See the comments for sources and prompts used. The information below is “as is” and may contain inaccuracies. For me, it was just a fun experiment to see to what extent chatbots can help us with choosing a smartphone
There are many budget Android smartphones in 2023 that offer great value for money and some unique features. Here are some of the most underrated ones, along with their pros and cons, according to various sources and user reviews:
-
Google Pixel 7a: This phone has a fantastic camera that can rival some flagship models, thanks to Google’s software magic. It also has a smooth and pleasant software experience, which is updated regularly and has no bloatware or ads. It has a smooth 6.1-inch OLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate, a fast and reliable fingerprint sensor, and a decent battery life. It supports 5G on T-Mobile and comes with three years of software updates. However, some users have reported issues with the fingerprint sensor, the phone overheating, and the battery draining faster than expected. The phone also lacks a microSD card slot, a headphone jack, wireless charging, and water resistance. Some users also find the design boring and the plastic back cheap-looking.
-
OnePlus Nord N20 5G: This phone has a large and vibrant OLED screen with a 90Hz refresh rate, which makes watching videos and playing games more immersive and enjoyable. It also has a fast and reliable fingerprint sensor, which is embedded in the display and works well. It has a fast-charging battery, which can go from zero to 100% in less than an hour. It has decent performance and a clean software experience with OxygenOS. It supports 5G on AT&T and T-Mobile. However, some users have complained about the camera quality being mediocre, especially in low light or with zooming. The phone also lacks a microSD card slot, a headphone jack, wireless charging, and water resistance. Some users also dislike the pre-installed bloatware and ads from OnePlus and its partners.
-
Samsung Galaxy A54 5G: This phone has a big and bright 6.5-inch Super AMOLED display, which offers great contrast and colors. It also has a long-lasting battery, which can easily last a full day or more on a single charge. It has a good performance with the Snapdragon 750G processor. It has a versatile quad-camera setup that can take decent photos in various scenarios. It supports 5G on all major US carriers and has a water-resistant design. However, some users have experienced lagging and stuttering performance, especially when multitasking or gaming. The phone also has a low-resolution display, a mediocre speaker, and a slow fingerprint sensor. Some users also find the software bloated and cluttered with Samsung’s apps and features.
-
Oppo Reno8 Pro: This phone has a stunning design and premium feel, which has a curved glass back and a gradient color effect. It also has a powerful performance and a smooth 6.4-inch AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, which makes everything run fast and smooth. It has a quad-camera setup that can take impressive photos and videos. It has a large battery with 65W fast charging, which can fully charge the phone in less than half an hour. It supports 5G on T-Mobile and has a headphone jack. However, some users have reported issues with the software updates being delayed or buggy, the phone not working well with some carriers or regions, and the battery life being inconsistent. The phone also lacks wireless charging, water resistance, and a fingerprint sensor. Some users also find the camera bump too large and the color options too flashy.
-
Xiaomi Redmi Note 11: This phone has a huge 6.7-inch LCD display with a 120Hz refresh rate, which offers a lot of screen real estate and smoothness. It also has a massive 6000 mAh battery with 67W fast charging, which can last for days on a single charge and recharge in less than an hour. It has decent performance with the MediaTek Helio G95 processor. It has a quad-camera setup that can take good photos in daylight. It has an IR blaster, which can control other devices like TVs or air conditioners. It supports 4G LTE on AT&T and T-Mobile and has a headphone jack. However, some users have complained about the software being full of ads and bloatware, the phone being too heavy and bulky, and the LCD display being inferior to OLED screens. The phone also lacks 5G support, wireless charging, water resistance, and a fingerprint sensor. Some users also find the camera quality disappointing and the design generic.
I’ve asked Bing to check if it missed mentioning something about each phone and if there are any inaccuracies in its response. Here is what it answered:
-
Samsung Galaxy S21: This phone was released in early 2022 and is still one of the best Android phones around. It has a sleek design and a gorgeous 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, which offers a premium look and feel. It has a powerful performance and an excellent camera system, which can handle any task and take stunning photos and videos. It supports 5G on all major US carriers, wireless charging, reverse wireless charging, water resistance, and Samsung Pay. You can find it for around $500 on Amazon or other retailers. However, some users have reported issues with the battery life being poor, the camera performance being inconsistent, and the fingerprint sensor being unreliable. The phone also lacks a microSD card slot, a headphone jack, and a charger in the box. Some users also find the plastic back cheap-looking and prone to scratches.
