Top Five Low Budget Phones For 2017

Originally posted on JULY 18, 2017 

By David Lamma

The year 2017 has come with amazing releases and announcements including the LG G6, the Essential Phone, and the Galaxy S8 and much more to come. While they are great phones they do come with a high-end price tag. Maybe you are waiting for the next big release or just don't want to drop 700 plus dollars on a phone. So I have a list of what I think are the best budget phones for 2017. All of the devices are unlocked and are guaranteed to work on any GSM supported carrier so please check with your carrier to see if they support any devices listed before purchasing. 

5. ASUS - Zenfone 3 Max

Asus makes excellent devices and while this isn't it best device, It sure is darn cheap with its price usually being around $150 for an unlocked phone. What really sets this phone apart from others in the same price range is the battery. At 4100mAh this phone will last you longer than a day before having to charge it depending on what you do. It is carrying a MediaTek MT6737M CPU and 3GB of RAM. I would not recommend this phone if you are a heavy gamer but otherwise, for general usage, it works fine for a phone. Its camera's internal specs are a 13MP with a decent low light sensor. My only gripe with this device it only carries 16GB internal which could be better but it does allow up to a 64GB microSD card for pictures. 

4. Huawei - Honor 6X

Huawei plays a huge role in unlocked devices in and outside of the United States. The Honor device line is fantastic and flexible. The Honor 6X can be seen at retailers for $249 but with a sale or price cut, this device is worth it. Its most notable feature, a 12MP, and a 2MP rear dual camera can really take some photos and has some real estate with the 5.5” display. Its performance really lacks when it comes to CPU but it does come with 3GB of RAM and a 3340 mAh battery. Another specification worth mentioning about this device is also it carries 32GB internal storage with the ability to support up to a 128GB MicroSD SD card. This phone is really good for pictures and videos.

3. Nextbit - Robin

The reason why the Nextbit Robin is on this list is that it is literally the best bang for your buck phone. Easily accessible for 179.99 or less from retailers. I know, I know, It looks weird. But this device is very good. It carries a Qualcomm Snapdragon 808, which in its price range really makes its mark. With a smaller 2680mAh battery, it still enough for the average user. Also, the Robin team is great at putting out the latest software updates in a timely manner compared to other manufacturers. It also has a 13MP camera, which can record in 4k at 30FPS. The Robin carries 32GB internal storage, the catch?  No support for the microSD, Although it has a 100GB of cloud storage. My last and favorite feature of this phone is its dual stereo front-facing speakers. This makes music and movies really enjoyable. This phone is great for general usage.

2.  ZTE - Axon 7 Mini

ZTE usually has a bad reputation for their lower end devices but this is different. They really put a lot of time on the original Axon 7 and the “mini” version of this is not much different. Its 16MP rear camera really goes well with its stunning 5.2” AMOLED display. Packed with a Snapdragon 617 and 3GB of RAM. Its 2705 mAh battery is decent. What is truly amazing is its dual stereo speakers powered by Dolby Atmos® Digital Surround Sound software. This is an amazing option for people that love to watch movies or listen to music on the go.

 1.  Motorola - G5 Plus

Motorola was an industry giant in the wireless industry before smartphones. Then as technology started to speed past them in the smartphone era, it was increasingly difficult for them to catch up. Motorola ended selling out to Google who years later sells Motorola to Lenovo. Lenovo has been doing such an amazing job with the G5 Plus. At $230, Its 625 Snapdragon is best of its class, making multitasking a breeze. Unlike ZTE’s amazing AMOLED display, the G5 Plus, unfortunately, has a 5.2” LCD display with the 1080p resolution. Also, another major disappointment is the lack of a USB-C port, instead of using a Micro USB port. Another fantastic feature is its water repellant coating. A 12MP rear camera and  4K, 30FPS recording capabilities really make this device a viable candidate. It lacks in RAM, only having 2GB but has 32GB internal. There is also the more expensive version of it running 4GB of RAM and 64GB internal but both take up to 128GB in MicroSD expansion.

This is my #1 recommendation for general usage and multitasking.

