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News flash: we’d all like a Samsung Galaxy S8. But when saving up for an underground bunker in the backyard seems a better idea by the day and soon penny sweets may end up costing a pound, maybe it’s a good time to save a few quid. The good news is you don’t need to spend a fortune to get high-end design, screens or performance anymore. We’re not here to recommend the £15 Nokia phone everyone forgot Nokia still makes, but the sort of phones we’d still be happy to use instead of that dream Galaxy S8. Here’s the best of the budget best. Lenovo Moto G5 (£159) The easiest-to-recommend budget phone series of the past few years has been the Moto G. It’s good, it’s cheap and you can find its phones just about anywhere. All around us tech prices have crept up over the last six months, but the Moto G5 is still a rock-bottom wonder. This year there a few changes, though.
The G5 is more like a metal-injected version of the Moto G3 than last year’s Moto G4, because it has a 5in screen rather than a giant 5.5in one. If you want big-screen thrills you’ll have to check out the Moto G5 Plus instead. There’a panel of aluminium in a removable plastic back cover for a touch of class and a neat finger scanner on the front. It’s showier than old Moto Gs, but thanks to the chunky screen bezel you’re not going to convince friends it cost £500. Don’t get cocky.
It does have loads of great characteristics, though. The 1080p screen is sharp and pretty punchy-looking, the software is totally standard Android 7.0 apart from a couple of useful little tweaks.
And despite the entry-level octa-core CPU, it feels pretty snappy too. The Moto G5 doesn’t do anything leagues better than the last Moto G. Its camera is still a solid but not mind-blowing 13MP jobbie on the back and a 5MP one on the back. However, to get something much better you’ll have to spend £60-100 more. That’s a lot when we’re talking about a phone this price. Buy the Moto G5 from Motorola Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✭ The Moto G5 holds onto its title as one of the most affordable phones to get two thumbs-up. Tech Specs Moto G5 in figures Operating system: Android 7 • Screen: 5in 1920x1080 • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 octa-core • RAM: 2GB • Camera: 13MP rear, 5MP front • Storage: 16GB plus microSD Lenovo P2 (£199) Here’s one of the greatest phones you’ve probably never heard of. The Lenovo P2 is a good deal all-round, but its top hit feature is amazing battery life. It has a 5100mAh battery, even though the phone is just 8.35mm thick. Plenty of budget phones struggle to get this thin even with a normal battery.
True two-day use is the norm here, not just an overambitious claim on the manufacturer website. You can even use it to recharge another device. Battery life if probably why you’d buy the Lenovo P2, but there are other star features too. It’s one of the cheapest phones to have a Super AMOLED screen, and it’s a 5.5in one too: great for Netflix and the like. When we first reviewed the Lenovo P2 it ran Android 6.0.1, but an Android 7.0 Nougat update is slowly making its way across the globe.
By the time you read this it might already be out. Unlike Lenovo’s Moto G5 Plus, there is a custom interface rather than pure and simple Android, but it’s not one that over-stretches and ends up getting on your nerves. The Snapdragon 625 CPU has enough power to keep everything ticking along nicely too, with just the odd frame rate hitch in demanding games. The only bit you need to manage your expectations with is the camera.
It can take some great photos in good conditions and will do the job for Instagram, but slows down when using HDR, and image quality drops when the lights go down. Buy the Lenovo P2 here from Three Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✭ The perfect budget phone for those tired of their mobile dying by bed time. Tech Specs Oppo F1 in figures Operating system: Android 6.0.1 • Screen: 5.5in 1920x1080 • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 octa-core • RAM: 3GB • Camera: 13MP rear, 5MP front • Storage: 32GB + microSD Honor 6x (£215) Once upon a time — well, a couple of years ago — the only metal phones would be expensive ones. Models like the Honor 6X are part of a new breed of low-cost metal natives. It’s like a high-end phone, only with a hint more chunk factor and without most of the design personality. But that feel of aluminium is hard to beat. The 6X has a sharp and bold 1080p 5.5in screen too, once again getting you a lot of the sensory impact of a more expensive phone but for less cash. There’s a generous 32GB storage and a decent rear fingerprint scanner as well. Real tech show-offs may want to look for a phone with a USB-C port, though, as this one has the older microUSB.
