Not sure which lossy format to use for Android playback Options

[Cromulent]

My music collection is currently encoded in FLAC format and was ripped using cdparanoia. I want to convert some of my FLAC files to a lossy format for listening on my Android phone at work (Nexus 4 for reference) but am unsure which codec to use. I think the choice is really between AAC and Ogg Vorbis but I'm not really sure. I'm basically looking for the best sound quality with the smallest file size.

Can anyone offer some advice for a newbie in this field (prior to this I've only ever really used lossless formats such as ALAC or FLAC).? Thanks.

[DonP]

I want to convert some of my FLAC files to a lossy format for listening on my Android phone at work (Nexus 4 for reference) but am unsure which codec to use. I think the choice is really between AAC and Ogg Vorbis but I'm not really sure. I'm basically looking for the best sound quality with the smallest file size.

I would go with vorbis (or Opus, if you're feeling like an early adopter). I pick vorbis because for me it is more universal. All my players play it and all my computers have encoders. Not so for AAC. Are you planning to convert on the fly (select flac albums and they are automatically converted before loading to your phone)? If so, then encoding speed should get some consideration.

WHat I use though is a cloud service (Google Music). WHen at home (or anywhere with unmetered downloads) I can just click on what albums I want stored locally on my tablet and then I'm all set for when I go off grid (no phone data on it) Recently played songs tend to still be in the cache as well. If you aren't bumping against your data plan quota (or your employer is ok with using their wifi for music) then you can of course listen to anything in your collection at will.

If you upload from your flac files (or, I think, anything but mp3), the uploader converts to 320 kb/s mp3 and may stream to you at a lower rate depending on your connection speed. Most of mine I uploaded as lame V5 so I can cache more songs and keep the data down when I do go on a phone plan. With Google the free storage limit is 20,000 tracks.