Database Users

Buying advice: Asus ZenFone 2

I am in the market for a new cell phone to replace my current Samsung Galaxy SIII Mini. Given my budget, I have nearly settled on the Asus ZenFone 2. At $299 for an upper-middle tier cell phone with 64GB of storage and 4GB of RAM, it seems like a solid bet. The only real downfall I have discovered from my research thus far is the ZenUI which overlays the stock Android experience and the massive amount of bloatware that comes pre-installed on the phone.
If I were able to safely get rid of the bloatware and make the phone more like a pure stock Android experience, I would buy it in a heartbeat.
I consider myself fairly able to work with technology, although I have never actually rooted, flashed, or otherwise modded a cell phone. So, I am looking for some guidance. Do you think the ZenFone2 warrants a purchase in spite of the concerns outlined? If no, do you have any suitable reocmmendations in that budget range? More importantly, do you think I would be able to modify the phone to get rid of bloatware and make it a more stock Android experience?
Sorry if this questions has been asked previously. As I mentioned, I am very new to this, certainly new to the forums, and just looking for guidance. Thanks!

Bloatware thing is overblown, you can disable every single preinstalled app on the phone. The performance is amazing, this is a lag free phone. However, I do no recommend this phone simply based on the battery life, its terrible. There is no way around it.

yumms said:
Bloatware thing is overblown, you can disable every single preinstalled app on the phone. The performance is amazing, this is a lag free phone. However, I do no recommend this phone simply based on the battery life, its terrible. There is no way around it.
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I'm not as concerned about the battery life as I am generally near a charger. But, do you think the battery issues might be address through an Android update (I hear 5.1.1 is coming soon to Asus) or even a root/mod like Cyanogenmod?

dchadjohnson said:
I'm not as concerned about the battery life as I am generally near a charger. But, do you think the battery issues might be address through an Android update (I hear 5.1.1 is coming soon to Asus) or even a root/mod like Cyanogenmod?
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Click to collapse
Battery life is little fixed for me on this new updates,it's not that bad,but just wait for 5.1.1 update or Android M 6.0 update,zenfone 2 will shine for sure
---------- Post added at 04:36 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:35 PM ----------
and btw don't install Cm 12.1,i tried it and it's worse than asus stock rom,trust me...

The only bad thing about the phone (550ML) is the battery backup and the memory usage.
Except that, it is good.
Depending where you are, i could advice your to buy the redmi note 2, lower price, more powerfull, pictures a bit better in low light environment, sound better, 5 hours SOT and not three like this phone, lower and brighter screen...

I bought the WW version of the phone you are considering, after upgrading from a S4. Unlike a lot here on XDA, I have left it at stock, with 64gig of storage and 4gig of ram who cares about the bloatware. With Auto Start Manager you can disable anything you want to anyway. It does what I want it to do and I am not stuck to the carrier's software update schedule as I was with the S4.

I've had ZenFone 2 for about 1 month now. My previous phone was first gen Moto G.
ZenUI is surprisingly good. I usually have Google Now launcher or Nova Launcher but I've been sticking with ZenUI. The bloat is only a minor inconvenience.
As for performance: the phone is a beast! Astonishing considering the price. I have 1.8ghz 4gig ram version.
The screen is good. It doesn't get dim enough and so is not ideal for nighttime use. I tried to use rootdim to no avail. I use phone at min brightness for most of day.
Battery life is poor! Struggle to get 3hrs screen on time. I'm a medium to heavy user. Have to charge it twice a day. Hoping this can be improved with 5.1.1. If, not then might consider one plus one.

m98221 said:
I've had ZenFone 2 for about 1 month now. My previous phone was first gen Moto G.
ZenUI is surprisingly good. I usually have Google Now launcher or Nova Launcher but I've been sticking with ZenUI. The bloat is only a minor inconvenience.
As for performance: the phone is a beast! Astonishing considering the price. I have 1.8ghz 4gig ram version.
The screen is good. It doesn't get dim enough and so is not ideal for nighttime use. I tried to use rootdim to no avail. I use phone at min brightness for most of day.
Battery life is poor! Struggle to get 3hrs screen on time. I'm a medium to heavy user. Have to charge it twice a day. Hoping this can be improved with 5.1.1. If, not then might consider one plus one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use lux light as it dims the screen to great nighttime viewing and I get decent screen time and I'm a heavy user as well
Sent from my ASUS_Z00AD using XDA Free mobile app

