$200 (CAD) phone

[kokakolia]

Hi, 

 

I want to upgrade my BLU Advance 5.0 HD smartphone. Here are the specs:

 

• Unlocked Dual Sim Smartphone, Android 60 Marshmallow
• 50-Inch HD Display with IPS technology Made from Real Aluminum metal not plastic
• 8MP Main Camera Plus 2MP Front Camera; 8GB Internal Memory 1GB RAM Micro SD up to 64 GB
• MediaTek MT6580 13 GHz Quad-Core processor with Mali-400 GPU
• GSM Quad Band 4G HSPA Plus (850/1700/1900): US Compatibility Nationwide on all GSM Networks including AT and T, T-Mobile, Cricket, MetroPCS, Straight Talk, Pure Talk USA and other

It was only $90 (cad) on amazon.ca. I abused the max out of it over the course of 1 year. Let me explain what I don't like about the phone:

- Sluggish performance and occasional freezing. It's a mild exaggeration, it runs fine with no more than 2 apps at a time. Picture-heavy websites will crash eventually though. It's still perfectly capable of running Chrome and YouTube smoothly. So it's not a brick! But rather a dying hero! 

- Speakers distort at higher volumes. They're still plenty loud and perfectly serviceable for videos. 

- Touch screen is not accurate, thankfully the auto-correct makes texting easy

- Camera is grainy, with poor auto-focus. Usually I don't care much about the camera, but I need one for taking snapshots of documents. It does a poor job at that and it makes me sad. 

- It doesn't run Pokemon Go without losing GPS signal

- I'd like it to run Hearthstone as well. I need at least 2gb of RAM for that. 

 

So I don't technically require an upgrade. My current phone is perfectly (barely) serviceable, since I almost exclusively text, surf the web and watch videos. 

 

My problem is that there are too many smartphones out there. Here are my top pics:

 

ASUS Zenfone 3 Max

 

http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-ca/product/asus-asus-zenfone-3-max-16gb-smartphone-grey-unlocked-zc520tl/10516458.aspx?

 

It runs an unspecified "quad core" MediaTek chip, so I'm not too thrilled. 

 

Sony Xperia XA

 

http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-ca/product/sony-sony-xperia-xa-16gb-black-unlocked-refurbished-f3113/10496025.aspx?

 

It runs a Mediatek Helio P10 which seems promising. 

 

Motorolla Moto G Play 4th gen:

 

http://www.bestbuy.ca/en-ca/product/motorola-motorola-moto-g-play-4th-gen-16gb-smartphone-black-unlocked-refurbished-xt1607/10515530.aspx?

 

Snapdragon 410 seems dated, but I used to own a Moto G 3rd gen and it was an awesome phone. 

 

Xiaomi Redmi 4X:

 

http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_616201.html?wid=21

 

It seems like the best choice on paper. 

 

Xiaomi Redmi 4a:

 

http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_617027.html?wid=4

 

Only $130, but it looks like some features were cut from the 4x to reach that price. The case is plastic over metal. You get a Snapdragon 425 instead of a 435. 

 

Asus Zenfone 3 Laser:

 

https://www.amazon.ca/ASUS-Zenfone3-Unlocked-Smartphone-Android/dp/B01LQV1YHO/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1492362835&sr=1-1&keywords=asus+zenfone+laser

 

Over budget @ $270. It runs a snapdragon 430. But it looks like the build quality, screen and camera are better. Personally, I don't see the point of getting anything sharper than a 720p screen. Sure, the text is sharper. But why would I read small text anyway? 

 

Ulefone Power 4g:

 

http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_288826.html?wid=11

 

Another choice. I don't know anything about the CPU MTK6753 . It has a nice screen though. And I love bamboo. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited April 16, 2017 by kokakolia
missing info

[LienusLateTips]

Elephone S7? Huawei phones?

[kokakolia]

3 minutes ago, JDE said:

Elephone S7? Huawei phones?

You mean this?

 

http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_489748.html?wid=11

 

Seems good. It's $50 over-budget. But it seems worth it if the screen and performance is better.

