Poll: what smartphone do you use as your primary smartphone?

https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7713656

by plg • 12 years ago

53 85 12 years ago

news.ycombinator.com

adrianN• 12 years ago

I still have a dumb phone. Does that count as "other"?

justizin2• 12 years ago

increasingly this looks like a smart choice. :/

privong2• 12 years ago

Why do you say that? The location tracking and call/sms traffic analysis is equally doable with a dumbphone as a with smartphone. Sure, there may be more ways to track a smartphone, but using a dumbphone doesn't eliminate the cell provider's ability to track you. And all dumbphones are now E911 [0] capable. so they can get the location of a user to several hundred meters accuracy.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enhanced_9-1-1#Wireless_enhanc...

CyberFonic• 12 years ago

Please publish the results of this survey in a couple of days. Many of us would be very interested in the results.

taspeotis2• 12 years ago

The options and results are available right now (unless the results are hidden for low rep users?).

Set a calendar appointment for +2 days with the subject https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=7713656

kirbyk• 12 years ago

I wonder how these results compare to the user-agent analytics of hacker news.

justizin2• 12 years ago

right, I always read HN on my phone ;d

megablast• 12 years ago

I am on a iPhone 4s, might upgrade this year if something good comes out.

Have tried Android, Nexus 1, HTC HD2, never liked them as much.

Will never buy anything from Samsung, they are one of the most scummy companies around.

w1ntermute2• 12 years ago

Will never buy anything from Samsung, they are one of the most scummy companies around.

Yeah, just like those companies that blatantly violated antitrust laws to suppress wages for thousands of engineers. Oh wait, wasn't Apple part of that too?

sekasi• 12 years ago

I like how you didn't address his concern, but instead responded with a completely different concern. Good response. Five stars. Very helpful.

exodust2• 12 years ago

The chip in your iPhone 4s is made by Samsung.

sb232• 12 years ago

Why do you say that? I quite like Samsung...

pmorici• 12 years ago

Was on an iPhone but I'm switching to a Moto because that is all that is offered on Republic wireless and their plan prices are too good to pass up.

leeoniya• 12 years ago

HTC now, then whatever decent hardware gets a nightly FF OS port.

mkr-hn4• 12 years ago

My first smartphone (Galaxy S Relay) arrives in the mail tomorrow.

daleharvey• 12 years ago

Other being Firefox OS

bgroins• 12 years ago

The last 2 Nexus phones were also LGs. Not sure how to vote...

middleclick• 12 years ago

Woah no love for Blackberrry? (As of now the only vote for Blackberry is mine!)

batiudrami• 12 years ago

Got a Sony Xperia Z1 when it launched 6 months back - very happy with it and would recommend it to anyone looking for an Android handset. They don't seem to have much presence in NA though, which explains the low number of votes in the poll.

hackuser• 12 years ago

I got an Xperia Z1 Ultra (~6-inch screen). One day the screen just cracked -- no drop, didn't sit on it, just put in my (front) pocket in the morning, took it out a few hours later, and it was cracked. If you search, you can find many others who have had the same experience.

Sony refused to fix it, blaming me for some warp of the frame (I've handled this phone gently and never dropped it). Unless I persuade them to change their minds, I'm out over $600.

jordigh3• 12 years ago

I don't own a phone. Not a smart, not a dumb, not a landline. Is this "other"?

jxf2• 12 years ago

Are you in the US? How do you deal with any one of the many sites that require a phone number (e.g. bank accounts)? SIP?

jordigh3• 12 years ago

I'm in Canada. Amazingly, a lot of these sites that require a phone number don't actually require one. If it's a person grabbing my details, I tell them i don't have a phone, and they usually figure out what to do. If it's a computer that won't accept "no" for an answer, I pick 1234567 as my number after the area code.

This has not really impacted my life in any significant way.

rvschuilenburg• 12 years ago

I was first thinking about "how do you keep in touch with people then?" but obviously there's a lot of other channels you can use. The only thing that would bother me is how you would contact the emergency services? Do you send them an e-mail? Or do you have some other radio equipment like a walkie-talkie?

mkr-hn4• 12 years ago

You can get a GPS Ham radio and license for the cost of an older smartphone.

jordigh3• 12 years ago

I don't know, I haven't had an emergency yet. I live in an urban area, so if I did have an emergency, there would be no shortage of phones around me that I could use. If I were to go out to the wilderness, I might bring a flare or something, but I'm not a big outdoorsman.

