Affordable Smartphone Recomendations

[Elkski]

This old droids chipset is competitive to mid range phones?  It's seems slow to do things.  I have to wait sometimes.  My battery should be getting weak.  Sometimes it powers off when using the camera at 45% charge.  

I do have an otter box case in this phone which has saved me in many drops.  You know off the couch, off the table, off the car seat.   I have gone through about 5 gorilla Glass screen on protectors.  Love them as they never scratch.  But do chip and crack.   

[Elkski]

ok so I am in urgent need of a phone now...  my phone suddenly shut down in Seoul on my way home... it wont take a charge or turn on... no matter what I do.  its the droid turbo... Im not sure if the battery just died or the charging connector or what.  it has been doing this lately but usually charges up or turns back on...  it was at like 45% battery and I turned on phone and it powered off.  at first it was showing zero battery but  now no battery indication at all.  I may try to order a new battery and install it to get my trip pictures off adn my contact list since I have not backed up my contact list in years .  so Im looking at needing a phone ASAP... I tried the Oukitel K10 at alliexpress but ship dates of 45+ days wont work I can wait 2-3 days like on amazon?

I dont see the Xaiomi phones at target.  

IT would be best if this phone works on verizon at least for awhile until I can switch to some cheap carrier but no more 2 years contracts ever for me. 

[Elkski]

update... it is finally showing some life and charging... I guess I happened to touch the charging cord and got it just right... after 2+ years its amazing this micro C still  charge port works at all..... good news is as soon as it is 100% charged I will remove all pics and backup contact list

 

[daocat555]

Ellski; I'm guessing you are in transit to USA and I'm more than just guessing that it might be a good idea to get a new phone soon.  America is not a very good place to buy a mobile.  I have just poured over Amazon USA looking for decent phones at a decent price and I found a few items I can suggest you consider; mainly I found older phones or unreasonably priced phones at Amazon.  For example the Meizu 15 is $589 at Amazon and $356 at Aliexpress, and some of the older model phones Amazon has listed are just ridiculous.

 

I am having trouble figuring out what features you are looking for in a phone.  You mention the Oukitel K10?  That's a very weird phone, massively big and heavy, with no nice features except a 11000 mAh battery, and I suppose it will survive drops better than average as well.  Anyway, I restricted my Amazon search to phones with biggish batteries.

 

Here are some phones available at Amazon.  The Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus $179.39 at Amazon vs $158 at Lazada.  The Cubot X18 Plus is $237 from Amazon which includes paying for expedited shipping vs $158 at Lazada.  The Huawei Honor 7x is $199.99 at Amazon with 3 GB RAM/32 GB ROM or $250 with 4 GB RAM/64 GB ROM while Lazada doesn't list the 3/32 version and only charges you $179 for the 4/64 version.  The Asus Zenfone Max Plus (M1) is $219.89 at Amazon vs $149 at Lazada.  

 

Even though Xiaomi has moved on to the Redmi 6 the Redmi 5 Plus still stands up well today, released in February 2018 it has a 4000 mAh battery, the loudest max in call voice volume at 71 dB, a reasonable camera and chipset, but unfortunately with the Android 7.1.2 Nougat OS you won't get the advantages of Android Oreo.

 

Huawei is on the Honor 9 now, with the Honor 10 note soon to be announced, but the Honor 7X isn't really ancient, it has a decent camera, a 3340 mAh battery, a decent chipset, and may be upgradeable to Android Oreo.  It has a respectable 66 dB max voice volume.

 

The Asus Zenfone Max Plus (M1) was released in December 2017, has a 4130 mAh battery, okay cameras, runs on Android 7.0 Nougat, and has the weakest  Antutu score of the phones mentioned here.  However a number of people on the Thai/Visa forum have liked the phone and found it to be a good value.

 

The Cubot X18 Plus is fairly new and runs on stock Android 8.0 Oreo.  It has a 4000 mAh battery, okay cameras and chipset, and is the best of the phones with respect to usable surface at 79%.  I read a few reviews about it and they were consistent in that they liked the screen, the feature that you get for the price, and they did not like the audio output complaining that the volume was not very loud and the sound quality was not very good.

