New phone recommendations?

[Korth]

It's that time, I've been waiting for years!  My LG-C800G (purchased mid-2012) finally won't hold charge for a full day, and Android 2.3.4 just ain't compatible with a lot of software these days, and well ... it just kinda looks too clunky and chunky, like an old iPhone 3G.

So I'm looking for a new phone, maybe $200~300ish or less.  Purchased and owned outright, no financing or approval or tab or contract or any of that other nonsense.  Android (not iPhone).  Gotta fit in my back pocket without the screen cracking whenever I sit on it, gotta be fairly durable and last a couple years.  Gotta be available somewhere local - like Walmart or the Source or Best Buy or whatever, not interested in shipping and ordering online.  I'm not particular about any specific brand/model as long as it's not Apple and has all the basics and is fully unlocked.  I don't mind a little brand or bling but I'm not a millennial and don't really care for those things (not enough to pay extra for stuff I rarely/never use, anyhow), I just want a phone which works as a phone, text, alarm clock, browser, touchscreen, camera, GPS, SD slot, etc.

So I thought I'd just poll the community ... any particularly good recommendations?  My need isn't urgent (yet) so if cheap-cellphone-buying-season is just around the corner then I can wait, lol.

[Anonymous]

@Korth, Just noticed that the Moto G5 is on sale at PC Mobile for 139 - in the prepaid section.  You might have to take a small 1 month  plan to get it, but it might be worth it at that price.

[rita_fuchs]

I have the Moto G5 and it's a great phone for the price.

[Korth]

The Moto G5 (or slightly better Moto G5 Plus) seems to be the overwhelmingly popular choice.

Motorola's "plain vanilla" Android is a big selling point by itself (for me, anyhow).

But I did check that Xiaomi Redmi device.  In fact whole families of Xiaomi devices, some of which are better and (almost) all of which fit within what I'm willing to spend.  It seems the Chinese smartphone industry is aggressively competitive and you get a lot of value for every ten bucks more you spend.

My only concern with the Xiaomi devices is their "MIUI" operating systems.  Android-based but not true Android.  Apparently the "Chinese" versions have all the google bloat stripped out - which is fine by me, lol, I prefer sideloading things off a PC anyhow (so I always have the exact versions of the APKs I use archived), less bloat and less google tracking is all good.  But coming from a device with Gingerbread Android (2.3.6) I'm very conscious of software incompatibility problems (now and in upcoming years) so I'm apprehensive about MIUI.  I haven't dug very deeply, but it seems that rooting MIUI or reflashing Android firmware onto these devices are not options.

Has anybody here ever used MIUI, or had any problems with it?

[aurocks14]

If you can reconsider the shipping aspect, I strongly strongly recommend the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 Global Edition. It checks off all your boxes and then some.

Otherwise the Moto G5 recommeded by everyone here is a good choice. Another option IMO would be to buy an old flagship (ie. a samsung galaxy s5). If you can find an unopened one, it is completely sufficient.

[jpar]

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@Eggnog01wrote:

Agree completely with Moto G5 Plus.  Basically-vanilla Android is sooo nice.

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Agreed. Looks and runs smoothly.

[Mystery]

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@Eggnog01wrote:

Agree completely with Moto G5 Plus.  Basically-vanilla Android is sooo nice.

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Right?!? Stock android IS so nice.

[Eggnog01]

Agree completely with Moto G5 Plus.  Basically-vanilla Android is sooo nice.

[Mystery]

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@Anonymouswrote:

Hey @Korth, why the aversion to shipping?  I understand if you don't want to order from an obscure/far away place, but some of the local shops Staples/Walmart only sell most of their unlocked phones on-line.  If there are any issues, you can return them to the nearest store.  Just an option...

In our case, we got a Moto G5 from Walmart late in December.  Price was $300 at the time.  Works pretty good.

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I know you are averse to online shopping, but if you werent, I too would recommend the Moto G5 line: I bought the  Moto G5 Plus on Amazon.ca. it was $340, free shipping. It's a step up from the Moto G5, but I'm sure that one is also a solid phone. I love my Moto G5 Plus, if you can spring for the bucks on the added features. It's always in the Top 3-5 reviews best budget phone.

I've also bought a refurbished unlocked Sony Xperia C4 for $200 at my local NCIX store, but I think they've shut down their brick and mortar shops since the New Year. They may have comparable ones at Canada Computers if you're located near one.

Staples also have options for unlocked phones. Good luck!

[Korth]

No real aversion to online ordering.

Except that I just want to head out, grab a phone, bring it home, get it working, lol.  Not interested in waiting days for a thing to arrive, nor in paying extra for shipping.  That's the sort of thing I do when I'm picky about particular things which can only be found online.  I mean, there's probably a hundred stores full of shelves of cellphones within 10 miles of me, I don't see any point in avoiding them.

[Anonymous · Accepted solution]

Hey @Korth, why the aversion to shipping?  I understand if you don't want to order from an obscure/far away place, but some of the local shops Staples/Walmart only sell most of their unlocked phones on-line.  If there are any issues, you can return them to the nearest store.  Just an option...

In our case, we got a Moto G5 from Walmart late in December.  Price was $300 at the time.  Works pretty good.