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Other Who has an Android device as a backup?

F

Ffosse

macrumors 68000
Original poster
Nov 5, 2012
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At one point I had 3 phones - the iPhone 8, the X and an Xperia X Compact but that was one too many. I had to decide what I was going to be using a phone for and eventually sold the Sony. I only really need one phone but having one as a backup makes sense; If I break or lose one it's not the end of the world.

I normally get two phones a year but am cutting back as a result of spending too much money on phones, wasting it, really.

So now I have the XS Max which I anticipate holding onto for at least two years as my daily driver. I also have an Honor 10 which, although not high-end Android, approaches it in its specs. I keep it beside my bed for reading with and listening to podcasts and music - everything else I do with the Max but I like to keep my toe in the water of android, too. I'm pleased that I got the number of my phones down to two and they're both excellent devices - the iPhone was 4 times the price of the Honor, £1249 compared with £330.
 
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The iPhone is usually my main phone and from time to time I try different Android smartphones but only the Pixel (not the XL) would be a replacement if I sold the iphone or would switch to Android.
Of course you always lose some money but often I buy used Android phones where the resale value is almost equal or even higher depending on the price I had to pay.
Never had more than 2 phones at the same time though.
 
Two makes sense. With 3 the Sony often sat unused for weeks.
 
I have a Note 9, but never use it. Probably going to sell it off since it’s been sitting in the box now.
 
Very similar to you OP. I'm a phone addict but decided to buy the iPhone XS to *try* to keep it as my daily driver for at least two years and not buy phones so often. I sold my iPhone 8. So now I have iPhone XS, Huawei P20 Pro (impulse buy that I kind of regret) and Nokia 8.

Thinking of selling the P20 Pro unless the camera REALLY wows me. The Nokia 8 is reliable as hell and is almost pure Android so I'll be keeping that one for sure as a backup.
 
The new Nokias are good. I was tempted by the Huawei, too, then read an article saying that the camera wasn't really all that and that kind of put me off.

Since getting the Max a couple of weeks ago now my urge for something new has entirely gone. I've even read all the articles on sites about all the small things I can do with it and iOS 12 (I usually skip all these). Selling the X and the 8 almost paid for the Max...think I had to add around £200 for the 256GB version.
 
It would be difficult for me to move my “life” on an Android phone. Been many years since I used one but prefer to keep a iPhone spare. Only takes a few minutes to restore it and I am ready to go.
 
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Yes, there are certain things on Android that I find jarring, but I've set up the Honor 10 the way I like it and with the original launcher. My days of tinkering with Android have gone. It's not as good as the iPhone 8 I sold but is pretty good for an Android phone.
 
I keep quite a few Android and iPhone’s around as backup devices. I daily use both so I have extras for each as a backup.
 
I have three backups to my 6s+.

iPhone 5, iPhone 4s and iPhone 4. Each of these phones has a specific purpose outside of being a backup so they do get used. But at a minimum, both my 6s+ and my 5 go with me every day.

My 5 actually has it's own active line.
 
I have an old Blu R1 HD that I occasionally use for something that only works on Android. It would never serve as my main phone though, unless I needed it temporarily.
 
I always have one of each. Android/iPhone. I like to have a dual sim phone..one for work and personal lines. Hoping this e sim works out.
 
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I have two lines. One for iOS. One for Android. I like to use my Android phones as phones because they are much better in terms of call quality and clarity of incoming and outgoing sound. I very briefly had a Max and my callers couldn’t hear me very well. I get some complaints even on my 8 Plus. 7 Plus was the worst despite being a Qualcomm phone and the problems with it prompted me to use my Android phones as much as possible for voice calls, with the HTC 10 and Pixel 2 being the best at it.

I also just have a lot of fun playing with Android phones because of their diversity and ability to be customized to crazy levels.

I currently use a Galaxy S9+ and an iPhone 8 Plus.

Sometimes notifications and email come in faster on an Android and sometimes on an iPhone. I feel very lucky to be able to run two platforms at the same time for this reason. I won’t always be able to afford this, not when we go into retirement with college tuitions to pay. So I will enjoy it while I can.

I prefer the features and performance of my Android phones so far, but I’m ridiculously dependent on the Apple Watch and now that it’s also a walkie talkie, forget about it, the Apple Watch is my new best friend and therefore iPhone wins. In my experience, Android compatible watches and fitness bands don’t have anything that is both this robustly featured and attractive for women. I have tried almost everything I could that works with Android and could fit on my wrist. No contest.

