Low-cost smartphone with fast browser for home network use only -- recommendation?

[retiree]

I need a low-cost (<$150) smartphone for home network use only -- I'm just using it to say "Ok, google -- translate (some English phrase) to Thai" or vice versa.  So, the only thing that matters is fast browser response.   Is there any brand or model that's better than the others?   Phone service doesn't matter -- I won't insert a SIM (actually, I don't even own a cellphone, hence my ignorance).  

Thanks,

Retiree 

[lopburi3]

You ask in USD so not clear if in USA or Thailand - here they seem to be available for under 1,500 baht ($50) - would a cheap notepad be more useful?

[Eindhoven]

3 hours ago, retiree said:

I need a low-cost (<$150) smartphone for home network use only -- I'm just using it to say "Ok, google -- translate (some English phrase) to Thai" or vice versa.  So, the only thing that matters is fast browser response.   Is there any brand or model that's better than the others?   Phone service doesn't matter -- I won't insert a SIM (actually, I don't even own a cellphone, hence my ignorance).  

Thanks,

Retiree 

 

4000 baht ok?

 

https://www.jd.co.th/product/2696738.html

[retiree]

Sorry; I should have said "<4,500 baht". 

Want phone rather than notepad 'cause phone fits in my shirt pocket.

And yes, I know there are plenty available; lol there are a half-dozen 7/11's on my block!  I just have no clue if one of the low-cost brands is appreciably better than the others in terms of how fast the browser (and I guess the Android implementation) runs.  Does that Huawei model zip along?

Thanks,

-- Retire

 

[Eindhoven]

9 minutes ago, retiree said:

Sorry; I should have said "<4,500 baht". 

Want phone rather than notepad 'cause phone fits in my shirt pocket.

And yes, I know there are plenty available; lol there are a half-dozen 7/11's on my block!  I just have no clue if one of the low-cost brands is appreciably better than the others in terms of how fast the browser (and I guess the Android implementation) runs.  Does that Huawei model zip along?

Thanks,

-- Retire

 

 

It has the specs to do so.  

 

Of course if anyone else has any better ideas...

 

Here are a couple more within budget: https://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?&idPhone2=9814&idPhone3=9324&idPhone1=10192 Though there are some complaints concerning WiFi connections on some Redmi phones.

 

In addition, there is another low cost Smartphone thread currently running. So maybe some ideas there.

[owl sees all]

The cheapest 'vivo'. 790 baht. Takes good pics too. Just don't drop it.

[vandeventer]

I have a Redmi note 7 for almost 2 years and it's really good. They now have out a Redmi note 9 and I hear it's much better. And that sells for under 3500 baht at Lazada. Lazada has many prices so you have to look around.

[sandyf]

18 hours ago, retiree said:

Sorry; I should have said "<4,500 baht". 

Want phone rather than notepad 'cause phone fits in my shirt pocket.

And yes, I know there are plenty available; lol there are a half-dozen 7/11's on my block!  I just have no clue if one of the low-cost brands is appreciably better than the others in terms of how fast the browser (and I guess the Android implementation) runs.  Does that Huawei model zip along?

Thanks,

-- Retire

 

I have had 2 Neffos, made by TP Link, that were about 4000 baht and worked well. I have voice only SIM so only use the internet on home network or hotspot from wife's phone.

I changed the first one after about 4 years quite recently for the newer model X9 as the android was a bit old. Available on Lazada just search Neffos.

Word of warning, my niece had problems with her Huawei and the google updates.

[Chaspul]

Do not buy Huawei, recently purchased mate pad t 8 inch. EMUI 10 now bars anything Google, due apparently to the fight between USA and Huawei. 

I have spent hours installing a second boot system best one so far is VMOS PRO. 

[hotchilli]

21 hours ago, retiree said:

Does that Huawei model zip along?

Yes, cheap & cheerful, with features.

[lopburi3]

13 minutes ago, hotchilli said:

Yes, cheap & cheerful, with features.

And some of the reported features are not exactly desired.

Quote

Chinese phone makers Huawei and ZTE, who are Telstra's key manufacturing partner for their house brand pre-paid phones, have been caught up in claims that their budget devices are secretly sending user data – including full text messages back to a secret Chinese server.

https://www.smarthouse.com.au/secret-chinese-code-that-sends-information-back-to-china-found-on-huawei-and-zte-phones/

[Cake Monster]

Take a good look at the VIVO Y11model phone.

