My Moto Z Play recently broke and I’m looking for a cheap phone to replace it. Currently, I’m considering a used HTC 10 or Galaxy S7 from Ebay, or buy new with a Moto G5 Plus with Amazon ads or a Huawei Honor 6X. Alternatively, I could buy another used Moto Z Play on Ebay. Suggestions?
Honor 6X: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MRZFBBH/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=I2XFNNB9P6EE6P&colid=SMQ7A7XSEHJ4
Moto G5 Plus: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N6NTIRH/_encoding=UTF8?coliid=I3OZAKCBU7709B&colid=SMQ7A7XSEHJ4
Used One Plus One, maybe root it if you care about security, got mine for like $100, prices are around $150 now
You can get the gold one without ads, and 4/64GB for $250:
just don’t use it on verizon. fuck verizon anyway. for multiple reasons.
Google might release a cheaper Pixel phone again (basically a nexus)
I disagree, as a former OPO user. A lot of people had issues with the screen yellowing over time, although I personally used the phone for a bit more than a year and was fortunate to not have this issue. The Snapdragon 801 in it does not support some encrption/compression technology so the phone will not have any official support passed 6.x.x, and honestly compared to an S7 or a HTC 10, the OPO hardware is not nearly as nice. You can get ROMS with 7.x.x on OPO, but support isn’t the strongest being OP’s first of four “flagship” smartphones.
As for the HTC 10, I would personally opt for the S7. The 10, and really all HTC phones, can run pretty hot. I had a Htc One M8, and it was an okay phone, but it hasn’t aged that well. HTC’s software support has been, well, pretty shit at best. The 10 is a well built phone, at least from my brief experience with it in the T-Mobile store. It felt good, and was snappy, but I prefer the S7. My dad has an S7, so I’ve briefly gotten to play around it (between configuring it and such), and it feels good in the hand as well. It’s fast, not as fast as my Pixel, but for $230 that’s a damn good phone. The waterproofing is a nice to have feature, and IMO I think the physical buttons are still nice. You save some screen space by having the buttons on the bottom chin, and it works well.
I’m on GSM anyways so its all good.
I’m definitely considering the S7. If I can find a Nexus 6P for a good price though, I will snag that in a second.
I’m a Pixel XL user, and I can confirm, made-by-google phones are 
But do be careful, I remembered there being some issue and as confirmed by a quick google search, there seems to be a problem with some units where the battery goes and the phone refuses to boot passed a certain point.
Seems a bit murky, the article also mentioned that the phone probably won’t release in the US, and I don’t intend on importing an international phone.
The OPO isn’t future-proof enough for me, sadly.
I don’t think any $250 phone will be very future proof.
OP2s are around $200, not sure how much modern support there is for that
I am using a T-Mobile MVNO (US Mobile)
In order to access their LTE network you need Band 4 on the phone.
Purchased a Xiaomi Note 4 for $150! :
https://xiaomi-mi.com/redmi-note-4/
Works almost as well as the Google Pixel but when you remember that it only cost you $150 I’d say it’s even better?
You must do some research and be careful though… My Xiaomi will work on T-Mobile but not at all on CDMA or AT&T. For those carriers you will need to find out the required LTE bands and make sure your phone works.
Love my Xiaomi!
Great post because i’m going through the same struggle atm. I’m currently confused between new moto g5, honor 6x and huawei redmi 4x/5x and used samsung s7 or note 4/5.
Cheap phone? Get one from Walmart for $9.99 or maybe a little higher and then get MagicJack service and you are all set. That will cost way under $250 USD.
I bought my HTC 10 used for $320 a half a year ago. I love it. The battery life is lacking though depending on how you use your phone. I plug mine in at 8-9 every night though and when need be I charge it in the car on my commute home. so for me personally the battery is no issue.
How about a new phone? The Nokia 6 should be around $250.
https://www.mobile57.com/us/phones/nokia-6-6309
The reason I mention Nokia is that they are running stock Android and Nokia has stated that they will provide timely updates. Nothing ticks me off more than owning a phone that does not receive security updates, I would never run a PC OS that didn’t get updates why should I have a phone with the issue.
If you are willing to put up with some Amazon crapware you can pick one up as cheaply as $179 not something I would want but the offer is there.
For unlocked unbranded models can be found here…
Looks like a solid option. My only issue is the phone isn’t future-proof software wise. Hoping to get a phone that will receive Android 8.0.
I am considering the phone but the CPU seems a bit weak. Will take a closer look, though.
Especially compared to the Moto G5 Plus.
It’s going to be tricky given your budget. There are going to be compromises whatever handset you choose. Personally I would be going for the phone with the most vanilla Android as I have a personal hate of carrier bloat and what many manufactures think of as enhancements to the UI. My last two have been Nexus devices because of this. However with Google dropping the Nexus phones and moving up market with the pixel it has pushed them beyond my finances.
I guess I’m in a similar position to yourself, I want the best handset for a reasonable cost. This is why I have been doing my own research. Nokia is at the top of my watch list right now. My Nexus 5X goes out of support this September and security patched the following September in 2018. I will want to replace it long before then.