 

I guess you are no longer considering the Umidigi A1 Pro, which has "only" a 3150 mAh battery, has the least memory, and has a Quad-core CPU vs Octa-core for the other phones.  However the Umidigi is an even newer model phone than the Cubot and comes with Android 8.1 Oreo out of the box.  As such it's Antutu score is a respectable 45,110.  

 

The screen of the Umidigi A1 Pro is 5.5 in, the Asus Zenfone Max Plus is 5.7 in, the Huawei Honor 7X is 5.93 in, the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus is 5.99 in, and the Cubot X18 Plus is also 5.99 inch.  No big surprises in body width, the Umidigi with the smallest screen is 69.1 mm wide and the widest body is the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus at 75.5 mm which has the bigger 5.99 in screen.  As I  mentioned the Cubot is the most efficient with respect to screen as it's body is only 73.6 mm wide with it's 5.99 in screen.

 

And if you are going to be dropping your phone Ellski, then add the dimensions of a protective case to the bare body size of the phones.

 

You have options Ellski, for example pick up a Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus for $179.39 at Amazon which will work until you get back to Thailand (which is more than I can say for your Nokia).  Then when you are back in Thailand you can consider your next phone at your leisure, and it's easy to sell a used Xiaomi Redmi at the Thai shops.

 

Alternatively buy a Umidigi A1 Pro for $122.98 at Amazon.  Selling that used won't be as easy as selling a Xiaomi; but some shop will give you something for it, or pass it along to somebody.  I have decided that after my Cubot J3 arrives I will play around with it for a while and then give it away to the woman who cleans my room twice a month as a tip.  Her phone is ancient, so I'll have fun playing with my 2,139 baht toy and it may come in handy for her, or she can give it away to one of her daughters.  My point is that holding onto the Nokia Droid until it completely dies might not be a good idea.  Remember, all the phones mentioned here have an IPS screen.  Your Nokia Droid has a Super AMOLED screen; they are brighter with better contrast.  So get a new phone now as a bridge, see how you like an IPS screen, then take it from there.

 

You are kind of annoying Ellski in that I think you have trouble deciding what you want in a phone, which makes it hard for me to focus on suggestions for you.  But at least you don't ignore me and my suggestions, and I'm grateful for that.  Thank you.

[Elkski]

my phone is a motorola droid turbo...  im not sure what features all these phones have..or what I need.  I see my battery is like 3900 ahr.  it was ok at first...  i can see the draw for replaceable batteries.   

I try not to drop my phones but it will happen.  I have trouble deciding these types of decisions.

I am thinking of spending more and more time in Asia in the future or possibly if i find the right woman, living in the USA may be in the cards. 

I m currently with verizon.. but free of my contract... they use CDMA and LTE frequencies. 

Verizon band classes in use currently:

CDMA

Band class 0 - 850 MHz

Band class 1 - 1900 MHz

 

LTE

Band 13 - primary

Band 4

Band 2

 

I am thinking about going with one of the small carriers for the  lower price.. its not like i make many calls... i just use wifi connection most of the time.   im not sure what other carriers use..    i could switch to at&T then the GSM phones wold likely work.

I do like a bright screen for outdoor use and good sound is important as we get older or in a noisy location.

I have thought that two phones may be the best solution. 

I am home now in USA..I do need to get my phone soon.. but my phone seemed to wake up after 20 hours of not taking a charge??  just odd.. 

[daocat555]

My Cubot J3 arrived today.  It came with a Thai and an American plug for charging and a soft plastic cover.  The build quality seems very nice in general.  The screen shows good detail and I can manually set the brightness so that at high it is quite bright, or I can have the screen optimize the brightness level for available light.  Google maps are clear and quick to display.  Pictures look fairly good.  I wondered if an older type TFT screen (not IPS) at 215 ppi would look good or not, and I would say the screen is fine.  In a call the max volume is not particularly loud, but it's loud enough and clear.  

