That’s cool I don’t blame you. I guess the only reason it doesn’t bother me is because I fix them all day long lol. I know what to look for and I know how to fix it.
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My old Pixel can only go about 30 minuets on battery, and since Google will only do 3 years of support on their phones, they are not worth the price. I can wait a bit for the price to drop, but then I get even less support.
I got a Moto Action One. Headphone jack and 128GB of storage, only been a day with it and so far it is good. Still on the Dec 2019 update, but at least it will still get them.
Wife loves LG phones, but her unlocked G6 will not get updates since LG only deals with the carriers to push them out, and AT&T only pushes out updates for their phone models not unlocked models. T-Mo just does not push out any updates. Will have to try a Verizon SIM next and see if they will update an unlocked phone. If not, then her next phone will not be LG. Being stuck on Oct 2018 update is unacceptable.
I gave iPhone serious thought, but the lack of configuration is just idiotic. Yes, more secure, but less usable. I love my widgets.
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I have an unlocked Samsung S8 and I have prepaid ATT. I get my monthly security updates.
They are about a month behind, but I get them. They used to be 1x per quarter, but it got better since last fall. Now, it’s about 1x per month. But, I just am not getting the newest android upgrade because Samsung decided that only the S9 and newer phones will get that update.
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That is pretty common with Samsung to only update a phone for 2 android versions The S8 started on android 7 and got to android 9 the S9 started on android 8 and now has android 10 so it will probably not get anymore OS updates but continue to get security updates.
Rooting is a possibility and they always make unofficial android updates for them when the updates stop.
I have an old Note II I considered rooting because I got it from my ex -inlaws. They were from China The phone did not allow the Google Play store to run, even after being side loaded. And, the GPS only had maps of China. When I looked into how to do it, it seemed a bit too complicated to try.
I still have the phone, and it would be nice to have it rooted if I knew someone who could do it.
As for the S8 - I saw someone a few days ago claim that they tried to root their S8 unsuccessfully - they posted on this very forum.
And, since my S8 was bought later - it came with Android 8 already on it. I only upgraded 1x to android 9. So, I did not realize that.
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Sometimes the phones that originate in China are already rooted but if not its usually pretty easy, you can look up 1 click roots for them and usually its just downloading or side loading an APK to them and clicking root and installing Super User App.
HEre is one that I have used in the past and it has an APK or program that you put on the PC to do it.
https://www.kingoapp.com/root-tutorials/how-to-root-galaxy-note2.htm
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I’ll check that out when I get the chance. China did not allow Google here at the time this phone was made. I had to sideload the play store onto the phone. And, whenever I opened the program, it would immediately shut down. The only way to install apps was thru the Samsung store.
I really liked the large screen size. It was a nice phone. I used it for about 2 years. It was my very first smartphone, but I finally got tired of not being able to install stuff. So, I bought a cheap Samsung J3 for around $150. The J3 was so slow, though. After I dropped that J3 in the water, I had to buy another. 2 months after I bought the second J3, my girlfriend bought her S8. And, I learned from her you could buy the phone with no interest thru Best Buy. I regretted buying that send J3. After a while, I got sick of the J3 being so slow. I broke down and got that S8.
The S8 does everything I want. It is awesome. I just wish it had user replaceable batteries like that old Note II
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Yeah I hear you on the replaceable batteries, I wish that was possible for non tech minded people as well.
I believe that when you load the Play Store on the older phones like the Note II that you also had to load the Google services apps or they didn’t work correctly. Here are some directions I found for that particular phone maybe they will help.
"first of all, you need to root your phone first, there are few methods:
- download “SuperOneClick” run it in your window computer, and click “root”, wait for the programme to complete, your phone get rooted. (You can unroot it after install the google play)
- install “GoogleServicesFramework.apk, GoogleLoginService.apk, GoogleContactsSyncAdapter.apk, GoogleCalendarSyncAdapter.apk, GooglePartnerSetup.apk, MarketUpdater.apk and also the Phonesky.apk”
- install “ES File Explorer.apk” and copy the file “com.android.vending-1.apk” from the folder /data/app and paste it in the folder /system/app/ and rename the file name to “com.android.vending.apk” (beware to change the write premission of the /system/app first)
- reboot your system and you should get it done"
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I’ll be sticking with my iPhone. My wife has the same. She is NOT tech savvy. I’m her Tech Guy. So 1) not interested in keeping up with two phone systems, 2) she will never switch, 3) I have no desire to go Android. When it comes to computers I’m Windows/PC. Phones and tablets it’s iOS.
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I was a huge Apple ipad guy at 1 time. But, I eventually had enough. No more iOS for me. So, opposite here 
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I actually do not like iOS on an iPad. I prefer the user experience of Android on tablets.
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I’ve had every iPhone ever made!! (Ok I worked for Apple for the past 16 years until I retired in November!!
) Currently my daily driver is the iPhone 11 ProMax and my wife’s is the iPhone XS Max. Each of us has an iPhone XR as our backup phones in case of accidents! We also have my retired iPhone X put away to pass to our granddaughter! I bought a Pixel 2XL to check into Android - pretty good phone but don’t care for Android (Personal preference and it didn’t integrate well with my iPads or Macs) so I gave it away to a family member! It’s iOS forever for me…iPhones, iPads, AppleTV, HomePods (2 ea) AirPods 1&2 - all well integrated
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I haven’t bought a flagship phone since the iPhone 3GS. I’ve always bought them outright, so I’ve looked for good value. The other good thing is that these flagships (other than Apple) can be had for 30% - 50% less after a few months.
I bought the Huawei Mate 10 Pro last time around, 4 months after release. I saved around $400 on the RRP.
Some things about the S20 interest me, although I’d prefer it without the camera hole in the screen. Either no front camera (I never use it) or a pop-up camera, like Xioami, Honor etc. use. But that is just silly money for a device that will only “work” (i.e. be safe to use) for 2 years, maybe 3 if you are lucky.
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I moved from Android (Moto G6 plus) to iPhone this year, so I do not see myself switching back for a while. My main problem with Android manufacturers is that they do not take their client base seriously.
Recent efforts by Google to introduce Android Enterprise and Android One initiatives were not successful. We need proper support and major updates of the phones at least for a 3-year cycle. Five years that Apple is doing is great, but I would compromise for a minimum of 3 years in the Android world.
Looks like Samsung is moving to that direction and recent architectural changes in Android 10 may help alleviate the problem. I will definitely keep my eye on Android developments and consider switching back in the future.
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Absolutely how I feel. Seems after two years, Android updates just dry up and the phone feels clunky.
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Microsoft Duo may get me to change my mind.
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