I have never experienced the poor battery life others complain of on this phone.
Sent from my KFTHWI using Tapatalk

corrsea said:
I have never experienced the poor battery life others complain of on this phone.
Sent from my KFTHWI using Tapatalk
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yeah me too, I get battery backup around 5 hrs easily and the only thing I dont like is memory management and blaotwares that's all but as someone said earlier you can disable and I did around 13 apps xD
Camera and performace and battery is very good. Waiting for 5.1.1'

[/COLOR]and btw don't install Cm 12.1,i tried it and it's worse than asus stock rom,trust me...[/QUOTE]
Well what people need to understand is that ALL of the AOSP roms for the zenfone 2 are in BETA STAGES! Meaning its not 100% stable. Not the devs fault as they are doing there best to get it to a stable release.
As for recommending the phone to OP. Yes I do, is in my list its one of the top phones for 300 and under this year. Now its not perfect(battery, junk bloat, screen brightness, screen to body ratio) but for the 4gb model if you tweak and make it yours you will love the speed and its flagship experience at a mid level price point.

Well, many people have already give you a help but here it goes another one. This phone is just amazing. For this price you only have OP2 or Moto X to compete (both are a little bit expensive).
My battery reach to 4.30h SOT and i have always wifi, bt and 4g on. Play about 1h games, lots of browsing and social networks. 30m talking. In the end of day still have my battery around 25%. Not bad but with 5.1.1 hope this improve. There is very little bloatware and you can remove them or disable easily.
The bad things is the screen body ratio is bsd and make the phone biggest, the camera is not brilliant, the power button on top, the screen brightness.
But every phones have pros and cons so, for me, this is the best for the price
Already bought another for my sister and i recommend alot. Very happy user

Kambz1994 said:
and btw don't install Cm 12.1,i tried it and it's worse than asus stock rom,trust me...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Strongly disagree with that, it is improving daily and imho already surpasses the ASUS stock firmware. CM has given me a new found love for and enjoyment of this excellent phone.

Delgadovsky said:
Well, many people have already give you a help but here it goes another one. This phone is just amazing. For this price you only have OP2 or Moto X to compete (both are a little bit expensive).
My battery reach to 4.30h SOT and i have always wifi, bt and 4g on. Play about 1h games, lots of browsing and social networks. 30m talking. In the end of day still have my battery around 25%. Not bad but with 5.1.1 hope this improve. There is very little bloatware and you can remove them or disable easily.
The bad things is the screen body ratio is bsd and make the phone biggest, the camera is not brilliant, the power button on top, the screen brightness.
But every phones have pros and cons so, for me, this is the best for the price
Already bought another for my sister and i recommend alot. Very happy user
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I get more than 5 hrs xD

See xD

903tex said:
[/COLOR]and btw don't install Cm 12.1,i tried it and it's worse than asus stock rom,trust me...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well what people need to understand is that ALL of the AOSP roms for the zenfone 2 are in BETA STAGES! Meaning its not 100% stable. Not the devs fault as they are doing there best to get it to a stable release.
As for recommending the phone to OP. Yes I do, is in my list its one of the top phones for 300 and under this year. Now its not perfect(battery, junk bloat, screen brightness, screen to body ratio) but for the 4gb model if you tweak and make it yours you will love the speed and its flagship experience at a mid level price point.[/QUOTE]
Lol, cm12.1 and aosp roms are in beta version so they need time to be stable. They aren't ridiculous noob

If you're not a hardcore gamer, then better wait for the Zenfone 2 Laser (ZE550KL) variant with Snapdragon 615 and 3GB RAM. I had almost decided to buy the ZE550ML, although I was apprehensive about the battery life, when I read about the new model. It costs marginally higher than the ZE550ML, but should have better battery if somewhat less performance. Plus 3GB RAM should still take care of the ZenUI bloat.