 

I reported in the first post of this topic that Android Authority stated that phones with Android Go will come with only nice pre-installed apps.  My Cubot J3 arrived with twenty-four pre-installed apps, and I don't have a problem with any of the apps.  Thankfully there is no pre-installed weather widget, which I consider a bloatware zombie as I have been told that they increase the rate the battery drains.

 

I paid 2,169 baht for the phone on June 15 and received it on July 24.  That represents well a potential problem with buying from Aliexpress.  The store I bought it from acted as if it was in stock when I ordered it, but a week later they messaged me asking if I would extend their allowed processing time by five days as the phone was not yet in the warehouse.  I did extend the processing time by five days and two days before the order would have automatically been cancelled by Aliexpress they shipped the phone.  I could have cancelled the order at any time before they shipped the phone; I have done that before at Aliexpress and my refund was received at my bank in about two weeks.

 

I would say, first impression, that it's a pretty amazing phone for 2,169 baht.  I'm not recommending that anyone (other than me) be foolish enough to actually buy it.  Especially with the Xiaomi Redmi 6A available at Aliexpress for less than 3,000 baht (a phone which I do recommend as a value buy). 

 

It works as a phone; call quality (3G) is good, apps I checked work quickly, screen is okay, and it's small bodied and lightweight.

[NCC1701A]

Chinese cellphones are too much of a security threat. 

 

My Samsung Galaxy J7 PRO is a great phone.

[lamyai3]

On 7/24/2018 at 11:56 PM, NCC1701A said:

Chinese cellphones are too much of a security threat. 

 

My Samsung Galaxy J7 PRO is a great phone.

How so? 

[daocat555]

From Wikipedia:  In 2017, ZTE was fined for illegally exporting U.S. technology to Iran and North Korea. In April 2018, after the company failed to properly reprimand the employees involved, the U.S. Department of Commerce banned U.S. companies from exporting to ZTE for seven years. The ban was lifted in July after ZTE replaced its senior management, and agreed to pay additional fines and establish an internal compliance team.

 

I wonder what NCC1701A means when he says, "Chinese cellphones are too much of a security threat."  He might mean that because ZTE reportedly exported U.S. technology to Iran and North Korea that this is a security threat to the world.  He might mean that because one Chinese Mobile phone manufacturer reportedly did that that all Chinese Mobile phone manufacturers are "too much of a security threat".  I have no idea what he means.  Why would Xiaomi, for example, be too much of a security threat, because of alleged actions by ZTE?  Because both are in China?  I don't get it.

 

I do get it when he says, "My Samsung Galaxy J7 PRO is a great phone"  I believe he is wrong.  To be fair it was kind of an okay phone when it was released in July, 2017.  It has a Super AMOLED screen and I like them, and as single down firing speakers go the audio output is reportedly not bad, um, not too much else I can say in it's praise and it has a lot of shortcomings: eg, poor screen-to-body ratio, mediocre chipset and memory, mediocre cameras, and a high price tag.

 

The Xiaomi Redmi 6A went way up in price yesterday, to 4,012 baht from below 3,000 baht before that.  It remains my best affordable smartphone recommendation, but at this time it might be wise to just wait until the price goes back down.  Yesterday the new Doogee X70 went on sale at Aliexpress for 2,673 baht.  

 

For fun I'll compare the Samsung Galaxy J7 PRO with the Doogee X70, the Xiaomi Redmi 6A, and the Nubia M2.  The Nubia M2 has ZTE as the parent company, so it's high on the list of security threats.  It also has about the same release date as the Samsung, has a AMOLED screen, and sells on Lazada for 4,790 baht as compared to the Samsung Galaxy J7 PRO current price of 9,800 baht on Lazada (it had been 8,299 baht at Lazada, but that seller just ran out of stock).  Although I can't go so far as to say the Nubia M2 is a great phone I would say that it's a very good phone, especially for its price point, and it bests the Samsung Galaxy J7 PRO in practically every category.  The 2,673 baht Doogee does pretty well vs the Samsung, I think, for less than one third of the price, and the Xiaomi Redmi 6A is expected to decrease in price at Aliexpress and also become available at Lazada and the Thai shops.

