Budget-y Android phones
Discussion
Am in the same predicament at the moment, as return to the UK in about a month after 2 years living abroad, and don't want to go down the expensive phone route and be tied into and expensive contract. So want to pay under 200 for a phone and then just get a sim only contract myself.
So, possibly the Wileyfox Swift, the Vodafone smart prime 7 or the Moto 4G...
So, possibly the Wileyfox Swift, the Vodafone smart prime 7 or the Moto 4G...
I was in the same predicament looking for a phone for my wife.
I was going to buy a Chinese phone but then read posts about them coming with 'additional' software and i couldn't be bothered spending time trying to remove it or changing the system.
I ordered a OnePlus3 for her but cancelled it due to the shipping issues and lack of support contact when posting tickets. Didnt want to experience the same if we had issues later on.
In the end i bought her a Nexus5 which she likes.
I was going to buy a Chinese phone but then read posts about them coming with 'additional' software and i couldn't be bothered spending time trying to remove it or changing the system.
I ordered a OnePlus3 for her but cancelled it due to the shipping issues and lack of support contact when posting tickets. Didnt want to experience the same if we had issues later on.
In the end i bought her a Nexus5 which she likes.
leemarkadams said:
Am in the same predicament at the moment, as return to the UK in about a month after 2 years living abroad, and don't want to go down the expensive phone route and be tied into and expensive contract. So want to pay under 200 for a phone and then just get a sim only contract myself.
So, possibly the Wileyfox Swift, the Vodafone smart prime 7 or the Moto 4G...
The Smart Prime 7 is apparently okay, but still pretty low spec.So, possibly the Wileyfox Swift, the Vodafone smart prime 7 or the Moto 4G...
For a few quid more you can still get the Smart Ultra 6 (£99), mine has been absolutely perfect (had it since launch, now being used by swmbo on O2). Think I paid the massive sum of £1.49 to have it unlocked. Scandalously slow service too, it took the unlocker about 2 hours to send me a code
The Smart Ultra 7 has been announced, more expensive (£135) and not really that much of an improvement in spec (bit of a sideways move in ways).
I've just gotten a BLU Life Mark with Android Lollipop on.
Its my second BLU phone, the first was a WIN 5 LTE with Widows. Not the best of operating systems, and it really let the rest of the phone down. The Life Mark is much better. Its got a decent processor and ram, plus is duel sim. Very happy with it.
Its my second BLU phone, the first was a WIN 5 LTE with Widows. Not the best of operating systems, and it really let the rest of the phone down. The Life Mark is much better. Its got a decent processor and ram, plus is duel sim. Very happy with it.
carreauchompeur said:
I've had a Wileyfox Swift for a couple of weeks and it's absolutely fantastic.
Fresh. Clean, easy to use OS without the mountains of bloat ware on my last Samsung. Exceptional battery life and does everything asked of it thus far. Very, very impressed. Especially at £150!
£150?Fresh. Clean, easy to use OS without the mountains of bloat ware on my last Samsung. Exceptional battery life and does everything asked of it thus far. Very, very impressed. Especially at £150!
RRP is only £129.99 ... did you buy some extras as well?
Also impressed that they offer a 3yr warranty for £9.99 !
I'm really stuck - starting to think that a Swift is the way to go - but do I need to buy it quickly, because will it be replaced by the Spark? As the Spark's reviews have not been good at all - to the extent that the year-old Swift seems like a much better phone. The only problem I've heard of with the Swift are patchy GPS reception (and I use TomTom extensively).
I would go for the Oneplus 3, but I have heard horror stories about their customer service.
I almost went for a Nexus 5x (£230 for a 32gb model on amazon right now) as it's camera is incredible, but they seem to get slow and their battery life disappears after a few weeks of use - none of the long term tests are good.
Would have done the logical thing and updated by current Moto G (my second), but no notification light on the G4 Plus.
So, Wileyfox, then?
I would go for the Oneplus 3, but I have heard horror stories about their customer service.
I almost went for a Nexus 5x (£230 for a 32gb model on amazon right now) as it's camera is incredible, but they seem to get slow and their battery life disappears after a few weeks of use - none of the long term tests are good.
Would have done the logical thing and updated by current Moto G (my second), but no notification light on the G4 Plus.
So, Wileyfox, then?
dxg said:
I'm really stuck - starting to think that a Swift is the way to go - but do I need to buy it quickly, because will it be replaced by the Spark? As the Spark's reviews have not been good at all - to the extent that the year-old Swift seems like a much better phone. The only problem I've heard of with the Swift are patchy GPS reception (and I use TomTom extensively).
I would go for the Oneplus 3, but I have heard horror stories about their customer service.
I almost went for a Nexus 5x (£230 for a 32gb model on amazon right now) as it's camera is incredible, but they seem to get slow and their battery life disappears after a few weeks of use - none of the long term tests are good.
Would have done the logical thing and updated by current Moto G (my second), but no notification light on the G4 Plus.
So, Wileyfox, then?
as i've said further up, build quality and customer service was not impressive from Wileyfox. There are other posts on here from other people with similar problems to meI would go for the Oneplus 3, but I have heard horror stories about their customer service.
I almost went for a Nexus 5x (£230 for a 32gb model on amazon right now) as it's camera is incredible, but they seem to get slow and their battery life disappears after a few weeks of use - none of the long term tests are good.
Would have done the logical thing and updated by current Moto G (my second), but no notification light on the G4 Plus.
So, Wileyfox, then?
I've got this
https://www.amazon.co.uk/BQ-16-Aquaris-Smartphone-... x5
Had it 3 months now.
Cyanogen, programmable notification light, privacy guard, excellent battery life, camera is good enough for my needs, seems very quick, dual SIM and add a memory card for a few quid. I'm very happy with it
https://www.amazon.co.uk/BQ-16-Aquaris-Smartphone-... x5
Had it 3 months now.
Cyanogen, programmable notification light, privacy guard, excellent battery life, camera is good enough for my needs, seems very quick, dual SIM and add a memory card for a few quid. I'm very happy with it
RCBRG said:
as i've said further up, build quality and customer service was not impressive from Wileyfox. There are other posts on here from other people with similar problems to me
And also posts from people who love them.I note you had the Storm, which I agree has many well-documented issues. The model in question here is the Swift, which is by all accounts far more sorted phone.
deckster said:
And also posts from people who love them.
I note you had the Storm, which I agree has many well-documented issues. The model in question here is the Swift, which is by all accounts far more sorted phone.
I've now bought 3 Swifts and had no problems with any of them and know a couple of other people with them and no issues - all very pleased.I note you had the Storm, which I agree has many well-documented issues. The model in question here is the Swift, which is by all accounts far more sorted phone.
Storm was very unreliable, at least at the beginning.
The Sparks are an unknown quantity; lets hope they are more Swift than Storm-like but its clearly a gamble.
If I was looking for a cheap Android I'd buy the Swift or wait to see how others get on with the various Sparks.
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