Which Are The Best Budget Smartphones In 2019

The phones laid out in this article are classified as budget smartphones as there are the ones you can get the best bang for your buck. All of them are smartphones and are close to each other in terms of general specifications, but certain features make them unique. If you are looking to get a quality entry-level smartphone to save money and still have an up-to-date device, look no further as you will find the best of the best in the paragraphs below.

The following specifications are showcased for each phone, either in the paragraphs that follow or in the table at the top:

• Usual price
• Operating System
• CPU model (Processor)
• RAM memory
• Battery capacity
• Fingerprint Scanner availability

We will start with the smartphone which we consider the best in the budget class and go down as specifications are lowered, regardless of brand. We haven’t personally tested each phone, but made this TOP 10 article with the specifications and available technologies in mind. We also know how important RAM memory and a battery with big capacity are for a 2019 device, so part of the order in this listing is due to these specific criteria.

Here are the TOP 10 best budget phones for 2019, so far:

The Oukitel U18 became available back in 2018 and for a whole year it continues to hold the number one spot in the budget class. With its amazing 4GB RAM memory and an octa-core 1.5 GHz processor, applications load as fast as lightning. And with the more than necessary 4000 mAh Li-Polymer battery with quick-charging feature availability the phone can last a full day by using all of its features and up to two or more by using it just for making calls.

Oukitel U18 has 4G, 3G and 2G connectivity although it does not support Indian bands, thus it is not what somebody in India would use, unfortunately. With its capacity of 64GB storage and coverage of the most widely-used Wi-Fi standards it seems that the phone does not have any cons. The 16 MP + 5 MP double camera at the back is a great addition for picture lovers, although the video could have had more than 30 frames per second available. In addition to everything stated above, a 13 MP front camera for selfies, face detection and a fingerprint scanner at the back for extra security, this phone covers every basic need a normal user would need and more.

The biggest drawback of the phone seems to be the low pixel density of the screen and the low 1512×720 resolution with a 21:9 screen aspect ratio. Although that some companies make phones with bigger ROM memory availability and more complex cameras for making prettier pictures, this phone is still one of the best considering it is constantly on promotions from 129 USD down to 89 USD which is absolutely the best you can get for that price considering all the great specs that come with it.

Why You Should Buy

4000 mAh Li-Polymer battery

Future-proof 4GB RAM memory

Why You Should Avoid

Does not support telecommunication band channels in India

Basic 1512×720 pixel resolution with a bad 21:9 aspect ratio

Gome U7 is another great addition to the listing as you can get 4GB of RAM for a price of around 90 US dollars. Gome released this phone back in August 2018, but nine months after and it is still among the highest considered choices for a smartphone on the cheap side. Back then the fashion was to make the phones with more cores, even if some of them ran a lower frequency. It is the same with the Gome U7 – Octa-core CPU with four cores running at 2.5 GHz and the other four at 1.6 GHz. The battery is 3100 mAh which compared to the Oukitel phone might seem quite smaller, but the difference is not that huge. Besides, this is still a big battery that should last you through the day.

Two cameras with 13 Megapixels, one at the front and one at the back await the happy user who buys this phone. We see that it is again a sensor by Sony which is a relief as they make good cameras. With all the Internet standards of 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.11g, 802.11n, and even the 802.11n 5GHz Dual band, Wi-Fi connectivity and Internet browsing is a fast and fun experience. Speaking of bands, the telecommunications array supports 4G, 3G and 2G bands with a wide variety. The fingerprint scanner on the front is always welcome in such a low-tier phone.

What can be seen as drawbacks from the Gome U7 could be the battery capacity and the Octa-core CPU with different frequencies, but they are not necessarily such. The battery life should still be high, and the lower frequency on half of the processor cores could help that more than you know.

Why You Should Buy

Two 13 Megapixels cameras by Sony

Future-proof 4GB RAM memory

Why You Should Avoid

Old OS based on Android 7.1

Old octa-core CPU with high power drain

The Ulefone P6000 Plus phone is right between the Gome and Vernee phones with its 3GB RAM memory and the incredible 6350 mAh Li-Ion battery. With such a battery you are guaranteed to get a full day out of the phone with intensive usage. The phone can be found for 92 US dollars and that is a steal.

The ARM Cortex-A53 quad-core processor running all of its cores at a 1.3 GHz frequency is pretty normal for a phone of this range. Nothing special about the GPU as well – it has an integrated PowerVR GE8100 chip. Ulefone P6000 Plus has cameras, but they are really lacking in terms of Megapixels – 8 MP at the back and 2 MP for selfies is not up to 2019 standards and really low for a phone produced in April, 2019.

Ulefone P6000 Plus has a standard 720×1440 pixels resolution and up to 32GB storage capacity which covers the essentials for budget smartphones. If you are looking for a phone that is used primarily for phone calls, and is cheap, this is exactly for you. If you are looking for a great balance of specs and a good camera, you might be disappointed.

