SMARTPHONE BUYING GUIDE THIS 2021

 Hey guys! It’s your Tech Girl, Mary. And welcome back to my channel. So again, Happy New Year! It’s now 2021 and were coming back to our white background but with a twist so that we are not too plain, right?

Anyway, I missed filming so much. I took a break,  though it’s just only five days. And I am here to do  our yearly smartphone buying guide. If you’ll remember last year, I did a smartphone buying guide 2020. And like what you’ve said, it was very helpful. But of course, it will change this time. Because our standards have changed this year 2021. And I’ll also be more specific this time. Last year, we talked about our budget, the specifications that you should consider. But now, we will dig deeper. And guys, well talk about the basic stuff that you should look for a smartphone this year 2021. And guys, this is applicable  to everyone. 

For example is if you’re this type of person looking for a budget device. Or if you are this type of person looking for a midrange or even for a higher flagship device. But guys, I just noticed this here in the Philippines, midrange devices are more trendy or more popular. Smartphones that will range between Php10,000 to Php20,000. And of course, we will start this with one in a smartphone, and this is its processor. And the thing these days guys, I noticed especially last and 3rd quarter of 2020, whatever smartphone we buy in the market, they’re now putting good chipsets or processors, which is I know a good thing. But, for example, if you are buying a smartphone, even if it’s a budget phone, I would rather go for a MediaTek chipset than a Qualcomm Snapdragon that is around 400.

I also just noticed guys that MediaTeks like Helio P70 are better rather than, again, getting the Snapdragon 4x lineup. And then for the midrange devices guys, I think you should go for smartphones that has at least a Snapdragon 700 series and above. Actually our bare minimum guys would be the Qualcomm Snapdragon 670. But that should be our limit to ensure that the experience that well get from it will be good. Or the newer ones like the Snapdragon 720G. And of course for the MediaTek, those that have a MediaTek G90T. And expect a newer chipset coming this year 2021. And of course, for the flagship devices, this year 2021, expect that  they will be having those Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 like what we’ve had with the Mi 11. Or in the Philippines like with the Samsung phones, the Exynos 2100. Now moving to storage... I would say go for a 64GB for the minimum. Why not the 32GB anymore, Mary?

For me guys, the 32GB doesn’t make sense anymore. I would really suggest guys to choose at least 64GB and this should be the lowest especially with budget phones. But of course, ideally we should  go for 128GB or above, especially if you’re buying a midrange device. Because for example,  the applications that we have right now like the Genshin Impact would already be 10GB. Asphalt 9 would be around 2GB or 3GB. And many applications that will consume a really large space. Aside from gaming guys, even if you have a Micro USB slot... Like the WhatsApp, Viber, the photos and conversations in there would be stored in your phone storage and not on the memory card. And another one guys, you should also remember that the minimum that you’ll get should have a UFS 2.1 storage for the reading speed to be fast especially if the megapixels of the camera of that smartphone is high.

Especially with the  budget phones nowadays, they’re now usually 48MP. Midrange devices are,  you know, have 64MP. So there. You really need storage guys that can read and write fast. And of course for the higher variants, our flagships, most probably they’ll be UFS 3.0 or it can even be 3.1. And actually this year, it can even reached up to 3.2. Now, let’s talk about the RAM. For those who are not familiar what RAM is, are asking guys, when buying or before buying a smartphone in the stores or in the phone that they’re looking for in online shops.

This is all you need to remember guys, bigger RAM means a faster multitasking and the phone will remember the last application  that you use longer. And of course we all know that as time passes by, smartphones are getting better  and better. And of course if smartphones are  becoming better, applications and games also improve. And one good example for that is the Genshin Impact. It is really like a AAA game title on your smartphones. And of course, this game will demand a higher RAM on your smartphones for you to be able to play it smoothly. So expect that the applications that will also then come to us this year 2021 will also be more demanding. So the smartphones, guys, should also be able to keep up that’s why it’s important that if you’ll buy, for example, a midrange device, it should be at least 6GB or 8GB  of RAM already. Yes guys, for me it must be...

Actually, 6GB must be the bare minimum. And 4GB should not be considered on the midrange devices because its only for budget phones. And of course, to have  a better experience, the midrange devices that well buy should be 8GB of RAM guys. So, you know, the smartphones that you’ll buy this year will still be usable  until 2022 or even 2023. I used to say that smartphones are overkill or specifically flagship devices that have 12GB of RAM. But you know what guys? Now, I started to appreciate them already. And now I don’t think  that smartphones that have 12GB of RAM are overkill anymore. And of course, another thing guys, our smartphones nowadays have a higher megapixels like 64MP, 108MP. And of course for those devices, it needs a higher RAM to process the photos.

This one guys, the topic about 5G. And I get this question a lot, like in every video of mine when the smartphone has 5GB, this is what the conversation  is always about. Do you really need a smartphone that has a 5G or that is 5G-ready?

The short answer, for this year 2021, is yes. Do you know guys, back then, somewhere around first,  second, third quarter—especially when the Huawei released midrange devices that are 5G-ready—I said then, Hm. Interesting, right?

Because they put a 5G capability on a midrange device, which I honestly I thought guys is kind of overkill. But then, this year 2021, you know what guys?

Since I went to many places, that’s when I realized that there is 5G in these places. I thought its only in Makati, but then when I went guys to Nuvali, I also went to Alabang, even here in Biñan guys, it’s a nice surprise that there’s a 5G signal already. And this year 2021, one of the things that you should consider when you’re buying a smartphone, when it’s a higher midrange to flagship, make sure its 5G-ready.

