Anti-crisis offer: TOP-5 smartphones for $100

Assistant AS-5431 8 GB / 1 GB

The Assistant company announced its first smartphone to the public at the dawn of 2016. It attracts potential buyers with a pleasant price and a very good level of performance.

In terms of design and layout of the main controls, the smartphone resembles Meizu M2 Note 16 GB , slightly behind him in terms of interior decoration. Benchmarks also hint at the similarity of the phone with Xiaomi Redmi 2 8 GB / 1 GB (of one of the most popular low-cost devices) — during the AnTuTu test, both devices score the same number of points (about 22K). The “hardware” of the gadget is represented by a 4-core MediaTek MT6580 processor running at a clock frequency of 1.3 GHz, 1 GB of RAM and a Mali400 graphics accelerator. You should not count on running resource-intensive applications on such a hardware, but it will cope with simple tasks without problems.

All information is displayed on a 5-inch screen with a resolution of 1280x720 pixels. The pixel density at this resolution reaches 294ppi. Accordingly, the individual points from which the image is built are not striking at all. High-quality IPS-matrix perfectly reproduces colours, which can also be adjusted manually. The only disappointment is the unimportant anti-glare coating, which makes it difficult to see anything on the display on a sunny day, and multi-touch, which supports only 2 simultaneous touches on the screen.

Considering the orientation of the smartphone, both modules of its cameras command respect. In good light, they produce a high-quality picture, losing details in the image only when shooting in the dark. Additionally, the main module boasts the ability to record FullHD videos with stabilization. Mobile photography enthusiasts have access to a range of different shooting presets.

A nice bonus for the owners of the device is the presence of a gesture control system. It allows you to carry out pre-configured procedures without touching the screen at all. In addition, the owners of the Assistant smartphone will appreciate its battery life — one battery charge is enough for a day of full-fledged work with calls, browsing, chatting in instant messengers and other scenarios for using a mobile gadget.

Lenovo Vibe C 8 GB / 1 GB

The model with the A2020 index is a smartphone that has grown in all respects Lenovo A2010 8 GB / 1 GB , which received a screen size increased to 5" and modern hardware.

Despite the five-inch diagonal, the screen resolution remains the same as its predecessor — 854x480 pixels. In the process of image formation, a TN-matrix is involved, when looking at it at angles, colour inversion is observed. The brightness range of the display ensures comfortable use of the smartphone both on a bright sunny day and in the dark.

The hardware filling of the gadget is represented by a low-cost Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 processor (4 cores at 1.1 GHz). It is designed to work smoothly in everyday applications(browser, instant messengers, player, etc.). In games, the smartphone does not perform well, although according to the results of synthetic tests, it practically does not lag behind competing models in the class (about 21K points in AnTuTu and 300 points in Geek Bench).

A feature of the proprietary VibeUI shell, rolled over Android 5.1, is the placement of all elements and applications on desktops, i.e. no separate menu. The shell is highly responsive and easy to manage.

The main camera of a mobile device is devoid of autofocus in its design, which is why you have to spend more time and effort to get a high-quality result. With sufficient lighting, the pictures are suitable, but less. When photographing, keep in mind that the main module is shifted to the upper left edge on the back of the device. The front camera is recommended for video calling. The back cover is removable, which allows you to replace a dead battery or get to one of the two SIM-cards or a microSD memory card with a capacity of up to 32 GB.

The smartphone is suitable for performing any undemanding tasks: surfing the Internet, communicating in social networks and, of course, voice calls. In these usage scenarios, it feels like a fish out of water.

Doogee Valencia 2 Y100 Pro 16 GB / 2 GB

The products of the Chinese smartphone manufacturer Doogee are distinguished by an affordable cost with a fairly good “hardware”.

The model with the long name Doogee Valencia 2 Y100 Pro is enclosed in a plastic case with rounded edges. The back cover is stylized as metal and has inclusions of aluminium sputtering, which enhances tactile sensations when using a smartphone. The lid is removable, so during operation it can creak unpleasantly. But the owners of the phone get access to a removable battery with a capacity of 2200 mAh, which allows you to carry a spare battery with you, since on a single charge the gadget barely lasts until the evening.

