I paid full whack for mine and still happy. Specs wise, it's better in my usage than anything else I've had. The dual speakers work better than on the HTC as they're further apart (I think) and they're awesome. Camera is perfectly good for me as long as I keep it in HDR and the screen is fine as I don't spend much time outdoors. Quick charging is a godsend and it lasts a full day with brightness on max the whole time and medium usage.
It is, however, a pain in the butt to have in any pocket other than a breast pocket (how I smashed mine) or a pocket in a laptop case if you happen to carry one. I had an iPhone before and am still stuck in 'kid gloves' mode, not that it saved my screen.