Why You Should Buy

Future-proof 6350 mAh Li-Ion battery

3GB RAM memory

Why You Should Avoid

Bad 2 MP front selfie camera

Low 720×1440 pixels resolution

Vernee T3 Pro holds the third spot with its superb 4080 mAh Li-Ion battery and sufficient 3GB RAM. While it excels with these two specs, it lacks in terms of processor power with a quad-core processor with 1.3 GHz on each core. The 4G band is present along with the fingerprint scanner that we are happy to see. You can find the smartphone for the price of 99 USD, just a shy of a solid 100.

Unfortunately, the cameras here have lower stats than the phones reviewed above. The 5 Megapixel front camera is not good enough for selfies in our opinion and the one at the back is a double 13MP + 2MP, which is the same as the ones from 2013 except for the double camera technology. The external storage potential is limited at 32GB but that should be enough for most people who want a smartphone on a low budget.

The Vernee T3 Pro has a resolution of 720×1440 pixels and Android 8.1 Oreo as an operating system. The biggest downside is that the 4G band is not accessible in the United States. That would stop a lot of people from buying it and to consider other options to spend their hard-saved money on.

Why You Should Buy

4080 mAh Li-Polymer battery

3GB RAM memory

Why You Should Avoid

Bad 2 MP front selfie camera

4G band not accessible in the USA

Lenovo A5 is priced at 115 USD but there are promotions all around bringing it down to 85 USD. With a promo or not, the price is worth it. Lenovo A5 is equipped with a huge 4000 mAh Li-Polymer, non-removable battery and 3GB RAM memory. The smartphone supports the 4G standard and has the MT6739 Quad Core 1.5GHz CPU inside its corpus. The phone is packed with a great set of hardware and features.

The camera at the back is comprised of an unknown sensor, 13 Megapixels with a f/2.2 blend and autofocus, but achieves only 720p HD quality and 30 frames per second when shooting a video. The frontal camera is 8 MP which is much better than a lot of the cameras of competitor phone brands in this price range. On the bad side, you have to tweak settings to clear the blur created when taking photos.

A rear-mounted fingerprint scanner makes the phone a bit more likeable. An important thing to note is that even with the 3GB RAM some applications can still stutter and load slower than other phones with that much memory. That could be also because due to the OS being only Android 8.0.

Why You Should Buy

4000 mAh Li-Polymer battery

3GB RAM memory

Why You Should Avoid

Photos with both cameras are blurry

We arrive at the UMIDIGI A3 Pro. As a 120-dollar budget smartphone, we are not exactly impressed, but that is not a concern with sales bringing it down to the whooping price of just 88 USD. UMIDIGI A3 Pro offers a 3GB RAM memory, a MediaTek MT6739, 64-Bit Processor running on a 1.5 GHz frequency for all its four cores. To balance things out we have a non-removable 3300 mAh Lithium-Ion battery with 5V/1A quick charger.

The GPU is PowerVR GE8100, at 570MHz, the cameras are 12 MP + 5 MP at the back, with a Omnivision OV12870 sensor and 8 MP as a front camera. The UMIDIGI A3 PRO not only unlocks with traditional fingerprint, but also supports the unlocking technology with FaceID. The IEEE802.11 a/b/g/n Internet protocols are supported, so your online surfing experience will be easy.

The screen is only 720p with a resolution of 1512×720 Pixels and 18:9 aspect ratio. The capacity of the storage is limited at 32GB which is a good average, although some users would consider it too small.

Why You Should Buy

3300 mAh Lithium-Ion battery

3GB RAM memory

Why You Should Avoid

Limited 32GB storage capacity

Basic 1512×720 pixel resolution with a 18:9 aspect ratio

LeEco is a Chinese multinational conglomerate corporation group. The group maintains ventures in consumer electronics, automobiles, media content, streaming, film and other business. The corporation has expanded its business to the USA, India and other countries. LeEco officially expanded into the US market in November 2016, beginning sales of televisions and mobile phones.

Another Chinese budget smartphone, the LeTV Le 2 X526 by LeEco proves to be a well-balanced option for its price of 105 USD. Powered by a 3000 mAh battery and supported with a 3GB RAM memory, you should feel certain that the device will handle applications with ease and last you a day with regular usage. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 1.8GHz octa-core processor will also help deliver a swift performance to whatever task you would need.

32GB storage, fingerprint and an option for a mobile hotspot, the LeTV Le 2 X526 budget smartphone leaves little to be desired except a bigger battery for the processor it is packing. Android 6.0 is also a bit old already and users would seek a more modern version of the OS.

