Gadgets
Buyer’s Guide: Best Mid-Range Smartphones Available for Under R3,500
Find the best mid-range device without breaking your budget!
Due to the exceptionally fast development and improvement of smartphone technology, there has been an increase in the amount of tiers that smartphones are broken down into. Rather than simply having entry, middle, and flagship phones, it’s now possible to get smartphones in every category with distinct benefits. Depending on which feature someone prioritises in their device it’s possible to find one that will offer a benefit in that area. This is particularly true for mid-range devices – so let’s have a look at some of the best ones and where their strengths lie!
Nokia 5.1 – For the Netflix & YouTube Bingers
Price: from R2, 199
Nokia has made a surprising comeback into the smartphone market, and their expansion of their line is making sure there’s a device that suits as many specific customer needs as possible. The 5.1 has fairly good specs all around, but the 5.5-inch FHD+ screen is probably its strongest point, giving not only a substantial amount of screen real-estate but also great quality in its 18:9 aspect ratio, making it really apt at video playback and enjoying series and movies on the go.
Huawei Y7 2019 – The High-Performance Selfie Machine
Price: from R3, 299
Everyone who’s had the pleasure of using the recent Huawei releases is probably well aware that the brand has decided to corner the smartphone camera market in a big way. To be fair, every manufacturer has impressive cameras at this point, but Huawei really puts a lot of effort into their camera tech and tries to go that extra step. With 3GB of RAM, the Y7 is a pretty powerful operator, and the front-facing camera is an impressive 8MP meaning any selfies will look extra crisp for a phone in this price range.
Hisense Infinity H12 Lite – The Premium Dark Horse
Price: from R2,749
Hisense as a brand is quite reputable, but most of the brand name and exposure comes from other tech and electronics, specifically televisions. They’ve joined the smartphone melee more recently, and the brands that do that often offer devices that punch above their weight so that they can try and attract customers from the established players. The Infinity H12 Lite has a 16MP front camera, 12MP+5MP rear camera setup, and 4GB of RAM along with 32GB of onboard storage, giving it a fairly exceptional spec-sheet at this price range. While people may not be that familiar with Hisense phones, this package might be sufficient to get some buyers to give them a try!
Samsung Galaxy J6 – The Safe Jack-of-all-trades
Price: from R2, 999
Samsung is the undisputed king when it comes to the smartphone segment, and they’ve got their long-standing Galaxy line to thank for that title. While the Galaxy started out as their flagship way back when, it’s now a model name that offers a deep variety of phones for every kind of customer. The J6 has a fairly premium feel and good build quality, 13MP Rear/8MP Front camera setup, and a reasonable 21 hour 3G use battery life (over 70 hours exclusive music playback battery life). For a phone that offers all the essentials and executes them well, this is a definite contender.
Getting a solid performer no longer costs the equivalent of a half-decent laptop, it’s entirely possible to get a serviceable smartphone for a good price. Which of these options do you think will turn heads?