Is there a sweet spot in smartphone price range?

[N05HIT]

Last year when the Pixel 3a launched I was amazed that google kept the camera but at $400 there were much powerful phone on the market. So in the end I was just sad cause there was no sweet spot for phones. The mid range sucks in camera and the high end is too expensive. The Pixel could be the answer if it was bit more powerful (6GB ram & 128GB standard would be nice)

[KhakiHat]

Ever heard of the Xiaomi Mi 9?

 

https://www.amazon.com/Xiaomi-128GB-6GB-RAM-Resolution/dp/B07R43YSJS/ref=asc_df_B07R43YSJS/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=343920890529&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=13491774336535813698&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9017219&hvtargid=aud-798931705416:pla-762085068234&psc=1&tag=&ref=&adgrpid=71980406394&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvadid=343920890529&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=13491774336535813698&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9017219&hvtargid=aud-798931705416:pla-762085068234

[Princess Luna]

https://www.amazon.com/Nokia-Single-SIM-Polished-Blue/dp/B077Z1NXFB/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=nokia+sirocco&qid=1572274076&sr=8-3

 

For 300 dollars you can get this 2017's Nokia flagship... it has a great 1440x2560p IPS Panel, Snapdragon 835, 4gb RAM, 64gb internal but has expansion slot, etc... basically flagship like specs that should make it a very responsive and good device.

 

And then the cherry at the top of this cake is an AMAZING high end camera with none other but Zeiss lens, like seriously this Nokia 8 put the iPhone 7 Plus to shame on photography quality department.

 

Might wanna give it a look if Camera is your main desire.

[N05HIT]

1 minute ago, KhakiHat said:

Ever heard of the Xiaomi Mi 9?

Yes and the camera can't keep up with any flagship over $700...good phone though

[porina]

I did buy the 3a, and it is my most expensive phone to day. No regrets on buying it though.

 

If it wasn't for the 3a, I would most likely be looking at the Chinese phones. Huawei was a choice up to the point they're attacked by US government. Xiaomi also make good phones, so would also be high up on my list to consider. Which phone in particular depends on your needs though.

[N05HIT]

2 minutes ago, Princess Luna said:

https://www.amazon.com/Nokia-Single-SIM-Polished-Blue/dp/B077Z1NXFB/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=nokia+sirocco&qid=1572274076&sr=8-3

 

For 300 dollars you can get this 2017's Nokia flagship... it has a great 1440x2560p IPS Panel, Snapdragon 835, 4gb RAM, 64gb internal but has expansion slot, etc... basically flagship like specs that should make it a very responsive and good device.

 

And then the cherry at the top of this cake is an AMAZING high end camera with none other but Zeiss lens, like seriously this Nokia 8 put the iPhone 7 Plus to shame on photography quality department.

 

Might wanna give it a look if Camera is your main desire.

I really liked the phone when it came out but it's camera and battery life not good saw 100 Reviews on that phone same verdict every time

[N05HIT]

7 minutes ago, porina said:

I did buy the 3a, and it is my most expensive phone to day. No regrets on buying it though.

 

If it wasn't for the 3a, I would most likely be looking at the Chinese phones. Huawei was a choice up to the point they're attacked by US government. Xiaomi also make good phones, so would also be high up on my list to consider. Which phone in particular depends on your needs though.

I really liked the Pixel 3a but I needed a bigger battery and more storage. I can't really spent more than $400 on a phone right now. so, waiting for the 4a to be a better

[YoFavRussian]

I bought the OnePlus6T used for pretty cheap, $350. It's been a really good phone so far.

[kartxtpro]

I guess what's fair depends upon your needs, expectations and your region. For example in my region pixel 3a costed $565 for base variant(not 3a XL).

[19_blackie_73]

21 minutes ago, NOShit777 said:

Yes and the camera can't keep up with any flagship over $700...good phone though

Sweetspot doesn't mean it is best in absolut performance, but best price to performance. If paying 3-700$ more for a better camera is worth to you, then you need to spend the money or get a dslr.

In my opinion, spending more than $300 is not very noticeable in real life and the drop off in terms of price to performance is significant

[N05HIT]

1 minute ago, YoFavRussian said:

I bought the OnePlus6T used for pretty cheap, $350. It's been a really good phone so far.

