Innumerable youtubers out there are creating content everyday to help you make your phone buying decision. Still it is not uncommon for people to overthink a mobile phone purchase. If you ask me in person, I will just tell you – Buy the phone that matches your vibe
If you think its beneath you to carry anything but an iPhone, that’s your decision right there. In marketing terms, this is called Brand Positioning. You can buy an android phone from Samsung, Oppo, Vivo or any other brand for as low as INR 10,000 but the starting price of the cheapest iPhone SE right now is INR 50,000. Exclusivity, premium, high end, that’s Apple’s brand positioning. If you think of your phone as an extension of yourself and want to channel similar vibes, you have to go for an iPhone. Note that this isn’t exclusive to iPhones. You might resonate with always carrying the latest Samsung Galaxy. You could be the OnePlus guy. You get the point.
But honestly speaking, I think that’s a really bad advice. I stick to it because the easiest way to prove that you are nerd is to bring objectivity in a subjective discussion. ‘What phone to buy’ is rarely an objective discussion. And that is why there are plenty of people carrying phones crafted for World class photography yet they don’t even have an Instagram account. People with phones specifically designed for productivity and they don’t even have a To Do app.
The good thing about having a blog is that I can be a total nerd here 😂. And my real advice for buying a phone is to buy one that supports your workflow. If you notice, all of us use our phones in a very specific manner. I will give you my example,
1. I cannot afford to spend an hour to charge my phone and I cannot carry a battery pack at all times. I have my Outlook, Teams and other work related apps on the phone and I cannot afford a dead battery specially in these WFH times. So I need a phone that,
- (a) charges quickly
- (b) and has good battery capacity
2. The software experience matters. I need OpenCamera app to shoot videos for PMC Lounge, the app is an android exclusive. I need to be able to swipe to the widgets like the Outlook Calendar and the Microsoft To Do so that I am on top of my day. I need Truecaller to work at all times to avoid the never ending calls for credit card, loans, overdraft and similar offers. I do not want any bloatware and a minimalist UI is what I am after.
3. Finally, more than the brand’s positioning, I am interested in the value that the device delivers. Is the charger, case and screen guard part of the deal? What about post sales service? Are cameras good? Can I place the phone on the treadmill so that I can watch YouTube videos while I cardio?
As you can see, these scenarios are very specific to me. I do not play any mobile games. I do not care about the AnTuTu benchmark. I do not jump into the pool with my phone and it doesn’t bother me if not having an iPhone makes me the odd one out at a Starbucks. But these could be applicable to you. Your workflow might include the necessary usage of iMessage or Air Drop or S-Pen or you could be a pro-gamer. So consider the scenarios and objective questions specific to you and your workflow before upgrading your phone. And that’s the nerdy (and true) version of my advice.