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Affordable Smartphone Recomendations

daocat555

By daocat555
in Mobile Devices and Apps

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daocat555 Explorer Member

daocat555

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NanLaew started what I think is a nice topic called Mid-range smartphone recommendations.  
 
I started a topic called High End Mobile Recommendations; so here is a place for affordable (not necessarily cheap) smartphone recommendations.  I'll start with the Cubot J3 Pro.  I have an order at Aliexpress for it's little brother, the Cubot J3, but have not yet received it. I paid 2,139 baht for the Cubot J3 which really had me thinking, "what is the minimum specs a phone needs to work well?'  I think the Cubot J3 will meet the minimum specs, while providing a nice small and light phone to carry sometimes when I go out and about.  With a body size of 66.3 x 141.4 x 8.8 mm and a weight (as listed on the spec site Kimovil) of 140 grams, the phone will be very easy to carry.  It has a 2,000 mAh battery, 1 GB of RAM and 16 GB of ROM.  It has a Quad-Core CPU running at 1.3 GHz, and runs on the latest Android 8.1 Oreo Go Edition. 
 
From Android Authority here is a description of the OS.  
 
Android Go, also known as Android Oreo (Go edition), is a stripped-down version of Android designed to run on entry-level smartphones. It’s comprised of three optimized areas — the operating system, Google Play Store, and Google apps — which have been reimagined to provide a better experience on lesser hardware.  The operating system is optimized to run on smartphones with 512 MB to 1 GB of RAM. It takes up roughly half the space of Android Nougat, giving smartphones with low storage the breathing room to hold more media and apps out of the box — most Android Go smartphones come with 8 or 16 GB of storage.  

Like the OS, Google has also developed apps to make better use of the device’s memory. These require up to 50 percent less space and perform better on low-end hardware. Android Go smartphones come with only nine pre-installed apps, listed below:

 

No bloatware or weather widget, great, sign me up.  The Display is 5 inch TFT with 480 x 960 pixels, 215 ppi, with a 2:1 aspect ratio.  I would have certainly preferred to spend a bit more and get an IPS TFT screen, and I prefer the old 16:9 aspect ratio, but the 2:1 aspect ratio is appearing more and more on new phones.  Devicespecifications lists the display area as 69.04%.  According to the Cubot site the screen has 1000:1 contrast, brightness of 430 cd/m and is 2.5 d with a blue notification light; which are pretty good specs as TFT screens go.
 
The Cubot J3 does not support 4G.  The battery is said to have a 10 hour 3G talk time and a 7.1 days stand-by time.
 
The Cubot J3 Pro does support 4G.  It has a larger 5.5 inch screen and the screen is IPS.  With the same 480 x 960 pixel resolution as the J3, the J3 Pro has a reduced pixel density of 195 ppi and a display area of 71.09%.  It has a Quad-core 1.5 mHz CPU and a 2,800 mAh battery. 
 
Here are three phones which run Oreo 8.1 Go compared on devicespecifications.
 
 
The Cubot J3 is currently priced at about 1,975 baht at GearBest and Aliexpress, the Cubot J3 Pro is 2,952 baht at GearBest and Aliexpress and the Alcatel 1X is 3,291 baht at the Amazon USA site and on the European sites so I would expect it to list shortly on the International sites at a similar price, as the dual SIM version has 2 GB of RAM (vs 1 GB RAM for the single SIM version) but only a 8 MP rear camera (vs a 13 MP rear camera on the single SIM version).
 
So the Cubot J3 has a 5 inch TFT screen, the Alcatel 1X a 5.34 inch IPS screen and the Cubot J3 Pro a 5.5 inch IPS screen.  The Cubot J3 has a 1.3 mHz Quad-core CPU, the Alcatel 1X a stronger CPU but also Quad-core 1.3 mHz, and the Cubot J3 Pro the same Quad-core CPU as the Alcatel 1X but the J3 Pro is running it at 1.5 mHz.  The Cubot J3 has a 8 MP rear camera and a 5 MP selfie.  The Alcatel dual SIM version a 8 MP rear camera and 5 MP selfie, and the Cubot J3 Pro a 13 MP and 2 MP dual rear camera and a 5 MP selfie camera.  The battery on the Cubot J3 is 2,000 mAh, and 2,460 mAh on the Alcatel X1, and 2,800 mAh on the Cubot J3 Pro.  The J3 has a 69.04% display area, the Alcatel 1X a 69.84% display area, and the J3 Pro a 71.09% display area.  The small Cubot J3, per Kimovil website, has a weight of 140 grams; the Alcatel X1 is 151 grams, and the J3 Pro, with the biggest battery and screen has a weight per Kimovil of 154 grams. Good, better, best; I would say.
 
The Cubot J3 Pro is an actual, full featured phone, with an adequate CPU, screen, battery, and camera.  My main concern with all three of the phones is quality and volume of the speaker.  Gsmarena, which will list the measured sound output of the speakers for voice and ring tone in dB does not review Cubot, and other review sites tend to only rehash the specs, so speaker output is unknown on the newly released phones I have listed.  Neither the Cubot website nor the Alcatel Website say anything about speaker output when they praise the features of their phones.  Since I will be receiving the Cubot J3, hopefully, within weeks; I can comment on speaker volume after I have used it.
 
At 2,952 baht, with a compact 150.3 x 72 x 8.8 mm body; the Cubot J3 Pro would seem to be a great deal.  Except........for just one thing.......Xiaomi.
 
The Xiaomi Redmi 6, and the Xiaomi Redmi 6 Pro, that is, which is to be released on June 25, 2018.  Here is the Xiaomi Redmi 6 Pro, the Xiaomi Redmi 6, and the Cubot J3 pro as compared on devicespecifications.
 
 
Here is the Xiaomi 6 Pro, the Xiaomi 6, and the Alcatel 1x as compared on gsmarena.
 