DigitalSea• 12 years ago

Wow, seems like Blackberry is well and truly out of fashion (at least with the Hacker News crowd). Not surprised to see the iPhone, Nexus and Samsung phones rating highly in the poll. Interested to see if there are any surprise risers as this gets more votes. I use a Samsung Galaxy S4 myself, best phone I've ever owned.

saltylicorice• 12 years ago

Moto X is pretty rad.

alien3d• 12 years ago

Lenovo ? .. it might be cheap.. but it works..

mkr-hn4• 12 years ago

I didn't know they made phones.

seldo• 12 years ago

The concept of a "primary" smartphone is a little strange to me. How common is it to have multiple active smartphones? (As opposed to, say, one for testing software, or an old one in the closet)

wingerlang• 12 years ago

Agreed. Although while travelling I frequently find people who have 2 smartphones. Usually because the main one is carrier locked but also, I guess, as an anti-theft solution.

jkestner• 12 years ago

That's what I thought too, right after "Insert Dave Morin joke."

djfergus• 12 years ago

The common scenario I see here in Asia is a corporate provided phone (free business calls and the only sanctioned way to access corporate email, but invariably crappy, old, cheap and/or blackberry) plus a new smartphone (Samsung in ASEAN, iPhone in greater China) used for friends, family, apps etc. Very rare to encounter someone in a business meeting who does not have two phones.

veidr• 12 years ago

I think it's not too uncommon -- I carry an iPhone 5s and Nexus 5 (in the same pocket), and I see a lot of other people do it too.

I do it because:

a.) iPhone OS is better but overall, but the tiny screen is super super annoying for many things (IMO)

b.) this way I have NTT Docomo in addition to Softbank, so I get coverage underground and weird places where one or the other doesn't work

c.) voice dictation is 100x better on Android, so I use the nexus for dictating things

seba_dos12• 12 years ago

I'm using Openmoko Neo Freerunner, but often also carry Nokia N900, which is nicer for web browsing and writing thanks to hw keyboard. I'm looking forward to replace them both with Neo900.

dagw• 12 years ago

I'd say at least half the people I know have two phones, one for work, one for personal use.

dkraft• 12 years ago

I have carried a 2nd "development" phone for more than 5 years. Currently an S3.

Not only provides sandbox to play in, it has twice provided an acceptable backup during repairs to primary with only a simcard swap.

techwizrd• 12 years ago

I was on a Samsung Galaxy S2 and I switched to a Nexus 5 in December. I'm really enjoying it. Someone stops me at least once a week to ask what phone it is and tell me that it looks really good.

krisgenre• 12 years ago

I am still on Galaxy S2 but running Android 4.4.2 (Slim bean ROM).. And people still stop to ask what phone it is :-)

fatman13gg• 12 years ago

Now Nokia 820. HTC Sensation previously.

ninthfrank07• 12 years ago

Previous phones: iPhone 4s, 5, 5s.

I recently switched to a Nexus 5. First I bought a Nexus 7 to play around Android and it turned out I liked it very much. I decided to switch because many apps I frequently use (Authenticator, Calendar, Chrome, Gmail, Docs, Drive, Google+, Keep, Hangouts, Maps, Play Music, Search, Youtube, etc.) are made by Google and I feel like I'm getting a better experience on Android. I also really enjoy the fact that I can install Play Store apps directly from my desktop web browser. And from a hardware standpoint, I much prefer the larger screen of the Nexus 5.

chriskelley2• 12 years ago

I also really enjoy the fact that I can install Play Store apps directly from my desktop web browser.

Totally agree. Very similar to the Amazon "Whispersync" for kindle. I loved stumbling on an app online that looked interesting, click install, and next time I take out my phone it's just there ready for me.