Gustapo said:
If you're not a hardcore gamer, then better wait for the Zenfone 2 Laser (ZE550KL) variant with Snapdragon 615 and 3GB RAM. I had almost decided to buy the ZE550ML, although I was apprehensive about the battery life, when I read about the new model. It costs marginally higher than the ZE550ML, but should have better battery if somewhat less performance. Plus 3GB RAM should still take care of the ZenUI bloat.
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2 Gb ram is enough for gaming if you know how to use phone

ASUS ZenFone2 is a great phone!
Okay, so I'm a bit biased...but this phone is actually really good! (I came from a Nexus). Battery life is really dependent on your location, signal, usage scenarios, etc. But I'm on T-Mo in the Bay Area where signal isn't the best, I use the phone for work and have gotten through an entire day 7-10PM with at least 20% left. Bloatware can be disabled on the latest firmware.

Yeah, I've disabled 23 bloatwares xD

The next zenfone

Well we all know Asus tries it best to give us the best
They have won many hearts and shown their true potential by launching a phone like zenfone 2
I am very impressed by the phone overall but underwhelmed by the battery and camera
We can hope that the next zenfone might sport something even better and still be priced economically
My wishlist is-
1. Amazing front firing speakers
Well everyone wants awesome speakers and ones who have used nexus 6p, motos
They have awesome loudness and clarity but their pricing made me not buy them , i want asus to place powerful speakers and DAC in the next phone
2. Metal or glass
Say, no to leather and plastic ... We do not want dated materials we want is the new style every company is shifting to metal(except samsung, and i do not want to talk about that **** also)
3. Camera
Asus believes in camera able to see even in dark but what it gave in zenny was under the expectations and below the standards we were made to believe in , nexus 6p and Lg v10 rule in low light shots
Please upgrade camera hardware and software , we believe in u asus u will do it
4. Battery
Its needless to say you are the best in charging tech and beat most of the flagships ??
But what needs to be improved is battery capacity and optimization to software
5. Display
Please bring in amoled , it does not matter whether it is 1080p or QHD all matters is quality even mate 8 is running 1080p display and competes well with every flagship
QHD needs a lot juice and would drain battery like hell unless amoled and dark ui is used
6. Software
Asus your zenui is way better than most of the ui's and i love it more than anything except i prefer stock in terms of looks for which i ended up using action launcher and xposed to change the status bar
Please implement an option to choose stock ui over zenui (only for notification panle and status bar and launcher and everything should be same)
Also improve theme engine to allow third party themes
Thats it folks please comment suggestions for the next zenfone , hope asus gets inspired and turn up implementing them

Everything you said, yes please.
So what do you think about SoC, should ASUS stay with intel?

Pretty 1337 specs for the next Zenfone! A brighter, more vivid IPS display would do for me. I'm quite torn about amoled screens at it tends to degrade and lose color overtime. If that's fixed, then amoled all the way!
My take on the "next Zenfone" is not a replacement, but more of an addition. Something like Sony's compact series. Basically a compact version of whatever Zenfone 3 would be. Heck even a compact Zenfone 2 would be nice! Though I have a ZE551ML, I'm pretty much a fan of small, compact phones. It has that "feels good" feel on my hand. Don't get me wrong though, I love my Zenfone!

blazzer12 said:
Everything you said, yes please.
So what do you think about SoC, should ASUS stay with intel?
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Well that matters on which chipset they will use, intel has an array of SOCs to use for smartphone like the newest one is intel atom x3,x5 and x7
X5 is used in mi pad 2 and it works very well antutu-100000 approx
If asus uses x7 then it should be better and almost near the flagship standard at least if it crosses the 100k mark and uses good GPU too! Cuz, power vr is not able to render 4k nor is strong enough like adreno and mali 880.
Well QC 820 is the best chipset to pace bet on or else intel
But, NO MEDIATEK OR NVIDIA

