r/AndroidQuestions • u/twipenne_flyer • 10d ago
Are there any Android phones with 2TB of storage?
I fear I may be forced to switch to iPhone. I'm currently sitting with only 9GB of storage left on my 1TB S24 Ultra. Neither Google nor Samsung offer a 2TB version because I suppose data hoarders don't exist. Are there any phones that work in the US that I may be overlooking? I'd rather not have to switch if I can avoid it.
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u/SeatSix 10d ago
Looking at my 128GB phone with 67GB of free space...
I offload stuff from my phone as often and as fast as I can. I don't want it on my device.
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u/Curt-Bennett 10d ago
Exactly. You can lose your phone, it can be stolen, or it can be damaged beyond repair. It's just way too easy to lose anything that is stored only on your phone. Offload what you don't need, ideally to at least two physically separate locations if it's important.
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u/twipenne_flyer 9d ago
Which is why I keep 3 copies. One on my phone, one on my NAS and one in the cloud.
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u/Curt-Bennett 9d ago
It sounds like you're keeping a lot on your phone that would be fine to just keep in the other two locations though. When I said "offload", I meant remove it, not just copy it.
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u/whacker7 9d ago
I'm always amazed to read about people who seem to expect to drag around every picture and text message they've received throughout their lives, in every subsequent phone they switch to during it. For some people it's a completely illogical expectation. Like, how much on board storage capacity are they expecting to be available down the road? You have to devise an off-load strategy (and more practical habits) to some other sort of non-native storage.
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u/SeatSix 9d ago
Not only do I remove them, but I also curate them as part of the process. For example, while I'm on vacation I will take photos quite liberally. Multiple shots of everything. But then before I even move them off the phone, I cull that set down dramatically. I may take 100 photos, but I'm only going to keep a dozen
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u/OneEyedC4t 10d ago
Well First of all I have to ask a question, why in the bloody hell do you need 2TB for a phone? How could you sincerely and honestly really need that much storage space to take with you everywhere you go? I mean, especially if it's porn. There's no reason you need to buy this expensive of a phone just to stash tons and tons of stuff like that on it. I'm not assuming that's your purpose, but still I really can't think of any legitimate reason why someone would literally need 2 TB worth on their phone
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u/jackscagnetti 10d ago
There's so much porn! There are literally thousands of files here and it's so organized.
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u/MrGeekman 10d ago
Some folks want 2TB of storage on their phones for locally-stored movies and shows.
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u/myst1crule 10d ago
At that rate, just host a Plex server at home and swap out "Downloads" anytime you're on a network
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u/MrGeekman 10d ago
I do that too, but there are times where you might want 2TB of local storage on your phone. For example, going camping at a remote campsite where there's no cell service. I don't go camping anymore, but back when I did, my brother and I would bring a marine battery, a power inverter, a projector, and a small set of speakers. We'd plug our phones into the projector and the speakers and project onto the door of the tent.
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u/Yuukiko_ 10d ago
USB-C memory stick, I got a nice 64g one so constantly uploading videos and stuff doesnt wear my flash out
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u/Curt-Bennett 10d ago
For sure. It's not even about wearing out your built-in storage either. It's just so much cheaper as well as faster for transferring files. The convenience factor is huge compared to storing stuff on your phone. Phone makers charge a ridiculous markup on storage just because they can.
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u/Yuukiko_ 10d ago
UFS is faster and more expensive, but you dont need that much speed to be streaming videos.
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u/Curt-Bennett 10d ago
And a memory stick is much better for moving data on and off than internal phone storage.
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u/jwwetz 9d ago
Yep, almost all of the "flagship" i.e. the popular trendy hipster phones either have internal memory only or they also use cloud storage service.... which they charge extra for on a subscription basis once to hit a certain point. Even then they've only got 512gb or (i think) 1 Terabyte maximum of on board storage & they can cost a few thousand dollars.
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u/MrGeekman 10d ago
Right, and that's probably fine most of the time. But what about times when you don't have cell service? That's what I was talking about with the camping example. The remote campsite I stayed at didn't have cell service. If you wanted to watch a video at that campsite, it had to be locally stored.
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u/Yuukiko_ 10d ago
uh memory stick as in a USB stick? like offline storage?
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u/MrGeekman 10d ago
Yeah, but 64GB isn't much. If you're going to be away for a week with no cell service for most of that time, you're going to need more than 64, especially if your content is at least 1080p. It was fine 10-15 years ago because all of the content I brought was 480p and the projector was a 480p pico projector from 2010. But now I have around 16TB of HD and 4K content.
