Budget smartphone with a good camera in 2021 - Xiaomi, Samsung or Huawei?

None of the smartphones in question can be called ugly. Maybe Samsung and Vivo look a little worse than the rest with their one-color plastic case. The rest of the devices either shimmer nicely in the sun, or their main color effectively changes into another.

The camera block in all cases is located in one of the corners of the rear panel. It is difficult to find fault with this element of the design. As well as to the front side, because almost its entire area is occupied by an LCD display. Only the location of the front camera differs for different models. Samsung and Vivo use a waterdrop notch. In other cases, an island-type camera is used when it is placed directly on the screen. At the same time, in Realme it should be looked for in the corner, you will have to get used to its location.

Another major difference is the fingerprint scanner. Nowadays, even inexpensive devices have it. But in four cases out of five, it was placed on the power button. It must be admitted that this is not the best solution. Only the South Korean company Samsung did not save. In her case, the scanner is built into the display.And if the models of past years were upset by the fact that the print was not read the first time, then in 2021 this problem is solved.

These devices do not have special moisture protection. Which is not surprising, given the price. On the box with Xiaomi Redmi Note 10, you can find a mention of the IP53 certificate. But this only means that the device is not afraid of splashes.

The dimensions of all devices are approximately the same. It is not surprising that the display diagonal in all cases is very similar. Slightly smaller than the rest - Samsung. At the same time, the South Koreans did not reduce the screen resolution, which is good news. Moreover, they have introduced an AMOLED panel based on organic light emitting diodes here. As you know, such a display consumes less energy, and is also able to boast of deep blacks. Among all four competitors, only Xiaomi can boast of such a screen.

You should also pay attention to the refresh rate. A couple of years ago, all budget smartphones updated the image 60 times per second. However, now some do it one and a half times more often. In particular, Samsung and Realme can boast of a frequency of 90 Hz.It feels good even during normal Internet surfing, not to mention games.

Perhaps the worst display is implemented in a smartphone from Huawei. It has a standard refresh rate and viewing angles are not the widest.

Huawei is usually pleased with the components used in its smartphones. However, US sanctions forced the use of the old platform. As a result, you can’t say by the processor that the device was released in 2021. Kirin 710A seems to have been borrowed from a warehouse. Of course, in terms of power, the difference with competitors is not so noticeable, but it is still there. And this chip does not use the latest graphics accelerator. As a result, this device is definitely not worth buying for games.

If you look at the insides of devices, then Realme, a device released by BBK, can be called the best choice. Only it has 6 GB of RAM, thanks to which the application does not close immediately after you leave it. And 128 GB of permanent memory should also please. With such a volume, many buyers do not even think about installing a microSD card, although there is such an opportunity here. A similar figure can boast of Huawei and Vivo.The other two smartphones have half the amount of built-in storage. Which, however, may also be enough.

All the devices we are considering are “dual-symbol”. But Huawei P smart 2021 forces you to choose between a second SIM card and a memory card.

None of the devices in question is capable of working in 5G networks. But they all support LTE. And almost all devices are able to access the Internet through a high-speed Wi-Fi 802.11ac network. Only Huawei is limited to the slower standard. More devices are able to boast one of the latest versions of Bluetooth, which is characterized by high energy efficiency and stable communication. This means that there will definitely be no problems with connecting a wireless headset.

Many readers of the site iquality.techinfus.com/en/ are already accustomed to paying for purchases with their smartphone. Many of the devices discussed in this article will not make you think of a bank card. At least Realme, Samsung and Vivo have the coveted NFC chip at their disposal. Only Huawei and Xiaomi do not have it. It is sad. Some may even be discouraged from buying.

In terms of connectors, all smartphones are remarkably similar.To synchronize with a PC and connect the charger, a modern USB Type-C is used. And if the flagships offer to use it to output sound to wired headphones, then the five devices we are considering have a 3.5 mm jack at their disposal. Great!