LG Stylo 3 Plus, an Updated Phablet on a Budget

Originally posted on JULY 18, 2017

By David Lamma 

The LG Stylo series was released at the peak of the phablet era in 2015. Although phablets are not the biggest trend today they still have their market share. The Stylo series comes with a pen that is built into the device, similar to Samsung’s Galaxy Note series. Unlike the Galaxy Note devices, the Stylo is much more affordable and the only phone with a pen in its price range. The one I am looking at is the LG Stylo 3 Plus, not to be confused with just the LG Stylo 3. As far as I know, MetroPCS and T-Mobile seem to be the only carriers for the Plus at the moment. There have been a few changes that I will be pointing out as we go through the review.

Hardware.

With the biggest changes in this department only, the Stylo 3 Plus is much more expensive. The MetroPCS and T-Mobile Prepaid prices sit at $220 and $225 respectively. Starting off, the phone still remains the same size and thickness as the original Stylo 3. Housing a 5.7” 1920x1080 Full HD IPS display instead of the old 5.7” 720x1280 HD IPS display giving you a much clearer look when it comes to viewing photos and watching videos or movies.

Unfortunately, one thing they missed was an upgrade in the processor. Using the same processor as the Stylo 3. Running a Snapdragon 435, it will handle your basic applications with ease. Multitasking saw some slowdown when running multiple heavy usage apps due to only having 2GB of RAM. It handled heavy games fine like Minecraft at full settings but quickly got too hot to handle. Although the Snapdragon 435 is great with battery life, when that chip gets hot you will easily blow through half of your battery in 15 minutes.

Still using Micro USB, the Stylo 3 supports Qualcomm Quick Charge 2.0 minimizing the wait time for a full charge to around 50 minutes. I am a bit disappointed that this device does not utilize USB-C but I can easily get over that. Also equipped with a 3.5 mm headphone jack at the bottom.

Looking at the back, The Stylo 3 Plus has an unimpressive speaker on the back near the right corner. This can easily get blocked while being used, reducing the already lacking sound. One thing LG deserves credit for is the continuous push to place the power button on the back of the device. This not only helps in terms of ergonomics but this feature is a deciding factor for some left-handed users. The power button is also the fingerprint scanner that works really well and is consistent, This button is placed beneath the camera and at times I have mistaken the camera for the power button. One thing that stood out to me as odd was the use of a smaller 3,080 mAh removable battery compared the 3,200 mAh removable battery on the Stylo 3. After doing some research, I suspect that the reason for the smaller battery is due to the addition of NFC on the Plus. On the topic of NFC, It's well placed in the back, right next to the fingerprint scanner. I was able to connect to my Samsung printer via NFC with ease and had no trouble with it.

The biggest difference for the average user is going to be storage size. At 32GB for internal storage is nice, although, in reality, you get around 23GB because of the Android operating system and its additional pen apps in the software that I will touch later on. I believe 16GB is hard to live on now that apps are getting bigger. The positive is that they both can take a MicroSD card up to 2TB for photos, music, videos, documents, and etc.

Software

It comes with Android Nougat 7.0 out of the box. LG devices do not use an app drawer in their phones. I don't like having pages of applications on my home screen so I do recommend using a launcher if you are not a fan of this either. A big plus that you don't see often with devices in their price range is LG’s Comfort View. This allows for a red screen tint or filter on the screen causing less strain to the eyes.

This device also gives you a choice to Chromecast most things which is a really nice feature. A great example is there is a Chromecast button my gallery allowing me to showcase images onto my tv. Also working well with Google’s image editing app, Snapseed. While I am looking at an image in the gallery app, I can tap on the hamburger in the top right corner and tap “open in Snapseed”. This is much easier than having to go through the app itself.

Stylus

I really wanted to make a section dedicated to the Stylus because there is so much ground to cover. There's no big difference between the Stylo 3 and Stylo 3 Plus. The pen is located on the top right corner of the phone and it takes a bit of work to get out. You have to dig your fingernail into the edge to access the pen. As someone who has no fingernails, I would rather have a spring mechanism that pops the pen out. When the screen is on, unsheathing the pen will activate the Pen Pop menu. This menu will bring up a list of applications. Pop Memo, QuickMemo+, Capture+, and Pop Lens are the most important features in this list.

