Buying a $300 phone comes with a big choice: fun features or more support

If protecting a price range is necessary, there are lots of issues which can be value it telephones for lower than $300. And these telephones are prone to get a brand new highlight as vacation offers slash them much more, however there is a massive trade-off for telephones on this value vary. A telephone with fashionable specs like a lovely design, improved multitasking, and wi-fi charging would possibly nonetheless solely get a significant software program replace and three years of safety patches. Some telephones underneath $300 have an extended timeline of 4 years for software program updates and 5 years for safety updates. However these units skimp on some options, nonetheless leaving you desirous to improve sooner.

That is the dilemma I’ve weighed after testing a wide range of telephones that value lower than $300 via 2024. We take software program and safety timelines severely in our critiques as a result of these updates can dictate whether or not units get new options. software program updates and demanding fixes. Now that premium telephones like Samsung Galaxy S24 AND Pixel 8 seven years of software program and safety updates are promised, we would wish to see extra inexpensive telephones develop to a minimum of 4 to 5 years.

Nonetheless, we’re not there but. Most telephones that value $300 or much less are transport with a promise of an extra software program replace and three years of safety updates. Whereas Samsung is taking the alternative strategy with it $200 Galaxy A15 5G AND $300 Galaxy A25 5Geach get 4 years of software program updates and 5 years of safety updates, each have an outdated design and lack options discovered on comparable telephones.

Which means consumers should face the identical determination I have been pondering for the previous few months: Do you go together with a extra feature-packed telephone, equivalent to $300 OnePlus Nord N30 5Gwhich has ultra-fast wired charging and a 108-megapixel major digicam? Or is it higher to go for a extra stripped-down telephone like these in Samsung’s Galaxy A sequence, which can obtain vital software program updates for years to come back. And to make issues extra complicated, what about an older system that’s now being supplied at a reduction, equivalent to Google Pixel 6A?

Extra options, however shorter updates

Motorola and OnePlus each provide $300 telephones which can be worthy of your time and a focus.

of this yr Moto G Energy 5G is a looker, beginning together with her pale lilac vegan pores and skin sample. Everybody The Moto G line now makes use of this materials, which leads to a neater grip if you happen to select to not use the telephone with a case. Motorola has additionally thrown 15-watt wi-fi charging into the combination, making it one of many least expensive telephones to incorporate this selection. You may get quicker 30W speeds whenever you plug in your telephone and cost it the old school method, however the flexibility to cost wirelessly is sort of helpful — and uncommon at this value.

Final yr’s OnePlus Nord N30 5G has a lovely reflective design that highlights its 108-megapixel major digicam. It took good photos once I reviewed it final yr, however the actual worth characteristic was its 50-watt SuperVooc charger. Though it is proprietary (which means solely the included charger achieves these speeds), it recharges the battery as much as 75% in half-hour — a velocity most different telephones cannot obtain.

Each of those telephones embrace a super-smooth 120Hz refresh charge, NFC for contactless funds, and processors which can be quick sufficient to multitask together with gaming. However sadly, each of those telephones even have shorter replace schedules, with the OnePlus telephone already a yr into its replace timeline to get Android 14. Whereas the N30 remains to be on sale, it is solely getting two years of different safety updates. In the meantime, Motorola’s new Moto G Energy 5G will a minimum of get Android 15 in some unspecified time in the future sooner or later and safety updates till 2027.

Lengthy life, however a telephone that is much less enjoyable

Samsung deserves credit score for extending the lifetime of its cheaper Galaxy A sequence telephones. It is completely wonderful that each the $200 Galaxy A15 and $300 Galaxy A25 will get 4 years of software program updates and 5 years of safety updates. No competitor comes near that promise.

I want each telephones had been extra enjoyable although. Samsung nailed the fundamentals for each of those telephones, with high-refresh screens, NFC contactless funds, and highly effective sufficient processors.

However in comparison with different equally priced telephones, Samsung’s Galaxy A units really feel boring. Each are manufactured from plastic and have a blocky notch as an alternative of the sleeker cutout for the selfie digicam discovered on most different competing telephones. Whereas Samsung’s cheaper telephones can deal with the necessities with out challenge, they wrestle with easy multitasking. The A15 specifically masses persistently slowly. Whereas the A25 did higher with most duties, it often stuttered when loading video games or taking part in music whereas concurrently utilizing an internet browser and password supervisor.

This makes the Galaxy A15 and Galaxy A25 completely suited if all you need is a telephone for communication that will not must be changed anytime quickly. However I fear you will run into useless ends as apps and providers develop over the subsequent few years, particularly if these telephones are already simply overloaded.

May Google’s Pixel 6A be the low-budget champion?

You might have seen that I have not mentioned the cameras on any of the telephones talked about earlier than. That is as a result of whereas all of them have a minimum of 50-megapixel major cameras, none of them take notably spectacular images. STILL Google’s Pixel 6A stays obtainable on the market and sometimes priced underneath $300.

Thanks to 1 final extension supplied for Pixel 6 and laterThe Pixel 6A will now obtain software program updates till July 2027 together with safety updates for a similar time. That is a giant enhance to the usability of this cheaper telephone, particularly on condition that Google initially deliberate to finish Pixel 6A software program updates in 2025.

The Pixel 6A’s 12.2-megapixel major digicam remains to be spectacular for the value. It is powered by Google’s first-generation Tensor processor and comes with lots of the Pixel’s flagship options like Magic Eraser for photograph enhancing, Stay Translate, and different outdated Pixel exclusives like Name Screening and Maintain for Me. The Pixel 6A additionally contains AI-powered {hardware} Circle to look. Though the Pixel 6A will miss out on Google’s latest and most superior units Options of Gemini synthetic intelligenceremains to be a promising possibility two years after its launch.

Nonetheless, you will not get wi-fi charging or a headphone jack on the Pixel 6A, and its display is smaller and darker than the opposite telephones talked about on this story.

Easy methods to determine the most suitable choice?

Your priorities matter most when selecting a price range telephone. If you’d like probably the most options for an inexpensive value wrapped in a lovely design, contemplate telephones from Motorola, Google, and OnePlus.

Nonetheless, if a very powerful cause to purchase a less expensive telephone is to keep away from upgrading for so long as doable, you must contemplate Samsung’s Galaxy A telephones.

The irony is that you could’t have each. The telephone that will get upgraded for 4 years could not essentially be the one you need to follow for 4 years.