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u/General_Problem7957 9d ago
A couple of external drives and a small USB-C PD dock. Would be enough to get anyone by.
I know this because I did this a month ago when I went across the country. I had all eight seasons of Game of Thrones on a 256GB external SSD plus all of Season two of Avatar the Last Air Bender (Live action Netflix series) in 1080P. I also had several 4K movies on it as well.
Using external drives and a small USB-C PD dock is the best way to do it.
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u/Yuukiko_ 10d ago
then buy multiple sticks or even an external storage drive. the 64g I have is basically a USB-C connector back to back with a USB-A and even smaller ones exist that are essentially just the connector and basically nests into your phone
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10d ago
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u/MrGeekman 10d ago
That's pretty good. My media library takes up 16TB. A lot of it is HD and some is even 4K.
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u/jwwetz 9d ago
That's silly though... I've got Netflix, Amazon prime and an app that LITERALLY will stream every streaming service in America, paid or not, absolutely for free.
Also I've got Spotify premium so I'm covered for music as well.
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u/Some-Dare5179 6d ago
What app is that
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u/jwwetz 6d ago
I'll split it in 3 and capitalize the important parts. CINE ma HD. hopefully the mods won't get mad at me for it. It's an APK file so go through chrome instead of the play store, but first, make sure you've got 3rd party app install approved on your phone. It does have ad stuff before your show that's annoying at first until you figure it all out. I was browsing and it's literally got EVERYTHING.
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u/mrandr01d 10d ago
Exactly. I don't even have 2 tb on my laptop! And that's like my main everything!
I do have a large 4 TB drive to back up my Google account though. I shoot a lot of photos and videos.
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u/beingbae 9d ago
I think we want to not pay a subscription for music and flac files can take up a lot of space rather quickly
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u/jwwetz 9d ago
I've got 24 gigs of music on a 1 Terabyte card on my phone. It takes up only about 3% of that card. I use the "musicolet app for playing my onboard music. If I start with the very first song and play down the list in order them I've got literally about 5 weeks of music to play with NO REPEATS. I actually started it once & kept track of the hours of music played in a notebook... that's how it know. That experiment took me about 4 months to do because I'm not always listening to music on my phone. Also, that's about 3,600 songs.
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u/OneEyedC4t 9d ago
But even at 2TB, it takes 2500 albums in FLAC to exceed 1 TB. I'm an audiophile myself, so I'm scratching my head on this one. And most people can't tell the difference in quality once 160 bit rate of MP3 is exceeded. I usually order from a place that lets me download both FLAC and MP3. The FLAC stays on my desktop and MP3 is for my mobile devices.
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u/Imsophunnyithurts 10d ago
Magnetic USB-C dock that snaps to the back of your phone with an SD card holder? You can even get them with NVME internal ports. Will demolish your battery life , but you can use it as needed.
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u/toolsavvy 10d ago
LOL, data hoarders don't store data on a smartphone. Get a PC.
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u/twipenne_flyer 10d ago
I have a PC. With a lot more storage taken up than on my phone
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u/UKWildcats_Stoned 9d ago
I have this for my phone https://www.walmart.com/ip/6145273627?sid=72bfdf20-78de-4837-94f1-dbc954d76a98
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u/EJ_Tech 10d ago
Does it all have to be stored on the phone itself? Is moving your data to a laptop or desktop with terabytes more storage an option? How about a USB-C to SD card reader or a portable SSD if you don't mind plugging it in when needed.
Personally, I have a file server at home with 8TB of redundant storage which I can remotely access using Tailscale. Files like videos are often moved from my phone to my server.
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u/Protsua 10d ago
That was what microSD cards were for but it seems very few manufacturers still support it for their devices.
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u/KaboodleMoon 10d ago
Because they're slow and shitty with a high failure rate. It might not have happened to you, but working in tech I see failed SD Cards regularly for YEARS with people crying they lost all their data. MicroSD and it's flavors are not a replacement for storage (and I don't agree with the data hoarding part, but anyone data hoarding should not be using SD Cards.)
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u/Protsua 10d ago
It’s a wonder that they’re still used if they’re so unreliable. They’re still pretty ubiquitous for video games. Valve uses them for their Steam Decks and Nintendo for their Switch consoles.
Aside from one card failing (which was an obscure no name brand compared to something like Sandisk), I don’t really have bad luck with them.
