YugaTech Christmas Gadget Guide 2014: Smartphones

It’s that time of the year again. If you’re looking to give gadget gifts to people you know or maybe even just to reward yourself this Christmas, you’re in luck as we have you covered! Here are the smartphones you should get, from budget-oriented ones to the flagships!

Budget Oriented

If you’re on the tightest budget, the best & most affordable smartphones that you can get for their price are probably in the form of two Cherry Mobile devices but with varying operating systems – the CM Flare Lite running Android and the CM Alpha Style running Windows Phone 8.1 (Php2,699USD 46INR 3,899EUR 44CNY 335 & Php2,999USD 51INR 4,332EUR 49CNY 372 respectively). The first one runs Android and decent specs to begin with, but the Alpha Style takes it a step higher with a quad-core CPU and the smoothness of WP 8. If you wish for something with TV and a lower price tag of Php1,899USD 32INR 2,743EUR 31CNY 236 (and lower specs of course), there’s also MyPhone’s Rio Junior TV.

From here, you can now check out the Xiaomi Redmi 1S & the Asus ZenFone 5 – both phones being the cream of the crop at Php5,599USD 95INR 8,088EUR 91CNY 695 & Php6,495USD 111INR 9,383EUR 105CNY 806. We doubt you’ll want anything else, but if you do, you can easily just check out local manufacturer flagship phones running octa-core Mediatek CPUs and the like. For more than Php9,000USD 153INR 13,001EUR 146CNY 1,117, you can also check out the impressively made 2nd-Gen Motorola Moto G which is probably only available online.

Mid-Range

Just like with the higher class of budget oriented smartphones, this area is once again ruled by Xiaomi & Asus. The Xiaomi Mi 3 was the company’s flagship phone that launched in the Philippines for just Php10,599USD 181INR 15,311EUR 172CNY 1,315! It has a full HD display, a Snapdragon 800 CPU with 2GB RAM and a lot more to satisfy your needs. If you want a bigger 6-inch alternative, the Asus ZenFone 6 is around for Php11,995USD 204INR 17,328EUR 195CNY 1,489, but it doesn’t match the Mi 3’s specs.

If the person you’re giving a smartphone to wants to be around water a lot, you can take a look at Sony’s waterproof Xperia M2 Aqua which also has LTE radios for faster data. This ranges around Php12USD 0.20INR 17EUR 0.19CNY 1-15k depending on where you’ll buy it. If, on the other hand, getting a good Android experience with high-end specs is what’s important, you can still find a Google Nexus 5 which now runs Android 5.0 Lollipop. This is priced at around Php16k. Finally, if Android doesn’t suit your style, the Nokia Lumia 830 is your best bet at Php18,990USD 324INR 27,433EUR 308CNY 2,357.

Xiaomi’s latest flagship phone, the Mi4, is not officially available yet around the country, but some online retailers have it for around Php15USD 0.26INR 22EUR 0.24CNY 2-17k.

The Best Smartphones

When you’re up high in this price range, it’s a lot harder to find a bad smartphone than a good one. For people who would want to take the best underwater selfies with the best specs, there’s the HTC Desire Eye for Php22,500USD 383INR 32,504EUR 365CNY 2,792. If huge phones aren’t your thing, the Sony Xperia Z3 Compact is available online for more or less Php20k.

Then there are this year’s early flagships – the Samsung Galaxy S5, the HTC One M8, the Nokia Lumia 930 & the LG G3 – which will all cost you Php23k and above, lower if you’re lucky, depending on where you get it. Or you can take a look at the Huawei Ascend Mate 7 with it’s very large battery and dual-LTE capability. All of them are equally great, having distinct features from each other. Some of these features include better speakers, water resistance, better cameras, Windows Phone, a 2K display & more. It will all now depend on your taste.

And finally, there’s the Galaxy Note 4, the Xperia Z3 & the iPhone 6 / iPhone 6 Plus. The Galaxy Note 4 is the Android flagship phone to get with beastly specs from the internals & the display to the camera (plus don’t forget the size & the stylus). This will cost you around Php35k. The Xperia Z3 on the other hand is one of the most polished phones around, beating everyone else with a 20 megapixel camera and high waterproofing certifications, and will cost you Php25USD 0.43INR 36EUR 0.41CNY 3-30k. If you have always wanted iOS, then there’s no contest; the best time to upgrade is now with new larger iPhones. The only question now is which size – the 4.7-inch iPhone 6 or the 5.5-inch iPhone 6 Plus? Your call, but there is a huge price difference. You can get the iPhone 6 starting at Php38k, but the latter will cost you Php5k more at Php43k.

And if you want a BlackBerry, the Passport is at Php35,790USD 610INR 51,702EUR 581CNY 4,442.

That’s about it for our Christmas Guide on smartphones this year! We’ll have more up soon in the following days, so stay tuned for that. If you have any more to suggest, feel free to leave them in the comments section down below.