[pconline sea election shopping guide] With the rise of low-cost premium smartphones, it's now possible to purchase a phone with impressive performance for around 2,000 yuan, or even less than 1,000 yuan. Some phones in this price range offer performance that rivals flagship devices in certain areas. High-end configurations don't necessarily come with high price tags. Many mainstream features can be found in budget phones, making them a smarter choice over expensive flagships. This shift is largely due to intense market competition.
In the realm of flagship phones, foreign brands tend to dominate. While these foreign brands often command higher prices than domestic ones, they usually maintain a strong presence. However, in the low-cost smartphone sector, foreign brands typically lag behind in configuration offerings. Few foreign brands venture into this price range with high-end, low-cost options. As a result, most high-end phones within this segment are from domestic brands. Some flagship phones eventually drop to the thousand-yuan tier after some time on the market, allowing budget-conscious consumers to enjoy mainstream phones.
Phones priced under 2,000 yuan are generally considered low-cost models. Recently, there have been numerous cost-effective options in this price range, giving consumers an economical choice. From the current market scenario, general wage earners and students remain the primary buyers of low-cost phones. The vast consumer market has attracted many manufacturers to this field. Here, we recommend several popular models, including Charm Blue Note5, Huawei Enjoy 7, 360 Mobile Phone N5s, and Nubia Z17 mini.
Recommended Model: Charm Blue Note5
Reference Price: 899 RMB
Reason: 4000mAh Battery
Charm Blue holds significant influence in the low-cost, high-performance smartphone segment. The Charm Blue Note5 is a budget-friendly large-screen phone. Compared to its predecessor, the Note3, the Note5 doesn’t have massive upgrades, but it remains solidly built. With 4GB RAM, it can handle performance-intensive tasks, and the 4000mAh battery ensures long battery life. Additionally, it features fingerprint recognition, fast charging, and a metal body, making it quite comprehensive. Its starting price of only 899 RMB makes it very accessible.
The Charm Blue Note5 carries forward the design language of the E series. It sports a 2.5D curved glass on the front, offering a premium feel. The overall build feels robust, with the camera placement following Meizu’s consistent design, located in the center of the back. Below the camera is a dual-color LED flash. The front camera boasts 500 million pixels with an f/2.0 aperture, supporting beauty mode, face recognition, and intelligent face brightness adjustment. The rear camera has 13 million pixels with a 5P lens design, f/2.2 aperture, dual-color temperature flash, and phase focus capability, with a claimed autofocus speed of 0.2 seconds.
The Charm Blue Note5 is powered by a Flyme 5.2 system based on Android 6.0, featuring a flat design style that runs smoothly. It supports fingerprint recognition, making unlocking simple and fast. Just place your finger on the sensor, and it unlocks almost instantly.
Under the hood, the Charm Blue Note5 is equipped with a MediaTek Helio P10 processor (MT6755). This chip uses a 28nm HPC+ process technology, which reduces leakage current and optimizes power consumption compared to the previous HPC. It comes with 3GB or 4GB of LPDDR3 RAM and 16GB, 32GB, or 64GB of eMMC flash memory. The Note5 retains the excellent battery tradition of the Note3, with a massive 4000mAh capacity, ensuring nearly two days of standby time.
Editor's Comment: Starting at 899 RMB, the Charm Blue Note5 offers great value for money. Despite its low price, it packs a large screen, big battery, and ample RAM, making it a solid choice for those prioritizing long battery life and affordability.
Recommended Model: Huawei Enjoy 7
Reference Price: 899 RMB
Reason: Long Battery Life
Huawei has been active in both high-end and mid-range markets with its P-series and Mate-series phones. In the mid-to-low range, Huawei launched the Enjoy 7 in July 2017, marking a new series in the Changxiang lineup. The Enjoy 7 features a 5.0-inch HD display, with up to 3GB+32GB memory combinations, ensuring smooth performance. The front camera is 5 million pixels with smart fill light, while the rear camera is 13 million pixels. It houses a large 3020mAh battery.
The Huawei Enjoy 7 boasts an all-metal body with a sleek design, providing a premium feel. The fingerprint scanner is placed on the back. The camera and flash are positioned slightly differently this time, stacked with the top antenna. The Enjoy 7 is available in various colors, including champagne gold, streamer gold, pink, black, red, and blue.
Powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, the Enjoy 7 comes with 2GB and 3GB RAM options and 16GB and 32GB storage. Prices start at just 899 RMB for the lower-end model, while the higher-end model tops out at 1099 RMB, making it an affordable option in today's market.