 

Comparison between: nubia M2, Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro, Xiaomi Redmi 6A, Doogee X70

 

All phone have a 5.5 in screen, but the width of the phone is 68.8 mm for the Doogee, 71.5 mm for the Redmi 6A, 74.7 mm for the Galaxy J7 Pro, and 75.9 mm for the Nubia M2.  According to devicespecifications the Doogee has a 76.8% display area, the group leader, while the other three phones tend toward 71% - 73.4% display area.  To be fair the Doogee is a very thick phone at 11.1 mm, while the group leader in that category is the Nubia M2 at 7 mm, with the Samsung at 7.9 mm and the Xiaomi at 8.3 mm.

 

The memory champ is also the Nubia M2 with 4 GB RAM/64 GB ROM, with the economy Doogee trailing the group with 2 GB RAM/16 GB ROM.

 

Cleary the best camera set up is the Nubia M2, with the Samsung just barely beating the Redmi and the Doogee trailing in the camera department.

 

Many review are available about the audio output of the Nubia M2 and they rate it highly.  The Samsung does well with audio, and with the brand new Xiaomi and Doogee it not known how loud the speaker is or how well it sounds.  Xiaomi has a good track record with respect to sound output, as in the Redmi 5 Plus, and I have no idea about a new, budget Doogee.  I'm hard of hearing so max in call volume is important to me, and as I mentioned in my prior post, the budget Cubot J3 has a speaker which is loud and clear enough for me, so probable the speaker on the Doogee is okay, but I have no data about it.

 

To look at performance of these phones I'll post a Kimovil comparison.  Kimovil has not yet listed the Doogee X70 so I used the Doogee X60L and, strangely, I couldn't find the Galaxy J7 PRO on Kimovil so I used the Galaxy J7 Nxt which has the same chipset and memory.

 

Doogee X60L VS. Nubia M2 VS. Samsung Galaxy J7 Nxt VS. Xiaomi Redmi 6A: Comparison

 

Antutu score of 62,000 for the Nubia M2, 55,277 for the Redmi 6A, 46,312 for the Samsung, and 32,131 for the Doogee.  What's surprising there is that with less memory and supposedly a weaker SoC the Xiaomi outperforms the Samsung!  Having a 12 nm process technology helps the Xiaomi as well as Android Oreo 8.1 for an OS.

 

In sum, for 4,790 baht at Lazada, the Nubia M2 has more memory, better Antutu score, is narrower, has better audio output, and far better cameras than the great Samsung Galaxy J7 PRO which is 9,800 baht at Lazada.  The M2 has a bigger battery than the Samsung and charges faster.

 

I have the personal opinion that the Nubia M2 is the most attractive phone of the group, the black color has gold accents. The Nubia M2 Play is also an interesting phone; I'll leave that as an exercise for the reader.

[daocat555]

The Leagoo S10 is still some months away and I think it's an exciting phone.  Here is a link where you can sign up for a 21% Early Bird discount.

 

LEAGOO S10-Most Affordable In-display Access Phone

 

And here is a link where you can guess what the specs will be, I guess, with a few people getting prizes or discounts or something.

 

https://www.leagoo.com/Pinfo/s10.html

 

And here is a link to devicespecifications which reveals some specs.

 

Leagoo S10 will cost less than $300, company's Executive President confirms

 

Highlights include a 6.21 AMOLED display, a range of SoC options from the Helio P60 to the Snapdragon 710, and memory option either 6 GB or 8 GB of RAM and 64 GB or 128 GB or 256 GB of ROM.  Apparently very nice cameras, super fast charging, and a number of other high end features will be included and the price is expected to be from $300 - $500 depending on features selected.

 

To me, this is likely to be a very good value.  I'm signed up for the Early Bird discount.

