In-Depth: How to select your dream smartphone within your budget?

Guide of selection your dream smartphone

Participate in the guide at the end of this page and find out what you really need.  Read on...

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Are Reviews and Recommendations Good?

There are many reviews on how to select a smartphone in various websites and we wonder yself if there is a need to write this post.  Some are keen on getting the latest iPhone 6 plus because it is the latest hip thing to get.  Some are unwilling to pay extra for a better smartphone and let the customer service representative decide for them for a free phone. Many of them have little knowledge of the smartphones they are buying and willing to try something new.  The customer representative at the counter will likely to introduce some smartphone which they have the most stocks or can give them the most commissions.  Because the customers have no clue of what deals they are getting.  All are zero cost smartphones with different brand names.

These customers do not research.  Even if they research for a smartphone, more often than not, these websites are only promoting the latest phones to attract eyeballs and provide limited models of phones which are sold in the region or country.  With the emergence of XiaoMi as the 3rd largest player in the world market, USA and Europe seldom include XiaoMi or other China phones in their reviews due to standard compatibility and phone availability.

On the other hand, blame not the reviews as customers are blindly following the mainstream.  The recent saga in Sim Lim Square of a Vietnamese factory operator willing to spend 4.5 times his monthly salaries to buy a iPhone 6 for his girlfriend proved that people are willing to pay.  We have seen clueless customers being persuaded to get Nokia phones when they sign up for 2 years contract based on counter recommendation on durability.  When complications arise, the losers are always the customers.  So, we hope this guide can provide an unbiased and fair evaluation of your needs and more importantly, within your budget and means.

Hold your horses, cowboy! We shall not insist that you should buy our ideal smartphone simply because your needs are different from ours.  We simply show you the direction of where you should  go.

Be Honest With Yourself

Let's begin with some basic questions and make sure you pen them down for reference later...

1. Do you really need a smartphone? Why? Write your needs down.
2. What is your budget for a smartphone?
3. Do you have an Operating System (OS) in mind?
4. Do you care about the aesthetic of the smartphone? 
5. Do you have a manufacturer or brand in mind?

These questions primarily dictate what your smartphone should be.  For instance in Question (5), if you have already decided to get iOS, you can only choose from Apple phones.  Instead of getting the latest iPhone, you can based on your budget and consider a second hand phone such as iPhone 4S or iPhone 5S which are significantly cheaper than iPhone 6.  No one can stop you from selling both your kidneys to buy iPhone 6 and iPhone 7 but you may have no kidney to sell for iPhone 8 which may launched in 5 years' time.

Know Your Current Plan

Ask yourself:

1. Are you currently on prepaid or postpaid plan?
2. Do you have a bundle program with your carrier (or telco)?

If you are on a bundle postpaid plan, you are likely to enjoy some discounts for all your products and services.  It is better to stick to your current plan so you can continue to enjoy such discounts unless there is better offer from other carrier.

The X Factors

There are many features in the next generation smartphone.  For each feature, there is a price premium to pay because they are unique selling points to every manufacturers.  How about selecting 5 top features which you badly wanted and compare against those phones in the market.  If they met all the top 5 criteria, your next smartphone is confirmed.  Else, you may have to look at the open market or overseas for your dream phone.

Guide of selection your dream smartphone

Participate in the guide below and know more about what you really need in your next smartphone.  Good luck and have fun!