Looking for a decent budget smartphone

Stafford

Stafford

Member
So back in March 2021 I bought the Xiaomi Poco X3 Pro, before that I had the OnePlus 3, that remains my favourite phone and I got it for a super great price. 250 euros for such a premium looking and feeling phone, the back was metallic, OLED screen, it was truly great.


Anyway, four years is not terribly much but I'm kinda at the point where I definitely would like to go for something different now. But certainly not a downgrade, which means no lesser specs but I wouldn't mind it at all if it's smaller. I find the X3 Pro on the large side. I'm really not a big fan of the ads during several apps either.

I care mostly for a good battery life, so at least if not better than what I got now is what I'm looking for. I believe the matter is 5000mah. Oh almost forgot, I would like a camera that is just as good, preferably better too.

I enjoy 120hz a lot as well and I like my phone speedy. And if possible a screen brightness upgrade, because when I'm outside I don't find the X3 Pro that ideal. The problem is, there are so many different brands and models nowadays, I just get lost. What are some good options for me? I bought the X3 Pro back then for 250 euros or so, I wonder if you can get anything great nowadays. But hopefully people can help me out with that.

I can get a Poco X7 Pro for less than 300 euros, but I might be able to get a Samsung Galaxy S25 128 gb for about 400 euros, it's been used for barely a month, great condition.

Suggestions?

I realize that a S25 isn't exactly considered budget, but for the price I can get it at it sure is.
 
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Stafford said:
not a big fan of the ads during several apps either.
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Episode 5 What GIF by The Office


Just get S25
 
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HRK69 said:
That's new to me, but honestly, it wouldn't surprise me either lol
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Thing with the S25 is that if this deal I'm looking at now doesn't happen I will be looking at a huge price difference between the Poco X7 Pro. That one truly is budget price and you get a lot of bang for the buck.
 
Stafford said:
Shit, I need to "hack" my phone for that?
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Not necessarily, GrapheneOS just installs your apps in a sandbox (where they can't communicate with each other) and the Play Store is also just a regular app (instead of the default privileged app / into the Android OS). You can also dictate which of your apps can access the internet, and which cannot, meaning if you install some sort of apps that works locally but serves ads, you can just turn that app's internet access off.

Even without Graphene, the Pixel 9a is a pretty solid device. Good camera, 6.3 inch OLED display at 120hz refresh, 5100 mAh battery, metal frame, everything you mentioned above that you wanted. Not sure how much they cost where you're at though, here they are $500 retail price.
 
jshackles said:
Not necessarily, GrapheneOS just installs your apps in a sandbox (where they can't communicate with each other) and the Play Store is also just a regular app (instead of the default privileged app / into the Android OS). You can also dictate which of your apps can access the internet, and which cannot, meaning if you install some sort of apps that works locally but serves ads, you can just turn that app's internet access off.

Even without Graphene, the Pixel 9a is a pretty solid device. Good camera, 6.3 inch OLED display at 120hz refresh, 5100 mAh battery, metal frame, everything you mentioned above that you wanted. Not sure how much they cost where you're at though, here they are $500 retail price.
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I'll look at that one too. The Poco X7 Pro has a 6000 mAh battery, which definitely trumps the S25 and also the Pixel.
 
Nothing 3a. Picked it up as a cheap Android to test my app, and honestly, I'm blown away. If you're okay with a larger phone, this might be the best bang for your buck out there.
 
MidGenRefresh said:
Nothing 3a. Picked it up as a cheap Android to test my app, and honestly, I'm blown away. If you're okay with a larger phone, this might be the best bang for your buck out there.
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What a coincidence, I was just looking at a Reddit post on Nothing Phone 1. I don't mind a large phone, but it shouldn't be larger than what I got now because that already is large enough.
 
Stafford said:
What a coincidence, I was just looking at a Reddit post on Nothing Phone 1. I don't mind a large phone, but it shouldn't be larger than what I got now because that already is large enough.
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Yeah, it's pretty much the same size, so no change there. I got it for €299 and honestly, I don't know how they're selling it at that price. Their profit margins must be close to zero.

The screen is fantastic (120Hz OLED), battery life is excellent, charging is fast, and the camera easily compares to something like an iPhone 14. Performance is flawless for apps. I can't really say anything about games since I don't game on mobile.

