The 5G network standard is here to stay, regardless of whether you need faster speeds or not. This ultra-fast connectivity – once reserved only for flagship handsets – made its way to midrangers and now even budget phones, as more and more phones are getting 5G support for T-Mobile, Verizon, or AT&T’s next-gen networks, even in the prepaid category.
Mobile carriers around the world are expanding their 5G networks at a rapid pace and 5G devices are now far from the niche products they were just a short time ago, going as low downmarket as the Galaxy A13 5G. That’s largely thanks to Qualcomm’s efforts to pair its 5G modem with some affordable system chips, giving manufacturers more flexibility in terms of pricing, starting 5G phones from as low as the sub-$300 point.
That’s normal, as with their expansion, 5G networks are becoming a feature that’s a necessity, rather than a flashy extra. The prices of budget phones can even go lower than this when events like Black Friday or Amazon Prime Day come around. And Black Friday is almost here – don’t forget to check out our best Black Friday phone deals article for the best offers.
Samsung’s A53 5G has every chance to become its most popular phone, is its Galaxy A52 5G predecessor is any indication, and with a good reason. Samsung lowered its starting price to just $449.99 for 128GB of storage, but added a faster processor and a more elegant design in a number of matte pastel colors to choose from. Months after its announcement, the Galaxy A53 5G has become Samsung’s bestseller on account of the cheap price and what we found to be a well-calibrated, bright 120Hz display, coupled with a long battery life and a very good camera set for the price point.
That Apple nostalgia that still keeps the SE line alive resulted in the cheapest 5G iPhone at just $429 starting price. Don’t be fooled, though, this baby has an excellent 12MP camera with all the computational imaging power that the scorching fast Apple A15 chipset is able to muster.
OnePlus Nord N200 5G
8.2
OnePlus Nord N200 5G
The Good
Gorgeous, lightweight design
Large, clear 90Hz display
Excellent battery life
5G on a budget
The Bad
Mediocre cameras
Occasional performance hiccups
No mute switch like on more expensive OnePlus phones
T-Mobile is home to another rock bottom cheap 5G phone, the OnePlus Nord N200 5G. It comes with a 6.49″ FHD+ display with 90Hz refresh rate and under the hood there is Qualcomm Snapdragon 480G processor powering the device. Specifications also include big 5000mAh battery with 18W charging speed and triple camera setup on the back with 13MP main shooter, all for just $239.99.
Sporting a 6.5” 1080p 90Hz display, the Galaxy A13 is now the cheapest 2022 5G phone from Samsung in the U.S., but still offers a 50 MP main camera and 5000mAh battery with 25W charging.
Google Pixel 6a
9.3
Google Pixel 6a
The Good
Great value for money
Fast processor
Excellent camera
Great 6.1″ size that does not feel too big
Clean Android, timely updates
Pleasing “staccato” haptic feedback
Pleasing loudspeaker quality
The Bad
Lacks a zoom camera
Pixel reputation for bugs and issues does not inspire confidence
Google entered the budget 5G phone scene not long ago, and the cheaper Pixel 6a is an awesome value proposition. It comes with Google’s own Tensor chipset whose image processing prowess can be found in the Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro as well, paired with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. But you’re not buying a Pixel phone for the specs sheet. You’re getting it for the software features and the camera. While the camera hardware might be inferior to that of the Galaxy A53, for instance, it more than makes up for it with the software and is perhaps the best camera phones on this list. Just don’t expect zooming without stepping closer to the object.
Motorola One Ace 5G
Motorola also has a $399 entry in the budget 5G segment that is now on sale for $299 even. Not that surprising, considering Motorola has been making some of the best budget phones for the last few years, and our review of the Motorola One Ace 5G found out it’s no exception.
The Orbic Myra 5G UW is available for purchase at Verizon for just $350 without discounts. Apart from the fact that it comes with 5G support, we also know Orbic’s phone is equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G processor, 6GB RAM, and 64GB expandable storage (up to 1TB).
Also, Orbic Myra 5G UW sports a large 6.78-inch FHD display, a triple-rear camera (48MP+8MP+2MP), a 16-megapixel selfie snapper, and a massive 5,000 mAh battery with Qualcomm Charge 3.0 fast charging technology. Since this is probably the first Orbic phone to be sold by Verizon, it makes sense to also be the first to feature the carrier’s “Adaptive Sound” mobile audio solution, and, above all, it supports Verizon’s ultrafast mmWave 5G network.
The TCL 30 V 5G (or 30 XE 5G on T-Mobile) is another sub-$300 5G phone, this time to fulfil the affordable 5G needs of Verizon or T-Mobile’s customers, and is packing pretty decent specs for the price. There’s a big, nifty 6.67” FHD+ display, a 50MP main camera, and a big 4500mAh battery. It’s free with a plan, but even if you shell out $300 it’s one of the most affordable 5G phones on the major carriers.
T-Mobile REVVL 6 Pro
Believe it or not, even at the rock bottom $219.99 price, the T-Mobile REVVL 6 Pro spec sheet is pretty solid. Developed in a close partnership with Google, the REVVL 6 and 6 Pro come with YouTube Premium and Google One subscriptions.
T-Mobile also doubled the phones’ warranty to 2 years and now offers a BOGO deal on them. The full retail REVVL 6 Pro price is $219.99. For the REVVL 6 PRO 5G, the down payment for well-qualified customers will be $0 and then $9.17 each month for 24 months, plus tax.
AT&T started 2022 with a bang with its cheapest 5G-enabled smartphone to date, the Fusion 5G, and if you can’t afford (or simply don’t want) to spend 220 bucks outright, a straightforward device payment plan will split that into 36 monthly fees of $6.12. That makes this 6.82-inch giant slightly more affordable than AT&T’s 6.5-inch Samsung Galaxy A13 5G. The Fusion 5G comes with no less than four rear-facing cameras in tow, including an impressive-sounding 48MP primary shooter, a big 4,750mAh battery, 64GB of built-in storage and Sub-6GHz 5G support. Moreover, the AT&T Fusion 5G supports wireless charging, which is a real added value at its $220 price point.
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