 
The Xiaomi Redmi 6 Pro is set to have a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip with a 14 nm process technology running at 2.0 gHz.  It has a RAM of 2, 3, or 4 GB, and a ROM of 16 GB, or 32 GB, or 64 GB, so it can comfortable run Oreo 8.1. The display area of the Xiaomi 6 Pro is listed at 79.8% with a 5.84 inch screen, and it has a resolution of 1080 x 2280 pixels for a 432 ppi density.  It has a dual 12 MP and 5 MP front camera, a 4000 mAh battery, and a weight of 178 grams
 
The Xiaomi Redmi 6 has a RAM of 3 GB or 4 GB, a ROM of 32 GB or 64 GB,  and sports a MediaTek CPU with 12 nm process technology running at 2.0 gHz.   It has a 5.45 inch IPS screen with a resolution of 720 x 1440 pixels (295 ppi), with a 72.92% display area. A dual 12 MP and 5 MP front camera, a 3,000 mAh battery, and weights 145 grams.
 
So look at some of the specs of the Xiaomi Redmi 6 vs the Cubot J3 Pro.  The Xiaomi runs Oreo 8.1, the Cubot 8.1 Go, the Xiami has a Quad-core CPU at 2.0 gHz vs the Cubot at 1.5 gHz, with the Xiaomi running a 12 nm process technology vs the Cubot 24 nm process technology; the Xiaomi has a faster RAM and GPU frequency with a better GPU chip.  The Xiaomi Redmi 6 has a better camera than the Cubot J3 Pro, the same battery power, is 8 grams lighter in weight, and has a body which is thinner, shorter, and more narrow vs the Cubot J3 Pro, with a better % usable display area.
 
The Xiaomi Redmi 6 beats the Cubot J3 Pro in every single relevant spec.  The Xiaomi Redmi 6 is not available for sale or pre-sale yet, but should be shortly, expected at about 4,607 baht vs the Cubot J3 Pro which is available now on GearBest for 2,952 baht.
 
The Xiaomi Redmi 6 Pro is just in a different category because of it's large screen and battery.  At maybe 5.758 baht it should probably be bumped to NanLaew's Mid-range smartphone recommendations topic.  And that topic is so much fun because there are so many choices at around that price.
 
So, staying with the affordable topic; consider the four phones, the Cubot J3, the Cubot J3 Pro, the Alcatel 1X, and the Xiaomi Redmi 6.  I have voted with my debit card for the Cubot J3.  In my opinion the Xiaomi Redmi 6 beats the Cubot J3 Pro in value, because I think that for an extra, maybe, 655 baht, maybe 1000 baht, you are likely to get a better Phone with the Xiaomi Redmi 6.  Xiaomi has a good track record with speaker output, for example the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus has a 71 dB max in call voice volume and a 87 dB max ring volume; which is just excellent for a phone selling at 5,690 baht at Lazada.  I just have no knowledge of the track record of Cubot with respect to speaker output.  
 
Why didn't I list the Redmi 5 Plus here as a recommendation?  Android 7.1.1 Nougat OS; ugg, 77.68% display area; nope, 75.45 mm body width, it's out of here! 
 
The specs on the Cubot J3 Pro are good, my guess is that it is also a very nice phone.
 
Please post your vote concerning these phones, or nominate some other candidates. 
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daocat555 Explorer Member

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Tonight I will update and correct my first post, respond to three posts, and offer my new pick for the best affordable smartphone available now.  
 
InMyShadow here, and grkt and TallGuyJohninBKK in the Mid-range recommendations topic expressed basically the same opinion that it is best to buy a phone with local customer support.  It's an opinion I respect, but do not agree with.  I made the choice to buy my current phone, a Meizu 15, from Aliexpress, in the Chinese version, because that is the phone I wanted and I did not want to wait until it might, or might not, come to Pattaya where I could get local support.  So far I haven't needed local customer support for the phone.  Yes, I am taking the calculated risk that I won't need local customer support in the future either.
 
Since my post last night the international sellers have listed the Xiaomi Redmi 6 for sale, in the Chinese version. Geekbuying seems to have the phone and is selling the 3 GB RAM 32 GB ROM version for 5,580.40 Baht.  Banggood is accepting pre-orders on the phone for 5,023.29 baht.  Last night when comparing the Xiaomi Redmi 6 to the Cubot J3 Pro I guessed that the Xiaomi Redmi 6 would be about 4,607 baht; so I underestimated it's price, and then I concluded that for an additional 665 -1,000 baht it was worth it over the Cubot J3 Pro.  Which shows I should use a calculator when doing subtraction as 2,952 baht for the Cubot J3 Pro is clearly not 1,000 baht less expensive than the Xiaomi Redmi 6.  Tonight, with the actual price of the the Xiaomi Redmi 6 available, and with the use of a calculator, I think I can accurately say that the Xiaomi Redmi 6 is 2,071.29 baht more expensive than the Cubot J3 Pro. And the Cubot J3 Pro is being sold in a Global version with multi-language support and google apps installed.  
 
Nice phones, but wait, don't order now, what would you say if I told you that for 4,500 baht you could get a 5.8 inch (notched) screen phone with 720 x 1512 pixel resolution, an 81.79% display area, an Octa-core processor, 4 GB Ram, a 3,300 mAh battery, nice cameras, and running Oreo 8.1?  Well I say that is my current affordable smartphone recommendation.  The Leagoo S9.
 
I listed the Leagoo S9 and eight other phones in the Mid-range smartphone recommendations topic a couple of nights ago, and I guess I was touting the Meizu 15 Plus (17,230 baht on Aliexpress, so not up for discussion in this topic) in that post so I didn't go further and make a choice among the more affordable phones.  Having had smartphones on my mind the past few days (at my age it's good to have a hobby), tonight I will make the claim that the Leagoo S9 is a very good value affordable smartphone.
 
Here is the Leagoo S9, the Xiaomi Redmi 6 Pro, the Xiaomi Redmi 6, and the Cubot J3 Pro as compared on devicespecifications.
 
