choosing a new phone

Hello,
I am a new member of this forum, (I admittedly joined because I need help on a few things).
I am not new to forum sites, as I happen to actively post in a few airsoft, r/c, and other hobby forums. What I am relatively unfamiliar to, is the broad spectrum of smartphones. A few things that I will tell you right-off the bat, are that this post will be long, but i am just trying to be as clear as possible, I hope you you guys don't mind.

Just to specify, I have Verizon.

MY last phone, an HTC droid Incredible 2, which was not only advertised as one of the best options for a smertphone at the time that i got it, was not all that it was cut out to be. about a month after purchasing it, I noticed a couple malfunctions on it. I sent it in and got a new one from my warranty. now, about a year later, similar things started happening. This time, however, it just crashed. (oh, and it wasn't anything like a virus, spyware, malware, a root kit, etc, I made sure that I kept very good care of it, no unsecure websites, no sketchy apps, and I kept security and antivirus on it) But, anyways. It broke again, and made me kind of go from a pro-android point of view, to a person who doesn't know what to think. I have put in a good 5 hours of straight research, but I have come to realize that no matter how much you research things, such as looking up and comparing specs between devices on Verizon.com, numbers on a website are not always true, and a lot of information is not given. I am mainly looking at two phones, but also considering a few others, and am completely open to other suggestions.( that is kind of the reason for this post, after all.)

The phones that I am mainly looking at are the HTC Windows 8x, Iphone 5, and Droid DNA by HTC.

the things that i looked for weretop to bottom based on priority,top being most, bottom less.)
-4g lte
-Battery, processing speed
-how long it will last before it breaks or becomes inconveniently slow
-It's features, and what makes it stand out from the others
-"wow factor". not a top priority, but when your friends' start to drool over it, it makes it that much better.

what i liked/disliked about each of them:
Windows 8X:
likes:
-windows OS with tiles (could be a pro or con, i dont know much about it.)
-beats audio
-uniqueness(everybody's mom has an Iphone or android.
Concerns:
-windows OS(dont know much about it)
-app&media market.(or lack there of)
-not much information about it out there
Iphone 5
likes:
-Ios, simple, but rarely has software problems
-apple market, and variety of accessories
-SIRI
concerns:
-screen shatters easily
-restrictive OS
-just not the best choice
HTC Droid DNA
likes:
-all around good specs, such as size, battery, camera, etc.
-Beats audio
concerns
-past problems with android
-value may go down fast, a bigger better android comes out very often.

I honestly dont know, so if you have an opinion, or some other factors that weren't mentioned, please comment.
-Thanks!

oh, and I need a new phone in the next week or two, my contract is up, and i want to get rid of my little sisters old alias 2.

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› See More: choosing a new phone

Iphone 5 is best for me!!!

so as of now, it looks like the 8x is out of the run. It looks great, but from what i've seen, it needs to be improves and fine-tuned a bit. maybe windows will get it perfect, maybe they wont.

on another hand, i want another answer too. I was looking at the droid razor maxx hd. It looks like a jugger-naut, but i don't know how it would measure up to the HTC Droid DNA. The battery life looks outstanding, but it is 100 bucks more than the dna, and thats going to be a hard one to talk my parents into. Out of curiosity, does anyone know how they measure up when compared to each other?

Now that I think about it, how about instead of comparing the different OS's, I try comparing the different companies that make androids, because they are all different from each other.

so, just to be clear, these are my current questions.:

-HTC Droid DNA. go or no?

-Which companies outperform the others, like:HTC(DNA), Motorola(Razor Maxx HD),Samsung(i know the Galaxies are popular, are they a good choice?), or any suggestion.

-Will the HTC DNA last the year and a half or so until It's time for a new phone(was it just a stroke of bad luck with my Incredible 2, or should I be concerned about it's longjevity?

-does the Razor Maxx HD prevail, and if so, is it worth the extra $100?

and one last thing. Do most all androids break,slow down, havve problems,(etc.), or should I not be worried about it? I know that mine and my sister's HTC inc. 2, and my mom's Motorola Droid(yeah, the original one),all had some problems. It is pretty rare that you hear of an Iphone slowing down a bunch, or havving too many software problems, though it is extremely common(easily over 25%) for iphone screens to crack.

sorry for the double-post, but I was just told we might go get it tonight. PLEASE help if you can. If nothing changes, im choosing the DNA.

You are dead on about wx8, and apple...
Stick with android (All smartphones break; get insurance or Best Buy)
Best Buy has a great replacement deal!
Dont know about the DNA. Maxx HD & SIII are top of the line!

I have & love HTC EVO 4G & 4G LTE (even with multiple replacements)

Originally Posted by turnerlaura056

Iphone 5 is best for me!!!

so do I.

I was sold on iPhone5 'til I did an extensive comparison online and in store between iPhone, Galaxy S3 and Razor Maxx HD. S3 totally blew iPhone away. Love my new S3 and Mama loves her new Maxx HD!

I would probably go with the Droid DNA or the Samsung Galaxy S3. I don't think I'd pay $100 more for better battery life. I like what I've read about the Droid DNA and it's 1080p display, but the Samsung Galaxy S3 also looks like a great phone.

What did you decide to get? Did you get the Droid DNA?

Well nice sharing.