 

 

[Elkski]

It's not just that they were selling technology to banned countries.    It was also a worry of the phones being used to spy. 

https://www.google.com/amp/www.foxnews.com/tech/2018/05/03/pentagon-bans-sale-zte-huawei-phones-on-military-bases-report-says.amp.html

[daocat555]

In a prior post here I reported that Lazada may be selling the Huawei P20 Pro for 17,790 baht.  I checked further into that offer, and found out that what you will get if you buy from that listing is a Huawei P20 and not a P20 Pro.  So; false listing.

 

Checking out many Lazada stores it seems to me the best deal for a Huawei P20 Pro is 22,800 by J9 Store (93% positive seller rating).

 

Huawei P20 Pro แถมฟรี!! เคสใส +ฟิล์มแท้จาก Huawei | Lazada.co.th

 

That's about the same as Aliexpress, and a pretty good discount.  Hopefully that is not a false listing.

[daocat555]

There are two Meizu phones which compete well with the Xiaomi Redmi 6A.  Especially until the Xiaomi Redmi 6A gets back to under 3,000 baht.  The budget Meizu M6T and the higher spec'd Meizu M8C.  As compared on gsmarena, devicespecifications, and Kimovil:

 

 Meizu Blue Charm 6T VS. Meizu M8c VS. Xiaomi Redmi 6A: Comparison

 

Compare Meizu M6T vs. Xiaomi Redmi 6A vs. Meizu M8c - GSMArena.com

 

Comparison between: Meizu M6T, Meizu M8c, Xiaomi Redmi 6A

 

The Meizu M8C is smaller, lighter, with the same size screen and a bigger battery vs the Xiaomi, and goes on Aliexpress for 3,553 baht.

 

The Meizu M6T is the same weight as the Xiaomi yet has a bigger screen and a bigger battery, and is 4,483 at Aliexpress.

 

The Xiaomi Redmi 6A has the best Antutu score but the worst useable surface % of the three phones, at 3,984 baht currently, it is more expensive than the similar, if not better, Meizu M8C; and the more powerful Meizu M6T is not that much more money than the Xiaomi.

 

Audio quality is the big, unknown, kicker here for me.  Both companies have a good track record with quality audio from single down firing speakers in general.  But the Xiaomi Mi8 SE was reviewed recently on gsmarena and the review reported that the speaker had a lot of distortion.  So I think the two Meizu's mentioned here deserve consideration by someone in the market for a budget smartphone.

[daocat555]

Lazada is listing the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite for a great price.  I can now give the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite my highest recommendation for anyone buying a smartphone in the 4,000 - 8,000 baht range.

 

It's 5,399 baht in the 3 GB 32 GB version and 6,499 baht in the 4 GB 64 GB version.

 

For that you get a pure OS, a 4000 mAh battery, nice cameras; I could go on and on.  This phone just has the perfect mid-range specifications.

 

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/xiaomi-mi-a2-lite-3gb-32gb-4gb-64gb-smartphone-i246126759-s379026061.html?

 

I would like to see stereo speakers here, that seems like the last quality spec that smartphone manufacturers add.  Other than that this model has it all.

[Elkski]

if a order on lazada from USA what is the best way to pay to limit exchange rate charges?  i have paypal or credit cards 

 

 

and would this be the right glass screen protector? and what about a case? 

 

https://www.lazada.co.th/catalog/?q=Xiaomi+Mi+A2+Lite+case&_keyori=ss&from=input&spm=a2o4m.pdp.search.go.56277340mffOsJ

[daocat555]

According to Kimovil the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite works on all Dtac frequencies (myself, I do not like Dtac).  Seems you got the right selection of cases and protectors.  I have no idea if you can buy from Lazada when you are in USA and want it shipped to USA.  I poked around the Lazada site but couldn't find the answer to that.  Lazada is cheaper than Aliexpress but not by much.  Aliexpress has the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite at several of their stores in all versions and colors and you can add accessories from the store you buy from.

[daocat555]

I posted this in Mid-range smartphone recommendations but will also post it here, I guess there are some people who don't read BOTH threads if they are shopping for a phone.  I know there is a new thread about the Xiaomi Mi A2, which seems strange to me since that could be covered in the Mid-range topic:  I have not posted in that thread.

