Question about Android

[Aoi Magi]

My recommendation would be something from Xiaomi Redmi line. They are in that $150 price range, and are well made for the price point. They have lots of RAM, a big battery, cool modern features like a fingerprint scanner, and up to date soft/firmware.

https://www.gearbest.com/xiaomi-_gear/

https://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_...html?wid=4

Any Android smartphone will come with a recent version of Android (we're up to 7.x.x). Xiaomi has their own Android port called MIUI that is stable and works. I think you could install stock Android on the phone if you wanted.  But if you were using a Windows phone and actually liked the OS, MIUI should be like heaven to you, I'd imagine.

Xiaomi is extremely bad track record for giving os updates... forget about ever having the latest android on a xiaomi phone. Though I hear they are tieing up with google for relaunching the android one project in china and india, I'd still suggest going for motorola or others.

One of the best features I like about android is it's flexibility as compared to ios, but these chinese roms ruin that part quite well

[bennyboy]

Some of you probably know that I have a Windows phone. Lately the app developers seem to be doing everything in their power to make all Windows phone users to switch to Android (not working and/or crashing apps) and I'm going in the general direction as well. However, before I got the Windows phone I had an Android phone (v2.3.7) and that version loved to consume every bit of free RAM which rendered the phone useless.
So, my question is: Did they fix that behavior in the newer versions of Android and if "yes", which version would you recommend me to look for? Also, I need a phone in the price range of $150 tops. Initially I chose a Huawei P5II but people keep telling me it's a crap.

I use a LOT of devices in my school, and let me say this.  I've tried buying cheap tablets, but the sound and picture quality are totaly shit.  Really bad.  My recommendation is to buy used stuff.  An old Galaxy S4, which you can buy for maybe $50 or $100, will kick the shit out of new models at the <$200 price range and which should have Android 5.0.

I do some Android programming, and I can say that KitKat to Lollipop is an important cut line.  I would never DREAM of making an app that wouldn't support Lollipop, but there are a lot of programming problems with KitKat and earlier.

[pocaracas]

I don't know why, but the guys at Xiaomi save the good stuff for the Chinese market.
I got the Redmi 4 Prime a while back ago for less than 200€ (postage included)... but it seems to be out of stock, now:
https://www.honorbuy.com/1000-xiaomi-red...-gray.html

What's on there?
- FHD 5" screen
- Snapdragon 625
- 3GB RAM
- 32GB ROM
- 4100mAh battery - consistently lasts me 2 days and I keep the wifi on all the time.
- Gets a GPS lock in seconds (provided open sky... takes a while more when surrounded by buildings and doesn't work very well under tight tree coverage)
- Fingerprint scanner on the back - handy for index finger. Not so good when the phone is lying on a table.
- Dual LED flash for a more yellowish (natural light) flash experience. It is powerful.
- Works on all European carriers I've tried it (Portugal and UK only )

The downside: chinese ROM. It carries only Chinese and English languages. Some built-in apps are fully in chinese. The default app-store is chinese. It carries no google apps... although the guys at honorbuy did load those in for my convenience. Still, if you try to update an app because it says that it knows of a new update (and the play store hasn't yet provided that update) the phone will try to find that update through the chinese store... and fail, of course. Of course, all you need to do is open the play store and perform the update through there, but I can understand the inconvenience for some.

- One other potential downside... it is a downside for me. The stock launcher. the Xiaomi guys developed their own android version called MIUI and replaced many features with their own. Some are well ahead of the stock android experience, some are just trying to mimic iOS. And the Launcher screams iOS all over with its absence of an app drawer.

- Last, but not least, the back and menu buttons are swapped relative to the position proposed by Google. They are in the same location as you'll find on Samsung phones - back button on the right side of the home and menu button on the left side.


Bonus feature: IR blaster. It can mimic many remotes. I've tried with my Samsung TV and it works wonderfully.

[bennyboy]

I have a Hwawei phone. It was like half the price of a comparable Samsung phone, and I really like it a lot. I kind of think the writing is on the wall for Korean electronics.

[SteelCurtain]

My phone was built by Huawei, but specced by Google. Best phone I've ever had. Nexus 6P.

I'll never buy a phone that's not from Google.

[The Valkyrie]

Never trust Androids!

[Minimalist]

[vorlon13]