I recently switched to a iPhone 5S from many consecutive android phones, and this is definitely on my list of things I miss.

billyvg• 12 years ago

you can do that with itunes

presty• 12 years ago

This might help iphone users: http://teleapp.me/

spike021• 12 years ago

I think you can actually do that now. Although I believe it syncs everything you buy/get from any device. So it's not as selective where you can just press 'Download' and it goes to the device you choose.

blinkingled2• 12 years ago

Moto G! I've finally found a phone that annoys me the least.

I totally see using it for next couple years if Google continues to optimize Android for better memory utilization. As is with KitKat it only works good enough for most things.

I've thought about why I like this phone so much and I think I like the minimalism, the great in-hand feel, the very consistently nice performance and great battery life.

Edit: Coming from a Note 2, I noticed I have automatically made few usage adjustments chiefly due to screen size but somewhat also due to less RAM. But I find it works better that way.

a3n• 12 years ago

Moto G, I really really really really really like the physical phone. Love the small size (compared to the slabs people are carrying these days). Some of google on the phone annoys me, other of google I like. Installed Firefox, works fine for the very little that I use it.

axaxs• 12 years ago

You know, I absolutely loved the moto g when I got it. One update later and it's in my closet and I hate motorola. The problem? It keeps telling me to insert a sim card. The only fix is to reseat the card. Apparently, when it loses all signal, even for a bit, it doesn't recover. And a phone that can't receive calls isn't much of a phone. I RMAd the phone just to get another with the same issue. After countless calls, the rep offered to send me a new sim card tray. Yes, setiously. The escalation contact told me to wipe the card with my shirt, ignoring ive tried 3 sims now. It's even listed on Wikipedia! Fuck motorola, they've cost me more time than the phone is worth.

blinkingled2• 12 years ago

May be they are having some QC issues with meeting all the demand lately. I bought 3 when it was released and haven't had any issues.

sdfjkl4• 12 years ago

An iPhone 4S, which I grudgingly upgraded to IOS 7 after Apple refused to fix the SSL bug on IOS 6. I absolutely hate the look and the removal of button shapes is an affront to everything I ever learnt about user interfaces (from Apple's HIG, no less).

I'll probably keep this phone forever out of sheer apathy, since I don't want to spend money on another IOS 7 UI and don't much like Android for a variety of reasons. Maybe I'll try a Firefox OS device at some point, but the last time I looked at that it did not compare well.

pkulak• 12 years ago

Windows phone?

sdfjkl4• 12 years ago

I didn't mention that because it wasn't worth mentioning.

taspeotis2• 12 years ago

I absolutely hate the look and the removal of button shapes is an affront to everything I ever learnt about user interfaces

Turn them back on [1].

[1] http://www.cnet.com/how-to/how-to-enable-button-shapes-on-io...

sdfjkl4• 12 years ago

I've done that, but it doesn't cover all the things that are buttons.

ntakasaki• 12 years ago

Bar graph as of 11:30 EDT.

http://imgur.com/oaBZOv7

sdfjkl4• 12 years ago

I made a Greasemonkey script that draws them (subtly) right on HN. Looks like this: http://cl.ly/image/0G001m393p3V/hn_poll.PNG

Script here: https://gist.github.com/ingmar/5564603

DevKoala• 12 years ago

Nokia 920, which I got at /build 2012

jonah• 12 years ago

I have a Samsung Galaxy Nexus, so I voted for both Samsung and Nexus.

sb232• 12 years ago

The nexus in the poll refers to the Google Nexus range.

Igglyboo• 12 years ago

Google does not manufacture their own phones, the samsung galaxy nexus is most definitely part of the google nexus line of phones.

graeme• 12 years ago

I have an iphone 4 running ios 5.1.1, jailbroken. It's great. It runs incredibly fast after four years: Cydia has a good cleaning app, and a speed increase app that removes animations. Mine look faster than ios 7 apps on new iphones.

I disable safari, and hardly use apps. I just use it to text message, call, take pictures, make calendar entries, check the time, and occasionally take notes, though I prefer a paper notepad for that.

I'm sometimes asked why I have a smartphone at all, but I like the UI, and it does everything I want to do very quickly, while looking nice.

I don't really want to upgrade, but there's no option to buy my current configuration again if this breaks.