android lover 2000 said:
Well that matters on which chipset they will use, intel has an array of SOCs to use for smartphone like the newest one is intel atom x3,x5 and x7
X5 is used in mi pad 2 and it works very well antutu-100000 approx
If asus uses x7 then it should be better and almost near the flagship standard at least if it crosses the 100k mark and uses good GPU too! Cuz, power vr is not able to render 4k nor is strong enough like adreno and mali 880.
Well QC 820 is the best chipset to pace bet on or else intel
But, NO MEDIATEK OR NVIDIA
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Click to collapse
intel atom x is for tablets, lets hope they release newer one for mobiles
or i think Asus will go to mediatek or snapdragon
edit:
back in September Intel was testing Core M for mobiles, i hope it will be good enough to announce it in MWC

blazzer12 said:
Everything you said, yes please.
So what do you think about SoC, should ASUS stay with intel?
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Click to collapse
No they should move away from Intel and go with the Snapdragon 810 Processor

MikeyLee said:
No they should move away from Intel and go with the Snapdragon 810 Processor
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Seriously?? ?

AL_IRAQI said:
intel atom x is for tablets, lets hope they release newer one for mobiles
or i think Asus will go to mediatek or snapdragon
edit:
back in September Intel was testing Core M for mobiles, i hope it will be good enough to announce it in MWC
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Click to collapse
Thanks for the info..... now my expectations to see intel is way too low..... But still only mtk helio x20 or QC 820
Will be worth it

Good Lord I hope they never go to Mediatek

android lover 2000 said:
Thanks for the info..... now my expectations to see intel is way too low..... But still only mtk helio x20 or QC 820
Will be worth it
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Click to collapse
They never used high end cpu, i think they will go with 808
Sent from my ZF²

Before I start, I have a question. What Xposed module did you install to change the status bar?
I'm quite happy with my Zenfone 2, I payed $400 AUD for it, and considering something like the Nexus 5x is nearly $700 here I think I it's amazing for the price. Obviously to reach that price they had to make some sacrifices.
Speakers:
The speakers weren't the best but I mostly use earphones and when I do use the speakers its fine. Though with the next Zenfone they could move the speaker to the front under the capacitive buttons.
Camera:
The camera is really good in good lighting but horrible in low light, that is something they need to improve on.
Display:
AMOLED, PLEASE.
Battery:
Here we go, this is probably the most controversial of them all. Some people say the battery life is great, others say is garbage. I personally blame 5.0 and Zenui, but hopefully they can make battery consistent across the board.
Software:
Asus needs to scrap Zenui, it's ugly, outdated, and downright rubbish. The first thing I did with my Zenfone was install SuperZen and Nova Launcher, I still wish I could change to 5.1 but I don't want to go with something like CM12.0 because it still has signs of bugs. Asus should be doing what Oppo has done with 'Project Spectrum' and release an optional near AOSP rom with no rubbish thrown in. If I had the money I would of gone with a Nexus. Nothing beats the buttery smoothness of Stock Android.

darklink987 said:
Before I start, I have a question. What Xposed module did you install to change the status bar?
I'm quite happy with my Zenfone 2, I payed $400 AUD for it, and considering something like the Nexus 5x is nearly $700 here I think I it's amazing for the price. Obviously to reach that price they had to make some sacrifices.
Speakers:
The speakers weren't the best but I mostly use earphones and when I do use the speakers its fine. Though with the next Zenfone they could move the speaker to the front under the capacitive buttons.
Camera:
The camera is really good in good lighting but horrible in low light, that is something they need to improve on.
Display:
AMOLED, PLEASE.
Battery:
Here we go, this is probably the most controversial of them all. Some people say the battery life is great, others say is garbage. I personally blame 5.0 and Zenui, but hopefully they can make battery consistent across the board.
Software:
Asus needs to scrap Zenui, it's ugly, outdated, and downright rubbish. The first thing I did with my Zenfone was install SuperZen and Nova Launcher, I still wish I could change to 5.1 but I don't want to go with something like CM12.0 because it still has signs of bugs. Asus should be doing what Oppo has done with 'Project Spectrum' and release an optional near AOSP rom with no rubbish thrown in. If I had the money I would of gone with a Nexus. Nothing beats the buttery smoothness of Stock Android.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I won't recommend xposed as it makes the phone slow at least for me, but still if you want to use then go for xstana.

