Xiaomi Mi A1 5.5 inch 4G Smartphone 4GB+64GB 12MP Dual Camera GOLD $205.98 USD (~$299 NZD) @ Lightinthebox

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neil on 05/11/2017 - 16:41 lightinthebox.com (160 clicks)
Last edited 05/11/2017 - 16:46

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Don't know much about this phone but it's been a slow day at Cheapies so here is a hot deal from OzBargain. Apparently this is the cheapest this phone has ever been offered. Review from GSM Arena.

A great phone with clean Android, powered by Google.

• Snapdragon 625 processor
• 4GB RAM
• Killer specs overall.

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Thanks to batrarobin for description.

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• 

  Slogan on 05/11/2017 - 17:34

  +1

  It's a good budget phone, but at $300 it's not amazing value for money. If it were $240-250 I'd call it a recommended buy.

  PRO: build quality is good, long battery life, plenty of RAM and storage for the price, runs stock Android.
  CON: chip speed is pretty average and the camera isn't very good, especially colour balance and at night, and like most Xiaomi phones the audio recording quality is poor.

  It would be a good phone for someone who is a light user or who hasn't upgraded for 3-4 years. For those looking to buy locally, you can get a Xiaomi Redmi Note 4X with similar performance in NZ for about the same price.

  (The best value phones right now are Snapdragon 820 and 821 models going for nz$250-300 on AliExpress made by LeEco which just went out of business. They may well dip even lower during China's 11/11 sale next weekend.)

  • 

    wearnes on 05/11/2017 - 20:11

    Yeah some of these devices have a aftermarket support like lineage os, but i would be surprised to see it sustained with aftermarket support for very long… for me it means alot to buy a phone that has market penetration. xiaomi higher end devices have gone up in price this generation. i would have expected this device to be cheaper too.

  • 

    LeChuck1979 on 05/11/2017 - 20:16

    Hi Slogan,
    You seem to know your stuff. Would you mind linking to some of those 'best value' LeEco phones you mentioned?

    I was just about to pull the trigger on a Redmi Note 4x 32GB/3GB for the wife, for $211 delivered.

    However, I'd definitely reconsider a better option for less than $300 if you could think of any (she really cares about camera and battery life - I really care about value for money!).

    Thanks in advance! :)

    • 

      Slogan on 05/11/2017 - 21:51

      If you want a good camera at this price, your top choice would be the Moto G4 Plus — PriceSpy shows $305 for the 16gb version. If you want options, consider the Huawei Honor 8 Lite and the Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime which are both under $400, as are older flagships like the Samsung Galaxy S6 which are still sold new.

      I wouldn't recommend the LeEco phones for their cameras, which aren't much better than Xiaomi ones. The main strengths are performance and battery life.
      Here's a Le Pro 3 Elite listed for nz$271 with free shipping:
      https://www.aliexpress.com/item/LeEco-LeTV-Le-Pro-3-Elite-X7…

  • 

    puppety on 05/11/2017 - 23:55

    any recommendations for dirt cheap (less than $100) Androids? preferably stable/hackable android just as backup and with a decent camera (e.g for a basic security cam), saves me from having to buy an ip camera as well.

    • 

      Slogan on 06/11/2017 - 10:11

      I've bought very cheap (new) phones before, and none of them have good components. They fail or disappoint repeatedly, the camera units are consistently bad, and they're more trouble than they're worth to try to hack because there are way fewer guides/ROMs online compared to popular phones.
      Three suggestions:
      1) look for used phones, preferably older flagships with at least 32GB built-in storage, on TradeMe or Ebay
      2) ask friends and relatives for the retired phones they've got sitting in drawers (but these are often so low-spec that you'll keep hitting app install size limits)
      3) look into drone cams like RunCam that do quality video at a fairly low price.

• 

  bullettime on 05/11/2017 - 20:28

  I've heard mixed reviews about LeEco…can't comment myself. Reviews appear average as well.
  I have had my Xiaomi Mi4C for over a year and it works a treat. Just purchased a Redmi Note 4X and hoping it lasts me a few years.
  Another option (again i haven't tried the phone) is the Lenovo Zuk 2. Similar(ish) price range, more than than the Redmi Note 4X but appears good. Battery size for a 5.0" phone is quite good (3500MiAh) and with a Snapdragon 625 (like the Redmi Note 4X).

• 

  davidtse916 on 05/11/2017 - 22:14

  +1

  On 11th Nov the Xiaomi Mi A1 will be NZ$286.11 from Aliexpress's Official Xiaomi Store: https://xiaomionline.aliexpress.com/store/group/Xiaomi-Mi-5X…

  • 

    elbrownos on 06/11/2017 - 14:04

    They would love you to believe that they are official, but there is no such thing as an official Xiaomi store on Aliexpress.
    Goldway seems to be the most highly regarded Aliexpress store for buying Xiaomi.

    • 

      davidtse916 on 06/11/2017 - 15:08

      I see, thanks for the tip! I've bought 7x Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (4X) from them and they seens to be fine so far. One of them even got lost in transit and I was able to get my money back (and purchase one more).