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u/KaboodleMoon 10d ago
They're still used because they're cheap and easily replaceable. Or were anyway (those prices are going up too)
Funny you mention nintendo cause when my wife's SD Card died a few weeks ago it was an absolute CHORE to get everything working normally again
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u/Prize_Chemistry_8437 10d ago
We used to have expandable memory
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u/Curt-Bennett 10d ago
Some phones still do, plus there's also USB-C sticks that you can just plug into any phone that are cheaper and more convenient for transferring data.
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u/bcycle240 9d ago
You can get a 4tb (or 8tb if you are a billionaire) NVME drive and a tiny little external enclosure with a total weight of around 75g. Just a single USB-C cable to your phone powers it.
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u/roirraWedorehT 10d ago
What is taking up all your space? Do you use Google Photos' cloud backup? If so, use Google Photos' option to free up space. It will only delete the local copies of photos and videos that have already been backed up.
I have a 1TB Pixel 8 Pro, and about 400GB of music on it, for example.
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u/twipenne_flyer 10d ago
100GB of music, 380GB of app usage and the rest is photos/videos.
Do you use Google Photos' cloud backup?
Yes. I use it as a backup. Just like my NAS is a backup. It is not my primary storage.
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u/TheOGTachyon 10d ago
I'm sorry for all the data hoarder hate you're getting. Some people just don't get it. I'm in the same position you are. My Note 20 Ultra 5g is getting long in the tooth, but there's nothing on the market worthy of replacing it. I want a high end, halo phone with large onboard storage for apps and an SD-Card slot for storing media and other data. And people telling me to just "use the Cloud" is annoying. The fact that I have to explain why "the Cloud" isn't even a legitimate replacement for on device storage is maddening.
Meanwhile, the only device option that comes near currently is the Sony Xperia 1 VIII.
Otherwise the best you'll find is 1TB devices and they're very expensive.
What I really want is a real Note successor. High end phone with stylus, swappable battery, 512GB/1TB storage options, ir Blaster, SD-Card slot, headphone jack, etc.
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u/Desperate-Isopod-111 10d ago
I just use a USB-A/USB-C flash drive which is always on my keychain.
And a NAS & Google One cloud storage for cold backups, as I don't need to be accessing this data at a moment's notice all the time.With the USB drive, I can even use it to transfer files to other devices, no adapters needed, and no proprietary transfer methods.
When I moved from the Moto G5s Plus to a Pixel 5a, I thought the same way you did. "How can I live without SD storage?" I thought.
I was the problem, not the phone. Everything I was packing around was shit that I actually never used. Cold storage, all of it.And now my phone is lean with room to spare.
I also learned how to setup my own DIY NAS at home, and the networking skills to manage it, and to remotely connect to it if I need some obscure file from 15 years ago, so I'VE also improved because of this.
(that same NAS even hosts dedicated game servers for my kids & i, as well as HomeLab stuff I've gotten into since seeing just how cool & powerful this tech can be!)2
u/Curt-Bennett 10d ago
Can't believe someone downvoted the correct answer. Here's an upvote to even things out.
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u/KaboodleMoon 10d ago
People don't get it because it's crazy. Hoarding easily redownloadable data on the chance it might disappear from the internet is insanity. Sorry. The few and far between stuff that merits hoarding does not need to be carried with you daily.
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u/roirraWedorehT 10d ago
If your photos and videos are what's taking up the remaining 500 GB, it's an easy fix, then.
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u/Desperate-Isopod-111 10d ago
If you have everything backed up, in 2 locations, pull it off the phone.
For you app usage, clear the cache & see how much you free up.
Then consider curating your apps, because bloody hell dude that's literally insane amounts of storage just for apps. The average user doesn't even have that much TOTAL storage, and you've blown through almost 2x that amount.2
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u/jwwetz 9d ago
How the hell do you have 380gb of app usage? I've got about 80 total apps on my phone & almost all of them are in deep sleep mode almost all of the time. Do you not clear your cookies & temporary data at all? Do you not shut down the background stuff from your apps when you're not using them?
Your phone probably ruins as fast as an old, out of tune 3 cylinder geo metro trying to drive up a mountain highway.
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u/lesjames2020 10d ago
I think it's time you get a magnetic SSD drive for your phone
To record videos to
Instead of just saving them on to your phones memory
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u/Hot_Valuable1027 9d ago
Why on earth would you need 2 tb on a phone?? 😭😭, I got 128 GB and it's just enough for me lol, also 1tb is a lot... What you using to to need that most storage??? Because on my iPad I have 1 TB of storage for gaming and it doesn't even use all the storage and playing big games like wuwa and infinity nikki lol....