 
Here is the Cubot J3 Pro, the Leagoo S9, and the Xiaomi Redmi 6 as compared on Kimovil.
 
 
Kimovil will list Antutu score, and I would note that the impressive score for the Xiaomi Redmi 6 is for the 4 GB RAM 64 GB ROM version of the phone which is 6,360.52 baht, pre-order, at Banggood.  Also the 35,000 Antutu score of the Cubot J3 Pro seems pretty good, and the 41,500 score for the Leagoo S9, to me, is more than adequate.
 
Kimovil lists it's opinion of some features of each phone on a 1-10 scale, and they seem to like the Leagoo S9.  If you do a google search for Leagoo S9 review you will find many reviews, and all the reviews I read were positive about the phone.  Interestingly, it has dual speaker grills at the bottom of the phone, yet not one reviewer has mentioned whether it actually has two bottom firing speakers, or if one of the speaker grills is a dummy.  I like to know about the quality and loudness of the speaker output of a phone, but I can offer no information about this on the Leagoo S9
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Paulbuick1 Rookie Member

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Here's 2 great value phones firstly the android equilent in power to apples top iphone at 75% less money is the Oukitel K10 4g Phablet 6GB RAM 64GB ROM 11000mAh Battery quad Cameras Fingerprint Recogntion around $269 from Alexpress. This phone is super powerful with an incredible battery life...

 

and a cheaper great phone HOMTOM S99 4G Phablet 4GB Ram 64GB ROM 21MP+2MP Dual rear Cameras $156

 

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jvs Ruby Member

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I do not know much about phones and do not have much opinion about it but i will follow this because i will be in the market for a new phone soon.

I have a Samsung j5 2016 and so far it has been a good phone but i

want one with less apps installed and with a better camera.

 

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snowgard Silver Member

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23 hours ago, InMyShadow said:

Xiaomi is the biggest selling phone in China and with good reason.
However it's very important to buy with local customer support. Thailand post will NOT allow smartphone to be posted airmail due to lithium battery

Sent from my Redmi Note 3 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

But you can buy Xiaomi cheaper on Lazada as on Aliexpress now. So, no importing!!!

 

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daocat555 Explorer Member

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Thank you Paulbuick1 for your post listing two nice affordable big battery phones.  I stayed with that concept but fine tuned it a bit, looking for phones with a usable display of 76% or above, a weight of 220 grams or below, and a battery of 6,000 mAh or more.
 
I came up with four phones, the Cubot Power, the Vernee X and the Vernee X1, and the Ulefone Power 3S.  Here they are as compared on DeviceSpecifications and Kimovil.
 
 
 
 
I have quickly read reviews on each of these phones and I don't have a clear pick based on performance.  Based on price, staying with Aliexpress on the four models, the Ulefone Power 3S (5,156 baht), and the Vernee X (5,606 baht), stand out as being the most affordable; while the Vernee X1 is 6,356.50 baht and the Cubot Power is 9,892 baht.
 
The Ulefone Power 3S has the biggest battery, is one of the two phones with Corning Gorilla Glass, is selling for the best price on Aliexpress from a store with a 98.2% positive feedback which offers 13-20 day delivery time to Thailand.  That sounds like a winner.
 
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daocat555 Explorer Member

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jvs: I think your last phone the Samsung J5 (2016) was an excellent phone in it's day.  But yes, Samsung (and Huawei) tend to arrive with too many unwanted apps.  The J5 was fairly thin and light, with a reasonable battery and a Super AMOLED screen.
 
Here are three phones with Super AMOLED screens as compared at gsmarena, DeviceSpecifications, and kimovil.
 
 
 
 
I am on record as saying that I think the Xiaomi Mi8 SE is the best value for a mid-range smartphone. I guess I would say that it's a good value for an affordable phone, given that it's fairly expensive right now.  I offered the Meizu Pro 7 for consideration also in the Mid-range topic.  Looking for other phones with a Super AMOLED screen which might be considered as affordable I couldn't find many to choose from, so I picked the Samsung Galaxy J6 (2018) to have a third phone for comparisons.
 
Kimovil rates the Xiaomi Mi8 SE as 9.9 in terms of being cost-effective; the highest such rating I have ever seen on kimovil for this category.  It's hard for me to rate a phone with a single down firing speaker that highly, but in every other category the Xiaomi Mi8 SE touches all the bases extremely well.  Maybe some day the retailers will start selling it at the list price which Xiaomi set for it, 9,298 baht, but not right now. The lowest price I could find for it was 11,672 baht on Aliexpress.
 
The Meizu Pro 7 is the oldest model of the three phones and is a weird phone in that it has a second display on the back of the phone.  The CPU, camera, and build quality are all nice.  Although the front display is only 5.2 inches (the Samsung J6 has a 5.6 inch screen the Xiaomi Mi8 SE a 5.88 inch screen), the Meizu Pro 7 has very thin side bezels, so the display is wide, which for me is the aspect of the display which you most often use.  The body of the Meizu Pro 7 is 70.72 mm wide, and the depth of the body is only 7.3 mm; so it is the easiest of the three phones to hold in one hand.  The Width of the screen on the Meizu is 64.75 mm, almost exactly the same as the 64.77 screen width of the Xiaomi Mi8 SE which has a body width of 73.09 mm, and larger than the width of the screen on the Samsung J6 which is 62.23 mm. The Meizu Pro 7 is selling for 7,085 baht on Aliexpress.
 
The Samsung Galaxy J6 (2018) has a reasonable body size, okay cameras, a not so 2018-ish 76.18% display area, and only 294 ppi; the weakest of the three models.  It can be had at Lazada for 5,950 baht.
 
