Suggestions for a good budget phone?

[Guest]

So, my phone (samsung galaxy ace GT-S5839i, a complete PoS) is finally dying and I kinda need a replacement. The thing is, I have absolutely no clue (and frankly no real interest) about the current smartphone market. I only care about a few things really and I hope that they can be done with a very limited budget:

 

1. Screen: The screen doesn't have to be massive, but I would love something that's a bit bigger than my current phone. I have large hands and typing is a real pain with my current phone. It would be nice to have a 720p or maybe even 1080p screen, I really hope that's possible for my price range. I know that I won't get a fancy OLED screen in my price range, but I hope that it will be acceptable with decent viewing angles.

 

2. OS: I would like to have a more or less vanilla android experience. I won't complain about a reskinned interface (I think LG does this?) but I don't want my phone to be bloated too much.

 

3. CPU/GPU and ram: whatever is possible with my budget, I don't think that I would notice the difference too much anyway. I just want something that can run android 4.x smoothly and hopefully the future versions as well.

 

4. Build quality/materials/looks: I really couldn't care less. I want something that'll hopefully last me a while, but I don't need a full metal phone just because it looks nice.

 

5. Connectivity: Bluetooth, wireless and 3G, that's about all I need. A standardized headphone jack and a micro-USB port would also be preferred (do phone manufacturers still try to pull this bs with their proprietary connectors? I honestly have no clue).

 

6. Storage: more is better, I have a spare 8GB micro SD card that I want to keep using, so I hope that this'll be possible. If not then I hope that the phone itself has at least 16GB of storage, I need to fit parts of my music library on there.

 

7. Battery life: Again, more is better (obviously) but I'm fine with recharging my phone every night. I don't think it is too important since I'm not a heavy user anyway.

 

I think that's about it, I really hope that there is a phone for me that does all of that for <200€. If it can be done cheaper then that's even better. For reference, here are the specs of my current phone: http://www.gsmchoice.co.uk/en/catalogue/samsung/gts5839i/

 

 

Edit: Just ordered the Moto G 2nd Gen and a 32GB micro SD card (when did SD cards get so cheap?!). I'm really curious if this will change my perspective on smartphones as a whole since I was stuck with a really crappy one for more than 2 years. Also, new contract with faster internet (8 mbit down, 4 mbit up).

[Lingering]

Moto G? 

 

Unless you spend alot you won't get much future proofing as companies love upping specs.

[gilm0re3]

Moto G 2nd gen? That should be in your price range and it has basically stock android. It has confirmed Android L support, 5 inch screen, 720p, has all the connectivity you wanted, and has very respectable battery life.

[the crunchiumo]

the one plus one

[gilm0re3]

the one plus one

 

This also. It might be a bit out of OP's price range, but for the price nothing beats it.

[seabass9990]

HTC desire one

Dunno how much in euro but its only like 300 bucks for the 601

[Thebman712]

one plus one

moto g

moto e

iphone 4s

[Thony]

Im gonna say nexus 5, because its first to get latest android updates and has no bloatware or skins on top of it, has great screen, very decent battery life with android L (beta, tech prew or w/e its called).

Cons: no sd slot and mediocare camera, over 250e

Currently there is new for £250 (275e ?!) with 16gb on amazon but used ones go for about 200e.

[Guest]

Im gonna say nexus 5, because its first to get latest android updates and has no bloatware or skins on top of it, has great screen, very decent battery life with android L (beta, tech prew or w/e its called).

Cons: no sd slot and mediocare camera, over 250e

Currently there is new for £250 (275e ?!) with 16gb on amazon but used ones go for about 200e.

 

The nexus 5 is 350€+ without a contract, that's more than I want to spend tbh.

 

This also. It might be a bit out of OP's price range, but for the price nothing beats it.

 

380€, if I wanted a high end phone I would probably get this, but no chance for my needs

 

Moto G 2nd gen? That should be in your price range and it has basically stock android. It has confirmed Android L support, 5 inch screen, 720p, has all the connectivity you wanted, and has very respectable battery life.

 

That seems really nice so far. 720p IPS display, gorilla glass, 8GB/16GB versions + micro SD slot, snapdragon 400 (from what I've read a 1.2 GHz quadcore, I guess that's alright for my needs), dual SIM slots (nice to have), etc. etc. My only concern is the RAM, is 1GB enough for android 4.4? I mean, mycurrent phone has ~200MB, but it's also running Android 2.3 afer all. The camera also seems fine for my needs and the price is spot on.

[LAwLz]

Moto G 2nd Gen

OnePlus One (if you somehow manage to get an invite)

Nexus 5

 

But you really should wait for the Nexus 6 to at least be announced. Even if it ends up being more expensive than what you want, chances are stores will drop the price on the Nexus 5 to get rid of their inventory.

It should be announced very soon.

 

Edit: Google is holding an event tomorrow, so at least don't order it today. Wait until tomorrow at the very least.

[Guest]

Moto G 2nd Gen

OnePlus One (if you somehow manage to get an invite)

Nexus 5

 

But you really should wait for the Nexus 6 to at least be announced. Even if it ends up being more expensive than what you want, chances are stores will drop the price on the Nexus 5 to get rid of their inventory.