 

The price for the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite increased today from 6,499 baht to 8,371 baht for the 4/64 version as offered by Xiaomi Online Store at Lazada, who also radically increased their price for the 3/32 version.  The best deal at Lazada on the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite is now 6,290 baht for the 3/32 version with a free Xiaomi Mi band.  Which, I suppose, is fine for people interested in the Xiaomi Mi band, but for the rest of us it is not so good, especially when compared to the offer for the 3/32 version by Xiaomi Online yesterday.  Other stores at Lazada are selling the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite 4/64 for as high as 13,475 baht, which is completely ridiculous.   Jvs; if you are not amused by this change then you have company.  I was considering ordering the 4/64 version from the Xiaomi Online Store at Lazada for a friend, but not for 8,371 baht.  The good news, I think, is that it is likely that the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite will be in stock at "the mall" (which mall is that?) soon; and at MBK and Pantip.

 

The Xiaomi Redmi 6A has reached Lazada, currently out of stock at the Store selling it for 3,990 baht, but it is in stock in all colors for 4,186.23 baht.  I also expect that model to be available at all the usual places soon.  It went as low as less than 3,000 baht at one point on Aliexpress; but right now buying it in Thailand would be wiser.

 

I had been singing the praises of the Xiaomi Redmi 6A for months, however yesterday the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite 3/32 from the Xiaomi Online Store at Lazada for 5,399 was clearly the best deal in town for a new phone with Mid-range specification.  Today the picture isn't so clear.

 

The best price on the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite 4/64 from an International seller is at SUNSKY, for 6,550.28 baht.  

[BritManToo]

Just bought an Asus Zenfone 4 Max Pro from Lazada for 3,990bht.

Comes with screen film, transparent case, car dash mount and selfie stick and 100Gb google drive for 1 year included.

My last 2 phones were 'nonames' that both suffered battery failure. Asus have a service centre at the end of my road.

 

This phone has 16MP front camera and 16MP rear camera with 2 lenses, normal and 120'.

Doesn't share a SIM and Memory slot either.

 

 

 

 

[BritManToo]

On 7/19/2018 at 9:38 PM, Elkski said:

I may try to order a new battery and install it to get my trip pictures off adn my contact list since I have not backed up my contact list in years . 

You need 'google drive' app on your phone, uploads all your photos to google photos and is free.

You also need to enable 'google backup' on your phone, then all your apps and contacts appear on your new phone like magic.

[LomSak27]

I went with a cheap/midrange smart phone

A moto g5 plus bought at Costco US 4 months ago. Love it. I could complain about some ergonomic aspects of it but the main thing it satisfies all of my requirements and more, for a phone. Some complain about the 2 G memory and this is an issue if you are using a lot of apps … FAR more than I do. That said I am not a mobile device aficionado.  I would much rather put serious money in Laptops, tablets and cameras. Put it on my true acct over here.

I am very happy with the purchase.

[faraday]

Thinking about getting the Huawei Nova 3.

 

Any opinions @daocat.

 

Or indeed anyone else?

 

[daocat555]

For me, there is exactly one Huawei model which I recommend friends consider buying, the P 20 Pro.  And virtually all the other Huawei models have the weakness of IPS screen, poor audio output from a single down firing speaker, and no Optical image stabilization on the camera, which makes the pixel resolution irrelevant if you get motion blur.  The Huawei P 20 Pro is listed for a good price at Lazada, which means you can avoid the International sellers.  A Word of caution about buying the P 20 Pro from Lazada. a shop called "i-Smart Shop" lists it for 19,790 baht, and if you buy from that link you will get the Huawei P 20.  So many people on Lazada have complained about this and yet i-Smart Shop continues with the false listing.  

 

I believe Superiphone Shop at Lazada actually sells the P 20 Pro where they list the P 20 Pro (for 22,700 baht), but I am not certain of this.  The P 20 Pro has stereo speakers and in my opinion (which is not shared by most review sites) the best camera available today.