Nothing 3a for the price is like 9/10. Extremely impressive.
 
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Go for refurbished phones that are one gen behind. I bet an s24 is around $350 and that would outclass most new phones in that price range plus since it's a flagship it will still have 6 years of updates.
 
I've always liked the Moto G phones. They're cheap, performance is fine, no issues. The new one Moto G (2025) now has a refresh rate of 120hz and a bigger battery that should last for a few days. They go for $200 new, usually have 4gb ram/64g-128g storage. I dont ever play games on mine, i do some emulation and can play PS2 games at 2x-3x resolution.
 
The ads built into Xiaomi (and other) budget phones allows them to sell that level of hardware for a low amount.
 
EverydayBeast said:
They have old iPhones you can get
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yet_another_alt said:
Go for refurbished phones that are one gen behind. I bet an s24 is around $350 and that would outclass most new phones in that price range plus since it's a flagship it will still have 6 years of updates.
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I checked some out, but price wise it's still quite high. 411 euros cheapest for a S24 refurbished. And this is while I can get a S25 for 446 on this Ebay-like app, and it seems to be legit too.

And am I looking wrong or do only Pro models IPhone have 120hz?
 
MidGenRefresh said:
Yeah, it's pretty much the same size, so no change there. I got it for €299 and honestly, I don't know how they're selling it at that price. Their profit margins must be close to zero.

The screen is fantastic (120Hz OLED), battery life is excellent, charging is fast, and the camera easily compares to something like an iPhone 14. Performance is flawless for apps. I can't really say anything about games since I don't game on mobile.

Nothing 3a for the price is like 9/10. Extremely impressive.
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It looks great, but it seems when it comes down to it that I might prefer the Poco X7 Pro over it. Seems to have the better specs, well except for camera. But it's definitely better for gaming especially, I think it gets way brighter too, which is nice for outside.

I can get one for 300 or even 250 via a website similar to Ebay, however not every seller provides a receipt with it. I need to contact Xiaomi and ask them if they would still help me out if I ever get issues with it. But I'm not done with the research yet, far from it. It continues. :)
 
The Cockatrice said:
OnePlus have gone downhill imo. Stick with Samsung.
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You serious? OnePlus 13 is one of the best, if not the best phone of the year. Price to value wise it absolutely kills the Galaxy S25U.
Now did OnePlus take a big dip after the 6 series? Yes. But since 12, they are back to serious form.

Anyway, the OP asked about a budget phone. In my opinion, that phone should 100% be a OnePlus 12 or a OnePlus 13R.
Great battery life (a requirement for OP) and charges from 0 to 100 in like ~30 minutes.

If that's still too high, then go for a cheap Motorola.
 
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FalsettoVibe said:
You serious? OnePlus 13 is one of the best, if not best phones of the year. Price to value wise it absolutely kills the Galaxy S25U.
Now did OnePlus take a big dip after the 6 series? Yes. But since 12, they are back to serious form.

Anyway, the OP asked about a budget phone. In my opinion, that phone should 100% be a OnePlus 12 or a OnePlus 13R.
Great battery life (a requirement for OP) and charges from 0 to 100 in like ~30 minutes.
Click to expand...

On paper the samsung/iphone killers sound good spec wise but their quality is pretty abysmal build wise. Obviously I cant vouch for the 13, but before my s24u my oneplus pretty much had nonstop issues, half the screen didnt work anymore, battery was shit, etc. This was just after a year of minimal use since outside of calls/insta and whatnot i barely used it. My friends had a xiaomi, another flagship killer that everyone lauded, and again, a ton of issues that no one seems to talk about. Every flagship killer looks great when you look at the specs and prices, but theres a reason why iphones and samsung dominate and its not just specs. Anyway, we all have different experiences with phones and luck may be involved as well.
 
I've been using nothing but xiaomi redmi phones for years now, starting with the redmi 5, redmi note 7, note 9, and now I'm still using the redmi note 12 pro+.
The only reason I haven't upgraded is because the 13 seemed like very small upgrade over the 12 and the 14 only has a headphone jack for the lower end models, not the pro+.

I'm kinda hoping they'll add the jack back on the 15 or 16, or at least have their lower end versions be a good upgrade to the 12pro+ regardless.
If you don't care about that, the 14pro+ should be in your budget.
 