Just remember... More features, better hardware means higher cost.

blazzer12 said:
Everything you said, yes please.
So what do you think about SoC, should ASUS stay with intel?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NO! A Big No for that!!!
very bad WiFi performance. comparing with my GTab 3.80 and S6e, with the same router and internet provider, my ZenFone perform worst.
very bad GSM performance. lost signal happen a lot.
very bad battery performance.

Mine is good at all of those,
Sent from my P01Z using XDA Free mobile app

barometric pressure sensor (nice for pilots)
phone charm loop hole (nice for girlies to attach helloyKittyThingies and for pilots/outdoor-users to secure phone on the gear)
integrated pen
illuminated buttons (with possibility to use backlight notifications)

Frankenberrie said:
Just remember... More features, better hardware means higher cost.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ever heard of xiaomi ; it defies higher cost for better hardware ?

Happy with your ZE552KL?

I'm coming from a Zenfone 2 that I've been pretty happy with. Will the 3 be a good upgrade? Have you been happy with the Zenfone 3?
Thanks.

denzelnuke said:
I'm coming from a Zenfone 2 that I've been pretty happy with. Will the 3 be a good upgrade? Have you been happy with the Zenfone 3?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, just a little minus. Zenfone 3 didn't have a NFC, but it still a good device for me.
And it's worth for me. I'm totally fine using this device, works normally, fast, smooth performance, and so on and so on
Just like that Sorry for my bad English.

I have nothing to complain when it comes to everyday usage. Though I must admit that quick setting toggle appearance doesn't suit me. Also the ability to schedule on/off isn't available. Auto camera setting suffers in low light as well, manual setting could save the day though. That being said, the device still holds a lot of things to be liked. I guess in the end nothing will satisfy us 100%. I would give it an 8

Very good all around phone for me.
It delivers exactly what you would expect from a medium range phone: good enough camera, slick performance in every day tasks, very good battery time.
Device external design is just meh but could be worse . You need a cover because the back is way too slippery.
ZenUI interface is not that different from android stock and contains some nice additions. I particularly appreciate the gestures controls.

It's what the Zenfone 2 should have been.
No funky hardware decisions or weird specs, a good design that won't boot loop or start to ghost touch itself after a few months, and battery life that will actually last you for more than a few hours of heavy use. It's slimmer, nicer to hold, it seems more durable, and ZenUI has improved to a point where it no longer bothers me. The overall performance is about the same (~20% worse single-core performance, ~30% better multi-core performance on the SoC). Gaming takes a hit on the Zenfone 3, it's noticeably slower on the GPU. The phone is snappy, though, and gaming performance still isn't bad.
Overall, you're not looking at a huge upgrade in terms of specs, but the hardware is far nicer and you won't be disappointed with it.
That's what I would have said about a month ago. Now, the Zenfone 3 Zoom is here with the same SoC, plus an upgraded camera, a solid metal build, an AMOLED display, and a huge battery. And it's the same price as the ZE552KL. That's what I'd recommend taking a look at if I were you.

Overall love

Yes, yes, it's possible to love a phone. Heck, you sleep next to it, don't you? Rate this thread to indicate your love for the Redmi Note 9, all things considered. A higher rating indicates that the Redmi Note 9 is an incredible phone that you enjoy tremendously. You love it.
Then, drop a comment if you have anything to add!

