Best Smartphone for THB 12,000 in Thailand

[Don Mega]

Primary slot is sim.

Secondary slot is hybrid, either sim or micro SD.

[OmegaRacer]

It has a slot for 1 ultra small SIM card and 1 slot for the SD card (up to 64Gb if I remember correctly).

The phone is so beautiful, it breaks my heart covering it with a case. I found a compromise though. ..an aluminium frame that still leaves the back exposed.

First world problems, sorry...

[OmegaRacer]

No, 1 for SIM, 1 for SD. No hybrid, at least not on this model (SM-A500F).

[Ks45672]

I mobile have a new phone out called the BIG because it has a 5,000 mah battery.. 5,995.. Lollipop.. 5" screen.. Looked OK for the price.

http://www.siamphone.com/spec/i-mobile/iq_big.htm

5k MaH is not measly for a battery

the note 4 is larger with just 3220 MaH

iphone 6 and galaxy s6 have around half that much battery and 4 times the price

Edited June 5, 2015 by Ks45672

[stament]

Heard the lg G3 is good

[dddave]

11,111 baht, love it

Lazada seems to be growing in popularity, the delivery you mentioned of 2 days is great.

Was it by courier or EMS?

Lazada is great IF you are buying directly from them, however if buying from one of their 3rd party vendors, even Thai based ones...not so much. Also, warranty's on imported items (not the ones Lazada themselves import) are almost non-existent. Your only recourse is Lazada's 15 day return policy. If something goes wrong after that, you are SOL.

There have been many reports that their Customer Service has become much worse lately.

[SheungWan]

Out of the Samsung products I have purchased it was upgrade support that was lacking.. As in NO ROM upgrades.. They were the cheaper products.. But Samsung aren't renowned for software updates!

For the budget he should be able to purchase a phone with a micro sd slot to later buy some additional ROM. It is primarily Apples that do not facilitate additional ROM after purchase....but also now some of the later Samsung models and others.

[SheungWan]

I just bought Samsung A5 (12,900) because I refuse to pay 700 pounds for the I Phone 6.

Everything about it seems good...except that it has some kind of gimmickry for taking better selfies (not interested!)

It's also made of aluminium, unlike the older samsungs which were plastic.

A friend who knows more than little me, says that the A5 camera is not as sharp as the Apple phones.

Hope this helpeth

Eddy

. Get a 5S iPhone

5S is not a sensible suggestion as it is way too expensive over the OP's budget. Only one option for a new Apple would be the 4S 8gb on sale at AIS shop Central Festival for ~11400 baht.

[JDGRUEN]

I just took a look at the Zen 2 models - two of them ... After seeing these and the LG models all available under 12K Baht and one of each LG and Zen 2 at almost one half that ... I see little sense to paying over 12K for any phone. The lower end and the higher end of these models are great technologically, aesthetically, functionally and most all other aspects that rival phones costing much more.

Personally I am not married to brand names... The Samsung models are great and so are Apple's offerings but unless you have money to burn getting their pricey top models is a waste of money. People who buy Apple iPhones because of peer pressure and perceived in-crowd 'coolness' because of advertising hype - well I am happy you have the extra money. But you are not getting much of anything better that you will actually use on an everyday basis. A laundry list of technical points don't make much sense when at 1/2 the price the LG models and the Zen 2 (5 and 6) deliver stellar performance. LG make microwaves and refrigerators - nothing really cool about that - but so does Samsung. Apple makes Apple and a lot of peer guilt ads.

[nev]

I have a phone I bought online from China for 5500baht and I love it and high end specs, I would say it is better than a I phone and most Samsung.

It is called ulefone bepro 5.5 inch screen 64 bIt.

www.ulefone.com

Edited June 13, 2015 by nev

[pmugghc]

The Samsung S5 is on sale for around 12k. With that you'll probably get upgraded to Android M later on.

[kbelyeu]

What about a Xperia z3 Compact. Aboit 12500 (import prices) in mbk. Get very good reviews

I have the Z3 and my missus has the Z3 compact both being excellant phones.. they don't handle the drop test very well.

My first Z3 went in for service and was repaired under warranty taking about a month.