 

EDIT: How much better is the S7 over the Xiaomi Redmi 4x? It's an $80 gap. 

 

Edited April 16, 2017 by kokakolia
missing info

[LienusLateTips]

7 minutes ago, kokakolia said:

You mean this?

 

http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_489748.html?wid=11

 

Seems good. It's $50 over-budget. But it seems worth it if the screen and performance is better.

 

EDIT: How much better is the S7 over the Xiaomi Redmi 4x? It's an $80 gap. 

 

The S7 has a curved screen and Helio X20.

[kokakolia]

Just now, JDE said:

The S7 has a curved screen and Helio X20.

The curved screen frightens me a little. I am brutal with my smartphones. I always use a tough case and glass screen protector. 

[LienusLateTips]

Just now, kokakolia said:

The curved screen frightens me a little. I am brutal with my smartphones. I always use a tough case and glass screen protector. 

Its literally the same design as the S7 Edge.

[LienusLateTips]

[Blackhole890]

letv x820 or zuk z2 plus, i have one so if you have any problems/questions you can ask me  

7 minutes ago, kokakolia said:

You mean this?

 

http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_489748.html?wid=11

 

Seems good. It's $50 over-budget. But it seems worth it if the screen and performance is better.

 

EDIT: How much better is the S7 over the Xiaomi Redmi 4x? It's an $80 gap. 

 

https://www.kimovil.com/en/compare/elephone-s7-3gb-32gb,xiaomi-redmi-4x

1 minute ago, kokakolia said:

The curved screen frightens me a little. I am brutal with my smartphones. I always use a tough case and glass screen protector. 

its not officially "curved". The glass are curved but not the display itself so it looks like curved

[kokakolia]

1 minute ago, JDE said:

Its literally the same design as the S7 Edge.

I see, so it's like an S7 for the fraction of the price. 

[Blackhole890]

Just now, kokakolia said:

I see, so it's like an S7 for the fraction of the price. 

not at all, just bezeless with a good 2.5D curved glass, the display is not curved

[LienusLateTips]

2 minutes ago, kokakolia said:

I see, so it's like an S7 for the fraction of the price. 

Yes, except for a less powerful processor and a lower resolution screen (1080p)

[LienusLateTips]

1 minute ago, Blackhole890 said:

not at all, just bezeless with a good 2.5D curved glass, the display is not curved

Well, its kinda a optical illusion type thing

[kokakolia]

Okay, here's an informative video talking about the cons of the Redmi 4x:

 

Basically, the camera app is stupid. The video recording quality is bad. The audio recording quality is bad. Everything else is average or good. I might just get that phone. It looks like I'll be perfectly content with it. 

 

I am looking at the Zuk Z2 and it looks like an awesome phone for $260 CAD. Might be worth the extra $100. 

 

http://www.gearbest.com/cell-phones/pp_612134.html?wid=11

 

As always with tech, you set yourself a budget and it's always broken. 

 

So far I am considering:

 

- Xiaomi Redmi 4x 

- Lenovo Zuk Z2

 

Any other suggestions?

 

[Aytex]

Redmi note 3 pro 

[kokakolia]

The Lenovo Zuk Z2 is sold for $240 here:

 

http://www.banggood.com/Lenovo-ZUK-Z2-5_0-inch-4GB-RAM-64GB-ROM-Snapdragon-820-2_15GHz-Quad-core-4G-Smartphone-p-1064299.html?rmmds=detail-left-hotproducts

 

I think I'll just get that one. It's a little more expensive than the Redmi 4x, but everything seems better. 

 

@Aytex The Redmi Note 4 is the one I was looking at. 

[kokakolia]

I just bought myself the Zuk Z2 for $240!

 

Thanks guys! I think that it's a steal for the price. I also appreciate that it's a known brand (Lenovo) as well. 

[Blackhole890]

7 minutes ago, kokakolia said:

I just bought myself the Zuk Z2 for $240!

 

Thanks guys! I think that it's a steal for the price. I also appreciate that it's a known brand (Lenovo) as well. 

good! if you have any issue, dont be shy and ask me so i can try to help you