it’s *too* expensive when you take in to account the cost of the battery itself and presumably at least 30mins to change it.
Although wouldn’t it be easier to just go back to the old way of removable batteries!
I would go Apple if you have other Apple devices or family members on Apple ie for photo sharing etc
Otherwise it’s price and which is the easiest to use ?
Refurbed 12 mini here through Backmarket. Then a sim only contract through iD. Much, much cheaper than an all in one contract.
Mind you, I'm a long term Apple phone, laptop, tablet user.
I'm using a refurb iPhone 13 that we got on the insurance after my wife lost hers. Been absolutely fine, battery lasts all day easily enough.
My wife has been an Apple fan for years where as I went though Blackberry's, Windows Phone, Samsung, etc before ending up with one of her hand me downs. Fully converted now, they just work and connect so easily to every other Apple product. Not a fanboy by any means but I like technology the quietly goes about its business. Seem to last too as we just set up an X for my son that was originally my wife's, then mine and now his. Still works as it should.
If you’re looking at refurbs check out the Apple refurb store...
I did but they seem to be the absolute most expensive option for a refurbished iPhone, and they also don't seem to have anything older than a 14 and I'm well down the rabbit hole with 12/13 minis now.
Back market seem good, they're the only ones I've seen so far (apart from Apple of course) who give the option of a new battery. Which I'm tempted to take up.
Move to Talk Mobile. It's Vodafone.
Take SIM only deal.
Buy a refurb Pixel handset.
Job jobbed.
(He says, typing on Talk Mobile & Pixel)
Pixel 9a.
OP: one thing you may not have factored in is the faff-factor of moving ecosystem. It sucks, but it's true that where Android-> Android is actually relatively painless as these things go, apart from setting up any custom apps you may have; Android-iPhone is an absolute bollock - there is no "easy transfer" option, and you will manually have to transfer over contacts, email preferences, photos, etc etc etc.
there is no "easy transfer" option
Does "Move to iOS" not work?
OP: one thing you may not have factored in is the faff-factor of moving ecosystem.
I kind of have, I don't believe any of the apps I currently have on android are unavailable on IOS, I'm not that much of a niche user.
I already have an apple ID from owning an iPod and using iTunes, that should be able to just carry over right?... It's just an afternoon firing up, logging into and configuring a new phone right? There's a level faff in all of these choices. And I can always go back to an android device if I really want later.
In fact another part of the appeal of going to a mini is perhaps opting for less storage space so I'm not so easily distracted with lots of apps on a big screen, wishful thinking I know but I sort of miss having a basic pocketable phone, with fewer distractions, I might just keep it simple, Connect/Strava for cycling stuff, try to stick to YouTube and BBC sounds perhaps, sort out the basics for apple wallet, WhatsApp because that's the messaging app of choice for my whole family as well as most of my friends, and then I don't actually need much more on a phone really.
I don't strictly even need to use car play, the built in satnav is pretty good and I discovered the other day I can just jam a thumb drive full of MP3 files in and it'll happily play them. Oh and the car has wireless charging too, hence the want for a phone that can juice up on the go...
Yeah, I just don't need to spunk £500+ over the course of a contract (tied to incremental price hikes for airtime), I am sort of OK with giving apple a go, there's always a way back if really don't like it, this old android phone can just go in a drawer once the new (old) one turns up...
Like I said a total about face this weekend, replacement SIM is coming and the number switch over is already scheduled...
Why a Pixel?
I have a Pixel 8 when there was a PSA on here a year ago and won't be getting another one unless it's another really spectacular deal.
Considering it's Google's flagship android product, I've had better experiences with off-brand Chinese phones. So many apps just don't quite work. Not in a world ending way, but facebook/instagram reels will get stuck halfway off the screen, click on a picture it goes fullscreen and then can't be exited, Garmin connect is slightly flaky (especially on old devices). The screen isn't quite as sensitive /accurate as other phones. For the first 6 months or so the camera app was unusably bad, and it still produces the occasional AI assisted long exposure abomination because someone at google decided it couldn't just work like a normal camera and record what was in each pixel.
I've not been an apple user since the days of iPods, but my next phone when I break this one will probably either be back to Samsung or an iPhone. I think the deciding factor will be if the android ecosystem can come up with a better implementation of airtags or not because I like the idea of being able to keep an eye on bikes / motorbikes or find my keys!
Just bear in mind support for older phones and how long that lasts (whether Androi or Apple). Worth going 13 mini rather than 12 mini to get a longer update / support period.
13 mini is the last sensible size iPhone - I’ve just got rid of mine for a 16 and it’s a chunk bigger in your pocket. That said whilst it’s a bit whizzier it’s not a game changer over the 13 mini really for what I use it for.
Pixel 9a.
OP: one thing you may not have factored in is the faff-factor of moving ecosystem. It sucks, but it's true that where Android-> Android is actually relatively painless as these things go, apart from setting up any custom apps you may have; Android-iPhone is an absolute bollock - there is no "easy transfer" option, and you will manually have to transfer over contacts, email preferences, photos, etc etc etc.
The only thing I had any trouble with going from Android to Apple was moving text messages - I can’t remember if I found anything to do it with or just binned them. (I did back them all up to my Gmail account using SMS Backup just incase).
I still use Google calendar, Gmail and contacts with the iPhone so no faff moving any of that.
Passwords have been slowly moved across from Google to Apple but you can run them side by side until you get to that stage. (Maybe you can import them all these days, it was a few years ago).
Anything less important just sort out as you get to it, usually it’s just logging back in.
It’s really not bad these days, I imagine going back the other way would be easy enough too?
Oh and photos I have moved across too now, but that was more an exercise in backing up loads of photos iCloud. You can still carry on using Google photos too.
It's been mentioned, but there is a specific Apple app for Android called "Move to iOS" to aid transfer of data;
https://www.apple.com/uk/iphone/switch/
https://support.apple.com/en-gb/118670
Aha, well that saves that headache then! 👍
I bought my wife the Pixel 9A last week. I traded in her old Pixel 6 Pro and got €160 off, plus I got a Fitbit Charge 6 free 🙂
So far she is delighted with it.
Well it's done.
13 mini ordered.
Next task is installing Move to IOS.
Cheers all.
I still use Google calendar
Back before I lived with a technophobe luddite, I looked into "shared calendars" at great length and tried multiple solutions. My then-partner had an iPhone. The one thing that worked with literally everything from Outlook to Android to iOS to the Web was Google Calendar.
Well I'm about 30 hours in with the refurbed 13 Mini and I'm very pleased.
The migration from Android went pretty smoothly, 'Move to IOS' helped a lot, but I have lots of apps associated accounts and passwords, and a few have already been culled, I'll look at the usage in a month or two and cull any that aren't really being utilized I think.
It's zippy and nice to use, despite being a refurb the battery life seems pretty solid.
The smaller size was exactly what I wanted and it is so much more pocketable, better for cycling use (IMO), although I might worry a smidge about damaging it in a tumble. It's much easier to use one handed.
It charges well enough in the car, however being small it has moved off the profiled charging mat (which is clearly designed for current ~6.7"phones), I might need to come up with a solution to help positioning I think.
Battery is lasting me well and I have a cheapy Magsafe compatible powerbank coming tomorrow to see how that extends things for heavy use days out and about.
Smarty swap over is next week, sim is already registered. I'm so glad I didn't sign up for another over priced 2 year(+) contract with Vodafone, I'm going to be saving hundreds and have a better (for me) phone...