Approx 3,800 baht

3 Gb Ram

32 gb memory ( Expandable with an SDI Card )

2 Sim card slots

Good Security

Large Screen

I have one and its all I need in a Phone 

Whatever you choose to go with, enjoy !

 

[steevjee]

21 hours ago, retiree said:

Sorry; I should have said "<4,500 baht". 

Want phone rather than notepad 'cause phone fits in my shirt pocket.

And yes, I know there are plenty available; lol there are a half-dozen 7/11's on my block!  I just have no clue if one of the low-cost brands is appreciably better than the others in terms of how fast the browser (and I guess the Android implementation) runs.  Does that Huawei model zip along?

Thanks,

-- Retire

 

The better known Chinese units are generally best bang for buck nowadays.

Xiaomi and Oppo are both very good, I have the Xiaomi Mi9 Lite and it's brilliant. YouTube has lots of good reviews for budget phones.

[eero]

I bought T910 Tablet 10 inc. 1578 Bath from Lazada ,have also sim place but I used only wifi and works very good internet websites.

3BB glasfiber Download 412 up 265

[philba]

My wife bought an Oppo A53 for 5400bht a couple of weeks ago.

 

It's superfast and responsive in every dept. and the battery is an easy 2 day plus.

 

When I update my phone, I'll probably buy the same. It's an excellent phone.

 

They're on lazada for about 4900, so almost within your range.

 

[ReLo]

Buy the cheapest Xiaomi and stop thinking about something so useless.

 

[philba]

30 minutes ago, eero said:

I bought T910 Tablet 10 inc. 1578 Bath from Lazada ,have also sim place but I used only wifi and works very good internet websites.

3BB glasfiber Download 412 up 265

Could you post the link to this please ? Can't find it.

[jobsworth]

1 hour ago, lopburi3 said:

And some of the reported features are not exactly desired.

https://www.smarthouse.com.au/secret-chinese-code-that-sends-information-back-to-china-found-on-huawei-and-zte-phones/

Do you not think that the NSA and GCHQ are not doing exactly the same thing and sharing information with the 5 eyes (USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and UK).

[Pedrogaz]

I brought two iPhones SEs for myself and wife last year..but how disappointing. Mine has a <deleted> batteries last 1 day max and the counter is unreliable so you look and see 70% left, then ten minutes later it is telling you you have only 15%....and stuff like FaceTime or Line really eat up the battery. Honestly it is a ball ache having to charge it all the time. I couldn't recommend iPhones. On the other hand my wife seems to have no issues with hers.

I had a Samsung J7 that was quite cheap before these SEs. It was great in all respects, but I wanted a smaller screen and so bought the Apples. Basically threw my money away.

[Pedrogaz]

14 minutes ago, jobsworth said:

Do you not think that the NSA and GCHQ are not doing exactly the same thing and sharing information with the 5 eyes (USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada and UK).

The difference is my data are useless to Chinese but could be useful to the country of my citizenship, if I, for example, were to send an email with objectionable non PC language in it...call it hate speech or terrorist speech.

[userabcd]

33 minutes ago, Pedrogaz said:

I brought two iPhones SEs for myself and wife last year..but how disappointing. Mine has a <deleted> batteries last 1 day max and the counter is unreliable so you look and see 70% left, then ten minutes later it is telling you you have only 15%....and stuff like FaceTime or Line really eat up the battery. Honestly it is a ball ache having to charge it all the time. I couldn't recommend iPhones. On the other hand my wife seems to have no issues with hers.

I had a Samsung J7 that was quite cheap before these SEs. It was great in all respects, but I wanted a smaller screen and so bought the Apples. Basically threw my money away.

The size of the Iphone SE battery is ridiculous @ 1,821 mAh in this day and age.

[ronaldo0]

Next phone I will be buying will be oppo as they have all latest features , look ok , huge battery and usually high ram spec . Don’t see the point in spending hundreds on phones that break at first drop or are useless or obsolete after two years . Not sure the oppo A9 2020 price in Thailand but it was £140 on sale last week on amazon so probably cheaper in Thailand.