Kurt

[JDGRUEN]

After messing with my Sloooooow iMobile low end phone for these last few months ... I finally broke down and said - 'Self - just how much longer are you going to punish yourself? ' ... even non Internet apps were slow...

So -- a few days ago -- I went an bought a Asus ZenFone 2, 5.5 in screen, 4GB RAM (that is not a typo), 64 GB of Internal Storage and a slot for an additional removable SD Card. It is performing wonderfully -- everything is ZIP quick ... screen image quality is excellent, the camera -- is just WOW! All for just under 12K Baht.. .plus a folding cover for protection - prevents screen scratching and breakage @450 Baht additional. The battery holds up great and it has a quick recharge function. I hardly pay attention to battery usage.

They have a 5 in model with 2 GB of RAM -- not sure of the other specs - but it is just under 7K baht.

This phone does everything I can think of and more ... and does it DAMNED QUICK ...

I am a happy camper.. .

[bamnutsak]

While not available at the target price (12,000) when the OP first asked, the Samsung Galaxy S5 is now available at some mail-order outlets and high volume shops for 11,500. And new S4's can be found for 8,200.

http://www.thaimobilecenter.com/spec/Samsung-Galaxy-S5.asp

http://www.itruemart.com/products/samsung-galaxy-s5.--2517707947800.html

http://www.thaimobilecenter.com/spec/Samsung_Galaxy_S4_(Galaxy%20S%20IV).asp

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Here's a pretty good deal, at least for those with the ability to purchase from Amazon in the U.S.

Right now, they're having a special offer for Motorola's 2nd Gen Moto E phone (unlocked, new, full warranty) for $90 (3,000+ baht) for the global GSM version (meaning it works well with Thai 3G frequencies).

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TFAVFKU/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=3JFKF305ZJTKL&coliid=I15ZBM2WJTXANI&psc=1

The only downsides AFAIK are no LTE on this particular model and no flash for the camera. Other than that, a very well reviewed mobile.

http://www.gsmarena.com/motorola_moto_e_2nd_gen-review-1247.php

[Amazon is also offering a 4G LTE/US GSM version of the same mobile for $100, but its 4G/LTE bands are not compatible with those being used in Thailand.]

Edited July 23, 2015 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[sjonburi]

Step 1: Buy this phone for THB 4,444.00 http://www.androidcentral.com/android-one-makes-its-way-thailand-i-mobile-iq-ii

Step 2: Keep THB 7,556.00 in your pocket.

Step 3: Profit.

[stament]

Any thoughts on the Nokia 640?

[stament]

Considering the Nokia 640 lte or the LG Magna both about the same price, Nokia you get Microsoft freebies and 4G. Does 4G make much of a difference vs 3G?

Any thoughts on the two phones? I know they both have completely different operating systems but I don't mind and I don't use many apps mainly just use it for calls, messaging and browsing.

[guzzi850m2]

Any thoughts on the Nokia 640?

I have a Microsoft 640LTE, not a bad phone for the money.

GPS is very good and the Here maps (off-line maps) for Thailand and elsewhere are good and free.

Wi-fi is good with a good antenna.

Battery life is very good and removable.

The screen is sharp (for the money) and it's fast to use (for the money).

There are however some small things on it that I am not too happy with, I still haven't managed to connect it to my truck via blue tooth so I can use it hands free in it, hmm.

The phone keeps reminding me again and again when the battery are below 30%, irritating man.

You can't see on the top menu if the alarm is on, found out the hard way one Saturday morning that it was on and woke up my wife & son & myself, he-he.

Apps are off-course not even 1/2 as good as Android but if you are not an App dude, never mind, I have managed to find most I really need and can't live without.

The huge advantage on the Windows system is the lack of malware and viruses, you can't even download a anti-virus program for it.

The should be a free up-grade to Win10 later this year, looking forward to that.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I bought an Windows 8.1 Samsung phone a few months back, as a backup to my main Samsung Android phone, which I like very much and use constantly.

I use Windows on all my PCs and have for years. But I must say, I'm not much impressed by the Windows Phone OS compared to Android. The Windows Phone app store has been a mess, hard to find what you really want and littered with tons of junkware.