It should be announced very soon.

 

Edit: Google is holding an event tomorrow, so at least don't order it today. Wait until tomorrow at the very least.

 

Thanks for the info, I had no idea. I'm not going to order anything just yet, maybe if the nexus 5 comes closer to the 200€ mark I can justify overspending a bit for a better phone.

[Infernal Burrito]

You are lucky that I stumbled upon this, as I have a oneplus invite here... You are in the giveaway now.

[Aniallation]

iphone 4s

.....

[Aniallation]

-snip-

For all the factors that you need in a smartphone, nothing beats the Moto G for the price.

[LarsReviews]

I had the original Moto G as a review unit for a week and I was really impressed by it. The Display was totally OK, the camera did a good job, the build quality and battery life was fantastic. Wifi speed was quick enough for streaming HD video (even though 720p screen). If you don't want to spend much, it is a great choice. The Moto G 2. Gen can only be better. 

[shadowblitz3]

Oneplus One

Xiaomi Mi3/4

Moto G (both 1st & 2nd gen)

Asus Zenfone 5

[the crunchiumo]

You are lucky that I stumbled upon this, as I have a oneplus invite here... You are in the giveaway now.

can i have it ? looking to buy that phone

[Infernal Burrito]

can i have it ? looking to buy that phone

Too late, both expired and given away, respond earlier next time and good luck.

[Guest]

Moto G 2nd Gen

OnePlus One (if you somehow manage to get an invite)

Nexus 5

 

But you really should wait for the Nexus 6 to at least be announced. Even if it ends up being more expensive than what you want, chances are stores will drop the price on the Nexus 5 to get rid of their inventory.

It should be announced very soon.

 

Edit: Google is holding an event tomorrow, so at least don't order it today. Wait until tomorrow at the very least.

 

So, the nexus 5 is currently 360€ for the 32GB version (no SD card slot), the Moto G 2. is 195€ for the 8GB version (+SD card slot). Is the extra 160 bucks really worth it (maybe less if the prices drop in a few weeks due to the nexus 6)? I mean, 1080p vs 720p shouldn't be that noticeable on such a small screen, right? Both are IPS screens and I'd think that they're both high quality.  But the nexus has a better processor (snapdragon 800 vs Snapdragon 400) and 2GB of RAM compared to the moto G 2. 's 1GB, but also worse battery life. Will this be noticeable for what I'm doing with it? Will this restrict me in any way, will the moto G 2. feel more sluggish/less responsive? I really have no clue if it is "worth it" to invest a bit more here. Or maybe 280€ for the moto X?

[LAwLz]

So, the nexus 5 is currently 360€ for the 32GB version (no SD card slot), the Moto G 2. is 195€ for the 8GB version (+SD card slot). Is the extra 160 bucks really worth it (maybe less if the prices drop in a few weeks due to the nexus 6)? I mean, 1080p vs 720p shouldn't be that noticeable on such a small screen, right? Both are IPS screens and I'd think that they're both high quality.  But the nexus has a better processor (snapdragon 800 vs Snapdragon 400) and 2GB of RAM compared to the moto G 2. 's 1GB, but also worse battery life. Will this be noticeable for what I'm doing with it? Will this restrict me in any way, will the moto G 2. feel more sluggish/less responsive? I really have no clue if it is "worth it" to invest a bit more here. Or maybe 280€ for the moto X?

I would recommend against the 8GB version of the Moto G. Installing things on the microSD card is not that great, Android and the GB to GiB conversion will eat up a decent chunk of that 8GB and you usually and to keep ~20% free for optimal performance.

Personally I think the extra cost is worth it, but it kind of depends on what you want to do with the phone and how much you value those 160 dollars.

The Moto G most likely won't feel sluggish in any way but the Nexus 5 will be faster and the screen is quite a lot better (bigger, more accurate and higher resolution). Another big thing is that the Nexus 5 supports LTE. Oh and the Nexus 8 has a better camera, and wireless charging built in.

[Guest]

I would recommend against the 8GB version of the Moto G. Installing things on the microSD card is not that great, Android and the GB to GiB conversion will eat up a decent chunk of that 8GB and you usually and to keep ~20% free for optimal performance.

Personally I think the extra cost is worth it, but it kind of depends on what you want to do with the phone and how much you value those 160 dollars.

The Moto G most likely won't feel sluggish in any way but the Nexus 5 will be faster and the screen is quite a lot better (bigger, more accurate and higher resolution). Another big thing is that the Nexus 5 supports LTE. Oh and the Nexus 8 has a better camera, and wireless charging built in.

 

I think I'll go with the Moto G 2nd gen after all. It's way cheaper and I don't think that I will really benefit from the additional performance of the nexus 5. 8GB for programs and apps is plenty for me as well + I still have my 8GB micro SD card for music that I can upgrade if I need more storage. A better screen would be nice, but either of them will be an amazing upgrade from my current 320x480 screen, and the worse battery life on the nexus seems like more of a concern to me. The camera also seems totally fine for the rare occasions that I actually use it. Thanks for helping me decide, the fact that I can watch videos, browse some websites and navigate my phone without any stuttering is honestly enough for me.