The Cockatrice said:
On paper the samsung/iphone killers sound good spec wise but their quality is pretty abysmal build wise. Obviously I cant vouch for the 13, but before my s24u my oneplus pretty much had nonstop issues, half the screen didnt work anymore, battery was shit, etc. This was just after a year of minimal use since outside of calls/insta and whatnot i barely used it. My friends had a xiaomi, another flagship killer that everyone lauded, and again, a ton of issues that no one seems to talk about. Every flagship killer looks great when you look at the specs and prices, but theres a reason why iphones and samsung dominate and its not just specs. Anyway, we all have different experiences with phones and luck may be involved as well.
Click to expand...

That last part is very true. Personally I've had great experience with the Oneplus 3, back in 2015 or so I couldn't believe that for 250 euros I had a phone like that, it truly got close to what Samsung was offering. And a similar experience with the Poco X3 Pro, also 250 euros and the features and specs it had in 2021 was damn good value. But now after four years I definitely notice a way shorter battery life, it's time for something else.



FalsettoVibe said:
You serious? OnePlus 13 is one of the best, if not the best phone of the year. Price to value wise it absolutely kills the Galaxy S25U.
Now did OnePlus take a big dip after the 6 series? Yes. But since 12, they are back to serious form.

Anyway, the OP asked about a budget phone. In my opinion, that phone should 100% be a OnePlus 12 or a OnePlus 13R.
Great battery life (a requirement for OP) and charges from 0 to 100 in like ~30 minutes.

If that's still too high, then go for a cheap Motorola.
Click to expand...

I do still consider Oneplus 13r as well, but cheapest I can find is 500 euros and there are other alternatives for way, way less and quite similar specs wise.
 
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It's quite tiresome how apparently many of these phones don't come with a charger nowadays, in Europe that is. Now I do have a charger for my Poco X3 Pro, that should work fine on a X7 Pro, if I were to get that, right? Even though I'm reading the X7 Pro needs 90w, while my charger is 33W.

Reizo Ryuu said:
I've been using nothing but xiaomi redmi phones for years now, starting with the redmi 5, redmi note 7, note 9, and now I'm still using the redmi note 12 pro+.
The only reason I haven't upgraded is because the 13 seemed like very small upgrade over the 12 and the 14 only has a headphone jack for the lower end models, not the pro+.

I'm kinda hoping they'll add the jack back on the 15 or 16, or at least have their lower end versions be a good upgrade to the 12pro+ regardless.
If you don't care about that, the 14pro+ should be in your budget.
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14 Pro + does look nice. I had not even considered Xiaomi models yet, even though Poco really is Xiaomi as well. With all these different phones, models, brands it's becoming slightly overwhelming and I find myself doing research almost all freaking day, sheesh. So many of them have similar specs and price differences are sometimes crazy too.

If for example I put Xiaomi Redmi 14 Pro+ next to a Poco X7 Pro I see two quite similar phones. Both amoled, good for gaming etc. Shit man, I need to make a decision.

The X7 Pro can be had for 180 euros on a app called Vinted. It's a seller from Spain, it's sealed and this app provides buyer protection. Which is good. But this seller doesn't have the receipt. I'm really gonna have to contact Xiaomi tomorrow and ask if that is an issue. One seller today told me companies most of the time will help me with warranty, whether I have a receipt or not. But I doubt that very much.
 
Stafford said:
One seller today told me companies most of the time will help me with warranty, whether I have a receipt or not. But I doubt that very much.
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if they do the warranty via serial number then that should work yeah, it's the same way how microsoft gives warranty on their xbox consoles.
But best to call and find out.
 
El Muerto said:
I've always liked the Moto G phones. They're cheap, performance is fine, no issues. The new one Moto G (2025) now has a refresh rate of 120hz and a bigger battery that should last for a few days. They go for $200 new, usually have 4gb ram/64g-128g storage. I dont ever play games on mine, i do some emulation and can play PS2 games at 2x-3x resolution.
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Been looking at this just now and these look great too. But performance wise, is that on par with my current Poco X3 Pro, a bit worse or actually better? The processor on the X3 Pro is Snapdragon 860.
 
