What do you look for when purchasing a mobile phone ?

airfightermax

When I go shopping for a mobile device, I look at it's specs first. If the specs are alright with me, I check it's Android version. I prefer vanilla android but if the deal is good I can consider skinned versions as long as there's? huge community support (like custom ROMS and such).

Of course, I do research first without buying a device. Most of the time I buy a device I have been eyeing for a lot of time already. I check website reviews of the site and gaming tests on YouTube about the phone.

Really helps you pick your device so that you'll have no regrets purchasing it.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

Thanks for your response. I also prefer vanilla Android. What review sites do you find reliable for research purposes ? I agree that community support is important as certain issues can be fixed fast by having proper updates.

8 years ago

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Corzhens

It looks like you have an unlimited budget for buying a phone. My main consideration for purchasing a new phone is the cost because if my budget will not agree then I would surely not buy it. What I do is to check on the prices of 3 brands particularly the major brands that are popular here. With the selected brands, I will then check on the technical specs and compare which one is the best for my budget and my needs regarding the features that the phone could offer.

6 years ago

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aqibarif74

Nowadays the things important Battery, RAM/Processor.

8 years ago

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thart

Yes, I agree with you that the battery is the first thing you have to pay attention for it, but everything have an expiry date. Every phone have a good battery in the begining, but after using it after a period the battery will get tired, the difference here is the the period that the every battery take to expire.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

I guess that's pretty common requirement. Thank you for your feedback. Do you actually follow the latest processing technology for mobile phones?

7 years ago

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kgord

As for me, as long as it is a smartphone and has a decent camera and processor, I'm all in. My current phone was a cheapie, but it does everything I need it do so I am happy with it. I need to take pics sometimes for mystery shopping, and I have to have a decent camera.

8 years ago

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centurion

I have been using touch phone or android phone from 2008. There have a local company who had been producing android touch and I have been used that. Still now I have been using touch phone like: Samsung Galaxy J1 nxt prime. When I buy a new phone- I have check the interface and also check the brand and quality. There are huge Chinese brands of mobiles are available on Bangladesh but I avoid those every time.

Thanks
Centurion

8 years ago

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fishmonk

What would be the reason for avoiding Chinese mobile phones ? I heard from my friends that the phones are pretty reliable and provide good value for money.

8 years ago

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galegatling

I use a china made phone. Seems like most of the mobile phones today are made in China. Just because it is made in China, doesn't mean it's bad.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

Yes, China does make some quality phones. I think some people have the mindset that 'Made in China' products are bad. However, I personally think that the Chinese phones offer best value for money. I have had several Oppo phones and I think the phones are of great quality.

8 years ago

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galegatling

Right. What they don't know is most of their products are made from China. I mean, what isn't made in China these days? Just because it is manufactured from a certain country which you don't like, doesn't mean that they are bad. Remember that most mobile phones are manufactured in China but the components or parts/accessories are from other countries. Maybe Chinese people just work fast? I don't know.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

I guess the manufacturing cost is much lower in China. They also have brilliant marketing which utilizes social media platforms.Nowadays, they are doing more advertisements and gaining traction in the global market.

7 years ago

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galegatling

That is absolutely true. And the manpower is also huge. Having the highest number of population in the world, there's no doubt that global brands are throwing their productions at China because of the cheap rate and costs there. As what I have said, parts and accessories come from other places but it all goes to the same place for manufacture.

7 years ago

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fishmonk

Yes, they have like factories ready to make orders just a call away from the owners. Many business owners I know always try to set up their manufacturing operations there and have their head office located in their own country.

7 years ago

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overcast

Almost every brand out there is china made. Just the processor part comes from Korea. Otherwise almost every brand including Apple comes from the china. And inside you can even confirm the origin of the chinese parts. So that being said, you can see that purchasing mobile phones which are non chinese is really hard. I wonder how that happens for many brands. It's worth taking a look at on that part but chinese products are not that bad.

7 years ago

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galegatling

Nah, not only in Korea. I believe there are a lot of sources of parts depending on the manufacturing brand's distribution track. Most parts of a phone comes from different countries but would always be manufactured or made in one country i.e China because of it's huge worker-base factories and faster equipments.

7 years ago

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overcast

What are some of the Korean brands? I mean it'd be worth taking a look at them. We here in India get almost everything chinese. Except processors which is usually in Korea or Taiwan, other parts are from the Chinese. So those are not completely local though. Most of the companies here are just assembling body in the local country. So it feels like the company is doing stuff in India. That's often not true.

