A couple of years in the past, it might have been trendy to spend $1,000 on the most recent flagship smartphone, however for most individuals, that’s neither sensible nor essential. You do not even should spend $500 right now to get a good handset, whether or not it’s a refurbished iPhone or an inexpensive Android cellphone, as there are many respectable choices as little as $160.
Nonetheless, navigating the price range cellphone market may be difficult; choices that look good on paper might not be in apply, and a few units will find yourself costing you extra when you think about many include restrictive storage. Whereas we spend most of our time reviewing mid- to high-end handsets at Engadget, we have examined quite a lot of the most recent budget-friendly telephones in the marketplace to see minimize it as the most effective low-cost telephones you will get proper now.
Finest low-cost telephones
Samsung
Learn our full Samsung Galaxy A17 5G evaluate
Constructing a superb price range cellphone is hard as producers have a really exhausting restrict on what they will embody whereas staying beneath value. Samsung has balanced this properly on the Galaxy A17 5G by equipping it with a big 6.7-inch OLED show with stable brightness (as much as 800 nits) and a 90Hz refresh charge. The cellphone’s design additionally defies its value as a result of whereas it’s created from polycarbonate (aka plastic), it doesn’t really feel low-cost. You even get a microSD card slot for expandable storage and three cameras in again. Nonetheless, since a kind of is a 2MP macro, it in all probability gained’t see practically as a lot use because the 50MP essential or 5MP ultra-wide.
The one factor I want Samsung splurged a bit extra on is the cellphone’s Exynos 1330 chip, because it’s a bit dated and generally struggles with issues like multitasking or operating extra demanding apps. That stated, beginning at simply $200 (or much less relying on reductions), the Galaxy A17 delivers a whole lot of worth for not a ton of cash. — Sam Rutherford, Senior Reporter
OnePlus
The OnePlus Nord N30 5G was our earlier high choose. At $300, it’s usually $100 dearer than the A16 5G. Nonetheless, if you could find it on sale for much less, it’s nonetheless price contemplating over the A16. For one, the N30 encompasses a quicker 120Hz show and its Snapdragon 695 chip, whereas older than the A16’s Exynos 1330, nonetheless outperforms it in some areas.
One more reason to contemplate the N30 over the A16 is that it ships with a 50W energy adapter, letting you get a full day of battery life in half-hour. If you happen to hope to make use of your new cellphone for so long as doable, the A16 is the higher selection, however the N30 is usually a compelling various. — Igor Bonifacic, Senior Reporter
Motorola
For these on a extremely tight price range, the 2024 Moto G Play covers all of the bases nicely. It has a decently quick Snapdragon 680 processor together with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage. And whereas that final quantity might sound small, the cellphone has a microSD card slot so you’ll be able to add more room if and once you want it.
Its 6.5-inch LCD display screen can also be surprisingly sharp with a 90Hz refresh charge. The Moto G Play even has an IP52 ranking for mud and water resistance. That isn’t a lot, however it’s ok to guard in opposition to an errant splash or two. Certain, the G Play is primary, however it’s primary in a great way. — S.R.
Motorola
The $400 Motorola Moto G Stylus 5G gives one thing not one of the different picks on this checklist do: a built-in stylus. If you happen to love doodling and jotting down notes, then that is a budget cellphone to purchase. Fortunately, it has a couple of different issues going for it too. The Moto G Stylus 5G sports activities an enormous and responsive 6.7-inch show and a long-lasting 5,000mAh battery. Plus, it doesn’t look half dangerous.
As with different choices on this value vary, it could be good if the Moto G Stylus 5G got here with a extra succesful digicam, quicker charging and safety in opposition to water. With this suggestion, make sure to keep away from paying full value for the Moto G Stylus 5G. Fortunately, that’s not exhausting to do with the cellphone ceaselessly on sale. — I.B.
What to search for in an affordable cellphone
For this information, our high picks value between $100 and $300. Something much less and also you would possibly as nicely go purchase a dumb cellphone as an alternative. Since they’re meant to be extra inexpensive than flagship telephones and even midrange handsets, price range smartphones contain compromises; the cheaper a tool, the decrease your expectations round specs, efficiency and expertise must be. For that cause, the most effective recommendation I can provide is to spend as a lot as you’ll be able to afford. On this value vary, even $50 or $100 extra can get you a dramatically higher product.
Second, you must know what you need most from a cellphone. When shopping for a price range smartphone, you might must sacrifice a good essential digicam for lengthy battery life, or commerce a high-resolution show for a quicker CPU. That’s simply what comes with the territory, however understanding your priorities will make it simpler to seek out the fitting cellphone.
It’s additionally price noting some options may be exhausting to seek out on cheaper handsets. For example, you gained’t want to look far for a tool with all-day battery life — however if you would like a cellphone with wonderful digicam high quality, you’re higher off shelling out for one of many suggestions in our midrange smartphone information, which all are available at $600 or much less.
Wi-fi charging and waterproofing additionally aren’t simple to seek out on this value vary and neglect in regards to the quickest chipset. On the brilliant facet, most of our suggestions include headphone jacks, so that you gained’t want to purchase wi-fi headphones.
iOS can also be off the desk, since, following the discontinuation of the iPhone SE, the $599 iPhone 16e is now essentially the most inexpensive providing from Apple. That leaves Android as the one choice within the under-$300 value vary. Fortunately right now, there’s little to complain about Google’s working system – and you might even favor it to iOS.
Lastly, remember most Android producers usually provide far much less strong software program options and help for his or her price range units. In some instances, your new cellphone might solely obtain one main software program replace and a 12 months or two of safety patches past that. That applies to the OnePlus and Motorola suggestions on our checklist.
If you happen to’d prefer to hold your cellphone for so long as doable, Samsung has the most effective software program coverage of any Android producer within the price range house, providing a minimum of 4 years of safety updates on all of its units. Lately, it even started providing six years of help on the $200 A16 5G, which we advocate under. That stated, if software program help (or gadget longevity general) is your essential focus, think about spending a bit extra on the $500 Google Pixel 9a, and even the previous-gen Pixel 8a, which has deliberate software program updates via mid-2031.
