I think my next phone will be the HTC One M8, but I'm not up to speed on a lot of the newer offerings.

So, I'll take you up on your offer:

1) US
2) n/a
3) 2
4) I always get 2 year contracts
5) Drops are rare to never...I don't use a case on my GS4 and it's been fine.
6) I use Nova Launcher.  Rooted my phone once in the day, but Nova is enough to tide me over on the customization front.
7) Android.  Know it.  Love it.
Galaxy S4
9) All of my music is on my phone in mp3 format. 
10) Always have an outlet handy, but would like to be able to make it through the day without needing one.
11) Galaxy Note is too large.  Beyond that, not too picky.
12) Nope, but I hate lag.
13) Pics on occasion.  I have my DSLR for serious stuff, though.
14) I'm a pretty basic user.  Priorities are Music/ Good Looks/ Battery Life /Nice screen, in that order.

Thanks!

I think my next phone will be the HTC One M8, but I'm not up to speed on a lot of the newer offerings.

Thank you for taking a chance on this thread! I am assuming you are on either ATT or T-Mobile (I'll edit the first post to ask for people to specify their carrier preference; I had a brain fart apparently). I'll change my recommendation if you are on Verizon, Sprint, or one of their respective MVNOs.

I honestly am hesitant to recommend that you upgrade from an S4 to the HTC One M8 (or any current flagship). Going from the S4 GPe (Google Play edition) to the HTC One M8 GPe, there is little noticeable daily difference outside of a few items:

• Slightly better headphone output
• an improved gaming experience
• Better front facing speakers
• a marginal improvement in overall snappiness

Honestly, in your situation, I'd recommend the Sony Xperia Z3 with two caveats:

1) CES is around the corner followed my MWC in March which means new, interesting options
2) You'd be getting an incremental upgrade, rather than a generational leap forward


Here are a couple of reasons why I think the Z3 might be right for you:

• It's pretty without being over the top. It's glass all around and you mentioned you're careful with your devices.
• The audio quality is decent and there is still a MicroSD slot
• The battery life is fucking phenomenal
• It sounds like you don't need a QHD (2560x1440) screen to enjoy your phone. The Sony display is pretty nice in practice for a 1080p display. The only complaint I would lob against is is that they tend to skew toward a slightly cooler color temperature than I like. If you're not married to 6500K. You can adjust this in the settings to get the color temperature more reasonable, but whites skew blue rather than yellow

That being said, your S4 is still 90% as good as most of the devices out there and is super durable to boot. The replaceable battery means you can keep a spare easily. The Sony is really the only stand out device in the class you mentioned that I'd consider in your shoes. The other contenders are:

• the Moto X 2014 which I discounted due to a completely shit headphone output and lack of microSD support
• the HTC One M8 which is a solid device but not improved enough to warrant the move from the S4 in practice
• the Note4/Nexus 6 which are both too big
• the S5 which I can't honestly recommend to you given your S4
• the LG G3 which (if you can play with it in person) might be a contender but I discounted due to being slightly too large to hold comfortably

• What country are you in? This helps me determine availability as well as radio support/performance.
• What price range are you considering/how price sensitive are you?
• How many years do you go between upgrades?
• If in the US, are you willing to pick up a subsidized phone attached to a 2 year contract?
• How durable does your device need to be? Are drops a regular occurrence? Do you have kids or pets?
• How important is customizability?
• How important is ease of use? How comfortable are you with new technology/interfaces?
• What are you using currently?
• Do you have a lot of music and/or other digital content associated with one platform or another? Are you married to one platform or another for any particular reason?
• How long do you spend away from outlets during the day? How important is multi day battery life?
• Do you have size considerations? Are you comfortable with a large phone, or is one handed use important?
• Do you need the fastest, baddest ass device?
• How often do you take pics and in what conditions? Are you an avid smartphone snapper and value good IQ? Do you want to mess with settings or have your pictures just come out great?
• Any other specific use cases you want to be considered? Do you attend a lot of concerts and need to get a good audio recording? Do you film adventures with your smartphone?

I'm not quite in the market for a new phone just yet, but would like to keep my eyes/options open.

1) Canada
2) poor grad student with a mortgage and car payments, though at least the car payments will be done by summer
3) I upgrade rarely. My current phone is a Galaxy Nexus which was a hand-me-down from my brother. Before that, it was a crappy Nokia flip phone which I only got because I switched carriers. Before that, an ancient Siemens phone that I used for maybe 8 years.
4) N/A
5) No kids, no pets, I'm careful with my toys and will probably get a case to protect it from bumps
6) I like to have some customizability, but value functionality out of the box
7) I'm pretty quick to pick up new tech
8 ) Samsung Galaxy Nexus for a couple months now; I'm pretty new to smartphones in general
9) I have about 500 gb run primarily through JRiver on my pc laptop. I don't do Apple
10) I'm usually near an outlet, but would like to have a phone that can last at least 2 days if not in active use
11) I would like the phone to be easily pocketable; I find the Nexus a bit on the big side (especially with a case)
12) while I am not immune to new toy syndrome, I value functionality and longevity more
13) the only things I take pictures of are items that I need to fix around the house, so I can go to home depot and show them what I need
14) my old Fuze and Clip+ are dying, so I'll probably want to use the smartphone as dap as well. Oh and maybe gps and tether if I ever get a data plan

Sad as it is, I have a iPhone 3G. Still. It can do phone calls, text, how slowly my apps, do, take. But it's paid for. Many times over. Was going to go for the i6 Plus. Unexpected expenses. Perhaps the i7 next year?  Or fuck it, and get a Jitterbug! 

Something to ponder. Not totally happy with iTunes. The ecosystem... Apple's seems to be fine. The Earths's ?