[TheReciever]

So it's about time I look into this and see what's available for me. I will soon be joining the military in a couple of months and also travel quite a bit, South Korea, Hong Kong, macao, next might be Shanghai or Germany etc who knows. I currently have the HTC one m7att and really have no problems with it save for a couple of things I didn't forsee needing. Back is not removable, and also doesn't work other than in the U.S.

So with that being said, please lens me a helping hand OCN!

What is your maximum budget?
500 USD

What country are you in?
South Korea, U.S. Possibly other locations

What will be the uses of this phone?
Communications, 1080p media playback, plenty of music is very likely. Email, lots of Internet.

Do you have brand loyalty or care which brands we select for you?
Not at all, however the cheaper the better.

What screen size do you require?
4.7 - 5.7 (6 is pushing it, but if circumstance requires then ok)

What screen resolution do you require?
1080x1920

Are you looking to buy NEW or would refurbished/recertified/used be okay?
Preferably new

How long should the battery last? (Under optimal conditions, no movies/games/heavy internet)
As close to 4000mah as possible

What operating system do you need?
Kitkat, ability to upgrade to 5.0 is nice but not required.

Is there a certain style of phone you want? (aluminum, black, gaming, etc.)
Needs to have removable battery to access the back, aluminum would be nice but access is needed more.

How much storage do you need?
32gb is fine, more or expandable is welcome

Do you need any special hardware?
Dual SIM is a requirement. Expandable storage would be nice.

Is there anything else we need to know?
Needs to be at least quad core snap dragon 600 in performance or greater.

Essentially I'm fine with the specifications I have with my own m7, however I need a phone with removable back and battery as well as dual SIM.

If at all possible expandable storage would be nice.

Don't care what vendor it comes from, be it Korean/Chinese or otherwise

Thanks in advance guys!

 

[Baghi]

The IUNI U3, or the Xiaomi Redmi Note 4G but you can get two of these in your budget (lol) and it only has 720p display if you can live with that. Dual-SIM options have become limited lately.

 

[TheReciever]

Hmm then maybe I just need to find a phone that can operate globally through the radio frequencies and just have an easy to switch SIM card?

 

[Baghi]

Only the latest iPhone can give you that luxury, but it's not cheap. The OnePlus One Global is also an option, though I'm not sure if it'll work in Korea and some part of Asia, because they've their own version that comes with ColorOS instead of the Cyanogenmod. One thing you should must know that don't get anything below Snapdragon 800 series device. MediaTek just don't cut it, heck even the Exynos lags here and there. Snapdragon 600 was a good performer but not as power efficient as the S800/801 are.

I'd advice you to finalize what network you're going to be using when traveling and get the phone according to that particular network's required frequencies.

 

[TheReciever]

It's as stated above though, primary areas are united States and South Korea and where ever the military would send me.

Biggest issue so far is making sure my first two main operating areas work with one phone

Looks like the oneplus one wi) be the best offering overall, just have to keep the SIM card remover handy

 

[Baghi]

Yeah, the OPO seems like a good deal in that case. Make sure you get the Global version, the Chinese version doesn't work in the US.

 

[TheReciever]

Was that confirmed? I was reading reports on that going for and against working in the U.S.

I'm not interested in the Chinese version a# I don't think gapps works with the ColorOS

 

[Baghi]

No, the Global version should work in the US without any problem, since it's intended for ROW. The Chinese version is identical, except it lacks few bands required in the US. It even works in the EU. As for gapps not working on ColorOS, it's easy to install, none of the Chinese phone comes preinstall with them but you can still install it because OEMs don't remove it entirely.

 

[TheReciever]

easily install gapps but would void the warranty of most of the Chinese oems

I guess it's the one plus one for me in the future, I have also confirmed that it works well in Korea in the meantime.

Just have to confirm if my phone will not work in Korea next

 

[Baghi]

You might be talking about those OEMs who remove Google Services from the core of their custom skim, not the case with some of the most known ones though. For example, I was able to install Gapps on MIUI ROM (Xiaomi) and Funtouch OS (BBK vivo - sister company of Oppo and OnePlus), directly from their own store, i.e. App Store for vivo phones and Market for Xiaomi phones. Regardless, if you get the OnePlus One from reslellers located in the US or get it yourself (if you've an invite), you're most likely to get the Global version anyway.

 

[TheReciever]

Ah OK thanks very much appreciated.

I guess now I just need to play the invite game when the time comes around

 

[Baghi]

All the best. Not so long ago I wasted an invite just because I checked my email when it was already late.

If you don't like waiting, invites go for like 5-10 bucks on eBay.

 

[TheReciever]

Oh really? I'll have to check that then as I can just order whenever I'm ready lol

Thanks again man

 

[Mr Bear]

Pretty much any current Samsung device in the US that is unlocked (or already an int'l) will give you the freedom to swap SIM cards.

 

[TheReciever]

What I need however is the radio band support