 

For me the Huawei Nova 3 has the classic Huawei faults.  A single down firing speaker with expected poor audio output.  I do not see where the camera has Optical Image stabilization.  The screen is huge (6.3 in) considering the body width of 73.7 mm, but it is IPS not Super AMOLED.  It is very light for such a good sized battery (3750 mAh).  I won't criticize the aged Kirin 970 GT processor based on performance (however gsmarena sure did) as I think an Antutu score of 213,380 is plenty fast enough for any non gamer.  Gsmarena also was not amused that the "fast charging" brought the phone from 0 to only 25 % in the first 30 minutes and 55% in the first hour.  This is pretty slow by today's standards.

 

The Huawei Nova 3 is not yet available at Lazada.  If you venture to Aliexpress it's 14,305 baht.  For that you are getting poor audio output, a camera which might not have OIS, and a phone which charges fairly slowly.  Not my cup of tea.

 

Compare Huawei P20 Pro vs. Meizu 16 vs. Huawei nova 3 - GSMArena.com

 

Comparison between: Huawei nova 3, Huawei P20 Pro, Meizu 16

 

Huawei Nova 3 VS. Huawei P20 Pro VS. Meizu 16th: Comparison

 

Not to be a broken troll, er, record.  But doesn't the Meizu 16th stand up well vs the two Huawei's here.  It's about the same price as the Nova 3 and a lot cheaper than the P 20 Pro.

 

I enjoyed Murakami's Wind-Up Bird Chronicle (spend your money on things money can buy.  Spend your time on the things money can't buy).  My favorite Murakami is "A wild Sheep Chase" and the last Murakami I will read was 1Q84; too violent and the same stuff over and over.  But I did enjoy the many books I read by him.

[daocat555]

I visited gsmarena just now and saw that they have posted their review of the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite.  The review exceeded my expectations.  Audio output, always a big unknown on new phones, was 70.6 dB max voice and 86.1 dB for ringing phone; and was described as "rich and clean"; nice.  The display, which was not good on it's cousin, the Xiaomi Mi A2, was given high marks, and it was given stellar marks for battery performance.

 

I post on gsmarena using the name "daocat555", and for those interested, have posted on the Mi A2 Lite, the Meizu 15, and the Meizu 16th.

 

 

[faraday]

Thanks daocat.

 

Yep,  The Wind Up Bird..was excellent. Haven't read iq 1984 yet

[daocat555]

Well I'm on Mobile fire now.  The price for the Xiaomi Redmi 6A 2/16 went down today on pretty much all Aliexpress stores.  The best price being at Xiaomi Dreamie (also the best Store name) which is $102.99 (3,427 baht).  It didn't get back to the don't snooze or you'll lose sub 3,000 baht price that it once was, but I bought one.  This is for the daughter of my housekeeper, the deal being that my housekeeper will give me 2,000 baht and I'll get a phone for her daughter when I think I have found a good one, contributing anything in excess of 2,000, if needed, to purchase the phone.

 

I considered the Leagoo S9 which is not that much more expensive from SUNSKY, and has way better specifications, but decided that Xiaomi quality and reputation for audio would win out, and the newly posted review of the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite on gsmarena had me in a very pro-Xiaomi mood.

[SooKee]

On 7/11/2018 at 7:43 PM, Elkski said:

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.  

Might be too late now but AIS have the Xiaomi Mi 8 for 10,000 if you have post paid with them.  Regular price from Xiaomi Thailand 18,000.  Great device.

[daocat555]

Today the price decreased at Aliexpress for the Meizu 15, down to 10,343 baht for the blue color.

 

Original Meizu 15 4G LTE 4GB 64GB Snapdragon 660 Octa Core 5.46" 1920x1080P Screen Fingerprint ID Fast charger Smart Phone-in Mobile Phones from Cellphones & Telecommunications on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

 

When you consider the sound,camera, screen, and speed of this mobile it could be arguably the best value for the baht phone available today.

 

Nyezhov; add a soft case for 199 baht and you'd be good to go.

