You can buy a good phone for less than € 400: an overview of the smart budget

Arnoldas Lukošius, Tele2 Innovation Bureau expert, presents an overview of the new OnePlus Nord and Xiaomi Mi10T Pro smartphones and talks about what these flagships may surprise, the media said.

One of the best budget flagships on the market OnePlus Nord

Those who choose a new phone often say they want a cheap one that doesn’t last long, shoots well, and has a processor powerful enough for gaming and video viewing.

However, such a phone is usually a very expensive flagship or does not exist. Still, OnePlus Nord is that rare exception.

The device combines the above features at a low cost. The only aspect that was “saved” was that the frame of the model was not metal, but plastic. It’s true that if we didn’t know, we probably wouldn’t even notice.

Bright screen, big battery. The smartphone has a detailed display with Full HD + resolution and FluidAMOLED technology. The charging speed of the phone is gratifying: the smartphone is equipped with a 30-watt OnePlus Warp fast charge. After connecting a fully discharged OnePlus Nord to the network, the charge reaches 33% after 15 minutes. By the way, the battery has a completely modest capacity of 4115 mAh; it will last at least a couple of days.

Commendable user interface and 5G support. The OxygenOS operating system running on the phone is intuitive enough, convenient and will be familiar to many, even when using it for the first time. The eight-core Snapdragon 765G runs on this model. Also, the processor has an internal 5G modem, so it is ready for the future.

High quality photos. The smartphone even has four cameras, the little one will not really appear. Two 32 MP wide-angle and 8 MP ultra-wide personal cameras let you take wide-angle photos. Furthermore, the selfie camera can record 4K resolution at up to 60 frames per second. And although there is no optical stabilization or autofocus, it shoots really well. It will be a little worse if you can take photos only in low light, when shooting against a window or at night.

The main rear camera with 48 MP resolution also has optical image stabilization. The app lets you instantly choose whether you want to take 12 MP or 48 MP photos. It is true that choosing the latter leaves no possibility of zooming in or shooting with a mixed image effect. The phone also has an 8 MP ultra-wide camera, a 5 MP depth sensor, and a 2 MP macro camera for close-up photography.

The price of the OnePlus Nord model (128 GB) is 399 Eur.

The Xiaomi Mi10T Pro is the flagship option for half the price

Xiaomi began its history as a manufacturer of low-cost but feature-rich phones. It was often referred to as the “flagship killer” because it offered similar or nearly identical options to the more expensive competing models at a lower cost. The new Xiaomi Mi 10T Pro of the tenth generation continues the strategy of this manufacturer.

Solid aluminum housing. The robust frame of the phone is made of aluminum alloy. The screen and the back are covered in fifth-generation Gorilla Glass, with a huge camera module on the back. The self-portrait camera, as usual, is mounted in a hole on the edge of the screen.

Future technologies: 5G and Wi-Fi 6. The phone can hold two nanoSIM cards, but there is no way to insert a memory card. There’s no 3.5mm headphone jack either, but in the era of wireless headphones, it’s already a small loss. The fingerprint reader is edge-mounted – a simple and intuitive solution. The phone is future proof: it will perform very well on a 5G network and will support a 6th generation Wi-Fi 6 connection.

Even the 6.67-inch Full HD + resolution screen has a wide viewing angle, ultra-natural colors, and its brightness reaches 500 nits. The video refresh rate is 144 Hz; You won’t find such a high frequency even on third-party phones that are twice as expensive.

Efficient and durable. The phone has a particularly powerful processor: 8-core, 7-nanometer Snapdragon 865. Thanks to the high-performance Qualcom Adreno 650 graphics processor, efficient LiquidCool cooling system, and high-quality stereo speaker sets, games run better here and they look especially good on such a screen.

The 5,000 mAh battery in the Xiaomi Mi10T Pro is also highly appreciated, making it one of the most powerful batteries in its class. Supports 33 W jet fast charge. Full charge is achieved in less than an hour.

Impressive camera system. The cameras will also surprise you. The 20 MP personal camera supports HDR mode and can record 120 frames per second for a slow motion effect. In addition, it has a very good night shooting function – a rare advantage of the front camera.

The main wide-angle camera has a resolution of 108 MP. The impressive camera features a bright f / 1.7 aperture lens, optical image stabilization, and phase detection autofocus. The second camera, with a resolution of 13 MP, has an extremely wide angle of 123 degrees. Thus, the phone will perfectly capture wide landscapes and allow you to include more videos in the frame. The third has a low resolution of 5 MP but has autofocus and a macro lens. Therefore, when shooting from a very close range, the image will be bright and detailed.

Price “Xiaomi Mi10T Pro” (128 GB) – 549 Eur.