7 years ago

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galegatling

There isn't a specific "korea" brand of a mobile phone if that is what you are referring to. What I mean was the PARTS and accessories of some mobile phones are from other countries. There are probably well-known companies from other countries who make good quality chips or boards. Then I am assuming that the large mobile phone brand companies would make a contract with them like so, asking for bulk orders and shipments of those parts.

7 years ago

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overcast

So it's just the local assembly that is done? In that case yes we have that condition. Unfortunately most of the battery and the display parts are made in china. Only the processors are made in taiwan and korea. So the thing is that pretty much almost every country relies on chinese brands indirectly. That's the way it is for our country. We have assembly line but not the original assembly parts.

7 years ago

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fishmonk

Sometimes, the quality is fine but their customer service is a pain to deal with. So far, I have not experienced any issues with Chinese phones. There is also the issue with some brands not having service centers in other countries.

7 years ago

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giovanniiiii

When looking for a new phone that does not need to be something specific, I only ever look at the RAM or processing capability of the phone. I reason that I need a new phone for communication purposes when in fact that I intend to try out different games on the phone. Most of the time I overlook the battery capacity of the phone and it's because of that I have complaints on my phone right now because it does not last long when I play games. I'll have to consider that too next time I look for a new phone.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

I used to have this problem of overlooking battery capacity as well. I think screen on time (SOT) is important for me as I would be using the phone for long period of time. Having a power bank does somewhat assist me in overcoming some of my battery problems.

8 years ago

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TsuyoyRival

In my opinion, a bit of both, I usually am more inclined towards phones that have a good interface and internal characteristics, like RAM, internal memory, processor etc, but if the phone has a good aesthetics, it is a big plus.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

What would you deem as good aesthetics?

7 years ago

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Tronia

First I check that it's Android. I hate any other OS, especially iOS. I'd never use that no matter what... so after making sure that it's an Android phone I look at all of its specs. RAM, GPU, camera quality, how much space it has, does it support SD card, battery power and so on. I care more about the specs than the actual design of the phone. If all of the specs fit my needs and wishes then I go to the shop to test out the particular phone. I want the phone to fit into my hand and that it's easy to use/see how responsive it is.

Also, I do care about brands when it comes to electronics. It has to be a decent one.

8 years ago

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amazingsteven

I don't really care about brand but specifications matter most when selecting a phone that I want to buy. If it has a strong battery, at least 1GB RAM, a decent ROM space and a good processor. I will definitely purchase it.

8 years ago

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PedroP

Nowadays I value mostly price and cost effectiveness. I had to say I don't care much about phones. I'm not a phone junkie that has to have the latest model. A phone needs three basic things for me: Email, What's app and calls. Even the camera it's not that important to me. So when I need to buy a new one I look for those things and I also look for a cheap one.

8 years ago

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wallet

The first thing that I look when I try to buy a phone is to look great, have a big screen and good graphics. I am not a lover of a firm name so this it doesn't matter for me, but I want my phone to make clear and great pictures. The price will be another factor that will influence me to buy it!

8 years ago

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keen2write

As long as it as wifi which mainly all mobile phones have which are out. A big screen is a must for me with also a lot of memory but I have multiple memory cards anyways lol. But screen and resolution for the camera is a must as you need a decent camera and big screen not bothered about playing games but I do use apps.

8 years ago

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Corzhens

Don't laugh because I am serious. The first thing I look for in a phone is the price and the features are only secondary. I am a practical person and I don't want to endanger the well-being of my finances by buying a phone that I like even if my budget couldn't afford it. Okay, when the phone passes the price factor then that's the time I would look for the features I like. My use of the phone are the usual texting, calling and internet. And if those can be provided by the phone that I can afford then that phone is a candidate. Right now, my phone is a Samsung J7 which has a larger screen than my old Samsung SIII (which doesn't charge anymore).

8 years ago

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fishmonk

I agree with you that finances must definitely be considered first. What are your thoughts on purchasing a discounted older model (high end specs) compared to a newer mid-range phone model ?

8 years ago

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peachpurple

When I intend to buy a new smartphone, I will compare the specifications and price, read the reviews and how long the model has been in the market before I make my decision.