Pop Memo is a note-taking app that allows you to write on the screen. I do not like the pen tool it uses to write at times. The calligraphy for this starts really thick and gets thinner as you write. It is extremely beautiful but the only changes you make are the color of the pen. I would've preferred to get the ability to change the tool instead.  Clearing the memo when making a mistake is very confusing. It took a while to figure out that double-tapping the eraser button would bring another button to clear the memo. When the pen is removed from the phone while the screen is off, it will bring up the Screen-Off Memo. This allows you to take notes like in the normal Pop Memo app but instead, the screen remains black and the ink is white.

To actually take advantage of the options mentioned before you are better off opening the pre-installed QuickMemo+ app which is not an automatic option on the  Pen Pop menu. To change this you either select the plus button or tap and hold any of the icons on the Pen Pop menu. This will bring up an option to select up to 5 applications to open on your menu. Here you tap on the QuickMemo+ switch. Make sure the switch is blue instead of white and you are set to go.

Capture+ is another awesome application this works similar to Pop Memo but instead, it takes a screenshot and allows you to change different pen tips, size, color, and transparency. I have found this extremely useful especially when trying to find a location on a map or trying to set a visual reminder for later. The coolest feature here is the crop button. Here you can crop a specific thing on the screenshot and it will automatically bring the cropped image to QuickMemo+. The last and very nice thing is the Pop Lens feature. This pretty much is a magnifying glass that makes it easier to read words or view images close up.

One thing that I have noticed an inconsistency on is the Pen Keeper feature. This feature will alert you when you stray too far away from the pen. Unfortunately, this does not happen every time you walk away from the pen, I tested it out and I left my stylus at home while I went and ran errands and never got any notification. When I came back home I was sitting in my driveway and got a friendly notification to not leave the pen behind. This is something to keep in mind as the stylus is not easily replaceable. LG does not offer a replacement stylus on their website so you would have to contact them to get one and no one wants that hassle.

Camera

The camera is disappointing. The fact that it does not have a manual mode to fine-tune images before shooting is extremely frustrating. The software instead gives you filters you can use before taking a photo. Its panorama mode is nothing exceptional. It surprisingly takes acceptable shots under low light conditions although the photo is extremely noisy. The camera's auto mode is extremely lacking in color. A lot of the shots are light in color and at times undersaturated in my eyes. The camera can capture a ton of detail but when zooming in or cropping you will notice some noise. When there is too much noise you can easily lose the finer detail in photos.

Here are some examples of my photos shot in Auto mode

Overall

The LG Stylo 3 Plus is an excellent device. While it does carry its shortcomings, the Plus version of this device is already worth the upgrade from the general Stylo 3. The biggest fix is the addition of the 32GB of internal storage. While this device is only available on MetroPCS and T-Mobile, the phone already is reason enough to switch. It is the best phablet in this price bracket and the only phone in its price range to include a stylus pen with a suite of applications specially designed for pen use.

To learn more about the LG Stylo 3, check out your nearest T-Mobile or Metro PCS store. 

Nextbit Robin in 2017? Here is my Review

Originally posted on JULY 18, 2017

by David Lamma

Ever since my iPhone SE took a dump I have been constantly searching for a replacement. I saw the Nextbit Robin and decided to give it a try.

Nextbit was an independent company looking to make the next best phone. They had come up with a Kickstarter for the Robin in September of 2015. The phone's release was a success, leading to the company being purchased by Razer In early 2017. Since then the phone has been discontinued as the team moves their focus elsewhere. That doesn't mean that they won't forget  Robin users because they would be offering security patches up to February 2018.

With that in mind, because of the discontinuation of the Nextbit Robin, the price of the device has been cut. MSRP on the Robin was $399.99 and was cut to $299.99. In reality, I purchased mine online for $139.99 brand new but I have seen them go on sale from time to time.

Hardware

Starting off, the device still holds up extremely well in 2017. The Snapdragon 808 still does pretty well for its age. I was able to launch and play some pretty graphics-intensive games. Mortal Kombat X and Injustice 2 ran fine after a longer than usual loading time. The Robin still handles really well when it comes to multitasking. With 3GB of RAM, I was able to switch and use multiple apps with ease. Although I did see some lag when switching between apps once I had a handful of applications running in the background.