That said, this is one of the cheapest phones to have a dual sensor main camera. Don’t expect real high-end results, but you can create shots with a fake blurry background effect, apeing an iPhone 7 Plus. It’s great for arty portraits. As with any Honor phone, we have to mention the software.
And it’s not all good. The Honor 6X has a dated version of Android, 6.0, and Honor’s Emotion UI. This fiddles with Android quite a bit, lopping off the apps menu to end up like a mash-up of Android and iPhone iOS. Not everyone loves Emotion UI. It works well in pure day-to-day performance terms, though. Only high-end games start to put pressure on the Honor 6X. Buy the Honor 6x here from Huawei Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✩ A good budget phone if you want to try out high-end features like dual cameras on the cheap. Tech specs Honor 5x in figures Operating system: Android 6.0 • Screen: 5.5in 1920x1080 • Processor: HiSilicon Kirin 655 octa-core • RAM: 3GB • Camera: 12MP+2MP rear, 8MP front • Storage: 32GB Blu Life Max (£89) The best cheap phones still cost over £100. But if that’s just too much cash, track down the Blu Life Max. It’s a seriously cheap Android phone that still manages to squeeze in a couple of surprising features.
There’s a fingerprint scanner on the back, and the 3700mAh is mammoth considering the screen is only 720p resolution. You can get this phone to last for two full days if you don’t go crazy.
It’s not a slow mess either. Sure, pricier phones are faster, no surprise there, but thanks to the lower screen resolution you can even play fancy 3D games perfectly well. The Blu Life Max is a bit of a bargain, but there are a few bits and bobs you need to learn to accept.
First, there are the quirks of the design. On the back you find fake leather.
It’s really plastic, and we wouldn’t blame you for being turned off by this style. We were relieved when Samsung stopped using the stuff a few years ago. The Life Max’s camera is not too hot either. It’ll take Facebook-worthy shots in daytime but a lot of your photos will end up looking a bit washed out, and with resolution of just 8MP, the hardware is actually only about right for the cash. The phone’s speaker is also poor: tinny as the can aisle in Tescos.
If you want to save money and can accept that you miss out on a couple of the finishing touches of a fancier phone, though, the Blu Life Max is definitely worth a closer look. Buy the Blu Life Max here from Amazon STUFF SAYS: ✭✭✭✭✩ A phone this cheap comes with compromises, but it’s a certified bargain. Tech Specs Blu Life Max in figures Operating system: Android 6.0 • Screen: 5.5in 1280x720 • Processor: Mediatek MT6737 quad-core • RAM: 2GB • Camera: 8MP rear w/ autofocus, LED flash, 5MP front w/ LED flash • Storage: 16GB + microSD card slot Wileyfox Swift 2X (£219) Wileyfox is one of the few British phone-makers.
Sure, the things still get made in China, but it’s one extra reason to step forward if you’re on the fence. It’s not festooned with naff union jack graphics either.
The Wileyfox Swift 2X is one of the nicer-looking budget phones going. It has a dark blue aluminium back, only using plastic for the very top and bottom bits of the rear. You get a solid 5.2in 1080p screen, and a fairly loud speaker too. Ever since its early days Wileyfox’s phones have used the Cyanogen custom software rather than normal Android or a UI of its own making. This worked fine for years, but team Cyanogen have put the software to rest, meaning the Swift 2X is current stuck between using Cyanogen and vanilla Android 7.0, with an update in the pipeline.
As such, this is a slightly less safe bet than a Moto G5 Plus. But it’s not like the thing is going to explode in your pocket. It’s not a Samsung.
The Swift 2X’s camera sounds a little better than it is too, though. It has a 16MP sensor rather than the 13MP budget norm, but is not the best at the price.