The Antutu scores range widely on these models, 46,000 for the Samsung, 67,500 for the Meizu, and 174,000 for the Xiaomi. So it helps if you have an idea what Antutu score you want (do you play action games, multi-task a lot, etc).
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daocat555 Explorer Member

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fvw53; I couldn't find out much about the Timi T 16.  A major point in my first two posts here was that if you are going to buy a phone with low end CPU and memory specs that it would be good to get that phone with Oreo Go edition. The Timi T 16 runs on Marshmallow 6.0, so I recommend staying away from that phone.

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geisha Gold Member

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I’m thinking of buying a Huawei Nova with the double’camera. I’ve been told it’s very good. Around 10 000B  . I have an iPhone at the’ moment , find the whole Apple ID system and passwords complicated and most generally fed up’with It.  Any   views? I’ll use it more as a camera for my travelling than as a telephone. And I like uncomplicated !

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Geisha; there are a number of Huawei Nova models with a dual camera.  I'll guess you are thinking about the nova 2s or the nova 3e; correct me if I am wrong.  I'll add a third phone to do some comparisons, the phone which I own, the Meizu 15.  For many people these three phones might not be called "affordable", but hey, let's pretend we are wealthy and have some fun!
 
Here are the three phones compared on my usual three sites; gsmarena, devicespecifications, and kimovil.
 
 
 
 
Gsmarena has a complete review of the Nova 3e (aka p20 lite) and in their review they didn't rate the rear camera very highly.  Since you say that the camera is a major feature in the phone you would like I would think that would give you pause about the nova 3e.  The nova 3e sells for 9,770 baht on Lazada and 9.367 baht on Aliexpress.
 
The Huawei Nova 2s, the oldest model of the three phones, was released in December 2017.  It has a better camera than the 3e and has a higher list price as set by Huawei.  Lazada sells it for 16,399 baht and Aliexpress for 8,509 baht (wow, that's a big difference).  If you were thinking of buying from Aliexpress, then the nova 2s clearly is the winner among the nova's.  If you are determined to buy from Lazada then choosing between the two nova's might depend on how wealthy you actually are.
 
The Meizu 15 is not available online from a Thai seller.  Aliexpress is selling it for 13,318 baht in black and 13,615 baht in white (go for the white....worth the premium IMHO).
 
Kimovil offers a subjective rating (based on a scale of 1-10) of the nova 3e camera as 7.7, the nova 2s camera as 8.5, and the Meizu 15 camera as 9.9.  The nova 3e has a dual 16 MP and 2 MP camera.  The nova 2s has a dual 16 MP and 20 MP camera,  The Meizu 15 has a dual 12 MP and 20 MP camera.
 
The Meizu 15 has a 4-axis OIS, 2x optical zoom, dual pixel phase and laser detection autofocus, and a six-LED dual-tone flash which the nova's do not have.  Concerning the lack of OIS (optical stabilization) on the nova 3e gsmarena was dripping with sarcasm when they wrote, i quote:
 
For starters, it requires about 20s instead of just 4s. And your phone should be on a tripod the whole time - handheld is not an option unless really messy is what you are after. And if you comply with everything, you will still end up with one quite dark picture.

So, if you have a tripod lying around, or something to keep the phone stable, just use the Manual mode with long shutter setting or the Light Painting mode (though it's not that good, either).

 

Compare that to gizmochina's comments on the camera of the Meizu 15:
 

We spent a few hours with the Meizu 15’s camera and so far, it has managed to impress us. The saturation levels are good and hence the colors pop out well, daylight pictures have good clarity and details, and the camera app manages to focus on the objects pretty quickly.

 
Low light photos are also good. The multi-frame synthesis technology kicks in as soon as the lighting conditions become dull and the resulting images are bright, with good saturation levels. We did find a bit of noise when the light was really low, for example, in the image above, it was nearly midnight and the only light available was via the lanterns (it was cloudy with no moonlight) that were lit up. Still, the colors and the overall photo came out quite decent. It does look a bit unclear, but that’s probably because we were still in Wuzen and were in a bit of a hurry to get a few quick samples. But things are much clearer when you take your time and shoot an image patiently, like in the image down below.... The Meizu 15’s camera managed to capture this image above pretty well.
 
From a review in the South China Morning Post:
 
I’m most impressed with the phone’s camera, which is surprisingly good for a mid-range phone. The main Sony IMX 380 sensor has responsive shutter speeds, fast autofocus and optical image stabilisation; while the secondary telephoto camera produces very clean 3X zoom images. It’s a level of detail I expect from Samsung and Huawei phones that cost more than twice the price.
 
And from a Forbes magazine review:
 
In fact, the Meizu 15’s camera has been a pleasant surprise. It’s obviously not on the Pixel 2/Huawei P20 Pro/Galaxy S9 levels, but it might be the best sub-$400 phone camera out there. The bokeh mode offers pre- and post-shot tweaks and in general, the depth-of-field effect looks natural.
 
Geisha; I invite you to visit the topic "High End Mobile Recommendations" to see my full review of the Meizu 15.  Actually, that's where this POST should probably be.  But to paraphrase Forbes, the Meizu 15 has an affordable high quality camera.
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fvw53 Gold Member

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16 hours ago, daocat555 said:

fvw53; I couldn't find out much about the Timi T 16.  A major point in my first two posts here was that if you are going to buy a phone with low end CPU and memory specs that it would be good to get that phone with Oreo Go edition. The Timi T 16 runs on Marshmallow 6.0, so I recommend staying away from that phone.

Thank you for this very advise ...I will go for Xiaomi Redmi 5A 

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daocat555 Explorer Member

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fvw53: you are very welcome. My personal opinion (which happens to be shared by millions of people) is that the Xiaomi Redmi Note models offer the absolute best value in affordable phones.  I would like to suggest that you consider the Xiaomi Redmi Note 6a, which has been just recently launched.  Here are the Redmi Note 5a, the Redmi Note 6a, and the Redmi note 6, as compared.
 
