I'm upgrading because my phone is losing (lost?) support. I use a OnePlus 7 Pro and love it and wouldn't bother upgrading otherwise. I'd appreciate some recommendations of android phones you like, please.
I do something the same, I buy last gen or gen before phones used on Swappa and then install Lineage OS so I can have a stable, updated, and efficient phone.
I would say about 9h of screen on time for a Pixel 5 on its original OEM battery is not to bad.
I have had a pixel 5 and 6 and both died within 2 years. They would both hard crash and shut off for a bit and eventually stop powering up altogether. I never had that issue with other brands. I ended going back to samsung with an S23 and it works fine for now.
They have different goals. I use /e/, where the focus is removing all communication with Google while providing an OS that's as user friendly and ready to use as the competition.