These are the factors that influenced my purchase:
1) The durability of the smartphone- I prefer metal or titanium
2) The screen size- I prefer wider screen , at least 7 inch
3) The camera megapixel- I take lots of photos for my blog recipes. I need a high megapixel camera for the photoshoot
4) The battery- I prefer long lasting battery usage, at least use 5-6 hours per day and quick to charge

8 years ago

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fishmonk

Wow, a 7 inch phone is pretty large. I'm curious to know which phone you are using currently.
I believe most phones would be able to reach the number of SOT hours you require.

8 years ago

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overcast

I personally look for camera. You can most of the modern camera and their lenses are high resolution. So autofocus and manual focus is something we all have to check. We also need to look fro RAM over 2GB and onwards. You can't have low RAM like 1GB. It just does not make sense. And also one needs to have bigger processor for the price range. That should be more than enough.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

I agree that nowadays the smartphones possess strong cameras. In fact, good camera specs are also marketable points for certain mobile phones. Do you usually use camera for selfies or for taking pictures of events ?

8 years ago

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rage35

I am looking for the features of the phone, the overall specs as well, and the price. One of the most important things I consider when buying new phone is the cost of the unit if it is too expensive or not. I am also looking for good camera quality since I love to take photos and videos. The storage is also important to me and the memory of the device, including the Operating System and the cores so I would know if it can run latest apps and games.

8 years ago

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SimplyD

For me, first thing is its durability and quality as I have proven for the past many years that I am getting my free phone from my service provider. Of course, it has to have a screen big enough for me to to be able to use it for Facebook and the like. It must also have a big storage and the camera can producE beautiful pictures.
By November, I will be renewing my contract with my mobile service provider, so as early as now, I am searching for what phone I would like to have as free or even if I have to pay some amount.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

That is nice. How much would you be willing to top up for a new phone?

7 years ago

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IKim

Specifications and design are most important for me when looking to buy a new phone. Processing speed of the phone, Camera quality, long battery life time, and "Android Os", are a few of the specs that need to be fulfilled in order for me to buy.

8 years ago

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iamawriter

No upgrades appeal to me. I am still with my basic phone where I have to use the keyboard and it is not a touch phone. I am totally satisfied with it as it caters to my needs of voice and text messaging I have a great camera which from experience of others I see it captures better than what cell phones do.

8 years ago

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ajlancer

Hi there,
Thanks for your query. It is really very related question for recent situation all of technology seeker. Nowadays Smartphone become more easy access to all ages. Specially for young generation seeking very upgrade mobile. And it is different by old ages, they only look phone as call pick up accessibility. Woman has different demand too. Recently I purchase couple of smartphone. One for me and another from my wife. Both are good price. I check first over all looks how good to see as smart. And how handy to use internet. At the same time I check ram and storage as internal and extendable. Beside, as a good photo shooter, I always prefer excellent mega fixle camera. Battery life time also good fact for choosing mobile phone. Because smart phone consuming more battery power. And android one of my best choosing operating system. So, I always try to catch latest version of android operating system and fast too.

Regards by Ajlancer

8 years ago

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fishmonk

Which phone are you using at the moment?

7 years ago

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goldlady

A few years ago I was the kind of person that used to buy a phone because it was pretty. I was not the kind of person that looked for any particular specifications. Now I am, but still I am not that picky. I normally look for a phone with a good RAM, good camera and good android version. That's all.

8 years ago

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PedroP

Same here. In fact, i don't even care about specifications that much. It's got to have access to the internet so I can read my emails and it's got to have what's app. Other than that anything goes really. I prefer to spend my time and money elsewhere.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

I completely understand your sentiments on this. Nowadays, the mobile phones have plenty accessories and casings to improvise the visual aesthetics of the phone. The focus is more on the hardware and software capabilities of the phone.

8 years ago

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explorerx7

My concerns are that the phone has a reasonable internal memory capacity, it can accept a good amount of external memory, it's not too heavy, has excellent picture taking qualities, and is within a certain price range. I have seen suggestions about the quality of the battery here and I think it's something that I should add to my list of requirements.

8 years ago

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jitendra0341

Lots of mobile phones with different features are coming these days. Many are attractive offers we easily can get tempted by them. I seek mainly some important features like Processor,its speed, RAM, camera quality, screen resolution , battery back-ups, etc. Now I am looking for smartphone having VOLTE facility. This help in getting voice service some telecom companies providing. If we don't have VOLTE facility in your phone , we have to switch on our data pack to get full benefit of free calling particularly.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

Thanks for your response. I have not considered the VOLTE facility for smartphone before. How is your search for the smartphone coming ? VOLTE is definitely the platform of the future in terms of having quality mobile phone service.

