Cheap Android phone?

[Barry Admin]

It looks like my beloved Xiamoi MI 9 has finally given up the ghost, so I need to try and save for a new one.  Any suggestions?  For like... 200 quid and under. 

I only got that Xiamoi to dualscreen PoGo and Ingress, but ended up loving it.  So I'd be open to staying with them. 

Or maybe someone has seen a good deal I can go for?  The MI 9 was nice and cheap as I got it sent over from China, at someone on here's recommendation.

[Memorex MP3]

I gather some of the Xiaomi Poco series phones are massively overpowered for their price range with flagship processors in them, get recommended a lot when people ask for an Android phone capable of PS2/Wii emulation. Think I saw the Poco F3 with a Snapdragon 870 occasionally going below 150.


Xiaomi seem to occasionally have crazy deals pop up on hotukdeals every now and again.

[Barry Admin]

I gather some of the Xiaomi Poco series phones are massively overpowered for their price range with flagship processors in them, get recommended a lot when people ask for an Android phone capable of PS2/Wii emulation. Think I saw the Poco F3 with a Snapdragon 870 occasionally going below 150.


Xiaomi seem to occasionally have crazy deals pop up on hotukdeals every now and again.

Thank you!  Gonna have a look at Poco.  And if anyone sees anything on hotukdeals, please let me know!

[Cloud]

Always keep an eye on hotukdeals.  I got a OnePlus Nord CE for a great price and love it (aside from the camera quality but you don't get a cheap phone for a good camera)

[Uncle TechTip]

If you don't want fancy pants, the Motorola range seems like the best value, nothing too special about them but they do a job. Usually 150 or thereabouts. They have very tough screens. I dinked both my Xiaomi models.

[KaraokeDragon]

I'm not knowledgeable at all about smartphones but I got my 2017 Sony Experia for £44 off Ebay, for anyone who just wants a very basic android phone and doesn't mind second hand. The battery more than lasts me to the end of the day okay as long I'm not watching loads of videos on it. Admittedly battery life might be a bit of a crapshoot when buying second hand.

[Memorex MP3]

One thing to note is that the Mi 9 is a Snapdragon 855. If you've been using it for gaming you will need to look into whether a new phone will be an adequate replacement as I'm sure there's loads of brand new phones that are a lot less capable.


My go to android models would be:
- pixel 4 (has Android 13, Snapdragon 855, likely to have a strong custom firmware scene for several more years)
- Samsung's Xcover series (durable, replaceable batteries, relatively long term OS support, smallish)
- old Samsung flagships (mainly cos Dex is neat as a portable media hub)
- oneplus (reliable midrange)
- very old flagships that have strong Lineage OS communities
- Moto Z series, purely for the novelty of the mods


Xiaomi's rep for fuck all support after a year and weird mix of extremely advanced tech mixed with totally absent features puts me off them generally

[seepage]

Still very happy with my 2017 LG G6, which I think was their flagship at the time. 1440x2880 pixels 5.7" 163g

[Endicott]

Previous phone was a second hand Xperia, but the battery was unusable. I was able to remove the rear stuck on cover with a bit of heat, fit a new battery (£15), and replace the scratched up rear cover with a shiny new one (£10). That was about 6 years ago though.

Current phone is Samsung Galaxy A12 which you can get new for about £200. Immense battery life. Is it powerful enough for gaming though? I don't know, I don't use it for that. Reviews are mixed, depending on what game.

[Cuellar]

Is OnePLus Nord 2 good

[Glyn]

Always keep an eye on hotukdeals.  I got a OnePlus Nord CE for a great price and love it (aside from the camera quality but you don't get a cheap phone for a good camera)

The deal on there for the pixel6a for just under £200 seems ridiculously good value if you are quick
https://www.hotukdeals.com/share-deal-from-app/4086739

[Barry Admin]

The deal on there for the pixel6a for just under £200 seems ridiculously good value if you are quick
https://www.hotukdeals.com/share-deal-from-app/4086739

Is it really a good phone?  I was hoping for closer to 150 but could maybe get 200, I'm just a bit puzzled by a review I read.  Was overwhelmingly enthusiastic, but it evidently has really poor lighting and stuff.  Meh, would still be a hell of an upgrade I guess.  All I ever use phones for is here and playing Torn, and I do like to watch YouTube videos at times. Anyway I read a ton, so am a bit worried the battery on this would be piss cause of the need to jack the brightness up.

