Removable storage in current & next generation smartphones

[D-T]

Looking to upgrade from my old iPhone 4 – which has frankly given me enough grief to put my off Apple's over-simplified solutions for life – and I can't believe how few current & upcoming smartphones seem to have retained MicroSD support.

32GB (inclusive of OS) simply does not seem like enough storage for a primary portable device these days, especially for those of us who don't want (or aren't able) to stream our media over 3G.

I've noticed this with the new Samsung Note 4, Moto X and Nokia Lumia 930. What's up with this sudden regression in terms of storage? Any solutions anyone's found, other than forking out for cloud storage or other streaming-based solutions, or any other models that might be worth looking at? So far the only one feasible replacement I've come across new Moto G; however, that would mean compromising on both hardware and features (like the active display, present on the X) solely for the sake of storage... I'm scratching my head trying to work out the manufacturers' reasoning behind dropping support for such a useful hardware expansion.

[SUMMONER]

Kingston USB thumb drive with MicroUSB connector

Apparently we have moved from the "Atomic Age" on to the "Connected Age". As always we have to do everything to the total extreme, regardless of how little actual sense it makes.

[Apex]

Google and that want you to put your data in the 'Cloud' so that they can data mine it..... or is that just the cynic in me...

[Saracen]

Google and that want you to put your data in the 'Cloud' so that they can data mine it..... or is that just the cynic in me...

Nope. It's the cynic in me, too.

There does seem to be a definite trend in that direction, both for storage and for software, which of course puts corporates in the driving seat, in the future, once they've got everyone dependent on them. And it's not just phones, but PCs too.

And that's one reason I'm not going 'cloud' - for me, the most appealing thing about a personal computer is the "personal" bit. I started out in the days of using terminals connected to some remote 'big iron' mainframe that you couldn't do without, and I'm not going back to that. I will store my data myself, control it myself, protect it myself and be responsible for it myself, and if companies, be it Google, MS or whoever, think they're getting their hands on any data I can possibly keep out of their hands, then they can kiss my .... oh, is that the doorbell? Gotta go.

[D-T]

Nope. It's the cynic in me, too.

There does seem to be a definite trend in that direction, both for storage and for software, which of course puts corporates in the driving seat, in the future, once they've got everyone dependent on them. And it's not just phones, but PCs too.

And that's one reason I'm not going 'cloud' - for me, the most appealing thing about a personal computer is the "personal" bit. I started out in the days of using terminals connected to some remote 'big iron' mainframe that you couldn't do without, and I'm not going back to that. I will store my data myself, control it myself, protect it myself and be responsible for it myself, and if companies, be it Google, MS or whoever, think they're getting their hands on any data I can possibly keep out of their hands, then they can kiss my .... oh, is that the doorbell? Gotta go.

You've suddenly got me wondering about the feasibility and security implications of creating a home VPN server to connect remotely to other storage (i.e. NAS) on the home network...

[coerce86]

Happy with my LG G3 (internal micro sd slot + changeable battery!!)

[RobbieRoy]

Nope. It's the cynic in me, too.

There does seem to be a definite trend in that direction, both for storage and for software, which of course puts corporates in the driving seat, in the future, once they've got everyone dependent on them. And it's not just phones, but PCs too.

And that's one reason I'm not going 'cloud' - for me, the most appealing thing about a personal computer is the "personal" bit. I started out in the days of using terminals connected to some remote 'big iron' mainframe that you couldn't do without, and I'm not going back to that. I will store my data myself, control it myself, protect it myself and be responsible for it myself, and if companies, be it Google, MS or whoever, think they're getting their hands on any data I can possibly keep out of their hands, then they can kiss my .... oh, is that the doorbell? Gotta go.

Completely with you on that Saracen - first law of the internet: we are the product - any data we enter (for that read each and every key stroke) is a resource to used by corporations to make more money.

[cptwhite_uk]

There's plenty of high end phones using MicroSD - Samsung S5 / Sony Z3 and Z3 compacr / LG G3, plenty who don't as well....Nokia/Microsoft, Google, Apple, Motorola, HTC...vote with your money