My Windows phone hardware is just fine. But many things that are simple and easy to accomplish with the Android OS seem difficult or impossible or hidden away to do with the Windows Phone OS.

And then there are issues about the integration of Windows OS into Windows Phone. For example, it's great to have MS OneDrive available on my PC and my Windows mobile phone. But, if I have 40 GBs of MP3 files stored in my main OneDrive account in the cloud, I don't necessarily want OneDrive to automatically sync 40 GBs of data down to my Windows Phone device.

All in all, despite the current arrival of Windows 10 OS, Windows Phone OS and devices are looking to continue to be an lonely footnote in the mobile device world dominated by Apple and Google/Android.

But, if all someone wants from their mobile device is making traditional phone calls, sending SMS messages and browsing the web a bit, then a Windows Phone device ought to continue to meet those needs for the future, or at least as long as a current buyer would likely be using the same device purchased now.

[speedtripler]

I can't see the point in using Windows phone.... Yet

Android is lightyears ahead, ability to sync with pc or cloud computing and windows 10 is not useful to me yet

I don't see Anything what it can do that my note 4 can't, especially since the note has root access and a custom rom

[guzzi850m2]

Well today I did manage to hook up my 640 to my truck via Bluetooth, it was a simple operator failure how to hook up

I also had my hands on an IQ II today to 4444 baht (odd price man). They have a demo model in the IQ shop in Lotus North Pattaya branch on ground floor.

Very nice phone I must say but okay the shop haven't really set it up nicely and only basic apps installed and a very boring looking background "picture".

The phone seems to be fast when scrolling though the apps pages and is slightly smaller than my 640 with same screen size.

2 years warranty on them.

I am tempted to get one, miss some of the Android apps.

[thaibry]

In response to the original enquiry, I bought an L G Leon dual SIM smartphone on Android lollipop and my credit card showed that I had paid less than GBP 75.00. It works wonderfully in Thailand and the UK although the UK 3g coverage is not as good as Thailand I recommend the phone, looks similar to an iPhone.

Posted from my phone using predictive text, please excuse any spelling or grammatical errors.

[speedtripler]

good deal at the moment is the LG G4 stylus

it looks like its based on the note 4 but obviously lower specs to make the price of 8450 thb

at the moment there is a free 32GB Memory card and a leather LG case and 1 year warranty

[stament]

doubt its the g4 at that spec probably an old stylus. They tried to sell me an old one in Dubai, guessing the same one, and if it is then chalk and cheese compared to the g4. keep us updated though....

[speedtripler]

doubt its the g4 at that spec probably an old stylus. They tried to sell me an old one in Dubai, guessing the same one, and if it is then chalk and cheese compared to the g4. keep us updated though....

it isnt the 23,000thb flagship G4 obviously but they used the same name

http://www.jaymart.co.th/productdes1.asp?proID=8911

for the budget price they have made a very nice phone ,it feels well made,the display is bright (720p hd)

and free 32GB micro sd and nice leather style case

[stament]

i know the one I actually went for the LG Magna very pleased with it, on the website you linked to for thb 5990, its got newer stuff on it vs the stylus you mentioned so the salespeople told me. very happy with it but struggling to find a case for it as they only seem to have the official lg ones.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Re the LG Magna, a bit light on memory with only 1GB, disk space of only 8 GB, and no LTE, only 3G. But respectable specs, for an affordable priced phone.

[stament]

Tall guy agree totally a lower end budget phone but works well and i believe u can put a memory card in. good feel, certainly better than my old iphone 4,

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Yup, supports up to a 32GB SD card for added storage space.

The only issue is, some Android apps either cannot or cannot easily be moved from phone storage to SD card storage. But for storing music or video files, etc, SD card storage is fine.

Separately, the newer, upper model phones these days are coming with 2-4GB of RAM.

A lot depends on the individual user, and how much/many apps they're installing and using on the device.

For a new Android device these days, I'd see 1 GB memory and 8 GM ROM space as minimums.

You also have to remember, the phone's own OS and related files are going to take up space on the ROM, usually about 4 GB out of the 8 GB, depending on the device. So from the get go, before you install anything, up to half of the phone storage may not be available to the owner.

Edited September 3, 2015 by TallGuyJohninBKK