 
 
 
I think that there are some big advantages of the 6A vs the 5A.  The body size of the 6A is much smaller, with a better usable display%.  The operating system of the 6A is 8.1 Orea vs 7.1.1 Nougat for the 5A.  With the combination of a more efficient OS and a faster clock speed the Antutu score of the 6A is 55,277 vs 32,000 for the 5A; that's with the exact same 2 GB RAM and 16 GB ROM, and with the similar battery size the 6A would project to get more battery time due to the more efficient OS and process technology.
 
The 6A has a 5.45 inch screen with a better resolution vs the 5A's 5 inch screen.  Well I'm guessing you are considering the 5A with the 5 inch screen which is currently 2,990 baht at Lazada in black or gold color (there is also a 5A version with a 5.5 inch screen).  The 5A and 6A seem to have the same camera.  If you pay more for the Redmi 6 you get 3 GB RAM, 32 GB ROM, a better rear camera, and a notification light if that is important to you (the 6A reportedly does not have one).
 
Kimovil subjectively rates the 5A as 8.2 in terms of cost effectiveness, the 6A as 8.4 and the Redmi 6 as 9.2 and I strongly disagree with kimovil's opinion on this.  To me the Redmi 6A is clearly the most cost effective of the three phones.  The 6A is about the same price as the 5A (list price wise it's lower, but you get the deeper discount on an older model), while the Redmi 6 is 22% higher in price right now on Aliexpress.
 
As many people have pointed out Xiaomi has a huge presence in Thailand, so if you can wait just a bit longer I would expect to see the 6A be available soon in the Thai shops and the Thai online stores.  If you are willing to buy from Aliexpress (some people are, some people aren't) then you can pre-order it today from a store on Aliexpress with a 98.8 positive feedback rating, which has already pre-sold 16 units in the past 10 days since they started the pre-sale.  It's least expensive in gold, but I like the baby blue of Xiaomi so in blue it's 4,059 baht.  That's for the Chinese version as the Global version is not yet available even for pre-sale.  The Aliexpress seller will open the box, test the phone, and install multi language and google apps for you.  My current phone is a Chinese model which the Aliexpress seller did this for me, and although they do not guarantee over the air (OTA upgrades), on my phone google maps and the one google game I play have updated successfully.  Here is the link for Aliexpress.
 
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daocat555 Explorer Member

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mrfaroukh: I think the Redmi Note 5 pro, 64 GB, 4 GB RAM was a great value in it's day.  But that was then and this is now.  I suggest you read my prior post; go to the comparison websites, plug in the Redmi 6 Pro and take a look.  I think you will discover that the Redmi 6 Pro is one heck of an affordable value right now, available from International sellers or coming soon to a Thailand shop near you.

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lamyai3 Silver Member

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On 6/25/2018 at 11:19 PM, geisha said:

I’m thinking of buying a Huawei Nova with the double’camera. I’ve been told it’s very good. Around 10 000B  . I have an iPhone at the’ moment , find the whole Apple ID system and passwords complicated and most generally fed up’with It.  Any   views? I’ll use it more as a camera for my travelling than as a telephone. And I like uncomplicated !

Not sure if you mean the Nova 2i or 3e, probably the latter if you're talking 10k. Both are great, I have the 2i model which was released a few months earlier. The 3e costs about 2k baht more, lighter and smaller with a more powerful camera (same size as the flagship P20 and sold in the UK as P20 lite), otherwise spec is similar. Worthwhile checking out your size preferences hands on in a store... the 2i has a bigger screen and battery, but the 3e probably hits the sweet spot in terms of screen to body ratio and one handed usability. I can't comment on the camera experience in relation to your iPhone, this you'd need to assess for yourself, but user reviews have been very positive, and I'm definitely impressed with the camera and speed on the 2i.

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fvw53 Gold Member

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On 6/26/2018 at 5:33 PM, daocat555 said:
fvw53: you are very welcome. My personal opinion (which happens to be shared by millions of people) is that the Xiaomi Redmi Note models offer the absolute best value in affordable phones.  I would like to suggest that you consider the Xiaomi Redmi Note 6a, which has been just recently launched.  Here are the Redmi Note 5a, the Redmi Note 6a, and the Redmi note 6, as compared.
 
 
 
 
I think that there are some big advantages of the 6A vs the 5A.  The body size of the 6A is much smaller, with a better usable display%.  The operating system of the 6A is 8.1 Orea vs 7.1.1 Nougat for the 5A.  With the combination of a more efficient OS and a faster clock speed the Antutu score of the 6A is 55,277 vs 32,000 for the 5A; that's with the exact same 2 GB RAM and 16 GB ROM, and with the similar battery size the 6A would project to get more battery time due to the more efficient OS and process technology.
 
The 6A has a 5.45 inch screen with a better resolution vs the 5A's 5 inch screen.  Well I'm guessing you are considering the 5A with the 5 inch screen which is currently 2,990 baht at Lazada in black or gold color (there is also a 5A version with a 5.5 inch screen).  The 5A and 6A seem to have the same camera.  If you pay more for the Redmi 6 you get 3 GB RAM, 32 GB ROM, a better rear camera, and a notification light if that is important to you (the 6A reportedly does not have one).
 
Kimovil subjectively rates the 5A as 8.2 in terms of cost effectiveness, the 6A as 8.4 and the Redmi 6 as 9.2 and I strongly disagree with kimovil's opinion on this.  To me the Redmi 6A is clearly the most cost effective of the three phones.  The 6A is about the same price as the 5A (list price wise it's lower, but you get the deeper discount on an older model), while the Redmi 6 is 22% higher in price right now on Aliexpress.
 
