There was a time that all £150 would have got you is a good feature phone or a very basic smartphone. Nowadays, thanks to the increased amount of competition around there is plenty of choice for less than £150 and in this article, we are going to take a look at 5 of them from Samsung, Nokia, Huawei and Xiaomi.
Samsung Galaxy A10
Despite the A10 being the entry level model of the Galaxy A range, it still has a lot of great features for the price. Starting with a 6.2” LCD screen with 81.6% screen to body ratio, 720p resolution and 271 ppi density. It has a plastic back and frame and weighs in at 168g. Inside is the Exynos 7884 chipset with 2 and 4GB RAM options with 32GB of expandable storage. It has a 3400 mAh battery as well as a single loudspeaker and 3.5mm headphone jack.
On the camera front, it has a single rear camera (same as the iPhone SE) positioned top left. This is a 13MP f/1.9, 28mm wide lens with auto focus. It takes 1080p video at 30fps. The selfie camera is located in a central teardrop notch. This is a 5MP f/2.0 unit. Available in blue, black, red and gold. This is a great little phone with the Samsung quality you would expect.
Nokia 5.3
There are a number of Nokia handsets that come in at under £150, this is the highest priced one, but if you want to pay less you could consider the 4.2, 2.3 or 1.3 which get less expensive as the model number decreases. The 5.3 has a 6.55” LCD screen with 82.3% screen to body ratio, 720p resolution and 268 ppi density. Its plastic back and frame weigh it in at 185g. Shipping with the latest Android 10 it has a Qualcomm SM6125 processor with 3, 4 or 6GB of RAM and 64GB of expandable storage. The battery is a good sized 4000 mAh unit.
The 5.3 has a quad main camera array positioned centrally in a black circular mount. This array consists of a 13MP f/1.8 wide lens with PDAF, 5MP 13mm ultrawide, 2MP macro and 2MP depth. These will shoot 1080p video at 30fps. On the front the selfie camera is in a central teardrop notch and is an 8MP f/2.0 wide unit that also shoots 1080p video at 30fps. Available in cyan, sand and charcoal, the Nokia 5.3 is certainly one of the better specified phones on the list.
Huawei P Smart 2019
The P Smart 2019 packs a lot into its small frame. It has a good-sized LCD screen at 6.21”, with an 83.1% screen to body ratio, better 1080p resolution and 415 ppi density. Like the previous two handsets it has a plastic back and frame, weighing in at 160g. The P Smart 2019 ships with the older Android 9, but the good news is that you can still get Google Play services and all its apps from this phone, unlike newer Huaweis. It has a Kirin 710 processor, 3GB of RAM and 32 or 64GB storage options, both with expandable memory. The battery is a 3400 mAh one and there is also a single loudspeaker and 3.5mm headphone jack.
It has 2 rear cameras, located in a black pill shaped mount on the top left. These 2 units are a 13MP f/1.8 main with PDAF and a 2MP depth sensor. The selfie camera, located in centrally positioned U shaped notch, is a 16MP f/2.0 unit. Both front and rear cameras take 1080p video, the front at 30fps and the rear at 30 or 60fps. Available in four colours – midnight black, aurora blue, sapphire blue and coral red, the P Smart 2019 is a good-looking phone that is good value for money.
Read more about the Huawei P Smart 2019
Xiaomi Redmi 9
The Redmi 9 is the newest phone on the list, only being released in June 2020. It has a 6.53” LCD screen with 83.2% screen to body ratio, 1080p resolution and a 395 ppi density. It is one of only two phones on the list with Gorilla Glass 3 to protect the screen, while the back and frame are plastic, meaning it weighs in at a hefty 198g. It ships with Android 10 and the Mediatek Helio G80 chipset. This is supported by 3 or 4GB RAM options and 32 or 64GB of expandable storage. It has the largest battery of our 5 handsets with a massive 5020 mAh one that supports 18W fast charging. It has a single loudspeaker and 3.5mm headphone jack, like the other phones on our list, but one unique thing the Redmi 9 has is an infrared sensor, so you can use it to control your TV and other devices around your home.
Like the Nokia it has a quad rear array camera, arranged vertically in a central black pill shaped mounting. This consists of a main 13MP f/2.2, 28mm wide with PDAF, 8MP f/2.2m ultrawide, 5MP f/2.4 macro and 2MP f/2.4 depth. The selfie camera is in a central teardrop notch and is an 8MP f/2.0 wide unit. Both front and back cameras shoot 1080p video at 30fps. Available in carbon gray, sunset purple and ocean green, the Redmi 9 is a great phone for the price.
Samsung Galaxy A20
The final handset on our list, and the second Samsung is the A20. This is the only one with a superior AMOLED screen as opposed to LCD. This is a 6.4” one with 85% screen to body ratio, 720p resolution and a 268 ppi density. With Gorilla Glass 3 protecting the screen, coupled with a plastic back and frame, it weighs in at 169g. Shipping with the older Android 9, it has Samsung’s own Exynos 7884 chipset (same as the A10) with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of expandable storage. It has the usual single loudspeaker and 3.5mm headphone jack and the battery is decent sized 4000 mAh one with 15W fast charging.
The A20 has a dual array rear camera, positioned to the top left in a black pill-shaped mount. This has a main 13MP f/1.9, 28mm wide lens with autofocus and a 5MP f/2.2, 12mm ultrawide in support. On the front the selfie is located centrally in a rather large looking teardrop notch. This is an 8MP f/2.0 unit that, like the rear array, shoots 1080p video at 30fps. Available in black, deep blue, red, coral orange and gold the A20 is one the one for you if you want an AMOLED screen.
So, there you have it our list of 5 great smartphones for under £150. Whilst they all share a lot of the same features and functionality, each has its own reason why you should consider it. If you are not sure which is best for you, why not call into one of our stores, where are friendly and helpful staff will be able to show you the handsets and help you decide which you want most.