Now even budget smartphones are equipped with a rear camera consisting of three or four modules. The models included in this comparison are no exception to the rule. And if we talk about the main camera, then it is extremely difficult to identify the winner. Even if you take pictures with it in the same place, almost simultaneously, the result is very similar. Approximately the same physical dimensions of the sensor affect. In terms of resolution, the victory is on the side of Samsung, but these are just numbers that do not lead to a real victory.

Auxiliary modules for smartphones are still different. Huawei stands out among them with an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera, which has a relatively good aperture ratio. Realme in this regard, unfortunately, is an outsider. This device uses only 2-megapixel modules. The first is designed to sharpen black and white shots, and the second is designed for macro photography. Samsung, perhaps, shows itself better than the rest. Its modules have higher resolution and wider possibilities. Vivo lets you blur backgrounds and take macro shots. But the resolution (2 megapixels), again, upsets.Xiaomi, on the other hand, has three additional modules, but only the ultra-wide angle, which has an 8-megapixel resolution, is of the greatest interest.

In terms of video recording, some inexpensive smartphones are starting to surprise. Even the Huawei P smart 2021, which seems outdated, can shoot videos in Full HD resolution at 60 fps. And Realme and Xiaomi are completely capable of recording 4K video, albeit at a lower frame rate!

When it comes to the front camera, Samsung is the best at taking selfies. The result is slightly worse for Realme. The rest of the devices are outsiders.

Surprisingly, all five smartphones we reviewed received the same battery at their disposal. Its capacity is 5000 mAh. A sort of standard for the mobile industry in 2021. At the same time, Samsung and Xiaomi work a little longer, since they are equipped with an AMOLED display, which does not have a separate backlit layer. But practice shows that when using any of these five smartphones, you will have to remember the network adapter every evening.

Now every manufacturer is trying to introduce this or that fast charging technology. In the case of Vivo and Xiaomi, this is the third version of Quick Charge.At the same time, the second company managed to achieve support for a 33-watt charger. As a result, the battery of Redmi Note 10 is filled with energy by half in just 20 minutes. A full charge lasts 74 minutes. A similar result is observed with Realme - it completes the process even faster. As for the other devices, they look noticeably less interesting in this regard. Especially the Samsung Galaxy A32.

Almost all smartphones have the eleventh version of the "green robot". And only Huawei has a "ten". Yes, even without Google services. This means you'll have to install apps from the Huawei AppGallery, as well as run into some other restrictions from time to time.

Smartphones have not only an operating system, but also a proprietary shell. The Galaxy A32 shows itself better than the rest. Perhaps this device is endowed with the widest functionality. In particular, “Bixby scripts” are seen as useful, thanks to which the device independently activates a particular function when the right moment comes for this, pre-set by the user.

For this comparison, we have selected five inexpensive devices. Among them, only Samsung stands out in any way - they ask for almost 20 thousand rubles for it. There is no doubt that the built-in cameras influenced the price tag - the rest of the devices received slightly more modest modules.

The cheapest are devices from Xiaomi and Realme. In the case of the second smartphone, the purchase seems to be very profitable, because you get a device that includes 128 GB of permanent and 6 GB of permanent memory. If everything is in order, then you will use it for several years. And let's not forget the 90Hz screen! In a word, even a game lover can purchase such a smartphone.

Which device is more worthy of the money spent? As mentioned above, Realme should definitely suit most buyers. It is felt that BBK is only actively developing this brand so far, as a result of which the devices are sold almost at cost.

It should be noted that Xiaomi and Samsung also received a high average score. They won in three and four categories, respectively. This allows us to conclude that their purchase should not disappoint either. What can not be said about the acquisition of Huawei. Alas, but recently this company has almost completely stopped releasing new smartphones. In this regard, the replenishment of the App Gallery will be increasingly rare. Because of this, we do not see much point in buying such a device.