As many people have pointed out Xiaomi has a huge presence in Thailand, so if you can wait just a bit longer I would expect to see the 6A be available soon in the Thai shops and the Thai online stores.  If you are willing to buy from Aliexpress (some people are, some people aren't) then you can pre-order it today from a store on Aliexpress with a 98.8 positive feedback rating, which has already pre-sold 16 units in the past 10 days since they started the pre-sale.  It's least expensive in gold, but I like the baby blue of Xiaomi so in blue it's 4,059 baht.  That's for the Chinese version as the Global version is not yet available even for pre-sale.  The Aliexpress seller will open the box, test the phone, and install multi language and google apps for you.  My current phone is a Chinese model which the Aliexpress seller did this for me, and although they do not guarantee over the air (OTA upgrades), on my phone google maps and the one google game I play have updated successfully.  Here is the link for Aliexpress.
 

Thank you once more for your highly appreciated advice

 

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daocat555 Explorer Member

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Has anybody seen geisha?  We're talking serious camera phones here but we need geisha's input.  Anyway, thinking of geisha, and her desire for a phone with a good camera I stumbled upon a sale at Lazada for the Huawei P20 Pro, in either Black, Rose Gold or Blue; 19,790 baht.  That's a nice discount from the list price of maybe 34,000 baht.
 
Here are three nice phones, each with a nice camera, sound output, battery, reasonably easy to hold in one hand, and favorable reviews from reliable websites.  The Huawei P20 Pro, the Huawei Mate 10 Pro, and the Xiaomi MIX 2S.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Let's then quickly eliminate the Xiaomi as it has the weakest battery, the greatest weight, an IPS screen vs AMOLED for the other two, and the weakest audio output, 
 
So comparing the Huawei P20 Pro with the Huawei Mate 10 Pro I will note that both have stereo speakers; the P20 Pro has a max voice level and ring level of 71 dB and 91 dB, compared to 70 dB and 84 dB for the Mate 10 Pro.  The P20 Pro is a bit narrower and thinner vs the Mate 10 Pro, thus easier to hold in one hand.  The P20 Pro also has a slightly larger screen, a better screen resolution, and a better % usable display area.  They both have an ample 4000 mAh battery but only the P20 Pro supports wireless charging.
 
Camera wise the P20 Pro clearly beats out the the Mate 10 Pro.  Selfie of 24 MP vs 8 MP.  Triple back camera on the P20 Pro vs dual back camera on the Mate 10 Pro.  They both have optical stabilization (absent on all the nova's), and the P20 Pro has a 3x optical zoom while the Mate 10 Pro has a 2x optical zoom.
 
The list price of the Mate 10 Pro is maybe 25,000 baht, and it's available at Lazada for 19,280 baht; as I said the 34,000 baht list price'd P20 Pro is on Lazada for 19.790 (ok it's a flash sale, don't know how long it will last, also Lazada stores sometimes mislist a phone....the 19,790 baht is a bit suspicious since other sellers on Lazada list it for more, like, 24,600 baht).
 
Winner............Huawei P20 Pro, in a landslide.  If the 19,790 baht price is legit.  Winner....Huawei P20 Pro even if you have to spend 24,600 baht for it.  Here is the link to the Lazada sale.
 
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daocat555 Explorer Member

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The Xiaomi Mi A1 came up in the Mid-range smartphone topic.  I already stated my view on that phone there, and I don't want to pile on about it again in the same topic.  So I'll switch to the affordable topic and offer some phones for comparison.  All the four phones here are in the range of 4,357 baht - 7,613 baht.  
 
I don't really understand the "pure" Android vs the MIUI Android OS situation.  I tried to read a few internet articles on it but they were too boring, so I didn't finish them and I still don't understand the issue.  However I think that the Xiaomi Mi A1 is one of the only, or maybe the only, Xiaomi phone running pure Android.  And some people feel that this makes the Xiaomi Mi A1 preferable.  Perhaps because of more frequent security updates.  
 
So I'll compare boring things like display, body size etc, but keep in mind that the Xiaomi wins for some people because of the OS.  Hey, my phone has the Flyme operating system, and I'm a poster on the Flyme forum, so my taste in OS's is well established.  I included a Samsung phone in the four compared phones; now there's a company known for bloatware,  two Xiaomi phones, and one of my favorite affordable phones, the Leagoo S9.
 
 
 
The Mi A1 is the oldest model, so it has the widest body, 75.8 mm, compared to 70.2 mm, 71.7 mm, or 72 mm for the other three models, and per devicespecifications the usable display is 71.02%, compared to 76.18%, 79.79%, or 81.79% for the other models.
 
The body weight of the four phone vary from 154 grams to 178 grams, which correlates with the battery size of of each model, from 3000 mAh to 4000 mAh, with no surprises there.
 
The Samsung Galaxy J6 is the only model with a Super AMOLED screen, the other three models have an IPS screen.  The screen size varies from 5.5 inch to 5.85 inch, with the phones using body size the most efficiently having the larger screens.
 
People like different things in their phone.  I would happily use the Samsung J6 as my daily phone.  It has the lightest weight, narrowest body, AMOLED screen, and I had a Samsung phone once and the bloatware didn't bother me too much.  The Xiaomi Redmi 6 Pro is so new it hasn't hit Lazada yet, or yet have a Global version, but it packs a lot of nice features (7,613 baht in blue at Aliexpress).  The Leagoo S9 is available at Banggood for 4,357 baht, and I see it as a nice all-around phone with no hardware weaknesses, expect for the rather unknown quality reputation as compared to Samsung or Xiaomi.
 
And then there's the Mi 1A with pure Android, known quality audio output as measure by gsmarena, a fast Antutu score, and available on Lazada for 5,610 baht in the gold color.  
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daocat555 Explorer Member

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The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro remains the number one top phone by daily interest on gsmarena so in this post I will offer eight non Xiaomi affordable phones, all, I guess you could say "off brands", all cheaper than the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro, and each with some aspect or another of interest.
 
Four phones below each have a bigger screen and a better screen to body ratio.
 
 
 
These phones range in price from 3,923 baht to 4,631 baht, and are available from Aliexpress.  
 
The Umidigi S2 lite is 4,620 baht with the biggest screen (6 in), the biggest battery (5100 mAh). the most RAM (4 GB), a dual 16 MP and 5 MP main camera, and has sold over 500 units recently from the Umidigi store on Aliexpress.
 
