[tiwil]

A great thread by @deanhills, big thanks

I have a phone that I bought back in 2017. Not so expensive, about 250 USD I think. It's Asus Zenfone 4 Max Pro with Android, of course, version 9 I think.
Asus released the upgrade (to v.9) but they don't give it as official release, therefore they don't give any update. Even though no update given, it's still running perfectly fine until now.

I don't have secondary phone, I don't think I even need one.

Lastly, my dream phone. I ... I just don't know. I think I want iPhone for my dream phone and can catch up with the new trend everytime they release new phone. Well, let's see. I hope I can be that successful

[xdude]

@deanhills

Flagship phones are over-priced in all brands IMO. Those were something to consider in the old days when budget phones were total crap. But today things different There are good budget phones from many brands which are great for the average user. Today there are task-specific phones like Apple is known for cameras and sounds but if you need a budget version then OPPO phones are also known to have good cameras. I used to recommend people to go for those used flagship phones if they want a quality phone for a cheaper price but not anymore. Especially after that drama of Apple and Samsung manipulating the performance of old phones.

[Kururin]

Thanks for your contribution @Kururin.  I'm curious.  What difference would 5G functionality make for you?

Well, in my area 5G is really prevalent and it gives you fiber optic speed. As can be seen here:

It would be very fast and more speedier to have than current 4G speed, you can even stream game on it like Stadia. Everything is much faster

[deanhills]

[...] if you need a budget version then OPPO phones are also known to have good cameras.

Awesome suggestion thanks dude.  OPPO phones are available here so am definitely going to check these out.

For about three days I've been tempted (just tempted) to order Google Pixel 4A. It is completely unavailable in South Africa and I was thinking of ordering it from Amazon which in South Africa means importing it. It's supposed to be budget, has some awesome specs, but for me to go through the hoops of getting a phone from the US, particularly with customs constraints etc. the phone has to be better than anything comparable I can get in South Africa.  I scanned through a lot of reviews, and in the UK I at last found one that wasn't trying to impress Google with how great the phone was supposed to be.  I'm sure it is an OKish phone, but I don't think to the extent one has to import it.

So now I have a new phone to check out around here - OPPO.  I'd like a separate smart phone to check out for new up to date Android and I'm thinking of changing my SIM provider.  So I'd like to test an alternate SIM and get an idea of how far behind I am with my Android 6.  I don't want to get cheap cheap, as that never works out well with cell phones, but maybe just under middle of the budget range.  4 GB RAM 64 GB storage Good camera nice screen with vivid colors.

Another option for something novel is Huawei P40 Lite.  Huawei is much in demand over here.  P40 Lite is bit expensive though, even though it's supposed to be a budget phone, but since it would be a phone to test out new things, it may be interesting to see how well a phone does without Google Play Store.  Could turn out to be a dream come true?  

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Well, in my area 5G is really prevalent and it gives you fiber optic speed. As can be seen here:
[...]

Looks awesome for sure.  While I was researching Google Pixel 4A I was really wishing I could be in the US just to try out the variety that is available.  Google Pixel 4A also comes with a model with 5G.  Any way, I think I've got over my temporary insanity for now.  Dream on DH ....

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A great thread by @deanhills, big thanks

I have a phone that I bought back in 2017. Not so expensive, about 250 USD I think. It's Asus Zenfone 4 Max Pro with Android, of course, version 9 I think.

Thanks for the positive feedback @tiwil.  Looks like you're a minimalist with using phones.  Minimalists always seem to like Apple.  So who knows, maybe one day you'll be an Apple owner.

[Kururin]

Looks awesome for sure.  While I was researching Google Pixel 4A I was really wishing I could be in the US just to try out the variety that is available.  Google Pixel 4A also comes with a model with 5G.  Any way, I think I've got over my temporary insanity for now.  Dream on DH ....

Yea wish I could try the 5G, the speed blows! Does South Africa not have the 5G towers yet? I hope you get to try it soon! Pixel is a good phone non the less if I was not using Apple I would go use Pixel but their privacy is still wonky with Google.

[deanhills]

Yea wish I could try the 5G, the speed blows! Does South Africa not have the 5G towers yet? I hope you get to try it soon! Pixel is a good phone non the less if I was not using Apple I would go use Pixel but their privacy is still wonky with Google.

South Africa does indeed have the 5g towers.  There's a premium of course on phones with this add on, but yes, it's available as every where else. South Africa just doesn't have the same selection and offerings of phones in overall as in the US and elsewhere.  There is a strong support for Huawei and other high quality brands from China, also Samsung and Apple and Nokia.  But Google for some or other reason doesn't want to sell its Google Pixel 4A in Africa. Good with spying on every one, but not selling its phone in Africa.  

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@xdude  I checked out OPPO and after some research into the A53 that is heavily marketed in South Africa, looks like it's a cheap phone made to look expensive.  I found this article on the aggressive marketing of OPPO.  It's just a bit cheaper than medium range budget to "under" price them.  So in the review of the A53 it pointed out for just a few more bucks one can get much better.

Here is the article on OPPO's aggressive marketing of its phones:
https://youthistaan.com/why-dont-we-reco...martphone/

And here's the review of its A53 phone:
https://www.techradar.com/reviews/oppo-a53

I'm now currently looking at Huawei P40 Lite - although maybe "just looking" as it's a bit pricey for me - but good value though:
https://www.gsmarena.com/huawei_p40_lite...w-2084.php

What would be an interesting factor for me for the Huawei P40 is how to work with a phone that doesn't have Google Play Store on it.  May be challenging/interesting to download and update the apps that I'm used to.  Lots of support in South Africa, as Huawei has a strong foot in the South African mobile phone market, for a number of years now. I remember when it started in South Africa many years ago, it was a "plastic phone" made in China. How things have changed! It's now regarded a quality brand name, not quite up to Samsung yet, but very popular and highly rated by the SIM contract companies.

[xdude]

@deanhills

You are absolutely correct !! I didn't bother even checking OPPO when I was looking for a phone because I didn't like its price. I was told its Camera quality is good but I was not in the market for camera quality. I needed performance. I have just check OPPO A53 vs Redmi, which is my phone, and looks like Redmi wins hands down. A53 is twice more expensive than Redmi 9 and you don't get anything for justifying that price. When more impressed with my phone compared to A53. The funny thing is I found Redmi 9 photo samples are better and look more natural. So much for this OPPO camera quality myth.

https://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?id...hone3=9996

P45 Lite has a good processor and 6GB RAM which is great. But It doesn't have Google Play. Anyway, What's your budget range and what do you expect from the phone?

[debjit]

@xdude if you are from India there are a lot of options not only redmi, Samsung Galaxy M11 is really compelling and have octa-core and all the other feature with Samsung branding. Oppo and onePlus is not one company so I will choose Samsung over any low quality phone.