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I challenge you to find me a great affordable compact Android phone (that's not the Pixel 8a)

By Martin Filipov

Updated: Aug 23, 2024, 3:56 PM

30comments

This article may contain personal views and opinion from the author.

I challenge you to find me a great affordable compact Android phone (that's not the Pixel 8a)

My mother and my grandmother have been using the Galaxy S9 (2018) and Huawei Nova 5T (2019) for a while now, which means it’s time for an upgrade.

What they hate about their current phones (in their current state) is how short their battery life is, which is totally understandable given they are 5-6 years old. But what they love about them is how compact they are.

So… I was given a simple job - find a great, long-lasting, compact Android flagship that doesn’t break the bank - meaning it costs €300-400.

You’d think: “Martin, if anyone can do that, it’d be the phone nerd who plays with phones for a living…”

And I thought so too! But I was in for a surprise…

Finding a long-lasting, affordable, and compact Android phone is nearly impossible nowaday: Pixel 8a comes close but that’s not enough

That’s the standard (and pretty much only) phone size you get for $200-400 today.

After doing some extensive research on Amazon and eBay, I realized that finding an affordable Android phone that’s not super large is a very tricky task…

Sure, there are great mid-range and budget phones that won’t break the bank, such as the Galaxy A35/A55, Motorola Edge 50 Fusion, Nothing Phone 2a, and the OnePlus Nord 4 (to name a few)... The problem is that they are huge compared to my mum’s Galaxy S9.

Parents and grandparents tend to keep their phones for longer, which means they are likely to be upgrading from phones the size of an iPhone 8 and Galaxy S9. This makes finding a new (compact) Android phone that fits their requirements… quite tricky.

Why is that? Well, because most people seem to want phones with large displays nowadays - even budget and mid-range phones are now large.

The thing is that “the majority of people” doesn’t quite mean “everyone”... Not everyone wants a big phone. In fact, nobody in my family does.

Right now, the only option for those who want a compact phone that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg is the Google Pixel 8a, but that’s not what I’d call “having choice”. It’s also not what I’d call a “budget” phone.

Another way to go is to buy a used/refurbished old flagship like the Galaxy S23, Pixel 8, or iPhone 14 (or older models) - but this doesn’t fill the gap in the market, and (although I don’t mind) many people would prefer to buy a brand new device.

There’s a big gap in the market for compact and affordable phones: Samsung, Apple, and Chinese phone-makers need to do something about it

Apple, Samsung, and Google aside, Chinese phone-makers aren’t innocent either! What happened to affordable compact phones from Chinese brands?

The Pixel 8a is the closest (and only) thing to a great compact Android phone right now. However, it starts at $500, and that’s not exactly what I’d call “affordable”. Unless, of course, you get one from eBay/Swappa.

So, here I am… Asking if there are any phone-makers who want to fill the “affordable compact phone” gap in the market, and help me find my parents a new phone.

At the moment, with the upcoming Galaxy S24 FE getting a 6.7-inch screen (up from 6.4-inch on the Galaxy S23 FE), it looks like our compact phone hopes will fall on the shoulders of the rumored iPhone SE 4. But the iPhone is… an iPhone - not an Android.

Motorola is about to launch the Edge 50 Neo, which might have a relatively compact screen (around 6.5-inches), and while that’s not something I’d call “compact”, it’s certainly a bit better than 6.7-inches.

Samsung, Google, and Apple aside, I believe Chinese phone-makers should also start paying a bit more love to the “compact but affordable” phone segment.

Not everyone wants a large phone - the best-selling smartphone in the world has a 6.1-inch screen (but it’s not an Android)

If everyone wants phones with large screens, why is the best-selling phone in the world the iPhone 15? It’s the same size as my mom’s Galaxy S9.

Xiaomi, Oppo, and Vivo make excellent affordable phones but they all have one thing in common - most of them are large, because they are supposed to present the best value even when compared to more expensive phones from Apple, Samsung, and Google. But “the best value” means different things for different people.

I see and understand the trend - most people want larger phones. But “most” people aren’t “all” people. In fact, the best-selling phone in the world (right now) is the iPhone 15, which has a 6.1-inch screen. If anything, this proves one-hand-friendly phones are here to stay!

But let’s make more of them… and make them cheaper… please.

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Martin, a tech journalist at PhoneArena, brings a unique blend of humor and insight to his work. His fascination with smartphones began with a Galaxy Young and evolved through a series of trades and upgrades, making him a self-proclaimed smartphone nerd. Martin's content often combines current analysis of market trends with historical references and future predictions. Whether it's a deep dive into technical issues or a first-person commentary on industry events, Martin's articles are designed to inform and engage. His critical perspective is driven by genuine curiosity and a desire to keep readers informed, not by any corporate sponsorship.