I've been looking up mobile phones in the mid-range (priced between $200-300) in my spare time for a couple of weeks now. My mobile phone is already 4 years old now and it was already outdated when I bought it.
I've been able to earn online recently so I'm thinking of getting a (blessed by God) replacement. I plan use my #HIVE and Read.cash earnings so I'm glad that I didn't cashout before the alt-season started!
The Specs I Want:
- Runs on Android + Can Install Google Play!
- Be able to run the latest applications + switch between them without stuttering.
- 4GB or more in RAM.
- 64GB internal storage or more.
- Batteries that can sustain 6+ hours of heavy use. Charge time doesn't matter.
- Camera quality is not important.
- Good screen, fresh rate doesn't matter.
- Has enough userbase in Libya. To find accessories for it + If broken, I can go to a mobile store and they would have parts to fix it.
Ideally the phone I want will feature all of this and/or better. All Mid-range phones offer most of the features I need though.
Samsung Galaxy SeriesBest value? Galaxy A51 & M31 |  |
|---|
Samsung is my first choice because it's a company I know won't disappoint me. Its phones are a bit pricier than Xiaomi but they're more popular. Some of my closest family have Samsung phones.
My cousin keeps telling me how good AMOLED-screen is. In case of M-series phones, the batteries are one of the best ever which makes me want to have one of these phones even if the power isn't that great.
Galaxy A51 has the most power I need but I wish for something cheaper. Galaxy M31 is weaker in power but makes up for it with battery, I'd rather pay more for M-series phone than A-series phone with a weaker performance.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9Best value? Xiaomi Redmi Note 9s |  |
|---|
I found Xiaomi Redmi to be the cheapest mobile phone for my needs and has better value compared to Samsung phones above. It's also the easiest phone in this list that I can get.
But Xiaomi is a Chinese company and I fear Google fighting it like it does Huawei in the future. I also saw from reviews that Samsung A series has a better build quality than Redmi phones.
Well, the two versions I looked up were 9S and 9 Pro. From reviews, the Pro is clearly more powerful but unless you want NFC features and a slightly better camera, the S version will be much better value.
Xiaomi Realme 7i |  |
|---|
I actually found this one in a mobile store near my home. It boasts 8GB of ram and it's even cheaper than Redmi Note 9. The problem is the screen resolution, and (probably) the processor, which isn't powerful enough to get the benefits of the 90Hz screen. Other than that it's better than Redmi Note for me.
Amazon Fire HD 8/10 |  |
|---|
This is a Tablet not a Mobile Phone. All versions are weaker than my target power/performance. In terms of value however, you can't beat Amazon Fire HD!
The device is so attractive price-to-value that I might buy one right now, except that I need a phone. I need it to run apps several years down-the-line and I don't expect that from Fire HD.
The other downsides of Amazon Fire HD does not matter to me as Amazon services user, but they might be huge deal breaker for some.
What do you think?
There are other phones I'm thinking about other than the ones I mentioned. Ones I know I can't afford (for now) like Galaxy Note series, which is attractive to me as an artist. I'm keeping tab on whatever Nokia is doing, my first 2 mobile phones (before the Smartphones age) were both Nokia mobiles. Finally, I didn't look up any Motorola phones and I should because they're gaining popularity where I live.