Which phone?

RastaManBob · 2 Aug 2016 at 11:48

Hello,

I'm trying to select a new phone for my mother - Can you recommend the best value for money device that meets the requirements?

1) Stock (or close to stock) Android. She is fine using Android but a familiar environment suits her best and she already owns Nexus 7 and Nexus 9 tablets.

2) Good camera (for the money). Her current usage is only really for text messages and phone calls however I'd like to introduce her to WhatsApp and as a result she'll want to share photographs. Her phone is her only camera and as she carries it all the time it's probably the most important feature.

3) Budget was originally £150ish. Can likely stretch to £200 if it really buys a much better device. Any more than that really would have to be a fantastic 'must have' deal.

When we last looked at this a few months ago I'd decided on the Moto G 3rd Generation (2 GB RAM/16GB ROM) at around £130 but this has now shot up to £155 and at this point I'm wondering if there is something else better at the budget. I could not really see why the Moto G 4th Generation offered anything above and beyond the 3rd Generation, especially when price separated them but it no longer does.

Thanks!

benjo · 2 Aug 2016 at 12:17

Nexus 5X can be had for just over £200 now, this might come down even more once the new Nexus phones are out later this year

RastaManBob · 2 Aug 2016 at 12:28

benjo said:
Nexus 5X can be had for just over £200 now, this might come down even more once the new Nexus phones are out later this year

I'll check these out, thank you. Do you think they are a good buy over (for example) the Moto G and (particularly at this price range) the Moto G4 Plus?

I'm hoping to purchase ASAP so that I can help to set up the new device during a pending visit.

Thanks again.

benjo · 2 Aug 2016 at 12:36

I haven't used either I'm afraid, only a Nexus 6P. I know the 5X shares the camera with the 6P and it's excellent.

The Huawei Honor 5X falls into this price range too, could be worth a look?

RastaManBob · 2 Aug 2016 at 12:43

benjo said:
The Huawei Honor 5X falls into this price range too, could be worth a look?

I've got an Honor 7 myself and I'm very happy with it but EMUI is not like vanilla Android out of the box. With a bit of work I can get it close enough (just changing some settings and a few apps etc) but I think if ever there was a software update (or, worse, the need to reset) my Mum might be a bit lost. I think I'd choose a Moto over this for that reason...

wijcc · 2 Aug 2016 at 14:23

the 16gb version of the nexus 5x can be brought for around the £160-170.

RastaManBob · 2 Aug 2016 at 14:32

wijcc said:
the 16gb version of the nexus 5x can be brought for around the £160-170.

Can you (without breaking forum rules) tell me from where? I think 16GB will be fine but I cannot find it on any websites that I know to be trustworthy. Thanks!

Braka · 3 Aug 2016 at 00:04

i can see two 3rd gen's on the site ur prolly looking at , the lower costs £109 is this the same as the 150+ 3rd gen which is also on the site?

wijcc · 3 Aug 2016 at 01:33

it was £170 sim-free at CPW and is £180 at argos for the 16gb version.

RastaManBob · 3 Aug 2016 at 09:25

Braka said:
i can see two 3rd gen's on the site ur prolly looking at , the lower costs £109 is this the same as the 150+ 3rd gen which is also on the site?

No. The former is 8GB ROM/1GB RAM while the latter is 16GB ROM/2GB RAM. I've read that the former is now starting to feel a little old with recent Android and app updates.

wijcc said:
it was £170 sim-free at CPW and is £180 at argos for the 16gb version.

Yes, I found those. Sadly CPW no longer sell the 16GB and if stores do have any left they are no longer at that price (so I was informed by CPW support). Argos do have the 16GB listed there is no stock nearby unfortunately.

In the end, we've ordered the Moto G4. It seems to be worth the ~£5 increase from the third generation. I did consider going for the Plus but £40 (25%) extra for (a) included turbo charger, (b) fingerprint reader (but still no NFC) and (c) improved camera did not seem worthwhile. I think I'd have preferred to get the Nexus 5X overall but I simply cannot spare the time for it to fall in price again.

Thanks for all of the help.

Braka · 4 Aug 2016 at 16:43

how about the honor 5c ? tempting , i cancled my moto g4 , the overheating issues put me off

RastaManBob · 8 Aug 2016 at 11:03

Set up the Moto G4 at the weekend. I'm really happy with the decision - For her it's the perfect device. The only differences to stock are the genuinely useful extra Moto features such as gestures and even these can all be disabled. Nice and snappy and for what she needs it for any more money spent would have been wasted.