Using the device I began reminiscing back to the days when HTC had front-facing speakers. The Robin uses similar front-facing speakers that sound pretty impressive. This is a great feature to have when listening to music, watching movies, shows, and even playing games because they have a stereo function that allows for a more immersive experience. The downside? I would not recommend facing the device face down because that will muffle noise and possibly missing important notifications and phone calls. Integrated is your typical 3.5mm headphone jack for entertainment and calls on the go. Also, the phone uses USB-C with Qualcomm Quick Charge. In 2015 this was way ahead of its time for a smartphone.

Its display is really nothing to brag about. At 5.2” this IPS LCD display has Gorilla Glass 4 making it a little harder for it to crack. A fingerprint scanner allowing for convenient and secure access to your device. If you're the type that requires a lot of room, 32GB for internal storage is fantastic considering that some devices in the same price range still only have a measly 16GB. The downside is the lack of the Micro SD, while it's not a deal-breaker it still a feature that most devices carry. An easy counter for this issue was the biggest selling point for the Nextbit Robin, cloud storage. I will go into greater depth on this feature on my next topic.

Software

Nextbit uses their version of the Android operating system called Nextbit OS, Upgraded to its latest version of Android, Nougat 7.1.1 with future security patches up until 2018. I personally do not like the launcher as it does not have an app drawer. Also, another thing I am not in favor of is the Nextbit favorites button that hangs out on the bottom right corner of the app pages. This cannot be removed unless you install a third-party launcher.

The biggest selling point for the phone when it was originally released was the cloud storage feature. Nextbit goes above and beyond, It comes with 100GB of cloud storage out of the box. This cloud storage makes a backup for apps, pictures, and videos. When it does the backup you will see the 4 little lights on the back of the phone come on.  Its smart storage will learn what apps you use the most and the ones that are least used will be stored in the cloud. The icon will be grayed out and with a single tap and few moments to spare it will come back on. You can also pin apps so they are sent to the cloud. I am not sure if this feature is still relevant and if it will work after they kill the phone off so the lack of a microSD card can make things frustrating for some. Personally, I think 32GB is plenty for myself and the average user but for those who need the extra space can use other cloud storage alternatives.

Camera

The biggest selling point on any phone for me is the camera. I love to take photos and showcasing them. The Nextbit Robin misses the mark for me, but at the price, it is decent for the average consumer. Photos come in nice and clear but when you crop or zoom in after taking the photo it is very noisy. When photos have too much noise you can lose detail and important information. Also, another disappointment is how it handles low-light situations. I tried using it in certain circumstances and because of the lack of OIS(optical image stabilization) photos in low light can easily turn out blurry. A neat feature is its dual-tone flash as it can really help when it comes to portraits. Otherwise, its auto mode causes inconsistencies with the shot being over or under saturated at times, so its manual mode can help this a little more.  This phone is a couple years old though, so newer phones with more up-to-date technology like the LG Stylo 3 will outperform in terms of camera quality.

You can take look at some shots it took using this device

Design

I love the direction the team took on this phone. Simplistic yet very eye-catching. This phone comes in two colors, mint and midnight. The phone is unfortunately made out of plastic and loses that premium feels to it. I would have preferred adding some sort of texture to the device to get a better grip when your hands get sweaty. Speaking of sweat, I have noticed that the device easily gets warm. It has not been so bad that the device is unusable but I would worry that it would not take much for the device to get that hot. Another thing is that the phone gets dirty fairly easy and because the fingerprint scanning power button is not protruding, dirt and grime will sit on the edges of the button interfering with scanning. I also notice the sim card tray is vulnerable to getting grime and dirt stuck in the little crevices. Its volume up and down buttons stick out enough to know what it is when I grab my phone in my pocket or at night. My last complaint is that I feel like the phone is flimsy and fragile. The plastic shell that holds the internals of this device does not make me feel confident that it will hold up to daily life. I have already dropped it waist-high onto the corner of my desk and the plastic body has a small chip on the edge of the phone. I would certainly keep this out of my back pocket.

Overall

This phone still has plenty of life in it and at the price, it is very hard to complain. The internal specs are few years old but that does not mean it will handle daily usage. Although I personally had a few nitpick issues with it. I still consider this to be a great phone for 2017. The Robin had a good run but just imagine with the backing of a great company like Razer what the future holds for the team and how the next phone will improve.