The similarly priced Elephone A4 has a notched 5.85 in screen, the least ROM (16 GB), Android 8.1 OS, and an excellent screen to body ratio, which I would feel better about saying if I knew the body dimensions for sure; because there is conflicting information from different websites about the body size; which might be 72.8 mm x 154 mm x 80 mm.  This model has sold over 50 units recently on Aliexpress from the Elephone Official Store.
 
The Bluboo S8 is 3,923 baht, has a 5.7 in screen, a 13 MP and 3 MP dual main camera, a narrow 70.6 mm body width, and a 3450 mAh battery,, and the Bluboo Official store on Aliexpress has sold more than 200 units of this model.
 
The Leagoo S8 is 4,477 baht, has dual front and rear cameras, a 5.7 in display, a 2940 mAh battery, and the most narrow body width at 69 mm, and about 500 recent sales from the Aliexpress store I viewed.
 
If you are willing to buy a phone with a 5.5 in screen size there are a gazillion Chinese models to choose from, and I have carefully reviewed each of the gazillion phones and culled that number to four for consideration.
 
 
 
The least expensive Cubot J3 Pro has the worst screen resolution and ppi, the smallest RAM, but is the only phone of the four running Android Go Edition, which shows in it's Antutu score which beats out the Bluboo, ties the Gionee and trails only the Umidigi A1 Pro which comes with 3 GB of RAM but runs stock Android 8.1.  
 
The Bluboo D5 Pro has the most ROM, 32 GB, but runs Android 7.1 so it has the worst Antutu score.  It comes in either black, red or blue colors which have gold accents; for me it's the most attractive model.
 
The Gionee F205 runs Android 7.1 and it ties the Umidigi for the best screen resolution (720 x 1440 px).  It is the lightest, 135 grams, with the weakest battery, 2670 mAh, and is the only phone here not currently available at Aliexpress but expected soon.
 
The Umidigi A1 Pro has the narrowest body at 69.1 mm, but the heaviest weight at 173 grams, as it packs a 3150 mAh battery.  It has the best screen-to-body ratio, the best back camera at 13 MP, and Kimovil which will list a subjective cost-effectiveness score rates the Umidigi A1 Pro the highest.  It clearly has the best connectivity and is the only model here with a USB type C charging connector and supporting fast charging at 5V/2A; which is more convenient than the other three models.  The Antutu score of 45,110 is better than 66% of all devices
 
For me, the Umidigi A1 Pro is a pretty nice phone, and the Cubot J3 Pro is a workable phone with a 2,656 baht price tag.  I would not recommend the Android 7 running Gionee or Bluboo.
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daocat555 Explorer Member

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There are three, older, Nubia phones available at Lazada for a great discount.  The downside of buying an older phone is poor screen to body ratio and OS system.  The upside is that you get great specs otherwise, and an affordable price.  Consider the Nubia M2, the Nubia M2 lite, and the Nubia N2.
 
 
 
 
All the reviews I read on the Nubia M2 were positive, in particular the loudspeaker, although down firing, was rated to be loud and of good quality.  I read one review of the Nubia N2 which was not positive, the reviewer complaining of strong color shifts with the screen and less than robust audio output.  The main selling point of the N2 is the 5000 mAh battery for those people who like a big battery.
 
The Nubia M2 lite (IPS screen) is selling at Lazada for 3,850 baht, which is pretty cheap for a very usable phone.  The N2 is 4,490 baht at Lazada, and I don't know of any other phone with a 5.5 in AMOLED screen that's more affordable.
 
5,990 baht can get you the Nubia M2.  4 GB RAM, 64 GB ROM, Snapdragon 625 CPU, 62,000 Antutu score, 3630 mAh battery, good cameras, and good sound.  A 5.5 in Super AMOLED screen!  The body width is big at 75.9 mm, but fortunately it's slim at 7 mm. and has a reasonable 168 gram weight.  It's also, to me, a very attractive phone with gold accents.  The Nubia M2 had a list price of 15,430 baht not all that long ago, so you are getting a deep discount on a phone which stands up to the competition very well in 2018 with the exception of body size and OS.
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Elkski Platinum Member

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So for 3400 baht I can get a  Umidigi A1 Pro and it's a good phone.  That will blow the doors off my Motorola Droid turbo? Yes turbo 1.  I may have to order one when I get back to the states.  

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Fvw53; two weeks ago I posted about the Xiaomi 6A being available for 4.059 baht at Aliexpress.  Today it's 3,155 baht; which is typical as prices start high right after a launch and then tend to drop.  I do still expect the Xiaomi 6A to reach the Thai online stores as well as the Thai shops; but that hasn't happened yet.  The Xiaomi 6A is still my best recommendation for an affordable phone with the "perfect minimum" specifications.  And Xiaomi has announced that they will be releasing the Xiaomi 6A in different versions with more RAM and ROM for those people who know specifically what kind of memory they want.
 
Ellski; I just checked the Umidigi A1 Pro price at Amazon USA and it's $120.99.  At Aliexpress it's $109.99.  At Lazada it's 4,427 baht, in black, blue, or silver.  Unfortunately it is only available from one seller on Lazada, Freebang, a store with only a 60% positive seller rating.  I would hesitate to buy from a Lazada seller with a 60% positive seller rating, but, to each his own.
 
My Cubot J3 finally shipped from Aliexpress.  I ordered it on June 15'th; and it seems that at the time I ordered it the seller did not have the unit in stock, bummer, as they were very slow to get it and ship it out.  I paid 2,139 baht for the Cubot J3.  Back in June 15, 2018 the Xiaomi 6A was not yet launched and was expected to launch on June 25.  As it turned out; if I had waited for the launch of the Xiaomi 6A and ordered it right away I would probably have it in my hands right now. 
 