Stafford said:
I checked some out, but price wise it's still quite high. 411 euros cheapest for a S24 refurbished. And this is while I can get a S25 for 446 on this Ebay-like app, and it seems to be legit too.
Click to expand...
That's a really good price for an s25 if it's legit. At that price point it's cheaper than getting another buget phone in a few years or so and you're enjoying the extra power now. A snapdragon elite will probably still outclass budget phones 3 years down the line.
 
yet_another_alt said:
That's a really good price for an s25 if it's legit. At that price point it's cheaper than getting another buget phone in a few years or so and you're enjoying the extra power now. A snapdragon elite will probably still outclass budget phones 3 years down the line.
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Yeah, very good. But I haven't received a response yet. It does say it's brand new, sealed. At the same time I want to be careful that this isn't a fake. The app does provide buyer protection, but even so.
 
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Stafford said:
Yeah, very good. But I haven't received a response yet. It does say it's brand new, sealed. At the same time I want to be careful that this isn't a fake. The app does provide buyer protection, but even so.
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Unfortunately the only real way to check is once you get the phone. They can fake IMEI, bootup screens and other stuff really well but they're unlikely to use an actual OLED screen or fool a benchmark tool.
 
I bought an old iphone off ebay for like £50, not sure what year it is or anything (I assume its quite old) but it has a good camera, screen and does everything I need. Especially great considering whoever owned it took a 95% depreciation on it
 
T8SC said:
I'd be looking at something like the Motorola Edge 60 series or G86.
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Did some searching on the G86, but it's an odd one. There are no reviews of it, it says out of stock on the official site but according to Reddit it's been saying out of stock since day one. Nobody seems to have it, aside from some Indian YouTubers but no offense, those can't be called proper reviews.

Bummer, because I like the sound of that battery especially, and it looks good and great value.

yet_another_alt said:
Unfortunately the only real way to check is once you get the phone. They can fake IMEI, bootup screens and other stuff really well but they're unlikely to use an actual OLED screen or fool a benchmark tool.
Click to expand...

Yeah, that's the thing. However, in the policy of this app they say that buyer protection means they'll help me out if the package doesn't arrive, if the product isn't as what it's described as. Some of these sellers write in the description that it's a replica, this person doesn't say that. But before i buy anything I will want to have spoken to this person first.
 
Stafford said:
Did some searching on the G86, but it's an odd one. There are no reviews of it, it says out of stock on the official site but according to Reddit it's been saying out of stock since day one. Nobody seems to have it, aside from some Indian YouTubers but no offense, those can't be called proper reviews.

Bummer, because I like the sound of that battery especially, and it looks good and great value.
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Motorola 6.7

Meet the Sony LYTIA™ Android camera phone with Dolby Atmos® for stunning photos and immersive sound.
www.motorola.com www.motorola.com


Announced - 2025, May 29
Status - Coming soon. Exp. release 2025, July 07

Motorola Moto G86 - Full phone specifications

www.gsmarena.com www.gsmarena.com

Due out in a couple of weeks.
 
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I just saw this.

sBtyPXqEkuGlbdCm.jpg


And yes, common sense would tell you this is fake. However this company who provides buyer protection also has a team that will check a product to see if it's legit at all. The seller of this has enabled/offered that option. So that's interesting. I've contacted the person, let's see.


T8SC said:

Motorola 6.7

Meet the Sony LYTIA™ Android camera phone with Dolby Atmos® for stunning photos and immersive sound.
www.motorola.com www.motorola.com


Announced - 2025, May 29
Status - Coming soon. Exp. release 2025, July 07

Motorola Moto G86 - Full phone specifications

www.gsmarena.com www.gsmarena.com

Due out in a couple of weeks.
Click to expand...

Oh nice, I will make sure to wait until at least then. I'd like to see some reviews, hell, maybe the big electronics store Mediamarkt here will have one I can test myself.

It's gonna be important for me that it isn't a downgrade over what I have now.
 
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Stafford said:
I just saw this.

sBtyPXqEkuGlbdCm.jpg


And yes, common sense would tell you this is fake. However this company who provides buyer protection also has a team that will check a product to see if it's legit at all. The seller of this has enabled/offered that option. So that's interesting. I've contacted the person, let's see.




Oh nice, I will make sure to wait until at least then. I'd like to see some reviews, hell, maybe the big electronics store Mediamarkt here will have one I can test myself.