The Enjoy 7 pairs a 5MP front camera with a 13MP rear camera, meeting daily photography needs. It runs on Android 7.0 (EMUI 5.1), ensuring a smooth user experience. The 3020mAh battery offers over a day of standby time. Dual-card dual-standby functionality allows users needing two SIM cards to operate them seamlessly on one device.
Editor's Comment: Positioned in the mid-range, Huawei Enjoy 7 is competitive in the 1000 RMB segment. Though its specs may not be the strongest, it excels in battery life, making it a worthwhile purchase for budget-conscious consumers.
Recommended Model: 360 Mobile Phone N5s
Reference Price: 1399 RMB
Reason: Affordable 6GB Memory Phone
360 phones are known for surprising consumers with their pricing. Last year, the N series saw strong sales, and this year, the N5 brought the price of 6GB RAM phones down significantly. Three months later, 360 released the N5s, building on the N5’s strengths and delivering even more value.
The 360 Mobile Phone N5s features a 5.5-inch full HD screen with 2.5D curved glass, offering a refined and clear look. The back is a notable change, moving away from the metal material of the previous generation, enhancing its aesthetic appeal. The N5s is equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 653 octa-core processor, paired with 6GB dual-channel memory and standard 32GB/64GB/128GB eMMC 5.1 storage chips, which are nearly 75% faster than the previous generation, improving app launch and document reading speeds. The N5s also houses a 3730mAh large-capacity battery, combined with Android 7.1’s power-saving optimizations, enabling a usage time of up to a day and a half.
The N5s runs on 360 OS 2.0 with an upgraded Android 7.1 kernel. It features Qualcomm’s chip-level anti-theft technology, triggering protection mechanisms against any attacks. Even if the flash memory chip is removed, the data cannot be read, ensuring user data security.
The N5s introduces the market’s first pre-PDAF phase focus dual-camera setup, pairing a 13MP Samsung camera with a 2MP professional depth lens, supporting real-time beautification and SLR-level blur effects. The rear camera is also 13MP with a large f/2.0 aperture, supporting PDAF phase focus.
Editor’s Comment: Low pricing is key in market competition. Phones with 6GB RAM generally cost over 2000 RMB, but the 360 Mobile Phone N5s offers significant savings at just over 1000 RMB. With such a high configuration for its price, it stands out as unmatched among similar models.
Recommended Model: Nubia Z17mini
Reference Price: 1699 RMB
Reason: Budget-Friendly Rear Dual Camera Phone
The Nubia Z17mini is the first model in the Z17 series, showcasing improvements across the board compared to its predecessors, including a rear dual-camera function. Starting at 1699 RMB for the base model, the 6GB memory version costs 1999 RMB. The high-end version is equipped with a Xiaolong 653 processor, while the standard version uses Xiaolong 652, with slight upgrades in CPU and GPU frequencies.
The Nubia Z17mini features a typical family design, with a 2.5D glass screen offering a smooth touch experience. The back is frosted, made with 5 pressings and 205 fine ceramic zirconia sand treatments, anodized for 3 hours, creating an exquisite finish.
Running on the new nubia UI 4.0 Z17mini custom version, the phone offers stylish UI design, smooth operation, and rich features. It supports screen recording, allowing users to save their conversations or interesting articles. The Nubia Z17mini also includes full NFC functionality, supporting card emulation and reading/writing, enabling users to manage their transportation cards and make payments.
The rear cameras of the Nubia Z17mini use dual 13MP IMX258 sensors (RGB+MONO), with a photosensitive element size of 1/3.06 inches and a single-pixel size of 1.12 microns, supporting PDAF phase focus. One RGB sensor reproduces colors, while the other MONO sensor outlines details, increasing incoming light by 96.6%. The front camera is 16MP with an f/2.0 aperture and an 80-degree wide angle. It supports real-time beautification and screen fill light for selfies, offering great convenience.
Editor’s Comment: The Nubia Z17mini is a typical low-cost high-performance phone. While it falls short of flagship-level specs, it provides a popular rear dual-camera setup, 6GB memory, and decent performance with Xiaolong 653/652 processors. It’s more than capable for daily use, making it an attractive option for budget-conscious consumers.
Summary: Low-priced phones cater to mass consumption, with some best-sellers offering excellent value. The models mentioned above represent the cream of the crop in their respective price ranges. They’ve naturally achieved strong sales. The Nubia Z17mini is ideal for those seeking a budget-friendly rear dual-camera phone. The 360 Mobile Phone N5s is perfect for those looking for a low-cost 6GB memory phone. Charm Blue Note5 suits consumers preferring large-screen phones under 1000 RMB. For those valuing long battery life on a budget, Huawei Enjoy 7 is worth considering.
Related Reading:
Nubia Z17mini Review: Dual Cameras, 6GB Storage
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