The best cheap smartphones - reviewed

Looking for a sub-£150 smartphone? We've tested every budget handset that matters

The bad budget smartphone is dead.

Never again should you put up with pixelly screens, sluggish web speeds and cameras so bad that a built-in Etch-a-Sketch would be preferable, because you can now get an all-round reliable phone for less than £150. Sure, there are still plenty of bad phones out there - but you needn't concern yourself with them any more. 

We’ve taken all the cheap smartphones that matter and tested them against each other, with our comparisons and verdicts tidied up neatly into the individual reviews below. First up, the clear winner and new benchmark for budget smartphones: the magnificent Moto G 4G.

MOTO G 4G (£150)

The 2013 Moto G is now ludicrously cheap, frequently dipping below £100 - but 4G makes this new model ever better. 

It's sturdily built and fits snugly into one hand, while its use of swappable Motorola Shells give you the option to customise its look on a daily basis. The 4.5in, HD, 326ppi screen is the real selling point over its fuzzier-screened rivals; it matches the much pricier HTC One Mini 2 on this front. Next to most other phones in its class it looks pin-sharp, with vivid but natural colours and good contrast.

It’s not without problems - the 5MP camera does still disappoint sometimes, especially in low light, and you only get 8GB of built-in storage. But the addition of a microSD card slot means you can now add up to 32GB of space, and in day-to-day use nothing comes close.

Moto’s also left the 4G with an almost-untouched version of Android KitKat, adding a few genuinely useful features but nothing more. That helps everything run smoothly and you can can expect speedy downloads, streaming and browsing over 4G. The best bit? Even with more pixels to push than most cheap phones, the Moto G still lasts a day between charges. 

If you have specific criteria - for instance you’re a n00b who likes the look of Windows Phone or taking pics is your priority - then other budget phones down this list might make more sense. But for most people, the Moto G 4G will do very nicely indeed.

Motorola Moto G 4G in figures Operating system: Android 4.2.2 • Screen: 4.5in 1280x720 (326ppi) • Processor: Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 @ 1.2GHz • RAM: 1GB • Camera: 5MP 720p rear, 1.3MP 720p front • Connectivity: 3G/4G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 • Storage: 16GB (expandable with microSD) • Battery: 2070mAh • Dimensions/weight: 129.9 x 65.9 x 11.6mm / 143g

HISENSE SERO 5 (£150)

The Hisense Sero 5 offers a feature list that’ll make your jaw drop when you hear the phone costs just £130. 4G, a 5-inch 720p screen plus an 8-megapixel camera mean the Sero 5 offers even more gumpf than you get in the Moto G.

Sure enough it is a real bargain, a stunner for penny-pinchers, but there are some elements that ensure it’s not quite the very best option in the world. Build quality isn’t up there with the best as the screen flexes a teeny bit under pressure, causing wobbles in the display. That’s not necessarily a deal-breaker but tells you the Sero 5 doesn’t use Gorilla Glass like the Moto G: not good news for the butter-fingered.

The software won’t dazzle, either. Using Android 4.3 it’s a bit out of date and the interface isn’t exactly pretty: it’s workmanlike at best. With display colours a bit undersaturated, the screen does look a tiny bit glum until you get used to it too.

We’re just trying to manage your expectations here, though, because on paper the Hisense Sero 5 sounds like the best budget phone in the universe. It isn’t, but it is very, very good if you don’t want to spend a lot but do want 4G.

Battery life and performance are solid, and with a few tweaks you can improve the interface no-end. For the more advanced Android user, the Hisense Sero 5 is fab.

The screen is big and sharp, a Snapdragon 400 provides enough grunt for gamers and the camera isn’t even too bad, offering similar performance to the Moto G but with slightly worse colour reproduction.

Only the finishing touches are missing here: the Hisense Sero 5 does feel a little bit cheap and thanks to its non-Gorilla Glass front you won’t want to treat it too carelessly. Hisense seems to admit this itself by putting a plastic screen protector on the thing direct from the factory. Other than that, though, it’s grand.

Hisense Sero 5 in figures Operating system: Android 4.3 • Screen: 5in 1280x720 (293ppi) • Processor: Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 @ 1.2GHz • RAM: 1GB • Camera: 8MP 720p rear, 1.3MP 720p front • Connectivity: 3G/4G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 • Storage: 8GB (microSD expandable by up to 32GB) • Battery: 2500mAh • Dimensions/weight: 143 x 71.8 x 8.9mm / 133g

MOTO G (2014) (£145)

Another Motorola! The 5in Moto G (2014) isn't a direct replacement for the 4G model or last year's handset (now priced at £100). It's the Moto G for people who don't mind sacrificing a bit of battery life here, a splash of 4G there for a big screen and much better camera than the original 5MP snapper.

So what's been improved? It performs just as fast as the first Moto G and Android is just as clutter-free. The main difference is the bigger build (it's the biggest here) - it's sturdy, though, and still sits nicely in the hand. It's sacrificed the old Moto G's neat, tidy look; there's just more plastic, so that couldn't be helped without impressive - and costly - engineering. But Moto has included some very decent (for the money) stereo speakers on the front. They don't match the One (M8) but you won't be ashamed to use them in the back garden either. 

Battery life, again, isn't quite as great as the Moto G 4G. Streaming video on a commute, the bigger 5in screen sucks up 22% an hour versus the 4.5in phone's less worrying 16%. Still, it lasts the day so we're not complaining too much. Speaking of the screen, it's 720p and chances are you won't notice the slightly-less-sharp picture compared to the original. Colours are slightly more natural too. 

The real stars are the two new cameras, both welcome improvements. Images look a lot less blurry and smudgy than before with clear, in-focus shots and accurate colours. Video too is much more usable. The new 8MP cam on the back takes a while to focus at night but if you hold steady, you can get some impressive pics for a £150 phone. All round, we'd still recommend the 4G Moto G – but if phone photography is your thing, consider the 2014 model.

Motorola Moto G (2014) in figures Operating system: Android 4.4.4 • Screen: 5in 720x1280 (294 ppi) • Processor: Quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 @ 1.2GHz • RAM: 1GB • Camera: 8MP 720p rear, 2Mp front • Connectivity: 3G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 • Storage: 8/16GB (microSD upgradable by up to 32GB) • Battery: 2070mAh • 141.5 x 70.7 x 11mm / 149g