8 years ago

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Neiltarquin

The first thing I check is the the hardware. It may not be the lastest but it should be almost as fast as the newer version of hardware. Price is also a major factor for me to check, I'm not being frugal but if I can but something cheap and will perform as good as what the high end phones, I'd go with that cheap stuff... Others are added features for me to which I see them as a bonus.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

I get what you mean. You would go for price per performance ratio in getting your phone. Would you take high end or mid range phones ?

7 years ago

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DenisP

Thankfully I'm not a very complicated person when it comes to purchasing mobile phones. I ultimately could not care less for all the applications and mobile games that smart phones are capable of. When I shop for a phone, all I look for is something affordable that can make calls, send text messages, and has an alarm and calculator function. All the other features, from flashlights to can openers, I could not care less for them.

One would think that as a 25 year old I would care more, but here we are.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

From what I read, you are really a practical person. Some of us tend to forget the main objective of mobile phones which is to communicate. I guess marketing does really effect how we think and want features on our mobile phones.

7 years ago

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ballyhara

It all depends on what you need, for example, my dad is a big screen lover, while I'm looking for a touch screen and a good system for social media apps. About operating system, I choose for Android, its app store is huge and plenty of those are for free. Please, get a dual core processor, and make sure it supports 4G LTE. A good camera will help you get nice memories, and look for a phone which battery life is long, my last cell phone was a nightmare about it.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

Yes, I noticed that older users tend to love their phones to be on the larger side. I like my phone to be easy to grip. If it's too large, it's tough to fit into pockets of certain pants. Having a bad battery really causes nightmares. I had that experience with a HTC phone years ago. I felt the need to charge again and again despite lack of usage.

8 years ago

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limberg

When buying a smartphone, I always look at these:

1. Processor - I want a phone that is powerful and does not lag. I want it to be able to multitask. I want it to be able to connect to the internet and manage my websites on the fly.
2. Camera - I want a phone that has a high end camera. I love to take photos and videos of stuff and post them on my blog. Therefore, a decent camera is needed.
3. Battery Life - I would like a phone that could last for at least a day on moderate internet usage. I frequent social media sites and update my blogs regularly. Therefore I want a phone that could handle my daily activities.
4. The screen - I want a device with an HD screen or at least maybe 720p. The clearer the screen, the better because I would be looking at it constantly.
5. Storage - I also want a phone that has huge internal storage to begin with. I want a device that comes at either 32GB or 64GB. I don't want to purchase a memory card for additional storage.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

All the factors mentioned which you mentioned are similar to those which I use to consider before making a mobile phone purchase. I think it is important to have a phone which can multitask. It feels tedious for me if there is a need to close apps so that the displayed app can run smoothly.

8 years ago

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jeffzod

I always look at the specifications of a device before I consider buying it.I first look at the processor.The processor is one of the most critical components of a smartphone.The processor needs to be very fast for a fluid experience on the smartphone.The RAM is another significant part to look at. The RAM of the smartphone needs to be at least 2GB .the third thing I look at is the screen size.The screen needs to be at least 5 inches.This enables me to have a wide view display of my apps.The fourth thing to look at is the battery capacity.The battery needs to have a high capacity.Manufacturers have realized this, and they are now putting large capacity batteries on smart phones. Many apps require a lot of power to run, and consequently, they drain the battery a lot.The last thing is the camera functionality.The smartphone needs to have two cameras. The front camera is used to take selfies, and the back camera is used to take standard pictures.The cameras have to be 8 Megapixels and above.If you have cameras with lower megapixels the pictures will be blurry and of low quality.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

That is pretty specific of you. I guess it is good to know what you want in a phone which meet your requirements. This will lead to less chances of buyers remorse.

7 years ago

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itommy

I consider about its price when choosing a mobile phone, other than that, mobile specs is an important point for me because if I have good specs I can run games or videos that I want on my phone without lags.

Of course is, I only choose iPhone, Samsung or Sony at this time. They are trusted phone companies.

8 years ago

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galegatling

Of course is, I only choose iPhone, Samsung or Sony at this time. They are trusted phone companies.

