If you are in the market for a new phone that doesn’t break the bank, here are our top 5 phone picks that don’t cost more than $250. Before we begin, it is important to understand that while flagships have started reaching the $1000 mark, the unique features they offer have sort of flowed into gimmicks. Further, for the high-price you pay, often the returns aren’t as exponentially great which leaves an unsatisfied taste for most customers. Not that flagships are bad but they aren’t for everyone. If you find yourself looking for a phone that covers all the basics and has a competitive price, we have sorted some of the best phones available right in the market within this article.
Technology always has a trickle-down effect. Where flagships bring in unique features in one year, the next, you see them in phones that cost much less as the industry has grown to adapt them. Similarly, there is a limit to the practical improvements you can do in a yearly release cycle. Both of these effects have amplified over the past few years hence making way for some amazing value phones! Offering 80% of the functionality of a flagship, these devices cost less than 50% of the price which is a great deal!
Top 5 Phones to Buy for $250
Here is our selection of top 5 phones that you can purchase for $250 or even less. Each of these options are exceptionally well so you wouldn’t be wrong to go with either one.
Huawei Y9 Prime 2019
Talking about bringing flagship features to an affordable price-point, Y9 Prime 2019 is the perfect phone to reflect that. Coming from Huawei, a brand renowned for making one of the best smartphone camera systems, Y9 Prime 2019 comes with a front pop-up camera which is a first at this price range range. Further, having a pop-up selfie camera, it is also the only device in this list that has no front notch which is a big plus in terms of aesthetics. Further, to top it off, the device comes with a large 4,000mAh battery, triple lens cameras and also, 128GB storage. From software’s perspective, it runs EMUI 9.0.1 which is based on latest, stable Android 9.0 Pie version. All in all, this is a great value device and quite hard to beat!
Key Specs:
- Display: 6.59-inch Display (2340 x 1080, 391 PPI)
- Processor: Hisilicon Kirin 710F
- OS: Android 9.0, EMUI 9.0
- Camera Rear: 16MP + 8MP + 2MP
- Camera Front: 16MP FF
- Connectivity: USB Type-C, Bluetooth and 3.5mm Headphone Jack
- Memory: 4GB RAM + 64GB Storage / 4GB RAM + 128GB Storage
- Battery: 4,000mAh
Realme 3 Pro
Realme has really brought us some amazing devices over the past couple of years since it first launched. Their latest Realme 3 Pro offering is one of the best all-round devices that comes with minimal bezels, a tall display, large battery and also, dual cameras! Further, the phone has some amazing gradient color options and also, camera performance is quite superb for the price.
Key Specs:
- Display: 6.3-inch Display (2340 x 1080)
- Processor: Snapdragon 710
- OS: Android 9.0, ColorOS 6
- Camera Rear: 16MP + 5MP
- Camera Front: 25MP
- Connectivity: Bluetooth and 3.5mm Headphone Jack
- Memory: 4GB RAM + 64GB Storage / 6GB RAM + 64GB Storage / 6GB RAM + 128GB Storage
- Battery: 4,045mAh
Honor 20 Lite
Honor 20 Lite is slightly on the expensive side but for the extra few dollars, you get a complete phone with triple rear cameras, Huawei’s efficient HiSilicon chipset and nice storage options. Further, Honor 20 Lite features some amazing colors that reflect differently under varying lights which is a delight to experience. The front camera is a whopping 32MP that yields super crisp photos as well.
Key Specs:
- Display: 6.2-inch Display (2340 x 1080)
- Processor: Kirin 710
- OS: Android 9.0, EMUI 9
- Camera Rear: 24MP + 8MP + 2MP
- Camera Front: 32MP
- Connectivity: Bluetooth and 3.5mm Headphone Jack
- Memory: 4GB RAM + 128GB Storage
- Battery: 3,400mAh
Xiaomi Redmi 7
The previous phone was listed was a bit above the price-point of $250 so to even it off, here is one that costs less than $250, Xiaomi’s Redmi 7. A glass back, dual cameras and Xiaomi’s popular MIUI skin is what this phone offers best. The minimal bezels and smaller screen size also works for its benefit.
Check out our detailed Xiaomi Redmi 7 Review!
Key Specs:
- Display: 6.2-inch Display (1520x 720)
- Processor: Snapdragon 632
- OS: Android 9.0, MIUI 10
- Camera Rear: 12 MP ( f/2.2 aperture) + 2MP
- Camera Front: 8 MP, f/2.0 aperture, 1.12 μm large pixels
- Connectivity: USB Type-C, Bluetooth and 3.5mm Headphone Jack
- Memory: 2GB+16GB / 3GB+32GB / 3GB+64GB
- Battery: 4,000mAh
Nokia 7.1
If you are inspired by Google’s stock Android UI and you want to get the Pixel software experience on the cheap, Nokia 7.1 Plus is the perfect fit! Nokia’s minimal design philosophy paired with exceptional material choices is what makes this phone stand out. Also, as Nokia 7.1 is an Android One device, it will presumably get updates much faster than other competitors!
Key Specs:
- Display: 5.84-inch Display (2280 x 1080)
- Processor: Snapdragon 636
- OS: Android 9.0, EMUI 9
- Camera Rear: 12MP + 5MP
- Camera Front: 8MP
- Connectivity: USB Type-C, Bluetooth and 3.5mm Headphone Jack
- Memory: 4GB RAM + 64GB Storage, 3GB RAM + 32GB Storage
- Battery: 3,060mAh
Conclusion
As we said, all of these phones are great devices and selecting any one would do you absolutely fine!
Which one do you like out of this list? Let us know about your thoughts in the comments below!
