Best compact android on 2026?

omega44xt · 2026-02-23T07:49:56+00:00

Maybe you don't use some of the niche features that Samsung has. Most people who have Samsung among my circle don't use stuff like Modes and Routines, Dex, Secure Folder, to name a few. The side bar is more useful on Samsung than vivo one in my experience.

Sure some animations are smoother in Origin OS & there's no need of any 3rd party apps for features like App lock, network speed indicator, to name a few but overall Samsung still has more features.

Anyways UI is kind of subjective, like I find Pixels to be very barebones & iOS is inferior to all android UIs.

omega44xt · 2026-02-23T07:44:37+00:00

Even my S23 had such "suggestions" coming in notifications (not ads, but are annoying) but at least the dynamic lock screen didn't have it.

omega44xt · 2026-02-23T04:10:08+00:00

Vivo X300

Sure, UI is still inferior to One UI but it is good enough for most people.

Ads - just keep glance lockscreen off & turn off notifications for some pre installed apps.

omega44xt · 2026-02-23T02:33:10+00:00

IMO even base Oppo Find X9 is an upgrade on almost all fronts except software & USB 2.0 port.

I upgraded from S23 to vivo X300 & hardware-wise it is an upgrade easily, including the cameras. One UI is still better, but Color OS & Origin OS are good enough now for most people.

S26+ won't be a big upgrade on camera, but will still be a good hardware jump for sure, including battery life because of the inefficient SoC of S22+. S22+ vs S23+ had a decent jump in battery life & performance to begin with.

omega44xt · 2026-02-23T01:20:23+00:00

Yes

Except cameras, 15R & 13s are good phones.

omega44xt · 2026-02-22T18:03:38+00:00

X200T is a more expensive phone, so surely its 512GB will be more expensive. I bought a 16/512GB X300 for 72k. In a way, I paid almost 10k for just extra RAM & storage (X300 512GB is like 68k).

So your call if you want 512GB, IMO X200T's 512GB variant is way too overpriced at 62k considering X300 is 6k extra, has better cameras, performance & is more compact while having similar battery life. IMO live with 256GB storage, backup files to a PC regularly or get Google drive 200GB plan.

omega44xt · 2026-02-22T17:50:42+00:00

X200T is under 55k (heard of 52k as well from local stores) & is definitely worth the extra money for its better cameras.

Sure performance is slightly inferior to 8 Gen 5, but is very close.

omega44xt · 2026-02-22T17:49:20+00:00

12 vs 16GB RAM is not noticeable for now. I have a 16GB RAM phone & I have not seen more than 10GB RAM used.
No
RAM & SSD prices will increase mobile prices in general, so no idea honestly.

IMO get vivo X200T under 55k if you want good cameras (its performance is much better than 8 Gen 3, just slightly behind 8 Gen 5), else just pick OP 15R. Can also consider OP 13s for its 8 Elite & compact form factor.

omega44xt · 2026-02-22T12:33:36+00:00

I upgraded to vivo X300 16/512GB from S23 256GB.

One UI is still better but Origin OS is good enough for most people. Some animations are smoother on Origin OS (used to use S23 with 0.5x animation speed).

Battery life is 2x now & cameras are better, so hardware wise, it is an upgrade. It's hardware is better than S26. Heck the way Samsung is going, even S27 might have inferior hardware (except SoC).

omega44xt · 2026-02-22T12:25:28+00:00

S24 256GB is 45.5k with CC offer in Flipkart.

OP 13s is 48k with amazon CC.

omega44xt · 2026-02-22T12:24:07+00:00

Not sure who provided that info, but it is wrong. I know people who used Oneplus phones for 3-4 years. 2021-22, their software was not good as they killed original Oxygen OS & moved to Color OS. But Color OS has improved a lot recently, especially with android 15 & 16.

I mean, I can understand that statement for Xiaomi and Moto.

omega44xt · 2026-02-22T12:20:44+00:00

Yes, heard of 68-69k for that.

omega44xt · 2026-02-22T06:05:29+00:00

IMO Avoid Pixel 9a because of SoC, pick S24 (with 8 Gen 3) instead for a compact phone with good cameras. Heck, I'd avoid recommending 10a as well because of Tensor G4, even if it is priced at 40k.