That was actually a great phone when it came out...but this year OnePlus 7 pro's camera can't keep up with Pixel or iphone. I hope next year they will give camera more attention.

[N05HIT]

7 minutes ago, 19_blackie_73 said:

Sweetspot doesn't mean it is best in absolut performance, but best price to performance. If paying 3-700$ more for a better camera is worth to you, then you need to spend the money or get a dslr.

In my opinion, spending more than $300 is not very noticeable in real life and the drop off in terms of price to performance is significant

Sweet spot doesn't mean price to performance it means a phone that has everything you want in a affordable price....I don't want 12GB ram or wireless charging ...but I want good camera , battery and affordable price

[WkdPaul]

Just now, NOShit777 said:

That was actually a great phone when it came out...but this year OnePlus 7 pro's camera can't keep up with Pixel or iphone. I hope next year they will give camera more attention.

Mid-range phones always skim on the camera, if you're looking for a phone with a great camera, you're stuck getting the flagships, because next year is going to be the same thing ; mid-range phones will have ok cameras, and the flagships are still going to have great ones. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[porina]

18 minutes ago, NOShit777 said:

I really liked the Pixel 3a but I needed a bigger battery and more storage. I can't really spent more than $400 on a phone right now. so, waiting for the 4a to be a better

Again it depends on your uses. I'm using 36.47GB of 64GB on my 3a right now. That's with a couple huge games installed, as well as some music and photos. 

 

On the camera part, it doesn't need to be best, but good enough. My previous phone was the Xiaomi Mi A1. It was fine apart from the camera. It wasn't great in good light, and doesn't get better with less. The 3a in comparison, does cross into good enough category. Is it better or worse than my work iPhone 8 Plus, or previous Samsung S6? Doesn't matter. These are all good enough. The Mi A1 wasn't. 

[YoFavRussian]

4 minutes ago, NOShit777 said:

That was actually a great phone when it came out...but this year OnePlus 7 pro's camera can't keep up with Pixel or iphone. I hope next year they will give camera more attention.

I agree, but this phone replaced my original OnePlus One anyhow, I hang on to my phones for a long time. Especially if they're flagship because that just means they'll last that much longer.

[YoFavRussian]

Honestly, if you're buying a phone for the camera but only for photography. Why not buy a really decent camera? 

[Commodus]

2 hours ago, YoFavRussian said:

Honestly, if you're buying a phone for the camera but only for photography. Why not buy a really decent camera? 

Because you can't always lug a dedicated camera with you "just in case."  I know my Sony mirrorless takes better shots than my iPhone on the whole, but I'm not going to carry it with me on a get-together.

[Darkseth]

5 hours ago, NOShit777 said:

That was actually a great phone when it came out...but this year OnePlus 7 pro's camera can't keep up with Pixel or iphone. I hope next year they will give camera more attention.

And the 6T couldn't keep up with the Pixel 2/3, or iPhone Xs, regarding Camera. It was like always a step behind.

Often, with GCam it came closer, but still didn't reach them.

 

This year's 48 MP Camera, more polished Software is closer to the Pixel than ever before.

 Some reviewers made Camera comparisons, and it was pure Random, which phone had the best shot in a certain scene. one time, Pixel was the best.

The other Shot, Huawei was best. Next was Samsung, even Oneplus 7 (Pro) did beat EVERY other competitor.

 

It's kinda... Random. Depends on the scene, which is best, and you can't say anymore, that a Pixel/iPhone is ALWAYS better than Oneplus. Maybe more often, but not every single Time.

[IAmAndre]

The OnePlus 7 is currently available around $400 in some places, which I think is a much better value than the Pixel 3a.

[N05HIT]

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Edited October 29, 2019 by NOShit777

[YoFavRussian]

On 10/28/2019 at 1:55 PM, Commodus said:

Because you can't always lug a dedicated camera with you "just in case."  I know my Sony mirrorless takes better shots than my iPhone on the whole, but I'm not going to carry it with me on a get-together.

I can see that side of it, but I'm more likely to take my camera with me if I'm going somewhere that I will probably be taking pictures, but I get what your saying about not lugging it around, or take into account batteries for the camera as well.