Two months ago (see issue 346, p70) we started on a mission: to bring you reviews of highly affordable phones. It isn't only about the cost of living crisis and the need to save money, but our belief that while flagship phones make for interesting reading they aren't necessarily what people should be buying. Indeed, as this roundup shows, you can grab a great phone for less than £300.
One big difference between this batch of affordable phones and the last - which ranged from £120 to £159 - is that they support 5G. All the previous models were stuck on 4G. If this isn't an issue, note that the non-5G version of the Galaxy A14 can be snapped up for £179.
What else do you get by stepping up by £100 or so? Certainly screen quality improves. Last time, all four phones had LCD panels, but two here pack an OLED display. And not shoddy OLED panels with poor colour accuracy, either.
We don't have such great news for photographers. None of these phones offer a jump in quality compared to the Moto G13, which came out top last time; think snaps rather than portraits. And if you want optical zoom, you'll need to pay more than £300.
There are other missing features compared to flagship phones. Only one model supports wireless charging (the Motorola Edge 30 Neo), they're all stuck on Wi-Fi 5, and water resistance is basic at best. But just compare the prices of these phones to those of the Zenfone 10 (see p68) or even the Honor 90 (see p69).
We're starting to source our next mini Labs of phones for issue 350. If there's a phone you'd like us to include, email letters@pcpro.co.uk.
How we test
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Denne historien er fra Summer 2023-utgaven av PC Pro.
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Lenovo ThinkPad E16 Gen 1 (AMD)
By no means the last word in excitement, but the ThinkPad E16 is a good-value choice for business users
Huawei MateBook D16
The best and biggest screen here, plus a powerful Core i9 processor, ensure the MateBook D16 stands out
Acer Aspire Go 14
It's tough to argue with this laptop's value for money or battery life, but speed lovers should look elsewhere
HP Spectre x360 16 (2024)
This sleek 2kg convertible packs everything you need, including a Core Ultra chip and optional Nvidia graphics
Five ways to get cloud computing wrong
Don't let your migration projects go up in smoke. Steve Cassidy runs through the blunders to avoid
Control your computer with your face and head -it's the future!
As if to show nothing is new in the world of technology, eye tracking and gesture control date back decades. But if Apple's on board, maybe their time has finally come, suggests Nicole Kobie
Chip off the old block
Standalone sales of the Z80 CPU have finally been discontinued after 48 years. David Crookes looks back on a chip with a staggering impact
Cloud backup 2024
Whether it's through attack or error, your business data is always at risk. Dave Mitchell explains how cloud services can add extra protection and puts four contenders to the test
Elegoo Saturn 4 Ultra
A brilliant advert for resinbased 3D printing, with a host of features that make it easy to obtain great results
HP All-in-One 27 cr-0014na PC
A speedy and temptingly priced all-in-one PC with a fine 27in display-but note its 1080p resolution