I was given this RN9 yesterday as a present (replacing a Pocophone F1 which broke). Got to say, I love this phone!
It's terrific! Took a bit of meddling to set it up the way I like (switching the stock launcher for CPL and stripping out a load of miui cruft) but the hardware is really lovely. Hoping to get a decent Gcam port, but the stock camera takes really nice photos, going by the handful of snaps I've taken today
NFC reader works perfectly (I'd read somewhere that it didn't actually have one, despite the specs claiming it does - mine, an international M2003J15SG, definitely does have NFC)
If anything, I prefer it to my old F1 - I haven't noticed any performance difference, seems lighter, several features the F1 missed (incl NFC), no notch
And incredible value - just under €180 for the 4/128gb version (or free if it's a birthday present ?)
Face unlock is as quick as the F1's ir unlock
Not seen a single ad in the UI either!
It's great ?
Charging doesn't seem the quickest, but it's an enormous battery to fill I guess

Great phone! Excellent all round ?

Damn this phone has some impressive battery life!! I have a 1+7 pro and this phone gives me way more sot with even more heavy use

Chalkingwhites said:
Damn this phone has some impressive battery life!! I have a 1+7 pro and this phone gives me way more sot with even more heavy use
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Saying that, I played PUBG last evening with game turbo on and the battery really suffered. Played it just now without game turbo - still very playable but much more easy on the charge level

RN9 sure is a bang for your buck type of phone which makes you appreciate the extra features it boasts for it's price. Just don't expect flagship type of performance. It's still servicable for your daily needs.

It's good so far , I just switched from my broken Mi Mix 3 . the phone make me rock with his perfect battery and nice performance for such as under 180$ phone. yeah it's lovely

Coming from the Mi A1 so the speed upgrade is very much noticeable. Camera big big upgrade. Screen lovely. However I am disappointed that the reseller sold as Global but it's not, hardware wise. Got the -SS version without NFC running global ROM. That while NFC was one of the main reasons I opted for Note9 not Redmi 9
Also the lack of location based unlocking is annoying.
That said I use the phone mainly for browsing, messaging etc so I'll learn to live with it
Recommended with the strong advice to double check with reseller which exact version you're getting...

Edit: The following problem seems to be remedied in MIUI 12.0.7 update which is great but still, it has taken more than half a year since release that this dreadful problem finally get addressed. Still appreciated that they care about such cheap device.
(This was on a 3/64 GB model)
Overall, I think this phone has a very good value for it's price (stellar battery life, nice display, good SoC, good haptic feedback, multiple nice features), but the only gripe (a big one) I have is the performance issues. For usual tasks, it's okay for a mid-end chip, but sometimes it would just freeze up for so long (more than a minute for sure) that I would have to force restart which I find very irritating. (imagine chatting with your friend and you swap apps to take a screenshot to send to your friend, only for your phone to freeze up waiting for you to restart or wait for more than a minute while your friend is confused as to why you are away for so long) (or just during an online game session and your phone just became unusable while your opponent just wrecks you who helplessly can't do anything)
I have observed that the freezing problem usually occurs when the remaining RAM is low which is almost every time I'm running multiple apps. I would have to try to manually close any apps that I don't need anymore to avoid this problem. This would also mean that playing games will be likely to cause a freeze (which is also really happening).
This problem has been happening since I brought the phone on August with MIUI 11, but MIUI 12 also doesn't fix the issue.
While I don't know if the same thing will happen if I were to go with a higher RAM model, I think this kind of problem should not be happening in the first place (even my old phone from 6 years ago, a Galaxy Note 4 that also has 3GB of RAM, that was broken still doesn't have this issue). If they knew that there would be a freezing problem with a lower RAM model, they shouldn't just have it on sell in the first place. Although I suspect that this is a problem with the software, not hardware which can be fixed in the future (I hope).
Overall, I felt somewhat disappointed

coming from lg v20 very old phone
very smooth i love the battery life i don't care about charging speed as long as the battery lasts for a long time
i recommend getting note 9s or note 9 pro if you can! it is very noticeable for gamers snapdragon is always better and 9 pro for better camera
if you want to root you have to wait for 7 days or 3 depends (sometimes 3 months rare lol) to only unlock phone
a lot of bloatware it is xiaomi after all so i suggest debloater or just sell your data

Moving from Pixel to 8P. What will I miss from the Pix platform ?