 

Clear soft case For MEIZU 15 ,15 PLUS Transparent silicon TPU anti fall case cover FOR 15PLUS THIN All inclusive M15plus-in Fitted Cases from Cellphones & Telecommunications on Aliexpress.com | Alibaba Group

 

Yeah, it's 543 baht over your 10,000 baht ceiling.  And there is some wait to get the phone when ordering from Aliexpress (by your post about a SIM card it seems you might be going Stateside at some time?).  So maybe this doesn't work for you?  Also don't you have a mule bring in a Moto G6 Play?  That's a fine mobile in every respect except it's Antutu score of 47,963.  Would you notice that much of a difference when using the G6 Play compared to the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite which has a 76,500 Antutu score?  Well not to talk on the phone but for sure for gaming and probably for videos, multi-tasking, and switching applications. It depends what you use the phone for.  The Meizu 15's Antutu score of 134,170 is pretty much high enough for anything except hard core gaming.  For gaming consider the Meizu 16th which has an Antutu score of 291.185; about the highest of any phone available today.

 

Xiaomi; Meizu; yeah I like those two brands, but I also think that Asus and Huawei tend to offer good value.

 

[stud858]

Samsung galaxy j6 with 3gb ram at 4995 baht is a great phone for that money.  A light not so big phone with long battery life. 

Dual sim With seperately sd slot.

 

Samsung been in the game a long time and their software well designed. 

 

Otherwise I'm an Xperia Sony fan, but using old z1 compact.  Best small phone. 

 

[daocat555]

stud858; I have written about the Samsung Galaxy J6 in this topic and I think it's a great phone.  It's currently 4,790 baht at one Lazada Store available in that nice Samsung Purple Color   That has me thinking that I could have bought that for my housekeeper's daughter.  It is surely a much better phone than the Xiaomi Redmi 6A which I did buy.  But that would have meant me kicking in 2,790 baht out of pocket; just a bit too much but certainly tempting as I look at the J6 specifications; quite a phone for the money.

 

I can happily say that the Xiaomi Dreami Store at Aliexpress lived up to its name so far, they just shipped my order to me, 26 hours after I bought it, a record for me for Aliexpress.  I just wish Hong Kong SKYWAY would take a cue from them and ship my Meizu 16th which I ordered on August 9'th.

 

Ceciclia Garcia; nice to see a new member here and I agree entirely with your first post.  

[daocat555]

LomSak27; can I give you a gentle push to buy a new mobile?  I don't have a lot of money myself and I also like Laptops and cameras; though I have never bought a tablet.

 

If you are interested check my profile and go to my post on my Laptop set up which I'm proud of.  I haven't posted in photography yet, as my Nikon D90 with Sigma 35/1.4 and Nikon 135/2.0 are still sitting un-used in the suitcase they arrived in, oh, those many months ago, but taking some shots and posting in photography is on my "to do" list.  I bought the camera body at MBK quite a while ago, the Nikon 135/2.0, used, at the same time, and then added the 35/1.4, so I only have two lenses.  

 

These days I guess I would buy a camera kit online if I did buy a camera kit.  Pre-online shopping it was fun to surf the Malls and interact with the salespeople.  Okay, stud858 brought up the Samsung Galaxy J6 2018.  I just bought the last one available at Lazada in Purple for 4,790 baht, not for me, but for someone who I haven't chosen yet, and just on general principles.  So the bad news for you, LomSak27, is that you will need to pay 4,912 baht if you want one in purple.

 

https://www.lazada.co.th/products/samsung-galaxy-j6-2018-ram3rom32-1-i237097982-s363665156.html?

 

I have provided the link to Lazada to ease your shopping, the store has a 82% positive seller rating with 4+ years at Lazada, so those are good marks for that store, IT Hut.

 

For the SIM card for this mobile, which will most likely go to, how to say this politically correctly, ah, my next personal service provider with talent, I choose the AIS prepaid Net Marathon 1 mbps/12 months, which I bought online.  That's a fun SIM with free calls to AIS for one hour for one year and unlimited 1 mbps net for one year.  When bought online you get a selection of phone numbers to choose from, and I find it fun to select a "lucky" phone number, or at the very least a phone number which is easy to remember.