It's gonna be important for me that it isn't a downgrade over what I have now.
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S25U is the perfect phone from my experience. Fast (Elite chip is really good), light, battery lasts the whole day, nice to hold and just works. I had one since the end of Janurary so I had decent time with it now. I had an S23U before that and even that was a decent upgrade from that. I probably won't get a new phone for 4+ years this time around.

Only time I'm short on battery is if I use Android auto for hours with low signal. But I just plug it into the car so it's a non-issue.

Make sure to check out Goodlock if you get it. Samsung's software is actually surprisingly good.
 
I'm in a similar position with my Poco F3 - its faired me well these last few years but the ads can be annoying (although you get used to it I find) and not being able to use a chinese spy phone in the states is a little painful (not that I've been there much since I've had it). I was contemplating grabbing a Google Pixel 9a which seems to pop up a bit as the best mid-ranged option as better camera would be good - the F3 fairs quite well in natural light, just not particularly well when the sun goes down I find... plus the sound if recording a vid tends to be pretty warped which is isn't ideal.
 
StabbyStabStabStabStab said:
I'm in a similar position with my Poco F3 - its faired me well these last few years but the ads can be annoying (although you get used to it I find) and not being able to use a chinese spy phone in the states is a little painful (not that I've been there much since I've had it). I was contemplating grabbing a Google Pixel 9a which seems to pop up a bit as the best mid-ranged option as better camera would be good - the F3 fairs quite well in natural light, just not particularly well when the sun goes down I find... plus the sound if recording a vid tends to be pretty warped which is isn't ideal.
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Well, as for those ads, they are gone for me. I can access system apps and just general apps without ads now. Maybe they still appear in Xiaomi's own apps, but I barely use them. What I did was

Settings>connection and sharing>private DNS and put dns.adguard.com in there.

No ads in browsers anymore either, ideal.
 
Stafford said:
Well, as for those ads, they are gone for me. I can access system apps and just general apps without ads now. Maybe they still appear in Xiaomi's own apps, but I barely use them. What I did was

Settings>connection and sharing>private DNS and put dns.adguard.com in there.

No ads in browsers anymore either, ideal.
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Oh right I see - thanks for this that's great. Just stuck it in DNS, will fluff around with it later to see if it works...
 
StabbyStabStabStabStab said:
Oh right I see - thanks for this that's great. Just stuck it in DNS, will fluff around with it later to see if it works...
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Yep, it's perfect. On some sites I do see empty boxes, but that's so much better than being bombarded with screen filling ads and such annoyances.

Reizo Ryuu said:
if they do the warranty via serial number then that should work yeah, it's the same way how microsoft gives warranty on their xbox consoles.
But best to call and find out.
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I called Xiaomi and they want a receipt. Or if a seller is willing to give me the imei number I can call Xiaomi and they can check if it's legit and that will be enough too then.
 
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EverydayBeast said:
They have old iPhones you can get
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The Cockatrice said:
On paper the samsung/iphone killers sound good spec wise but their quality is pretty abysmal build wise. Obviously I cant vouch for the 13, but before my s24u my oneplus pretty much had nonstop issues, half the screen didnt work anymore, battery was shit, etc. This was just after a year of minimal use since outside of calls/insta and whatnot i barely used it. My friends had a xiaomi, another flagship killer that everyone lauded, and again, a ton of issues that no one seems to talk about. Every flagship killer looks great when you look at the specs and prices, but theres a reason why iphones and samsung dominate and its not just specs. Anyway, we all have different experiences with phones and luck may be involved as well.
Click to expand...

I am willing to look at every suggestion here, so that means IPhone as well, because I can't lie, I like how those phones look and feel. Plus in the case I were to go for one it would be a brand new experience, something entirely different compared to yet another Android phone. But I need to make sure the downsides to a IPhone won't be too problematic for me.

There is no way in hell I'd be getting a new one, just not willing to shell out that kind of money for a phone, but refurbished perhaps? But 120hz is a must, great battery life is a must, a peak brightness bright enough for outside is a must too. From what I've seen standard IPhones don't have 120hz support, kinda crazy, but the Pro models do have it.

Which ones should I be looking for to get a good deal and that ticks all the boxes for me?


And a Galaxy S24 can be had for 350 euro in a legit store, it's in perfect condition. At another store there's the S24 FE for also 350 euro with two years of warranty. That IS a good deal, isn't it?
 
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