-
OnePlus 9: This phone was also released in early 2022 and is still a great flagship killer. It has a premium design and a smooth 6.55-inch Fluid AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, which offers a high-end look and feel. It has a blazing-fast performance and an improved camera system, which can handle any task and take good photos and videos, especially in low light. It supports 5G on AT&T and T-Mobile, wireless charging, reverse wireless charging, water resistance, and OxygenOS. You can find it for around $500 on OnePlus.com or other retailers. However, some users have complained about the camera quality being subpar compared to other flagships, the software updates being slow or buggy, and the phone overheating during heavy use. The phone also lacks a microSD card slot, a headphone jack, and an IP rating for water resistance. Some users also find the design bland and boring.
-
Google Pixel 6: This phone was released in late 2021 and is still one of the best camera phones around. It has a unique design and a sharp 6-inch OLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate, which offers a distinctive look and feel. It has an impressive performance and an amazing camera system, which can handle any task and take stunning photos and videos in any situation. It supports 5G on all major US carriers, wireless charging, reverse wireless charging, water resistance, Google Pay, and three years of software updates. You can find it for around $450 on Google Store or other retailers. However, some users have experienced issues with the battery life being inconsistent, the performance being sluggish at times, and the face unlock feature not working well. The phone also lacks a microSD card slot, a headphone jack, wireless charging, and water resistance. Some users also find the design ugly and outdated.
There might be some details that I have missed or some errors that I have made. Here are some possible examples:
-
Google Pixel 7a: I have mentioned that the phone lacks a headphone jack, but I have not mentioned that it comes with a USB-C to 3.5mm adapter in the box, which allows you to use wired headphones with the phone. I have also not mentioned that the phone has a dual-speaker system, which offers good sound quality.
-
OnePlus Nord N20 5G: I have mentioned that the phone supports 5G on AT&T and T-Mobile, but I have not mentioned that it does not support all the 5G bands of these carriers, which might affect the coverage and speed of the 5G network. I have also not mentioned that the phone has a dedicated Google Assistant button on the side, which allows you to quickly access the voice assistant.
-
Samsung Galaxy A54 5G: I have mentioned that the phone has a water-resistant design, but I have not mentioned that it has an IP67 rating, which means it can survive up to 30 minutes in 1 meter of water. I have also not mentioned that the phone has a microSD card slot for expandable storage, which is a rare feature on Samsung phones nowadays.
-
Oppo Reno8 Pro: I have mentioned that the phone has a MediaTek Dimensity 1200 processor, but I have not mentioned that it is one of the first phones to use this chipset, which offers comparable performance to the Snapdragon 888 processor. I have also not mentioned that the phone has a dual-SIM slot, which allows you to use two different SIM cards on the same phone.
-
Xiaomi Redmi Note 11: I have mentioned that the phone has a MediaTek Helio G95 processor, but I have not mentioned that it is an older chipset from 2020, which might struggle with some demanding tasks or games. I have also not mentioned that the phone has a side-mounted fingerprint sensor, which is integrated with the power button. For older flagship models, some possible examples are:
-
Samsung Galaxy S21: I have mentioned that the phone lacks a charger in the box, but I have not mentioned that it supports Power Delivery (PD) charging, which means you can use any compatible USB-C charger to charge the phone quickly. I have also not mentioned that the phone has an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor, which is more secure and accurate than optical sensors.
Can clearly see it was trained in 2021. Completely useless
I’ve asked Bing AI to provide me with a list of “budget Android smartphones in 2023”. Additionally, I’ve asked it to “consider … new releases as well as flagship smartphones from previous years that can be still purchased new or are available on the secondhand market”. This is why you see flagship phones from 2021 that after price cuts are matching mid-range phones from 2023 in price and may be even better performance / build quality wise.
Wah, MS has been feeding it with new data? Was not expecting to see the A54 mentioned.
However there is so much wrong data here, eg A54 has Exynos 1380, not Snapdragon 750G, Redmi Note 11 is AMOLED screen, and the base is a 6.43" size screen, not 6.7". I’m sure there’s more if one digs more into it.
Before giving me an answer, Bing performed a Web search. You can see the sources that it used in my comment under the post.
I have also found inaccuracies and this is why I gave Bing a chance to redeem itself by asking it: “Is there something that you’ve missed mentioning about each phone? Are there any inaccuracies in the information that you’ve provided?”. You can find the inaccuracies that it found at the end of the article.
It is still not perfect and you still have to do your own research but I found Bing AI (Chat GPT) particularly useful for finding and summarizing user experiences such as: “some users have reported issues with the fingerprint sensor, the phone overheating, and the battery draining faster than expected” or “some users have experienced lagging and stuttering performance, especially when multitasking or gaming. The phone also has a low-resolution display, a mediocre speaker, and a slow fingerprint sensor. Some users also find the software bloated and cluttered with Samsung’s apps and features.”