Hopefully this is the right thread to ask this question. Please move it, if I messed up!
===
My question is for former Pixel owners who jumped ships to OP. I am thinking to move from Pixel 3 to 8P but I am wondering what prominent features will I be missing? I understand that gcam mod is alive and well on OP platform, but what about tight integration with G assistant? Phone call screens, text spam protection? Is there anything else that someone could shed some light? How happy / unhappy you are with the switch?
Pixel is growing old on me. The high price for the specs are ridics; Google is having serious personality issues, hard to see the direction of where they are going with the phone. I think I am ready to move to a new phone.
thanks for helping me to make an informed decision.

I didn't miss anything and gained much more current higher spec's for my usage!

galaxys said:
I didn't miss anything and gained much more current higher spec's for my usage!
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Click to collapse
Thats a solid statement; thank you. Do you use screencall feature? Is it working straight up on OP or do you need to mess with modules / magdisk ? How is your gcam mod ( or you don't even use it ? )

Bought Pro8 at launch, I unlocked the bootloader and rooted with Magisk but I don't need twrp. Played with some modules which there are many.... Stock OOS is excellent, on A11 and I'm more than happy with the 1+ camera & use stock phone setup. Really I've never looked back and will get the Pro 9 next year....

galaxys said:
Bought Pro8 at launch, I unlocked the bootloader and rooted with Magisk but I don't need twrp. Played with some modules which there are many.... Stock OOS is excellent, on A11 and I'm more than happy with the 1+ camera & use stock phone setup. Really I've never looked back and will get the Pro 9 next year....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For some reason I used to get 10-20 spam calls a day, but with the screencall feature / automatic spam call rejection I get 0. My biggest fear is that I may be hurdling toward that situation, if I jump ships. Other than this, I feel I can live with everything else. 8P looks amazing. Thanks for the feedback!

Tell your what you won't miss, that awful battery life
10 hours SOT on most days here.
Really good phone, I can't fault it.
As others have said root is a breeze and the community is pretty active so there's that too.
You might miss the camera for point and shoot but you can take some phenomenal pics on the 8 Pro.

I just moved to OnePlus 8 Pro recently from Pixel3XL. This phone is a treat to use daily and everything works nice and stable. Couple of misses so far:
1. Losing widevine L1 after unlocking bootloader
2. No RCS on Google Fi on OP8Pro as of now (>7 months after release).
3. ROM update with root is a bit (only slightly) more of a pain than on Pixel where I had an automated script based update coded using ADB.
For Camera, I use both the stock and GCAM port. GCAM port gives more detail in shots just like on P3XL. I am happy with the camera performance so far.
Biggest hits so far:
1. What a treat that display with 120Hz refresh! Wow!
2. Just smooth, no hiccups performance! I think 12GB RAM helps here quite a bit. 4GB of P3XL just wasn't enough
3. Battery life!

I moved from Pixel 3 XL to a Samsung Galaxy S10 for a few months, then jumped to the 8 Pro as quickly as I could (that S10 was the worst phone ever!).
I miss the Camera. The camera quality was definitely better. A lot of times i would take pictures, and i'd crop out smaller areas because they were what i was really going for, and even though that meant zooming in on an image, the fine details of the pixel images were so much better than any other phone that it looked like a picture from any other phone, its something thats terribly overlooked by almost everyone!
Battery life is better.
I do miss having a finger print reader on the back, i just like it better...
I miss the AOD, i think its better than what we have now on the OP, but its good enough. I still miss the one on the pixel though.
I think what i miss the most though is the front firing speakers! Anything else is trash, but "trash" seems to be common nowadays....
When it comes to things like phone call screening, i believe there's a way to get that on the OP, but i dont really care much for it. I've started using (and did so soon after getting the 3 XL) the app called "Should I Answer?". I set it up to reject all calls from numbers that arent in my phone. I get 20+ calls every single day, and even when i used the call screening, it just resulted in more work for me as they tried to get me on the phone. My new method allows people to leave a message. If its important, they will, and i'll call them back.