Why You Should Buy

3000 mAh battery

3GB RAM memory

Why You Should Avoid

Old Android 6.0 Marshmallow OS

Not the best option for the $105 price

The Doogee BL5500 Lite is a unique budget smartphone. It is equipped with a 5500 mAh Li-Polymer battery but that is not why it has the same numbers in its name. There are other Doogee smartphones labeled 5500 such as the X5500 which has only 2800 mAh battery and almost twice as cheap as BL5500. Nevertheless, Doogee BL5500 Lite brings an amazing battery that even some 220 USD phones do not have and at the price of 80 USD it is most definitely the better deal.

The Doogee BL5500 Lite is powered by Mediatek MT6739WA chipset (ARM Cortex-A53) with a quad-core processor running on a 1.3 GHz frequency on all cores, 2GB of RAM and 16 GB of internal storage capacity. It runs Android 8.0 Oreo as an operating system and it handles it good with the given hardware. We have a rear camera with a Sony IMX135 Exmor RS sensor with a resolution of 13 MP and a 5 MP selfie camera.

All in all, this is a great budget smartphone considering the specifications as a whole. However, if you are looking for something more powerful to run games which need more resources and power, this device might not suit your needs.

Why You Should Buy

Future-proof 5500 mAh Li-Polymer battery

Camera with a Sony IMX135 Exmor RS sensor

Why You Should Avoid

Mediatek MT6739WA chipset

Only 16 GB internal storage capacity

Xiaomi is one of the biggest smartphone brands in China and has gained a lot of popularity and trustworthiness throughout the World. The brand tries to remain competitive and rival smartphones in every class by piecing together some of the newest technologies.

Xiaomi Redmi 6A is no exception. We are talking about the cheaper version with 2GB of RAM which although essential in this day and age should suffice run all applications you want with relatively good speed. The 3000 mAh Li-Polymer battery should last you a day or even a day and a half, even with some more tampering on your side. The rear camera is 13 MP and makes relatively nice photographs for a phone of this class. The front camera is with a resolution of 5 megapixels but makes the photos blurry with the default settings.

The phone is running Android 8.1 Oreo as an OS, but there is a planned update to Android 9. Even better, the custom UI of Xiaomi – MIUI makes everything more accessible and easier to navigate with, compared to Android 8 for example.

We have an IMG PowerVR GE-class GPU packed inside, but without the capability of running VR as the technology is not implemented. A fingerprint scanner is also lacking in the Xiaomi Redmi 6A. On the bright side, the phone has one of the most innovative and new chipsets – the MediaTek Helio A22 (MT6761) which brings the chip to just 12 nm, which is amazing. Running its four cores at 2 GHz you will be able to handle most games with ease.

In our tests, with casual gameplay, making a few calls here and there, using Internet for a couple of hours, snapping around thirty photos, the phone was down to 25% battery life on the first day. We can safely say that the CPU is draining less power, so even with making more calls you should definitely last a full day with the Xiaomi Redmi 6A.

Why You Should Buy

MediaTek Helio A22 (MT6761) CPU

OS upgradable to Android 9.0 Pie

Why You Should Avoid

No gyroscope, thus no VR support

No Fingerprint Scanner

In the last place on this list comes the Nokia 3.1. Nokia had difficulties in the past, especially with their Microsoft era, which brought Windows as a replacement OS for the Symbian. But ever since Nokia phones had Android, we can safely say that they are back and up to snuff with the latest trends in the phone business.

Nokia 3.1 brings the essentials you would need for a smartphone, starting with a 2GB RAM memory and a 2990 mAh battery. Nokia is known to make their phones in such a way that they could utilize their battery life to its full potential. Understand that as a battery that drains slowly, even if it has lower capacity. If you are looking for a bigger battery though, you should consider the 2.1 model which has 4000 mAh.

The 4×1.5 GHz + 4×1.0 GHz ARM Cortex-A53 octa-core processor inside the Nokia 3.1 is not the best for the price, but an average one. It should be powerful enough to load all games and applications you need, although you might have to be more patient. The phone does not have a fingerprint scanner, but has a gyroscope sensor, so it should support VR.

Nokia 3.1 is prices at 125 US dollars. We cannot say that the price is fully justified, but if you want a beautiful phone, which has great microphones, made primarily for phone calls and has a good pocket camera, this is for you.

Why You Should Buy

Gyroscope sensor, VR support

OS upgradable to Android 9.0 Pie

Why You Should Avoid

2990 mAh battery

No Fingerprint Scanner

Know that despite we have made our research thoroughly and chose the best phones in our eyes, there a lot of other phones out there who are worthy to be tried out. Not to mention that there are upcoming phones which in terms of technology alone should beat some of the phones listed above. Also, take into consideration the fact that how a phone drains its battery is dependent on a lot of factors, including how much the phone is exploited and with what, how is the OS optimized, etc. You should consider why you need a phone – be it for phone calls, pictures, durability or gaming and research about the technologies that are implemented, plus if it is available in your country or if you can use it for calls. We have tried to be as objective as possible without focusing on a specific brand or reputation.