They aren't the only trusted companies. Probably you haven't tried the other ones. LG, Nokia, Lenovo, Acer, Asus - those are some of the trusted companies and there are still many out there. Maybe you are just limited to those three that you mentioned so you only focus on them of course. But hey, to each their own right?

7 years ago

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limberg

I generally look into the following when purchasing a new smartphone:

Processor - the processor should be powerful and fast enough to handle all my activities. I love to play games, record them, I love to surf the web, and write different articles, I use social media sites. I don't want a phone that would be lagging because of the things that I do.

Camera - I love taking pictures and videos and posting them to YouTube. That's why a good camera is important when I'm choosing a smartphone to buy. The camera should be able to capture clean and crisp pictures and videos whether indoors or outdoors.

Screen Size - the ideal screen size me is 5.5 inches. Anything below that would be very small for me and anything above that would be very big.

Price - of course, I want the price of the smartphone that I'll buy to be reasonable. I usually go for mid range phones. I'm not rich so I'm not able to purchase the high end ones.

8 years ago

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fishmonk

That's some specific criteria which you share with us. Thanks for sharing. How do you record your games though?

7 years ago

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hermessantos

I care about the memory capacity, screen size, operating system and camera resolution. I think these are the basic requirements that I evaluate when buying a cell phone.

7 years ago

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fishmonk

I see. Do you prefer phones with external memory slot or fixed internal memory? Would 5.5 inches be optimum for you?

7 years ago

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augusta

I look out mostly for the RAM,i.e is the memory because if the memory is small then it might be hanging all the time and it might not contend so many apps.

I then look at the battery strength before checking out the features and maybe the interface

7 years ago

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fishmonk

Yes, I had this issues with my older phone. You would need to close apps and open a new one. That was really troublesome.

7 years ago

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JonathanS98

What do I look for when purchasing a mobile phone? Well, a few things...

OS: The operating system means so much to me. From the friendly user-interface to the overall design itself.
Screen size: I don't need a screen display that's too big. At the same time, I don't need a screen display that so small that I struggle to type correctly on the keyboard app.
Battery life: Probably the most important in this list. Normally I have 12 hour days. Because of that, having a battery that can last with me throughout the day is vital.
Price: Not the main component, but definitely a factor in my overall mobile phone buying decisions.
Camera quality: Means a lot to me, to be honest. I love capturing videos in 1080p HD on my mobile phone. Quality pictures are also a must.

Of course, there are other variables as well. However, these are the first few that pop into my mind immediately.

7 years ago

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honeybabe

I lookfirst is the price if I can afford to buy it. Next I will look for screen size
I want a big screen I want big screen cause it is easy to type and wide. Next are
the OS, RAM, and then the camera. If all meet my requirements maybe that’s the
time I will consider buying phone.

7 years ago

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Joteque

Pricing and cell phone specifications are two determining factors for me. I'm really not into trending fashion or impressive expensive phones. I would spend quite alot of time on sites like gsmarena and Amazon comparing specs and identifying various models and release dates and Android versions. I would probably even wait for a few weeks if I notice that the phone is a fast moving version that updates in both hardware and software every few months. An example of phones in this category would be the Samsung J7 which is a pretty good phone that offers upgraded versions every 4 to 6 months or so. I was tracking the development of this phone since last year when they introduced the 2016 version. Then January 2017 they introduced another version. Then they release a new version of the J7 in July which I would have loved to have because it's 2x times everything in speed and performance of the one introduced in January. The J7 is a good phone all around however and the price is not bad as well. I'm quite happy with my purchase.

7 years ago

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Corzhens

If you are not after the fashion or the trend, that means you are a wise spender like me. Some things become expensive just because of the trend like the clothes, shoes and personal accessories. I have friends who buy the most expensive smart phone in town not because of the function but more for the trendy look and the class and elegance that the expensive phone gives the user. And I’d say that is a waste of money because when the phone is not popular anymore then it is like they threw their money.

6 years ago

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jaymish2

I think purchasing a mobile phone is a personal decision and it depends on where you are in your life and what you need. Are you are student, housewife, do you travel long distances? Personally it's important to me that my mobile phone have a big screen, fast software a good camera,take good videos e.t.c . I've thought of just buying a small screen tablet, that can you do all these things. But sometimes a tablet can be too big.For example can you take a tablet to the club?

6 years ago

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Seocheckout

What do you look for when purchasing a mobile phone ?

What do you look for when purchasing a mobile phone ?

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