@PMad are your saying that the pixels battery is better than ? The 8 pro?
I agree on the camera though

> I miss the Camera. The camera quality was definitely better.
Compare GCAM on OnePlus 8 Pro with GCAM on P3XL. The photos get slightly more detailed on my OnePlus 8 Pro compared to my P3XL. In all aspects, they are identicle, with OP8Pro slightly better. Not sure if P5 would have given better results. But P5 is very disappointing for me.
Grab gcam for OP8Pro : https://www.celsoazevedo.com/files/android/google-camera/f/changelog1486/ version Arnova8G2, 2020-11-15)
I am very satisfied with the camera performance. Its not the best right now but neither is the Pixel.

Is NOW PLAYING functionality or any similar app available for OnePlus 8?

dladz said:
@PMad are your saying that the pixels battery is better than ? The 8 pro?
I agree on the camera though
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I think the battery is better on the OP8Pro, but the optimization is better on the Pixel. On my Pixel's, all of them, i'd go all day and have roughly 25 to 40% battery left. I was getting slightly more then that with my OP8P until i upgraded to Android 11, now i have to charge up around 7 or 8pm because im at < 20%. Not sure what happened, i'll go into the battery options to see what used most of it, and there's only like... 10 things using at most 2% battery, so its a bit misleading, still not sure whats doing it.

PMad said:
I think the battery is better on the OP8Pro, but the optimization is better on the Pixel. On my Pixel's, all of them, i'd go all day and have roughly 25 to 40% battery left. I was getting slightly more then that with my OP8P until i upgraded to Android 11, now i have to charge up around 7 or 8pm because im at < 20%. Not sure what happened, i'll go into the battery options to see what used most of it, and there's only like... 10 things using at most 2% battery, so its a bit misleading, still not sure whats doing it.
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Did you wipe after the 11 upgrade?
Always best to have a fresh start between bases.
I average about 2 days and about 8-10 hours SOT
Obviously comes with a fair bit of tweaking but yea that's my average..
Currently actually running pixel experience on 11 and battery has been lessened, idle is superb but any kind of work I give the phone burns more battery than what OOS did.
Maybe it'll improve with updates and or a different kernel.

dladz said:
Did you wipe after the 11 upgrade?
Always best to have a fresh start between bases.
I average about 2 days and about 8-10 hours SOT
Obviously comes with a fair bit of tweaking but yea that's my average..
Currently actually running pixel experience on 11 and battery has been lessened, idle is superb but any kind of work I give the phone burns more battery than what OOS did.
Maybe it'll improve with updates and or a different kernel.
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Nope! There's a chance that's contributing to the issue, but i have a few other things i think are causing it. I'm too lazy to dig into it though haha, i dont mind charging it in the evening.

devsk said:
I just moved to OnePlus 8 Pro recently from Pixel3XL. This phone is a treat to use daily and everything works nice and stable. Couple of misses so far:
1. Losing widevine L1 after unlocking bootloader
2. No RCS on Google Fi on OP8Pro as of now (>7 months after release).
3. ROM update with root is a bit (only slightly) more of a pain than on Pixel where I had an automated script based update coded using ADB.
For Camera, I use both the stock and GCAM port. GCAM port gives more detail in shots just like on P3XL. I am happy with the camera performance so far.
Biggest hits so far:
1. What a treat that display with 120Hz refresh! Wow!
2. Just smooth, no hiccups performance! I think 12GB RAM helps here quite a bit. 4GB of P3XL just wasn't enough
3. Battery life!
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Automated script based update?

I came from the Pixel 2 XL only thing i miss is the call screen where you could have your assistant answer the phone. And its really not that big of a deal

OnePlus 8 Pro proud owner.
Let's say that you take 9 Pro in march 2021.
You will have the latest and the best hardware on the market. Maybe we will get Zeiss lens for camera.
Phone is well build and looks good.
Oxygen is awesome OS! Also, except Google OnePlus is the first to get software upgrades.
Battery is decent. But that depends on the user...
Warp charging 30w/6A, there is no need to explain... And it will go to 65w or more.
Now, from 8 Pro we got 30w wireless charging. That is Great! And it will go to 45w or more.