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May

BLU Announces The Studio 5.0, Studio 5.0 S, and Studio 5.3 S: Jelly Bean, Big Screens, And Small Prices

Posted by Jeremiah Rice in BLU Products, News

BLU isn't yet a household name in the realm of smartphones, but the company has been quietly releasing hardware for the last few years, letting the remarkably low pricing do the talking. Today they've pulled the cover off of three new models, all aimed at the new "phablet" craze, or at least the lower end of it. The new Studio GSM smartphones start at 5 inches and just $149, and all three feature Android 4.1, the Google Play Store, and dual SIM slots. Specs are low, but these phones look like ideal budget devices or travel companions.

The Studio 5.0 is the cheapest of the lot, at $149 unsubsidized.

Dec

Sony Announces Xperia E And E Dual, Low-End Jelly Bean Handsets, Optional Dual-SIM

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in News, Sony

Sometimes, it can be a bit arguable what counts as a "low end" phone these days. Even cheap phones are so powerful that calling them anything lower than mid-range can seem insulting. This one, however, makes us pretty comfortable with the moniker. With a 1GHz Snapdragon S1 processor, a 320x480 TFT display, and a 3.2MP rear camera, the Xperia E fills out Sony's budget line just fine.

Optionally, the Xperia E Dual has the option for dual SIM card slots, which is great for business users, and those who need to work with multiple networks. And, in what must be a treat for anyone looking to buy on this end of the handset market, the regular E ships with Jelly Bean, while the E Dual will receive the upgrade soon.

Oct

Alcatel ONE TOUCH Shockwave Hits US Cellular Today For $49.99

Posted by Ryan Whitwam in News, US Cellular

It's easy to get caught up with the top-of-the-line Android devices, but there is also a thriving market for budget handsets. The Alcatel One Touch Shockwave is such a device, but it's not without appeal. The Shockwave, as its name suggests, is built to withstand being knocked around a bit.

The Shockwave has a shock-resistant casing, Dragontrail tempered glass, and water-resistant seals. It's a smaller device with a 3.5-inch screen and rounded corners. The specs are definitely toward the low end with a 3.2MP camera, single-core 800MHz processor, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth. That small touchscreen is also sitting at HVGA (480×320) resolution.

Sep

Walmart Offering A No-Contract T-Mobile Galaxy S II For $300 With A $30 Monthly Plan (5GB Data, Unlimited Text)

Posted by David Ruddock in Deals, Galaxy S II, News, T-Mobile

It's not often we find ourselves excited about prepaid here in the US, but if any store can get people excited about saving money, it's Walmart. And what Walmart and T-Mobile just announced is actually pretty exciting if you're looking for a way to get on the smartphone bandwagon with low monthly overhead.

For $300, Walmart will sell you a contract-free T-Mobile Galaxy S II. That in and of itself probably isn't very exciting. The Galaxy S II is definitely getting long in the tooth, but it's also not a bad phone by any stretch of the imagination. The really exciting part is that once you buy it, for $30 a month you can get a prepaid T-Mobile plan that gives you 5GB of 4G data, unlimited texting, and 100 minutes of voice (come on, who uses minutes?).

Jul

HTC One V Coming To US Cellular Stores July 6th, Now Available Online For $129.99 After $100 Rebate

Posted by Jaroslav Stekl in HTC, News, One V (Primo), US Cellular

The One V is continuing to blaze across the US carrier trail - first, Virgin Mobile began selling the device for $200 prepaid, and now US Cellular has joined the fray.

Available now online, US Cellular's One V will cost $129.99 after one of those wonderful $100 mail-in rebates. Unfortunately, if you're new to US Cellular, you'll have to sign a two-year contract upon purchasing the device; if you're an existing customer, it doesn't appear you'll have to sign anything of the sort. If for some reason you'd prefer to get the handset from a brick-and-mortar location, you'll have to wait till July 6th.

Jun

HTC: We Want To Keep Our Image Positive, So Don't Expect Any 'Cheap, Cheap' Phones From Us

Posted by Cameron Summerson in HTC, News

Here's an interesting turn of events: just one week after announcing a new budget device, HTC CEO Peter Chou told the Wall Street Journal that the Taiwanese manufacturer will not cater to the low-end phone market. To be exact, he said that "[they] don't want to destroy [their] brand image," so they won't sell "cheap, cheap phones" just to boost shipments. Given the ambiguity of his statements, it's hard to say what his definition of low end actually is. Could he mean they won't ship anymore One V-type phones? Or does that fall into the mid-range category given the superior construction and quality materials?

Jun

MetroPCS Launches The Activa 4G, Huawei's First LTE Android Phone In The U.S.

Posted by Eric Ravenscraft in Huawei, MetroPCS, News

It may not get the tech world's heart all a-flutter to hear that MetroPCS is launching a Huawei phone, but the world needs budget phones and networks too! The duo is teaming up this time to bring no fewer than four gees to consumers for the first time in a Huawei device. The Activa 4G is a modestly spec'd phone, with a 3.5" HVGA display, a 5 megapixel camera, and running Android 2.3. It's still sad to see phones shipping with Gingerbread, but on budget devices, it's not as unexpected.

The device, predictably, is pretty cheap. At a normal price of $250, the phone comes down to $150 after a $50 mail-in, and another $50 instant rebate.

May

Huawei Ascend Y100 Launching Exclusively On O2 In The UK For £80, Promises To Be Nice To Your Wallet

Posted by John Thompson in Huawei, News, O2

At a time where phone networks in the UK are fighting over 4G spectrum, it's easy to forget that not everyone is willing, or able, to spend £40 a month on a fast mobile phone - just ask those public sector workers who are striking over pensions today.

With this in mind, it shouldn't come as a surprise that O2 is attempting to broaden its smartphone lineup by adding Huawei's Ascend Y100 into the mix.

The device is a far cry from the phones that are normally advertised by the network; if you visit O2's home page you'll be greeted by high-end Android phones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S III, alongside the iPhone and Windows Phones, too.

Apr

LG Lucid Review: The Budget Smartphone, Evolved

Posted by David Ruddock in LG, Lucid, Phone Reviews, Reviews, Verizon Wireless

Last Updated: April 30th, 2012

Budget smartphones are a lot like those miniature cans of Coca-Cola you'll find on supermarket shelves - cheaper by the half-dozen than their higher-volume counterparts, but with the obvious catch that you're getting less sweet, delicious corn-juice for your dollar. It doesn't take more than 30 seconds to stop, think about this, and realize that even if you won't finish the big 12oz can during your lunch (or don't want to drink that much soda), you're still basically paying more for choosing to buy less.

This is how budget Android smartphones often work, except they're more like buying a six-pack of those Coke minis with one can missing, and a couple more that have pretty obviously been dropped at some point.

Dec

Huawei Honor Review: This Is What A Budget Phone Should Be

Posted by David Ruddock in Honor (U8860), Huawei, Phone Reviews

Last Updated: December 26th, 2011

Budget phone. The very sound of those two words, together, makes me slightly ill. In fact, it makes me almost immediately seethe with a sort of "nerd-rage." I hate the way budget phones are peddled onto the tech-illiterate by commission-motivated hucksters at "Big Four" carrier phone stores. I hate seeing people get locked into 2-year contracts because they got a "great deal" on a smartphone. "It was free!" they'll say, and that the nice sales representative (his name was Jimmy) kept them from buying "something they didn't need," because they walked in with a firm spending limit and they weren't going to budge!