There’s some shutter lag, the current app is a bit annoying and it’s not much use for low-light photography unless you switch on the flash. This is a rock solid phone for the cash, particularly if you’d rather have a phone people can’t identify from 50 paces. However, the Moto G5 Plus gets you more impressive hardware for just a little more money.
Buy the Wileyfox Swift 2X here from Amazon Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✩ A solid, if not class-leading phone for those who want something a little different Tech specs Wileyfox Swift 2X in figures Operating system: Android 6.0 • Screen: 5.2in 1920x1080 • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 octa-core • RAM: 3GB • Camera: 16MP rear w/ PDAF autofocus, LED flash, 8MP front • Storage: 32GB + microSD card slot Blu Vivo 6 (£185) One of the best ways to get a real phone bargain is to look for a brand that’s just starting out where you live. Blu is new to the UK, but has been going for years in the US. It has already paid its dues. The Blu Vivo 6 is one of its sleeker phones, with a casing of aluminium and glass even though the whole things costs under £200. You’d better like gold or pink, mind, as right now this phone doesn’t come in the safer silver or black shades. There’s also no water resistance or NFC, but a phone that feels close to a £400 rival may be much higher on your priority list anyway. The one bit that gives the budget game away is the fingerprint scanner below.
It’s nice to have one, but it often needs a couple of attempts to actually recognise your finger. Then there’s Blu’s software. It’s not as good-looking as normal Android, and the Vivo 6 also uses a dated version of that software underneath too. We never said this was a perfect phone, but it does look and feel very nice indeed for the cash. Looking a bit deeper, it uses a MediaTek Helio P10 CPU. This isn’t a bristling powerhouse chip, but is used in a few much more expensive phones and keeps the Vivo 6 running quick enough.
The rear camera uses the same sensor as the LG G6, although before you get too excited that phone has much better smarts that go into putting the images together. Quality is good for the price, but as usual it takes a hit at night. Buy the Blu Vivo 6 here from Amazon Stuff says: ✭✭✭✭✩ Classy hardware makes this phone seem more expensive than it is Tech specs Wileyfox Swift in figures Operating system: Android 7.0.1 • Screen: 5.5in 1920x1080 • Processor: Mediatek Helio P10 octa-core RAM: 4GB • Camera: 13MP rear w/ PDAF autofocus, LED flash, 8MP front • Storage: 16GB (with microSD) Sony Xperia E5 (£149) If you can’t live without a big brand plastered on your phone, the Sony Xperia E5 needs to be on your list. However, in a few respects it seems like a top budget phone of a couple of years ago, rather than today.
Less revered brands offer Full HD screens for around the same price, but the E5’s display is only 720p. It isn’t as hot for gaming or reading articles on the train as the Moto G5. On the positive side, the display is super-bright, so can handle sunny days like a pro. There are a few other elements that tell you this isn’t quite a value king in 2017, though. There’s no finger scanner, the frame is all-plastic: scanners and at least some metal elements are now pretty common in phones this price. As usual, Sony’s classy design stops the phone from seeming like something you’d be embarrassed to pull out in public, but you can tell you’re paying a bit for that Sony name. Camera quality is decent, but the white balance can veer off a bit and as there’s no optical stabilisation, night photo quality won’t blow you away. Neither will performance, as a quad-core CPU and 1.5GB RAM make app loads that bit slower than the Moto G5. Battery life isn’t as hot as you might expect given the relatively small, lower-res screen too. With a bit of gaming or Netflix-watching you’ll run it down in a day, no problem.
All these quibbles add up to a phone that’s not the best at the price. However, its software is classier than some. And your friends may be more impressed by “Sony” than no-brand “Cubot”. Buy the Sony Xperia E5 here from Amazon STUFF SAYS: ✭✭✭✩✩ A solid budget phone for those after a big-brand, and don’t mind a few hardware cuts for it. TECH SPECS Sony Xperia E5 in figures Operating system: Android 6.0.1 • Screen: 5in 1280x720 • Processor: Mediatek MT6735 quad-core • RAM: 1.5GB • Camera: 13MP rear, 5MP front • Storage: 16GB + microSD card slot