In 2018 I bought a LG V20 (which at that time was already two years old). I bought it mainly because it promised very good sound via 3.5mm headphone jack - and it delivered. Now the phone starts to behave rather strange (has locked me out twice via something called “secure starting” which needed a password I never set) and I’m looking for a new one. I listen to a lot of music via headphones with cable and I can’t pay more than about 400€ (480$) for a phone. I thought about getting a used older flagship phone for cheap but I’m afraid that the battery won’t hold up. Then I was looking at some phones from China but couldn’t find ay information about audio output. As audio quality doesn’t seem to be that interesting for marketing (and the headphone jack starts to disappear anyway) I’m a bit at a loss here. Any suggestions?
Not a Motorola? The audio on this thing is awful. $50 through Fi, though, so I certainly have more phone than I paid for regardless.
LG might have been the last company doing good audio. Though there are some specialty phones like the Asus Rog Gaming phones that still have good headphone jacks with DACs.
Honestly though even though LG stopped making phones, they said they’ll support updates for at least two years. And you can still get a modern model for $388.99. The LG V60 ThinQ has 2020 flagship specs it’s kind of a steal honestly. For example:
People in that thread discuss other models like the G8 and V40 as alternatives for those seeking audio quality. Apparently there’s maybe an audio defect in the V60? I didn’t dig into it. Not sure if that’s one case or if it’s widespread. Doesn’t seem to be talked about elsewhere:
(Be sure to get the model that matches your carrier though.)
The only other option I can find is the Razer Phone 2, it’s about $350, but it’s from 2018 and a LOT worse in all specs than the LG V60.
Instead of picking a phone for its audio qualities, you might try something like this:
If you have a USB-C port on your budget phone, this will provide a higher-quality DAC and a headphone out. If the phone you have or want has some other port, there are similar devices that will fit it. And you don’t have to buy a separate DAP or a big DAC/amp box that might as well be a separate DAP.
Plus you can take it along to your future phones.
Thanks for the headup, I was starting to think in the same direction. The FiiO BTR Amps seem to be very good. So maybe the only permanent solution is to be found outside of the phone hardware.