Inside the case, Chinese engineers placed an inexpensive but powerful MediaTek MT6735M processor. Paired with 2 GB of RAM, it allows you to run most modern games. That's just the graphics settings in heavy applications, it is desirable to lower to medium or minimum. In the AnTuTu synthetic test, the smartphone earns about 19K points — as for a low-cost model, this is a fairly good indicator. Moreover , the phone's interface is highly responsive and smooth scrolling through all menu items.

A special pride of the smartphone is its screen with a typical HD-resolution (1280x720 pixels). It provides correct colour reproduction at wide viewing angles. The 3rd generation Gorilla Glass protective coating is applied on top of the display and it is so durable that various videos pop up on the Web about the possibility of cracking nuts with a smartphone without any consequences for the screen. But the cameras let us down: in numbers they look attractive (13 MP main and 8 MP front), but in reality they give the result “below average”.

I am glad that the smartphone did not become another clone of some A-brand. It is made in its own style and, thanks to excellent ergonomics, fits both in an elegant female hand and in a strong male one.

Xiaomi Redmi 2 Enhanced Edition 16 GB / 2 GB

An improved version of the most popular low-cost smartphone of 2015 Xiaomi Redmi 2 8 GB / 1 GB differs from its counterpart in an increased amount of RAM (2 GB instead of 1 GB), as well as a 32 GB drive instead of 16 GB.

In terms of components, the model with the Enhanced Edition prefix completely copies the junior representative of the Chinese company Xiaomi. The heart of the smartphone is a 4-core processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 (1.2 GHz), which successfully turns over the MIUI 6 shell, rolled over Android 4.4.4 KitKat OS. The smoothness of the interface when scrolling through the menu or calling running programs from the background can be envied even by significantly more advanced models. Games and heavy applications hardware allows you to run at medium graphics settings.

The 4.7-inch diagonal of the screen turned out to be one of the most convenient for one-handed control. We add here the excellent viewing angles of the IPS matrix, as well as natural colour reproduction. The correct colours are also obtained in photographs from the main camera, which has an 8-megapixel resolution. However in poor lighting conditions, it does not provide the proper result, but this is the misfortune of all low-cost smartphones. The 2-megapixel front camera is only suitable for Skype communication.

The assembly of the device is of high quality. Of the shortcomings, only the creaking of the back cover is noted. it is removable, which opens up access to memory expansion via microSD cards or to a replacement battery with a capacity of 2200 mAh. The charge of the latter is usually enough for 1-1.5 days of full-fledged operation of the gadget. Another "fly in the ointment" can be called the heating of the case in the area of the chamber during prolonged intensive loads.

The phone has an abundance of sound profiles for different types of headphones, through which it is able to reproduce clear and high-quality sound. And the equalizer with preset music playback modes will help to adjust the sound to your ear.

Announced in 2016, the heir of the smartphone in the face of Xiaomi Redmi 3 16 GB / 2 GB did not put an end to the second generation, but only made it an even more attractive option for purchase, which is facilitated by a very "delicious" price tag.

LG K5 8 GB / 1 GB

The low-cost series of smartphones with the prefix "K" from the South Korean brand LG entered the market in early 2016. The model with the K5 index is the most affordable in the new line.

The phone is enclosed in a high-quality metal case, which is rare in state employees. The back cover is removable and it opens access to replacing the battery or expanding the memory of the smartphone via microSD cards with a maximum capacity of 32 GB. The 8 GB internal storage provides users with about half of its capacity.

The screen of a smartphone with a typical 5-inch diagonal has a low resolution (854x480 pixels). Part of the display is eaten by touch control keys, which are located on its lower part. On the other hand, the screen has wide viewing angles and also reproduces colours correctly.

In the AnTuTu test, the performance level of the smartphone is estimated at about 23.5K points. In applications, the gadget behaves like a strong average — at medium graphics settings, it feels confident in all modern games. The merit of this lies on the shoulders of the 4-core processor MediaTek MT6580, paired with 1 GB of RAM.

As befits a modern smartphone, there was a place on board for two cameras: the main one with a resolution of 5 MP and the front one with 2 MP. They have several interesting features in their arsenal, among which stand out shooting by hand gesture, shooting with one touch and virtual flash for selfies. The resulting photo and video materials do not shine with super-quality, but with sufficient lighting they give quite a decent result.

The battery capacity of 1900 mAh is enough for a day of not very active use of the smartphone. Therefore, in order to always stay in touch, it will not be superfluous to stock up on an extra battery or an external battery to charge your gadget on the go.