At least for the next few years, I am pretty firm on needing a jack on my device.
I am currently using an LG v60, and while nice, it’s starting to show its age.
Any suggestions on where to go next?
I was looking at the ROG phone, and while it does seem very nice, I feel like it is a bit much as I don’t game on my device at all.
Are there any good phones I should be looking at?
Thanks!
Low end of the price range is Alcatel, mid shelf prob Pixel or Zen, top shelf is Samsung.
I am really happy with my Asus Zenphone 9. The best feature is the long battery life. If i wanted i could use the phone for ~72h, though I usually charge it to 80% and charge the phone every 2 days instead.
The Battery Life was my main buying point, the aux and smaller size were important though too.
It also has an actual gimble for camera stabilisation in the lense instead of the typical stabilization through a sensor, though i guess it is more of a gimmick. I myself don’t take that many action shots where this could be useful, so I can’t really give any info if it is better than the usual way of stabilization.
Since it is an Asus phone I think it also is pretty powerful and power efficient for mobile gaming if that interests you (I don’t care about that).End of this Month they will also reveal the Zenphone 10, so maybe this might also be a possible phone to check out. I bought mine also directly release last year since I was looking for a new phone around that time. It was bundled with a chromebook that I was able to resell so it was a nice deal in comparison to other comparable phones.
Do you happen to know if the zenphone 10 will have full band support for American T-Mobile service? I considered zenphones before but the lack of full T-Mobile spectrum compatibility and apparent motherboard issues turned me away.
Dude, why are you triple-posting?
Depends on your budget and location.
Unlimited budget: Sony Xperia 1 V ($1400). Has almost anything you’d want. SD8G2, MicroSD slot, etc.
High budget: Asus Zenfone 9 ($700). Great compact phone with a headphone jack. Alternatively wait for the Zenfone 10 to come out as it’s coming out this week.
Or even the Xperia 5 V ($1000), a slightly downgraded version of the 1 V.
Lower budget: Sony Xperia 10 V ($450). Expensive for the specs but you get outstanding battery life, 25-50% more than any other phone on this list. And it’s the only budget phone with a telephoto lens.
USA pick: Moto G Stylus 5G (2022). Can be picked up for $250 on Amazon and has excellent all-around specs for the price.
Europe/Asia picks: Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro+ ($350) if you want good cameras for the price. However the chipset might struggle with MIUI from time to time.
Xiaomi Poco X5 pro ($300). Good all-arounder at this price.
Xiaomi Poco F5 ($400). Best chipset out of all of these budget phones, at nearly flagship levels.
The Zenphone 10 is launching in 3 days, it is also rumored to have a headphone jack like the previous Zenphone 9!
All I want in this whole world is a Zenphone 10 on Verizon. If literally any other carrier worked at my house (rural dead zone) I’d jump ship in a heartbeat.
Moto G Stylus 5G (2022) has a terrible name but is actually a really great phone.
People complain about the camera a lot but I believe that’s really just a software issue as it works great with Gcam.
There is now a 2023 version as well but there’s been some really good deals on the 2022 (like from Metro by T-Mobile where you could get a free one with a new line and one month of service).
Interesting list, thanks
GSM Arena has a “phone finder” tool that allows you to lookup phones with specific features. There are over 500 phones released in 2022 to present with a headphone jack. You can narrow that down a lot if you only look at phones with IPX8 water resistance.
Some options:
- Sony Xperia 1 V (expensive)
- Sony Xperia 10 V
- Asus Zenfone 9
- Samsung Galaxy Xcover6 Pro
- Nokia XR21
I’m still clinging on to my samsung s10e and hope to get another year or so out of it…after that I think I’m just gonna bite the bullet and get a dongle dac.
I like to fall asleep listening to podcasts, so sadly I need something that can play and charge at the same time.
I did have a Pixel 2 XL back in the day, and perhaps the situation has improved, but bakc then the dongles were incredibly unreliable…
Would something like a FiiO BTR5 fill your need? It’s a bluetooth wireless/wired DAC
I do the same. After switching to a headphone-jack-free phone, I got a Bluetooth headband with speakers in it that’s specially made for sleeping. The sound quality is pretty poor, but I’m only using it for podcasts and it’s fairly comfortable (more comfortable than earphones for me).