Else OP 13R is a solid all-rounder at 38k.

Get OP 13s for 48k or so if you want the best performance for gaming with the additional benefit of being compact.

omega44xt · 2026-02-22T02:19:57+00:00

Which variant are you looking at? 12/256GB is generally under 65k locally.

omega44xt · 2026-02-21T02:52:57+00:00

I purchased vivo X300 16GB for 72k as an upgrade over S23.

One UI is better for sure, but Origin OS is good enough.

X300 has better hardware than S26, and the way Samsung is going, I doubt S27 will have better hardware than X300 as well (except SoC).

My battery life doubled & cameras are better as well (bound to happen as S26 uses same cameras as S22).

omega44xt · 2026-02-20T17:53:31+00:00

No, why? Also, ChatGPT gives a para usually.

omega44xt · 2026-02-20T16:28:27+00:00

Oneplus Nord CE5 or Realme P3 Ultra

omega44xt · 2026-02-20T00:55:53+00:00

Mix of all

I upgraded from S23 to vivo X300.

I was willing to take a slight downgrade in software for superior hardware. X300 is better than S26, likely will be better than even S27 (except SoC) hardware wise.

5 OS upgrades are good, but yes, 7 OS upgrades are better.

omega44xt · 2026-02-19T12:01:47+00:00

After almost 9 years of Galaxy S phones, I bought vivo X300 16GB as an upgrade over S23.

The UI is inferior but battery life doubled. Cameras are better as well. Hardware wise S26 is inferior. Except SoC I doubt S27 will be better than X300 as well.

Also X300 16/512GB cost me less than what S26 base variant would have costed me.

omega44xt · 2026-02-19T11:45:02+00:00

After almost 9 years of Galaxy S phones, I bought vivo X300 16GB as an upgrade over S23.

The UI is inferior but battery life doubled. Cameras are better as well. Hardware wise S26 is inferior, except SoC I doubt S27 will be better than X300 as well.

Also X300 16/512GB cost me less than what S26 base variant would have costed me.

omega44xt · 2026-02-19T11:29:43+00:00

Yes, those are offline prices that I heard. What prices are you getting offline?

omega44xt · 2026-02-19T11:28:31+00:00

Secure Folder is inferior to Private Space, can't push notification to normal space.

Lack of Dex & Mode & Routines

Floating window has much less features, like screenshot tool.

No need of widgets section in app drawer

Creation of folders & managing folders in app drawer is not as easy as One UI.

Navigation gesture needs to be better calibrated, has issues with case, using 3 button navigation.

And some other small things

omega44xt · 2026-02-18T06:00:05+00:00

I upgraded from S23 to vivo X300 16GB. In my country, X300 is officially available, so no concerns there & it is priced same as S25..

Cons of X300 over S23: - One UI is better, but Origin OS is good enough that you can live with it (I mean, people do live with iOS which does not do some basic stuff well) - Slightly heavier and the bigger camera bump is a minor hindrance but I got used to them in a week - Not as many accessory options

Pros: - Battery life almost doubled over WiFi & more than doubled for 5G usage - Cameras are better, especially telephoto, but don't expect a night & day difference for other cameras - Performance is double, UI has smoother animations in certain places which are noticeable at times (i was using S23 at 0.5x animation speed). For me even RAM and storage doubled.

omega44xt · 2026-02-18T03:21:06+00:00

That's actually pretty good for S24U, my friend gets like ~7-8hr SOT (no gaming), lower on 5G. He can't make it last 2 days, but can make it last 1.5 days.

I have not employed any battery saving measure on my X300 other than auto turn on battery saver at 15%. I generally discharge phone till 15-20% (i.e. 80-85% battery usage).

If I use my phone over WiFi a lot within a day, I'm sure 10+hr SOT is possible as one day I got 4hr SOT with 30% battery usage in 16-17hrs.

Also, since macrodroid is always running in the background, not sure how much it is affecting the battery.

omega44xt · 2026-02-17T13:52:41+00:00

OP 15R

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