Samsung Galaxy A36 for $400: With a better value, you’d assume the A36 could be even higher than the A26, proper? Mistaken. The Galaxy A36 (6/10, WIRED Assessment) hits many highs, together with a brighter show, good battery life, and strong cameras, however storage will not be expandable, and efficiency was bizarrely extra uneven. The 6 years of software program assist is good, but when the cellphone is already annoying to function, I can not think about what it will be like in 6 years. It is an OK cellphone, however you are able to do higher.
{Photograph}: Julian Chokkattu
TCL 60 XE Nxtpaper 5G for $250: TCL’s 60 XE (7/10, WIRED Recommends) has an anti-reflective matte display known as Nxtpaper to restrict the blue gentle coming into your eyes for higher sleep and diminished eye fatigue. There is not any proof to recommend that blue-light blockers work, however in case you ignore these claims, that is nonetheless an important funds cellphone with a satisfying matte display. There’s a swap on the facet that allows you to flip between completely different show modes that flip the display nearer to a monochrome or shade E Ink expertise, nice for followers of e-readers. Efficiency is nice, the digital camera is respectable, and there are extras like a headphone jack and microSD card slot. The one drawback is that the display is difficult to learn in direct daylight.
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Motorola Moto G Energy 2025 for $300: The Moto G Energy (7/10, WIRED Recommends) is a rung under the Moto G Stylus 2025 above, and whereas I believe it is a good smartphone, efficiency is extra sluggish than opponents just like the CMF Cellphone 2 Professional. You do get a number of the identical perks because the Stylus, like an IP68 water resistance score, headphone jack, microSD card slot, and wi-fi charging, however it sports activities an LCD panel, and the beginning storage is 128 GB.
Moto G Play 2026 for $180: Motorola’s new Moto G Play 2026 provides 5G connectivity for the primary time. Nonetheless, efficiency remains to be fairly sluggish, with apps and webpages taking a number of seconds to load. If you wish to pay little or no cash, this may do the job, however I believe you should purchase the Moto G Energy 2025 as an alternative, as a result of it is typically on sale for almost the identical value. Whereas the Energy’s efficiency is not superb, it is significantly better than the Play, and has stronger cameras and extra options.
Motorola Edge 2025 for $400: The Edge has a waterfall show, which is a cool impact the place the glass edges of the cellphone bleed into the perimeters, making a bezel-less impact. It is a dying breed of cellphone as a result of, seems, glass edges can interrupt the touchscreen and might make telephones annoying to make use of. It is not as a lot of an issue right here, however my important concern is that efficiency is somewhat too stuttery for a cellphone at this value. The lackluster software program replace coverage additionally simply makes it laborious to advocate over opponents just like the Pixel 9a.
Minimal Cellphone for $499: Wish to scale back your reliance on a smartphone? The Minimal Cellphone (6/10, WIRED Assessment) has an e-paper touchscreen and a bodily keyboard, however it runs Android. Which means you’ll be able to nonetheless entry each app you’d need through the Google Play Retailer, however the expertise goes to be inferior, as a result of cellphone’s low refresh price (good luck watching movies on this factor) and the tiny monochrome display. Nonetheless, this can be a respectable various (or possibly even a second cellphone) in case you simply wish to get away from doomscrolling.
Samsung Galaxy A16 for $200: Samsung’s Galaxy A16 nonetheless does not attain the highs of the Galaxy A14, and that is largely as a result of sluggish efficiency. Positive, Samsung is promising six years of software program updates, however that outstanding replace window does not matter when the cellphone is frustratingly gradual, and also you wish to throw it out the window. For those who barely plan on utilizing this system however need one thing from a dependable model that can keep safe, the Galaxy A16 is OK. Its efficiency simply is not aggressive with different equally priced telephones.
Nuu N20 for $130: Proper after I examined the Galaxy A16, I moved on to the cheaper Nuu N20. Coloration me shocked. Sure, it may nonetheless be sluggish, however efficiency on this almost $100 cellphone is much better and manageable. I used it for per week with no main issues. Effectively, besides one: GPS on this system is not nice. The few occasions I used it for automobile navigation, it struggled to seek out my location, and it was gradual to replace the map. The opposite large drawback? The N20 at present runs Android 14, so it is already old-fashioned, and the corporate tells me there isn’t a “precise schedule for software program updates.”
Sonim XP Professional 5G for $550: This rugged cellphone is bought by way of Verizon solely, however I examined it on Google Fi and did not have any connectivity points. (Fi is powered by T-Cell’s community.) I’ve dropped this Android cellphone a number of occasions on the sidewalk (on goal), and the display has not cracked. It is fairly sturdy, and that is largely the explanation to purchase it. By itself, it isn’t wholly spectacular—you should buy extra highly effective, feature-rich telephones for the cash. The digital camera is very unhealthy, constantly delivering blurry pictures until you keep as nonetheless as a statue. However efficiency is respectable, it comes with 256 GB of storage with a microSD card slot, and there is a customizable button you’ll be able to set to set off a shortcut or open an app.
Nothing Cellphone (3a) Lite for £249: Nothing’s Cellphone (3a) Lite (6/10, WIRED Assessment) is a complicated smartphone in its lineup. The CMF Cellphone 2 Professional exists and is comparable in value (CMF is Nothing’s sub-brand), and generally, there are higher telephones you should buy for the cash. The cameras are lackluster, and there is a number of bloatware, which appears like the other of Nothing’s philosophy. Efficiency is respectable, as is its battery life, however this cellphone additionally is not launching within the US.
What Telephones Ought to You Keep away from?
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For those who’re eyeing a low cost cellphone, attempt to stick to call manufacturers. There are a number of smartphones you may discover for filth low cost on Amazon, however you are about to load up no matter you purchase along with your private info and photographs—it is necessary to ensure it is a respected model with good safety practices (or at the very least some form of document that it does concern safety patches).