To sum up my thoughts since I started this Topic on June 24; for 3000-4000 baht there are just a lot of choices, brands, and models which have an IPS screen. 
 
If you want an AMOLED screen then you'll have to pay more and you'll have less of a selection.  The Meizu Pro 7, Samsung J6 (2018), and the Nubia M2 come to mind as my top three recommendations, and they can be had for 5,990 baht, 4,990 baht, or 4,899 baht; respectively, available at Lazada.
 
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Elkski Platinum Member

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I really had a price range in my mind of up to 10,000 baht.   I mean all the phones they try to see you at Verizon stores are like 700 USD it 20,000+ baht.  With 2 yr agreement.     So I'm stoked that you can get a good phone for 120$ USD on Amazon.  I would have thought 3-8000 baht was low price range, 8,000-12,000 mid range.  

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daocat555 Explorer Member

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Ellski; I have a singular recommendation just for you.  OK, it's my recommendation for everybody in the market for a mid-range phone, but that applies to you as well.
 
The Meizu 16 is due to come out on August 26'th, which will be my high end recommendation for everybody; well except for niche people like wanting a big battery or something.  So the prices are dropping on the Meizu 15 which was released in April 2018.  I bought the phone right away and like it a lot.  If you're interested you can find my review of the Meizu 15 in the high end topic, or a different review of mine which I have posted on the Flyme site, or another review which I posted on the gsmarena site.  I might have mentioned it here at ThaiVisa in the Mid-range smartphone recommendations topic as well. 
 
The price today for the Meizu 15 is $361.89 or 12,027 baht at Aliexpress.
 
 
I am not without my biases which I know not all people share.  I like a small and light phone with good audio quality, a Super AMOLED screen, and I don't need much of a battery.  The Meizu 15 suits me so much I am pretty sure I will be buying the Meizu 16 as soon as the Global version, in piano white, is available at Aliexpress.  
 
The Xiaomi Redmi 6A dropped another few dollars today on Aliexpress, bringing it below 3,000 baht.  I suppose I should restrain myself from buying one of them; as there are only so many people I know who I can give away a phone to.  Does anybody want to buy an open box Cubot J3?  Oh well.
 
 
 
 
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Elkski Platinum Member

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Why do you say battery life not important to you?  How do you define this?   My battery is getting dinner weak now I must always carry lipo charger.  Do on tour around thailand or s day in USA I want a battery to last all day off  charger  and be ok.  I can charge each night.  

You recommend a phone for 3,000 baht and the 15 for sub 12,000 that is big difference.  What does the extra 9 k buy me.   I have not taken the time to learn all the latest technology speed hardware and performance numbers.   Sound isn't important to me for music just for conversation.   I don't watch movies or play games.  I do hope my phone brains is faster than me and won't lag like my current one does.  

I can wait but that's the trouble prices always dropping and new phones coming out.  

I want good connectivity, good talking sound quality, good battery life and a phone that will last two years including done drips from waist level. I really like a good camera.   I live how I can turn my camera on by shaking and snap some quick shots touching anywhere on my screen. Even if my phone is locked Motorola let's me do this.   so on bike rides I'm able to stop shake my phone take scenery pictures stick it back in my pocket before my buddies even have their iPhones halfway unlocked.  This also is a handy feature for bedroom pictures.   I do think there are apps that will allow me to do this with other brands of phones besides Motorola

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daocat555 Explorer Member

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The Motorola Droid was a nice phone back in October, 2014.  It has a Super AMOLED screen, which is helpful for seeing it outside, and it just looks better than an IPS screen.  It has a nice camera, a 3900 mAh battery which supports wireless charging, and it's chipset holds up well against many of today's budgets phones.  Well the battery on your Moto Droid is no longer 3900 mAh....time to buy a new phone.
 
I do not know about camera software which allows you to turn on the camera by shaking the phone and then take a picture by touching anywhere on the screen. I don't know if this is available on newer Motorola phones, or can be available by adding an app.  On some phones you can snap a quick picture by double pressing the volume down button, so I guess you need to look at the phone models you are considering on a case by case basis.  I don't know of any shortcuts for the back camera on the Meizu 15.
 
As for battery, I want a battery to last all day. The Meizu 15 has a 3000 mAh battery which is the smallest that quality phones come with; but it lasts two days or more for me, I think it will last all day even with moderately heavy usage.
 
I like quality audio for conversation also, I don't do music or movies either.  
 
A phone that can survive drops from waist level?  Hmm, that might be a problem.  There are "ruggedized" phones, I haven't mentioned any of them as they tend to be bigger and heavier than average; not my cup of tea.  My suggestion is, don't drop your phone from waist level.
 
There are many phone models to choose from.  With respect to camera I recommend a phone with dual back cameras, optical image stabilization (OIS) and an optical zoom; so that you'll be getting an nice upgrade over the camera on the Moto Droid.
 
You mentioned the Huawei P 20 for 20,000 baht in the Mid-range phone topic.  I have gone on the record as saying I think that's an overrated and overpriced phone. A single down firing speaker with a maximum voice level of 66 dB as measured by gsmarena is not good; the screen is IPS; the cameras are good, but no better than the Meizu 15 in my opinion.
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The gsmarena full review is out on the Meizu 15.  With respect to audio output gsmarena called it "very clear", and measured maximum in call voice volume at 77.6 dB.  With respect to the screen gsmarena noted that maximum brightness is not good,  Concerning battery life gsmarena gave it a 77 hour endurance rating with 18 hours of talk time, 10.38 hours of web browsing, or 12.40 hours of video playback.
 
With respect to the camera gsmarena was not impressed noting that although color reproduction can be accurate, images suffer from a bit too narrow dynamic range, softness, problems with getting correct white balance, and too much noise.  So I stand corrected in my praise of the Meizu 15 camera and defer to gsmarena.  
 
In it's verdict gsmarena said it "will likely be a perfect match for many retro-minded smartphone users."  Well, I guess I'm a retro-minded smartphone user.
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