PeterOliver• 12 years ago

So are we ignoring that the Nexus 5 has an LG logo on the back of it?

djloche• 12 years ago

BlackBerry Z10 here. Love the new OS, happy with the hardware, very impressed with the browser fork.

bruce_one• 12 years ago

[Jolla](http://jolla.com), and loving it :-D

sturmeh• 12 years ago

This list is very odd; LG Samsung and HTC have all made Nexus devices.

Motorola phones could be Android, Moto (whatever their OS was), or even incredibly old phones.

It's partially a list of manufacturers, and partially a list of brands.

chrismorgan• 12 years ago

Aww, nothing for “I don’t have a smartphone” or “I don’t even have a phone”?

blendergasket• 12 years ago

I'm still running my T-Mobile G2 (HTC Desire) which I got in 2010. It's starting to get a little old and act a little odd sometimes but I hope to keep it for a year or two more.

ragle• 12 years ago

I live in Thailand. The selection here is somewhat limited and phones are typically more expensive than phones in the states.

I picked up a white Lenovo s820 [1][2] for ~$230 without a contract. I saw someone else mention in the thread that "they didn't know Lenovo made phones" - which was me as well before I went shopping for a new phone!

The s820 fit my criteria of thin, light, 4.7" screen and decent specs better than everything except the HTC One X. As a satisfied former Ideapad owner, I felt comfortable going out on a limb that Lenovo's notebook quality would generalize to its smartphone offerings.

So far (~4 months), it has. Apart from the somewhat disappointing camera quality, I've been really pleased.

[1] http://www.gsmarena.com/lenovo_s820-5486.php

[2] http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XpnOMAp8I6M&t=1m44s

unwiredben• 12 years ago

Used to work on Palm webOS, now on my third generation of Nokia Lumia phones. Really love the Windows Phone UI, don't want to be stuck in the iOS ecosystem. Have dabbled with Android, but now only user it in tablet form.

mysteriousllama• 12 years ago

I suppose this is as good a place to ask as any. I can't be the only one in this boat!

I currently use an ancient Droid2 because it has a hardware keyboard with most of the characters I need for programming and SSH sessions. It's really starting to show it's age and I would like to upgrade.

No newer phones come with keyboards. The default software keyboard does not have the needed characters. Third party soft keyboards have the correct characters, but it takes a massive amount of screen space to display them in a usable manner.

So I ask you hackernews: What phone setup do you use for SSH during long commutes and such? Are there any decent external hardware keyboards that integrate well with particular models? How about Phablets that have the extra screen space for a proper soft keyboard?

mappu• 12 years ago

I had an SK17i until recently. It was a great phone, very cool for ssh, running ncurses stuff and the odd patch, although the hardware keyboard was missing useful things like angle brackets.

When it randomly broke, i strongly considered the Blackberry Q5 as a replacement, but i ultimately gave in and went to soft keyboards.

mkr-hn4• 12 years ago

I've got a Samsung Galaxy S Relay on the way with a physical keyboard. The keyboard is one of the reasons I chose it over one of the better-speced options in the same price range. It's a little old (late 2012), but it runs Android 4.1.2 and has good reviews.

A quick GIS tells me the keyboard has all the important programming keys. I plan to use it for writing, but it might work for programming.

anomaly_• 12 years ago

Nexus 4 here. It's been an excellent phone, and I've really enjoyed Android. Only criticism would be the camera (mainly with regards to the shutter lag) and the battery-life (although this only gets me occasionally).

I've been building up quite an app library on my iPad, so if there is a larger screen iPhone released (4.7" hopefully) - I'll be tempted to have a go with that

seba_dos12• 12 years ago

Of course Openmoko.

Artemis2• 12 years ago

I have a Lumia 920. Say what you want about Windows Phone, but its UI is among the best I've ever seen. Also the build quality makes the phone very resistant (I don't really take care of my phone). The only issues I had with it are the app marketplace (it's not really the lack of apps, but rather the quality/respect of WP UI of most of them), and the fact that's its quite heavy.

allard• 12 years ago

Samsung but I didn't choose it and I barely use it relative to a Nexus tablet. it is a hand-me-down. when I chose, it was HTC (twice).

Poll: what smartphone do you use as your primary smartphone?

Related Stories