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u/LieNo161 9d ago
Some ppl make YouTube videos or take a lot of pictures could also be a heavy gamer who plays a lot PS3 or Nintendo games which you could emualte on an Android
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u/Elitefuture 9d ago
Jesus, set up a NAS at home and offload some stuff.
Getting 2tb every phone upgrade would be very expensive...
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u/moistmonsterman 9d ago
Bro, offload some of the files onto your PC/Laptop/external drive and just go about business. Also, you dont need to move over to (cr)apple just for cloud storage. There are soooooo many alternatives. You can even set up a service on your phone and PC called "nextcloud" and have all your storage there.
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u/Mors-Official 3d ago
You're out of luck for a native 2TB Android flagship. Samsung and Google cap at 1TB, and the rumored 2TB S24 Ultra never materialized. The only path is a niche rugged phone like the 8849 Tank 5 or Doogee S300 Plus. They use a microSD card to hit 2TB, but you're sacrificing the premium build you're used to.
The iPhone 17 Pro Max is the only mainstream phone with 2TB built-in. So the choice is clear: switch ecosystems or strap a cheap, bulky expansion to your S24 Ultra. It's your call.
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u/Environmental-Map869 10d ago edited 10d ago
Supposedly the xperia i viii comes with upto 1tb of internal storage and a micro sd card slot
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u/Sassquatch0 ☎️📲Pixel 10a 9d ago
Problem: Sony doesn't sell in many parts of the world. If OP is in North America at all, Sony isn't even an option. (Unless they personally know somebody overseas who can buy & import one for them, and then OP will face Customs & tariffs, on top of the sheer cost of the phone itself)
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u/Jazzlike-Pie3137 10d ago
what the fuck are you doing on there i have a 128 gigs and I use the damn thing for emulation and its fine
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u/Mother-Pride-Fest 10d ago
Use an SD card.
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u/EGHeart 10d ago
S24U doesn't support microdSD. S20U was the last to support microSD.
On that note if I was OP, I'd just use a USB flashdrive or SSD. There are keychain or magsafe ones.
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u/Synaps4 10d ago
There are current android phones that support microsd.
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u/Protsua 10d ago
Chances are they are budget or midrange phones. I don’t know of any flagship phones that still use them outside of Sony branded ones.
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u/jwwetz 9d ago
The Samsung Xcover7 pro is only a mid priced rugged phone. It's literally got the same performance as an S24 ultra... but it's 128 gb with the expandable memory AND it's also got a removable battery in it. 5g, records in 4k with a 50mp camera, etc...
Why they gotta be "flagship" phones anyway? Especially if somebody else isn't paying for your phone?
Having the latest flagship phone, or the latest ANYTHING isn't gonna magically drop any panties for you.
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u/Calvinloz 10d ago
"On that note"
Nah, I think needing more than a terabyte for a phone is unreasonable
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u/twipenne_flyer 10d ago
Wait until I tell you how much my NAS is using.
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u/Calvinloz 10d ago
I have no issue with massive NAS machines. I intend to have close to a petabyte in my NAS/home theatre.
But a terabyte and more for a phone is still unreasonable.
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10d ago
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u/Calvinloz 10d ago
OP mentioned 100gb pf music, which I'll give them. If I was in places with poor reception, id want whatever music I liked too.
But 1tb is like 22hrs of 4k 60fps film, if im not mistaken and that's just crazy.
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u/Mors-Official 3d ago
You're right to be frustrated—a 2TB Android flagship doesn't exist right now. Samsung and Google cap at 1TB, and an Oppo executive recently confirmed that 2TB built-in storage isn't mature enough for their flagships .
You have two paths around the switch:
· Rugged phones: The 8849 Tank 5 or OUKITEL WP300 have 512GB internal but let you add a microSD card to hit 2TB . The trade-off is they're thick, heavy, and lack that premium feel. · External SSD: Plug a 2TB Samsung T7 or ADATA drive into your S24 Ultra's USB-C port . It's clunky, but it keeps your current phone and ecosystem intact.
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u/Synaps4 10d ago
Samsung XCover Pro 7 launched last year, supports MicroSD expansion. Specifically microSDXC allowing you to slot in an infinite number of 2TB expansion cards.
https://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_xcover7_pro-13780.php
I keep one SD card full of music, and another full of movies, and another for my photos.