[ronaldo0]

3 hours ago, Pedrogaz said:

I brought two iPhones SEs for myself and wife last year..but how disappointing. Mine has a <deleted> batteries last 1 day max and the counter is unreliable so you look and see 70% left, then ten minutes later it is telling you you have only 15%....and stuff like FaceTime or Line really eat up the battery. Honestly it is a ball ache having to charge it all the time. I couldn't recommend iPhones. On the other hand my wife seems to have no issues with hers.

I had a Samsung J7 that was quite cheap before these SEs. It was great in all respects, but I wanted a smaller screen and so bought the Apples. Basically threw my money away.

Where did you buy it from ? I bought a iPhone 6 to use as a emergency phone and a ipod . It started off fine then battery had same problem as you described so I sent it to a shop and put a new battery in . This was ok for a while but then started to drain quickly at times again but not as bad as original battery . Now when I put the sim in the phone won’t recognise it , this is a connection issue near the top right corner and is a known fault with iPhones. I bought it off lazada so not sure if it’s a dodgy phone or just poor build quality, but I would never buy an apple for the prices they ask and their battery life is shockingly poor !

[Legendary Monkey]

6 hours ago, Chaspul said:

Do not buy Huawei, recently purchased mate pad t 8 inch. EMUI 10 now bars anything Google, due apparently to the fight between USA and Huawei. 

I have spent hours installing a second boot system best one so far is VMOS PRO. 

I've got a Hauwei P20 with Emui 10, everything Google is accessible.

[dddave]

On 11/5/2020 at 8:13 AM, vandeventer said:

I have a Redmi note 7 for almost 2 years and it's really good. They now have out a Redmi note 9 and I hear it's much better. And that sells for under 3500 baht at Lazada. Lazada has many prices so you have to look around.

2nd this.  Xiaomi phones generally give the best bang for the buck in the budget category.  You have to be attentive to model names when shopping Xiaomi phones as models can have very similar and confusing names.  A good example is the "Redmi Note 9" recommended Vandeventer.  It is an excellent and very fast phone but when you look for it you will also see: Redmi-9A, & Redmi-9 & Redmi Note 9 Pro. The Redmi 9A is their cheapest and least powerful phone.  The Redmi-9 is a step above and probably also sufficient for your needs (about B3200-4300 depending on 3gb RAM & 4gb Ram models)  The Redmi Note-9 starts at about B4500 and is a very good choice.  (All my prices are based on Lazada)

[marquis22]

If ok to add to this OP. I would like to know which 6" smartphone at a similar price has a good/decent lasting battery?

[berrec]

Try Wiko View3 Pro just under 4,000 Baht, had a Wiko Jerry for a couple of years and very good functions and value for money. 

 

https://www.lazada.co.th/shop-mobiles/wiko/?spm=a2o4m.pdp.0.0.56f66b33UWSBf2

 

There are a bunch more in this Lazada link but you get what you pay for....your budget of 4,000 Baht should open up lots of opportunities. 

[retiree]

OP here.  What I learned:

• my performance concern (browser response) is not an issue per se with current multi-core processors,
• benchmarks.ul.com is very good for overview of specs / benchmarks / hardware details, and finding comparable neighborhoods, once I had a starting point.
• versus.com is very good for comparing a few phones head-to-head.
• issues like "replaceable battery?" and "what kind of glass?" seem more important than performance in this range.

Thanks to all for comments,

-- Retiree

[scammed]

its going to drive you insane to use a phone with insufficient ram & battery, take my word for it,

memory deficiency leads to freeze and battery deficiency leads to dead phone, and its hard to tell which one is more annoying.

 

see to it that it has 6 gb ram and 5000 mah battery minimum,

so that it may work flawlessly, its around 6000 baht

for proper specs, but its well worth the extra 2000 baht

to not go nuts in frustration over holly inadequate specs.

 

my maid that are destitute was going to borrow my old phone when hers broke,

but she came back with it an hour later

cause she would rather not have a phone at all, over a phone that doesnt perform

 

[SCOTT FITZGERSLD]

maybe you want to check a new japanese device that translate your speach to your desired language.

 

so you talk to the device in english and the device will translate you to thai (or tagalo, or lao, or khmer - whcihever your girlfriend is from)