Daily drivers: 30 AA team members reveal the phones they use

Mobile tech is what we do here at Android Authority. We have a huge team of people from all over the world. With that comes a broad range of needs and wants when it comes to smartphone technology. We asked 30 of our own people what they hauled around with them every day. The list is going to disappoint the conspiracy theorists that think we shill for a specific smartphone brand. Here are our daily drivers.

The highlights

So let’s get to the good stuff first. The pie chart above represents what 30 of our contributors use. You may notice the Ericsson DBH 1001 in there as well. Here’s how the chart breaks down:

• There are 20 device models by eight different manufacturers ranging from Google to Sony.
• The most popular brand at Android Authority is Samsung with ten devices among our staff. Google came in second with eight. HUAWEI, LG, and OnePlus each had three.
• The most popular devices were the Google Pixel 2 XL and the Samsung Galaxy Note 8 with six owners each.
• While Samsung is the most popular OEM here, they only account for 33% of all of our devices.
• One of our writers thought it would be funny to add an Ericsson DBH 1001. Okay, it was me.
• Only a couple of devices on the list have a notch. That should tell you what we think about it. We also only have one person without an Android phone.
• Some of these devices have already changed. Our reviewers use their test devices as daily drivers and this questionnaire made its rounds with the team a few weeks ago. A few of them have already moved on to other devices.

It’s also worth noting that, with some exceptions, our non-US writers are more likely to own non-Google and non-Samsung devices. We guess they’re just more accessible across the pond(s).

Why these devices?

I wanted to do a pie chart for this segment as well. However, it’s basically impossible to visually show the responses of 30 people when asked why they chose their device. Some hot takes and quotes will have to do. When asked why they purchased their Google Pixel 2 XLs, our team had this to say:

Incredible camera, big screen, big battery, front-facing speakers, and software updates straight from Googs — what more could you want? – Jimmy Westenberg

Great camera, unbeatable software experience (for me), awesome audio. – Ankit Banerjee

Owning a Pixel is almost needed for anyone who covers Android. – Bogdan Petrovan

I’m a sucker for ‘pure’ Android phones. – Ollie Cragg

The Samsung Galaxy Note 8 lovers in our midst had this to say:

Big screen and powerful hardware. – John Callaham

It was the best phone available on T-Mobile when I decided to buy a phone. – Joe Hindy(me)

Loved the Note 7… Before they became incendiary – John Dye

Our HUAWEI fans justified their purchases thusly:

I love the way HUAWEI does photography and the hybrid zoom and AIS are epic. – Kris Carlon

I wanted something smaller than the Mate 8 I had previously, and I’d gotten used to the HUAWEI style. – Scott Adam Gordon

(And) I was forced into (it) after my beloved Nexus 6P died. – Tristan Rayner

And our lone iPhone X owner:

I don’t exactly love it. I just find it to be a good no-hassles device. Whenever I am not excited about new Android devices, I just pick the latest iPhone and be done with it. – Edgar Cervantes

Some other fun stuff

As it turns out, none of us love our devices 100%. There is always that want for bigger, better, or faster technology. So let’s dive into the last bit of info and grab some more insights from our crew:

• Professor Gary is the only Note 8 owner on the team that actually uses Samsung’s S-Pen on a regular basis. The rest of us Note 8 owners rarely ever use it.
• Every Google Pixel 2 (XL) owner on our team very much dislikes the removal of the headphone jack. Except Jimmy. He’s only mildly disappointed.
• Our team tends to lean toward larger screen devices.
• Apparently, Kris Carlon’s HUAWEI P20 Pro chose him, he didn’t choose it. We wish he had gone into more detail. Did they meet in a cafe in Paris? Was it love at first sight?
• Most of our team gave their devices seven out of ten or higher except Matt Horne. He rated his Moto C a two out of ten. When asked why he didn’t give it a one star, he responded by saying that the phone does everything he wants it to do, it just does all of them extremely poorly. See? We’re totally unbiased.
• When asked if there was anything else that anyone wanted to add, editor Bogdan wanted to make absolutely sure that everyone knew that Bogdan was handsome and smart. Noted.

The full list

If I learned nothing else today, it’s that our people have a lot of differing opinions on what makes a smartphone worthy of daily use. We want to know what you think as well! Drop a comment below and tell us what you use as your daily driver!