Alone, the iPhone is good. Pairing it with my Apple Watch elevates it to something indispensable for me now.

I guess I should take a moment and give my respects to my now returned beautiful gold XS Max. I couldn’t get it to work well as a phone, but I think that will prove eventually to be a fixable issue. Beyond that, I think I would have favored the Max above even my trusty S9+ that retains the much appreciated accessory port. I just had difficulties with the pwm implementation on the OLED display. Most people seem not to, and if I were one of those lucky people, the Max could have been the phone I could retire to one line with.

I’m hoping to get an Xr, but will miss the dual lens camera and the higher quality display the Max had.
 
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GrumpyMom said:
I have two lines. One for iOS. One for Android. I like to use my Android phones as phones because they are much better in terms of call quality and clarity of incoming and outgoing sound. I very briefly had a Max and my callers couldn’t hear me very well. I get some complaints even on my 8 Plus. 7 Plus was the worst despite being a Qualcomm phone and the problems with it prompted me to use my Android phones as much as possible for voice calls, with the HTC 10 and Pixel 2 being the best at it.
Click to expand...

Interesting you've had that experience because I've never had anyone complain about call quality while on an iPhone. I've always experienced excellent quality.
 
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sporez said:
Interesting you've had that experience because I've never had anyone complain about call quality while on an iPhone. I've always experienced excellent quality.
Click to expand...
My husband and I both had issues with the 7 Plus that I learned could be due to faulty mics. Which makes sense since he had good call quality on his Airpods. I think my 6S Plus was good, not great but good. I’ve had trouble with the 7 Plus, Intel 8 Plus and most recently my former Max hasn’t held LTE signal very well.

With iPhones I have also found that I have to be very careful what case I use. I live in an outlying rural area and that may also account for the difference in my experience vs yours.

My Samsungs get some static noise on the line from time to time. The best was HTC 10 and the HTC-made Pixel 2 was a close second. Those are amazingly clear phones.
 
GrumpyMom said:
My husband and I both had issues with the 7 Plus that I learned could be due to faulty mics. Which makes sense since he had good call quality on his Airpods. I think my 6S Plus was good, not great but good. I’ve had trouble with the 7 Plus, Intel 8 Plus and most recently my former Max hasn’t held LTE signal very well.

With iPhones I have also found that I have to be very careful what case I use. I live in an outlying rural area and that may also account for the difference in my experience vs yours.

My Samsungs get some static noise on the line from time to time. The best was HTC 10 and the HTC-made Pixel 2 was a close second. Those are amazingly clear phones.
Click to expand...
Interesting. I suppose it could've been defective mics. I've had T-Mobile and AT&T (via Cricket) with 6, 6S Plus, 7 Plus (Intel), X (Intel) and now XS Max. As long as my cell signal is decent, quality is usually great.
 
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sporez said:
Interesting. I suppose it could've been defective mics. I've had T-Mobile and AT&T (via Cricket) with 6, 6S Plus, 7 Plus (Intel), X (Intel) and now XS Max. As long as my cell signal is decent, quality is usually great.
Click to expand...
I have straight up AT&T. Where I live, when I tried T-Mobile for a cellular iPad account, I could not get signal inside of my house. I could only get signal outside. And when I visited my parents who live just outside Washington DC in a suburb, I had the same problem. But that was about 4 or 5 years ago. T-Mobile supposedly has improved since then.
 
I have a iPhone X as my main device and Galaxy S8 i use for a backup and media device. I mostly use the S8 for media consumption like Netflix, ShowBox, Torrent downloads etc because the screen is amazing.
 
GrumpyMom said:
I have straight up AT&T. Where I live, when I tried T-Mobile for a cellular iPad account, I could not get signal inside of my house. I could only get signal outside. And when I visited my parents who live just outside Washington DC in a suburb, I had the same problem. But that was about 4 or 5 years ago. T-Mobile supposedly has improved since then.
Click to expand...
Tmo has improved a lot but when I last used them a couple years ago, they severely suffered when out in rural areas. AT&T is so much better and I almost always have LTE even out in the middle of nowhere Tennessee.
 
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Sparkymoto said:
Must be a cheap one. The Note and S series are great.
Click to expand...
It is, it was pretty much free. Its a galaxy s7 I think. The phone itself is fine, I just don't care for Android and the interface and the screen is so small compared to my Max. I only carry it because I have to.
 
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