My Xperia Z3C which was more than adequate for 90% of what I needed it to do has developed an annoying fault where the bottom 3-4 mm of the screen, where the back/home/recent buttons are, has lost touch sensitivity as has the right hand 1-2mm of the screen.
Despite protecting the phone this seems a common fault and I am guessing that a new digitiser/screen from Sony will be in the region of £100 but even if I get it fixed I imagine that various apps will stop working on Marshmallow soon and I will need to replace it anyway.
To buy a bit of time while deciding what to do I have employed various workarounds. I used 'glove' mode for a while which renders the device unusable (though I didn't try it with gloves). I now use one handed keyboard (aligned to the right) which means I can type the letter 'P' and I have installed a navigation bar app which materialises when I swipe up. The app is a bit of a pain sometimes and puts adverts on the home screen when charging, but the phone is otherwise useable.
Since I last came in here (4 years ago!) asking for advice about a modestly sized yet reasonably capable device, phones have got even bigger, while my trousers are (about) the same size. As someone who keeps his phone in his pocket most of the time, I am once again forced to confront my dislike of larger phones and the prospect of an Apple device which might be smaller (as a Windows/Linux user my experience with Apple products through the kids' iPods/iTunes was always a bit of a nightmare).
I am a reasonably tech savvy (build PCs etc.) but have long since lost track of the phone market. I usually go sim-free and switched to Smarty recently after GiffGaff hiked all its prices for lower data users. Smarty is good so far - £5 a month basic plus decent family/data discounts and it is easier to manage multiple phones (pm for invites/free credit!).
I would probably spend ~£300 on a new phone if I had to but would be happier nearer £200. I am not adverse to decent refurbs and have bought from cheap EU sites like Alza.co.uk (though not for phones). I am minded to avoid Sony as I am a bit pissed off at them and Huawei due to access to store/updates etc. For new phones I looked at the Motorola G8 Plus/Power (huge), Samsung A20 (lots of installed crap), Pixel 3a (bit pricey/shit battery) and at refurbished Galaxy S8/S9 and older iPhone 7/8.
Given that I am now sick of looking, it would be great to hear from anyone who shares this dilema or has experience with any of these phones.
Thanks
RR