Best Mid-Range Smartphone ($300 ⇆ $500) in 2021

scrimshaw on 03/05/2021 - 00:39
Last edited 03/05/2021 - 00:39

Moderators at OzBargain are now running yearly polls to decide the best products in popular categories that get asked repeatedly in the forum. Our aim is to have a central thread where users can vote on the items, suggest options and also change their vote throughout the year. For more information on how these polls work, or if you want to suggest a new poll that isn't covered already, please refer to our announcement thread here.

Question

What is your favourite Mid-range Smart Phone for the year 2021?

Mid-range: Phones with market prices between $300 AUD to $500 AUD. Good phones don't always have to be expensive, and there lots to choose from in this category.

The Winner of last year's poll was surprisingly, the slightly dated Google Pixel 3a (release date May 2019, with the second and third spots taken by the Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 Pro & Xiaomi Poco X3.

Remember: You can change your votes at anytime, and suggest more than 1 product over the course of the poll.

How do I suggest products to What Should I Buy polls?

If you have a product that you would like to suggest for the poll (that is currently not in the Poll Options), you'll need to make a top-level comment (i.e. not replying someone else's comment) and fill up "Suggestions" text box just above your comment:

Suggestion box

Do try to make a sensible suggestion (e.g make sure the phone is still available to purchase) and include a brief argument as to why you would recommend the product. You can only suggest 1 product at a time.

Poll Options expired

This is part of What Should I Buy poll for 2021. Check out other recommendations from the OzBargain community.
Mobile Google Mobile Phone Motorola Nokia OnePlus Oppo realme Samsung Vivo What Should I Buy Xiaomi Android

Comments

  • bongom on 03/05/2021 - 10:39

    Google Pixel 4a cos it's not the size of a phablet.

    • aidenh37 on 23/08/2021 - 14:52

      Unfortunately, the 4a is $600, OzBargain price tiers don't really match the current market, because the best devices are $600.

  • Wystri Warrick on 03/05/2021 - 11:23
    +1
    Suggested Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro

    I've got the Xiaomi Poco F2 Pro for $535 last year? It's an awesome phone, I use it to play emulated PS2 and Wii games in FHD that is wirelessly cast to my TV! The camera is awesome (I'll upload some photos late today), it has one of the best macro cameras too

    • Optimist Prime on 03/05/2021 - 22:08

      Wait what? How? I'd love to be able to do this.

      • aidenh37 on 23/08/2021 - 14:53

        Google Cast supports casting the entire screen, probably that.

  • Brianqpr on 04/05/2021 - 09:20
    Suggested Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro

    Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro. Picked this up for $358 recently. Great phone and surely a strong contender in this bracket.

  • waterbottled on 12/05/2021 - 17:02

    2nd hand previous gen flagships usually go for under $500, and have specs that are better than current-gen mid to low range phones.

    • Brianqpr on 13/05/2021 - 15:46
      +1

      Add the cost of a new battery to these, usually 2-3 years of use already in them so batteries won't be great. Could be other issues too so get one with a warranty if possible. Refurb iphone I bought for my son recently needed the speaker replaced, my wife's iphone 11, bought new, needed the camera replaced after just over a year (always in a good case). Wear and tear for second hand phones may be significant.

      • AncientWisdom on 04/07/2021 - 16:23

        Yeah you still need to do the work to make sure you're getting the most out of your money, but I've had great success with second hand.

  • aidenh37 on 23/08/2021 - 15:04
    +1

    I'm not really sure why Xiaomi constantly gets top spot.

    Like, I understand they're fantastic value, and they are - but they're not officially sold here (at least not recent models), don't support VoLTE, and are missing 5G band 40 which is good for Optus 5G. Meanwhile, every Oppo and Realme option here has band 40 5G and is officially supported by telcos.

  • HeyPapito on 25/08/2021 - 13:33
    Merged from Best Android Phone under $500?

    Recommendations for a decent Android phone as I'm no longer interested in iPhones. Current phone is a 4 year old iPhone 6s which just isn't doing it for me anymore.

    Looking for something around the same size as iPhone 11, battery lasts for around a day, micro SD card slot, has a decent camera and still has the headphone jack

    • AdamFury on 25/08/2021 - 14:08
      +1

      Google Pixel 4A

    • OzGreed on 25/08/2021 - 14:12
      +2

      My last phone was also an iPhone 6S, I personally went for the Pixel 4A which I got for $496. I think its a neat phone which is suitable for my needs. The pixel is praised for its camera and I personally think it lives up to the praise.

      It does have a headphone jack but it does not have a Micro SD card slot. However, in the year that I have had my pixel I have not been able to fill it to its 128GB capacity.

      According to Google the Pixel 4a's screen size is only 5.81 Inches compared to the 6.06 Inch iPhone 11.

      But for a < $500 budget I think its pretty neat.

      • garuda on 14/09/2021 - 20:28

        hi do you know any places that sell it for that low that are retailers?

    • Presence on 25/08/2021 - 14:22
      +1

      Motorola G 5G

    • bellybama on 25/08/2021 - 14:38

      I purchased a Samsung Galaxy S10+ for around $350, and it's got everything that I wanted. Get about two days per charge, pretty decent camera (in my opinion) and not a scratch on the bugger.

      Got it on eBay, so your experience may be different, but I'm super happy with it, and I couldn't justify spending $1000+

      It also has NFC, which I've never had before, but I find it super handy now.

      • BluebirdV on 05/09/2021 - 05:39

        Are there any more on eBay around that price? How can you be sure the battery will be OK if it's second hand?

    • punter1 on 25/08/2021 - 15:20

      Galaxy A71

  • garuda on 14/09/2021 - 20:27

    Hi there,

    I am just asking if there is any way to buy the Google Pixel 3 or 4 series for a 300-500 dollar price range that is from a retailer?

    Thanks

  • citybargainhunter on 21/10/2021 - 20:44
    Suggested Oppo A91

    I like to suggest Oppo A91 for the poll

  • zrmx on 16/11/2021 - 02:45

    Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE

  • Froot Loops on 23/12/2021 - 23:54
    Suggested Samsung Galaxy S20 FE

    Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 4G

  • revheadgl on 31/01/2022 - 10:54

    I am pretty happy with the Nokia G50 I bought preorder for $349.

    Not top spec but pretty decent and does what I want. NFC, big screen, big battery, 5G etc.

  • Koalabeer on 09/05/2022 - 10:44

    Pixel 4a.!

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