Fascinating, you mind linking me to what you use?
My S10e battery started to bloat so ive swapped to the zenphone 9 in the last week and a half, as long as you dont need wireless charging and get over the initial bumps moving away from samsung’s android tweaks its a great phone.
LG v50 is my favourite. I selling one on e bay, EU only. It’s totally like new.
Pixel 4a (5g version) amazing phone, I pur calyx OS onto it ( you must buy an unlocked version if you wish to run calyx ) I cannot recommend it enough… got to have a headphone jack
Would you mind telling me your experience with Calyx? I looked into both it and Graphene in the past, but never committed.
My only worries are having my Microsoft work apps and my banking apps function correctly.
Pixel 5a also still has a headphone jack
Best, as far as specs? Gonna be the Asus Zenfone 10 (officially announcing 6/29 but most of the specs have been leaked) and the Sony Xperia 1 V (already available outside the US).
Both will have Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and plenty of memory and storage. The lower models of Xperia (5 and 10) will also have headphone jacks but somewhat lesser specs.
https://www.androidpolice.com/leak-asus-zenfone-10-every-angle/
FWIW the Xperia I V is very very similar to the I IV, it’s predecessor. Sony’s software support kinda sucks (only 2 years of Android updates, IIRC) but you can likely get a decent deal on last year’s phone at this point.
If you’re interested in custom ROMs or want something less Google-centric like GrapheneOS, you could also consider the Pixel 4a, 4a 5G, or 5a, depending on your size preferences. They’re losing official support now or soon but they’re still very good phones, very cheap refurbished, and GrapheneOS should be supporting them for a few more years just fine.
I considered posting about the previous gen Zenfone and Xperia, but the 8G1 gets hot and throttles frequently from what I’ve read.
Good point about the pixels. I put Graphene on my 5 and it runs nicely.
The 1 IV is known to have overheating issues with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. I’d recommend an Xperia 5 V instead.
I was under the impression that GrapheneOS support lasts only as long as the official support, for security reasons.
The Zenphone 9 is a great phone. If you don’t mind going for a slightly older phone, then I would recommend the Galaxy A52s.
I was considering this one, but I have heard wildly different stories from people using them.
Some say it’s an incredible phone, some say it’s a laggy nightmare with bad battery life.
Unsure who to believe.
Asus Zenfone 9 and Xiaomi Poco F5 are also viable options
Poco sadly doesn’t have all the connection bands I need.
A few days ago there was talk about the Asus Zenfone 10, maybe it’s worth taking a look at.
Nokia’s X series 🔥
What is showing its age on your v60? I still use, and recommend, a Samsung Note 10 Lite. It has a headphone jack and that terrific stylus built in. It’s on Android 12 and has no lagginess issues that even new phones have. There is an Android 13 update too, but I have not updated yet.
Sony Xperia phones?
Not sure if you can still get a Samsung A52s. That’d be a nice pick if you still can get it. It’s what I use and it’s one of the few with the trifecta of features I was looking for: 3.5mm jack, memory card slot, and OIS in the main camera.
I’ve actually heard really good things about this.
Just wasn’t sure about if the SD865 was already feeling sluggish to me, the Samsung midrange would feel even slower.
I don’t find it slow, it does what I want.
Think about it, easily 70% of the world’s smartphone users are on something like a Snapdragon 600 series or lower, and they use it as a main computing device; it may not be blazing fast but it’ll get the job done.
I’m hoping the EU’s new battery law will mean all countries will get Sony Xperias with removable batteries, though I realize it’s probably too much to expect.
Maybe the Xperia 1 V? https://www.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_1_v-12263.php
I have the 1 IV and I really like it except that it’s prone to overheating when using advanced camera features. The V is said to have resolved the heating issue.
The catch is that Sony devices aren’t usually subsidized by carriers, so you’d have to be willing to pay full price on Amazon et al.
There would also be an Xperia 5 V release upcoming as well which is a compact version of the flagship with a lower pricetag. The 5 IV had a 3.5mm jack so I would imagine the V will as well. https://www.gsmarena.com/sony_xperia_5_iv-11838.php
