[General Topics] TheMystic:
All those are inaccessible until you physically connect them to your phone, or access them over the internet. They are pure backups.

I want you to also take into consideration 'accessibility' of data. This is only possible via an online server. If you have the expertise to setup a SECURE cloud on your own, then fine. Otherwise, the only option is to use a 3rd party cloud service.

The hardware today is far better than those that existed during the floppy disk days. How often do you hear someone losing their data on a smartphone because of a disk failure? Most such cases (which by themselves are too few) are always a result of the user doing something he doesn't understand.

I too keep a copy of my favourite apps on my phone. Once in a while, I back them up to my PC (and my offline NAS). Same is true for other files. Photos and Videos are INSTANTLY backed up to multiple cloud storages, just as my documents. I do have a Google One subscription as well as Microsoft 365 subscription (which is best because it offers a total of 6 TB of cloud storage for a very reasonable price). And then I also sync them to my PC once in a while (not on a fixed schedule).

The most important advantage is the ease of access of these files from any device. Irrespective of which device I use, I have access to pretty much ALL files I need at any given point in time.

This is NOT possible if your setup doesn't use internet. And the moment internet comes into the picture, security is a major concern. Buying hardware to setup my own server is not a big deal. But keeping it secure is!

If you talk of recurring subscriptions, let me remind you that having local backups too require investment in hardware every few years, as it is not a question of 'if' but 'when' the disks would fail.

Data Centers are EXPENSIVE investment. I don't know where you got your data from. Any cloud service provider has to setup a system which is secure, with built-in redundancies, and employ high quality professionals to manage it.

Big Players set these up in very cold countries to save on electricity, and keep multiple backups in different locations around the world to prevent catastrophe.

As before, apps and services are continuously optimised and there isn't too much battery drain when streaming. On the contrary, video streaming is extremely power efficient even over the internet if you have a fast internet connection.

Check out the stats here. I don't think your N10+ would beat it.

This isn't an assumption. Most people indeed use cloud services. Check out Google Play Store to see how many people have downloaded apps providing cloud storage.

I'm all for having an expandable storage inside the phone just for saving user files and media. As mentioned before, I'm fine if apps aren't allowed to write 'AppData' to it. Companies are indeed trying to push customers to either upgrade to a higher storage variant or use the cloud, both of which means more money to them.

Removing the Headphone jack too was nothing more than pushing people to buy Bluetooth earphones. Space (or the lack of it) was just stupid excuse.

The Ultra series of phones from Samsung have a superb form factor. Not sure why you call them horrible.