Looking for an unlocked android phone >$200 range

[jnelsoninjax]

My nieces' partner is in need of a new phone, and each time they receives a 'new' device, it is a used, and most of the time, damaged device from their mother who controls their money. I am willing to help and purchase a decent device and am looking for something around $200 or so, and needs to be unlocked. I checked Amazon and the selection is crap from what I can see. At this point I do not care brand or feature(s), just something new that works good. Right now I am looking for some guidance on what brand(s) to look at.

[spikey_richie]

You won't get much at that price point, best you'll get is something like a Pixel 4a. That starts at $349, although Google have no stock.

[+InsaneNutter MVC]

The OnePlus Nord N100 would be a good phone you can buy new for $179, battery life should also be good with a 5000 mAh battery.

[jnelsoninjax]

On 10/11/2021 at 10:50, spikey_richie said:

You won't get much at that price point, best you'll get is something like a Pixel 4a. That starts at $349, although Google have no stock.

Sad, but true at this point in time. What would a better price range be?

On 10/11/2021 at 11:18, InsaneNutter said:

The OnePlus Nord N100 would be a good phone you can buy new for $179, battery life should also be good with a 5000 mAh battery.

I like the looks of that one, I'll show it to them and see what they say

[goretsky Supervisor]

Hello,

 

I have used a number of Motorola smartphones in the past and been generally happy with them.  In the price range you are discussing, I would suggest looking at a Motorola edge, Moto G Power, Moto G Pure, Moto G Stylus, or Motorola One.

 

I have also heard good things about Nokia phones, and the Nokia 3.4, Nokia 5.3, Nokia G10 and Nokia G20 are in your price range.

 

On the Samsung side, a Samsung A12 might be an option.

 

I would suggest avoiding anything manufactured by BLU due to repeated issues with their phones being preloaded with non-removable spyware.

 

Regards,

 

Aryeh Goretsky

 

[PGHammer]

On 10/11/2021 at 14:53, goretsky said:

Hello,

 

I have used a number of Motorola smartphones in the past and been generally happy with them.  In the price range you are discussing, I would suggest looking at a Motorola edge, Moto G Power, Moto G Pure, Moto G Stylus, or Motorola One.

 

I have also heard good things about Nokia phones, and the Nokia 3.4, Nokia 5.3, Nokia G10 and Nokia G20 are in your price range.

 

On the Samsung side, a Samsung A12 might be an option.

 

I would suggest avoiding anything manufactured by BLU due to repeated issues with their phones being preloaded with non-removable spyware.

 

Regards,

 

Aryeh Goretsky

 

I still recommend the Pixel 3a (albeit refurbished/pre-owned) for several reasons: it still has one of THE best cameras of any Android phone, despite the age of the phone, Android 12 supports it directly, it is deployable on any carrier that supports Android at all, and it is not a wallet-buster.

[+devHead Subscriber²]

The Moto G Power (the one I use) has their brand new 2021 version for $180 on their site. It's an excellent phone.  Whoever says you can't get a good unlocked Android mobile phone for ~ $200 is incorrect.  Google Pixel 4a for $349?  That's a joke.

 

https://www.motorola.com/us/smartphones-moto-g-family#

[+devHead Subscriber²]

On 10/11/2021 at 15:50, spikey_richie said:

You won't get much at that price point, best you'll get is something like a Pixel 4a. That starts at $349, although Google have no stock.

Really? you can get the Moto G Power or pretty much any other Moto G phone for over $100 less and they are super good phones. 

[PGHammer]

On 20/11/2021 at 17:04, devHead said:

The Moto G Power (the one I use) has their brand new 2021 version for $180 on their site. It's an excellent phone.  Whoever says you can't get a good unlocked Android mobile phone for ~ $200 is incorrect.  Google Pixel 4a for $349?  That's a joke.

 

https://www.motorola.com/us/smartphones-moto-g-family#

How is the camera compared to the Pixel (even the Pixel 3 or 3a)?  The same question needs to be asked as far as performance goes (something that the Pixel 3a in particular takes some lumps for, despite my own lack of complaints in that area).

[Marujan]

You can buy any phone, but it will not compatible with your cell operator for 100%.

 

Check cell coverage in your area 1st, choose operator(price), then take a phone at last.

 

t-mobile: 2-4-12-41-66-71 bands

att: 2-4-5-12-14-29-30-40-66 bands

vzw: 2-4-5-13-46-48-66 bands

 

 

https://www.cellmapper.net

https://www.signalbooster.com/pages/what-is-lte-frequency-band-why-do-carriers-use-different-ones

 

[DKAngel]

xiaomi phones are pretty decent and cheap, ive been using one for the last 3 years and had a couple of mid range models that have yet to fail me =]

[Gerowen]

I'm loving my Nokia G20.  Stock Android One without any pre-installed crapware, and since it's Android One it'll get security updates for years to come.  My Nokia 3.1 STILL gets current updates.  128GB of storage, decent camera, dual SIM, micro SD expansion slot, etc.  The only thing I don't like is that they seem to have skimped on the 2.4Ghz radio.  It doesn't have 5Ghz WiFi, which means that if I've got it bluetoothed to my watch and then I take a call on something like Signal while connected to WiFi, the audio breaks up and gets interrupted because I guess the bluetooth and WiFi share an antenna and interfere with one another.  This isn't an issue if I'm running over mobile data, so it's gotta be something with the WiFi/Bluetooth radio.