Edit: Never mind, missed it lol.  The hunt continues.

[Cuellar]

If it's any consolation I had a pixel 6 (which is now smashed up) and, camera aside, I thought it was gubbins

[Barry Admin]

One thing to note is that the Mi 9 is a Snapdragon 855. If you've been using it for gaming you will need to look into whether a new phone will be an adequate replacement as I'm sure there's loads of brand new phones that are a lot less capable.

Thanks for this, and for the list!

I only really play a browser game, and speed is kind of important in that - as in, the screen refreshing quickly. 

Would snapdragon make that better?

[Barry Admin]

Is there anywhere else like hotukdeals I should look at?  Need to try and get this sorted, I'm worried about getting locked out of everything when my giffgaff expires.

[Beagle 2]

FWIW, I've just sent back my Pixel 6a, thought it was terrible and totally baffled by the positive reviews. Could barely see the screen unless it was full brightness and it had a weird yellowish tint. CaB looked green. The latest Android OS was sexy though.

Looking at Oppo phones now which have really come down in price it seems.

[Dex Sawash]

Nothing Phone has configurable notiification lights on the back so you can have ring patterns or something. Saw it and thought "oh that's useful a feature"

[Blumf]

FWIW, I've just sent back my Pixel 6a, thought it was terrible and totally baffled by the positive reviews. Could barely see the screen unless it was full brightness and it had a weird yellowish tint. CaB looked green. The latest Android OS was sexy though.

That sounds like it was in night mode, where it dims and yellows the display, avoiding blue light to get you ready for bed.

Running one myself, but I jammed GrapheneOS on it, so can't say much about the stock OS.

[Beagle 2]

I wasn't in night mode. All the pixels are like this, my wife has had one for years so she couldn't tell the difference and thinks my iPhone looks pink, but I think everyone's insane. Hold it next to something white and it's clearly not fucking white!

Obviously it's not an issue for millions of happy customers but obviously it is judging by the amount of Reddit posts whinging about it. Horses for courses I guess, I like my screens to look like a Daz advert and burn holes into my eyes so I only get around 20 minutes of nightmare filled sleep a night.

[touchingcloth]

Coldplay consider custom Read-only memory.

[Blumf]

I wasn't in night mode. All the pixels are like this, my wife has had one for years so she couldn't tell the difference and thinks my iPhone looks pink, but I think everyone's insane. Hold it next to something white and it's clearly not fucking white!

Huh, just compared the phone to my (cheap & old) monitor and it is yellower. Tried fiddling with the 'Colours' setting (Natural/Boosted/Saturated/Adaptive) and they're all slightly off, even with brightness at full.

Can't say it's bugging me, but you are right, colour's a bit sepia. A phone suitable for viewing Edwardian ladies showing a bit too much ankle.

[touchingcloth]

Getting a bit white power-y in here.

[Famous Mortimer]

My Pixel stopped telling me how much charge it had left (a relatively common complaint for the 4XLs) and as I'd had it for...3 years? 4 years? and had had no problems, I figured I'd just buy the one furthest up the range I could afford (a Pixel 6 Pro, "as new" from one of the apparently reputable resale sites).

This is not much of an anecdote. But, it made me remember how miserable buying phones is.

[gabrielconroy]

I've got a Pixel 7 Pro as I needed a new phone with a good camera to travel with for my business and that was a lot cheaper than buying a DSLR and phone. Had a Pixel 3a before that, which had lasted for years (it was still fine but I gave it to a community in the Amazon so they could communicate better).

Hadn't noticed the yellow screen issue and can't tell any difference holding it up against my computer screen. Maybe I have yellow eyes? In general I think it's excellent and the camera is capable of genuinely amazing photos. On the other hand I have very little to compare it with as I've had a Pixel of some sort for years and years now and don't spend my time using other people's phones for comparison.

Anyway, that's more expensive than 200 quid in any case unless you see some ridiculous deal, sorry to derail!

[Famous Mortimer]

My comment deserved derailing.

I remember, years ago, spending time poring over lists of stats and all that - now, I can just about be bothered to compare it to the phone I have now.