But then, this is what I also advise for the people who buy smartphones. Don’t pay for a certain feature where you think you don’t need yet as of the moment. So if you think that the 5G wont still be applicable for you or its not ye accessible in your area, or you’re still not travelling yet, then you could go for a smartphone that doesn’t have 5G. Let’s now guys also talk about one of the most important factor that you should look at in a smartphone and this is also one of my favorite thing to look at in a smartphone, and this is its screen or its display. I don’t want to talk about the screen sizes because for me, it’s really a personal preference. But I just noticed guys, last year 2020, Android didn’t give us small screen displays but they’re really competing to have the biggest one.

Apple is the only one who gave us a smartphone that has a small display which is the iPhone 12 Mini. But other than that guys, I can count on my hands the smartphones  that I’ve used one-handedly. And the reason for that guys is of course, the side bezels are getting smaller and the aspect ratio is getting bigger, making the display a lot bigger than it used to be before. This year 2021, the smartphones that you must buy when it comes to display, it should either single punch hole or dual punch hole. And actually, I am also looking forward to smartphones that have an under-display camera. And guys, if there is still a smartphone that will be released with a notch or the dew drop notch, or even the smartphones that have a pop-up mechanism, it’s kind of mmm.

But of course, it still depends on its other specifications. But again, it’s already 2021. Actually in 2021, we shouldn’t have any smartphones that still have a dew drop anymore. For budget phones, you know guys, it should be...For me, it shall at least be 1080p or Full HD+—even if it’s not an AMOLED display—for it to be a higher resolution already. But I’m not expecting on entry-level smartphones to have a 1080p resolution. Again guys, entry-level smartphones are different from budget phones.  Because we all know that in entry-level smartphones, you know, you should not expect. t can only provide very basic stuff. So if it can call, text, you can use Facebook, and you can take photos no matter how blurry it is, it’s enough for that. Also guys, look at the brightness level especially for higher midrange to flagship.

Of course guys, the more expensive the phone is, the higher  the brightness wherein even if its noon, under direct sunlight, you’re doing on your smartphone. Also guys, not because  you bought an AMOLED display means it’s very good already. Guys, there are devices nowadays, for example those that have an AMOLED display, on full brightness, its good and it doesn’t have any problems, but when it’s on the lowest brightness, sometimes it starts to flicker. It’s kind of annoying sometimes. Sometimes you’ll think Is my phone broken or what?

But guys, sometimes it’s a common issue or problem of smartphones that  have AMOLED display. That’s just for some. So you should also consider that because it should not be happening. Generally guys, when it comes to displays, Samsung offers good displays. They rarely have flickering issues and even with the new OnePlus smartphones last year. So just remember guys, again, always check the smartphones that you’re going to buy with AMOLED displays on how they’re performing during nighttime or again, on lowlight scenarios and the brightness is very low.

Now, let’s talk about batteries. You know guys, I also noticed this. I know you’ve noticed this too. Oftentimes, midrange devices performs better in terms of battery compared to flagship devices. This happened last year 2020, be it with Samsung Galaxy M51 wherein it has 7,000mAh or even other midrange devices that has 6,000mAh compared to flagship devices that has 4,500mAh to 5,000mAh of battery capacity only. Actually guys, last year 2020, 4,000mAh battery capacity is already a good start for a battery wherein it’s enough for you to last a day. But this year 2021, I kind of want to raise our standards a bit. I think the most basic thing that we should consider in a battery capacity of a smartphone is 4,500mAh to 5,000mAh already.

Why? Especially if the smartphone that you bought is 5G-ready, that will consume a lot of battery. Especially guys for the people who are heavy users. And of course, the built  of the smartphones. I know guys that I often  overlook this one or other people also. We’re not considering if the back is made of Corning Gorilla Glass 5 or even the glass in front. Is it made of polycarbonate plastic or glass?

Those kind of things. So what do we need to consider?

Also, especially for pricier smartphones, should they have an IP rating?

Or should they have  a wireless charging?

Let’s first talk about flagship guys. Of course, you should expect the highest kind of glass, the one called Victus, especially for the ultra-devices that will be released this year. And of course those flagship devices must be capable of wireless, and not just any wireless, but fast wireless charging. And at least its IP68 water  and dust resistant. Actually, IP68 is common already. It just all boils down to how deep a smartphone can reach. Like up to six meters and up to 30 minutes, those kind of scenarios. So there. You should consider it guys.

Just imagine the pressure when you’re in the depth of six meters deep,  because we all know that in that case,  it already hurts our ears but the smartphone can still survive. As per charging guys, especially the flagship devices, you know, one of the things that you should consider are the, again, power bricks, the USB Type-C that are included in it. Does it support Power Delivery? What does that mean?

In layman’s term, for us to be able to understand it easily, the power bricks or chargers that are included on the flagship device that you bought must be also compatible with the game consoles like the Nintendo Switch or like tablets, or even your laptop. And of course guys, this is not considered by other people that much, but you should still consider when buying a smartphone—the software update cycle. This is the number of years the brand supports it. Just to give you a very specific example...

Just like in Apple,  guys, even the iPhone 6+ or iPhone 6s receives software updates until now unlike most Androids these past few years wherein It’s like after two years  or three years, you’ll be on your own, which is very true. So there guys. Consider the brand or the smartphone if it will provide a very quick software update and of course, for the years to come. And also take note of this one, the brands that releases very quickly wherein it’s like you’ve just slept for a while or you’ve just recently bought a phone then next week you’ll hear that there’s a new smartphone again already.

Of course guys,  its update cycle can become slow. So guys, it’s an important aspect so you should also take note of that if you’re going to buy a smartphone this year 2021. Lastly of course are the cameras. You know what guys, this is what I like most to change in the minds of others. Higher megapixels doesn’t mean better camera. It still depends  on the software optimization of that smartphone. Even if we say this smartphone has 108MP and this one only has 12MP, this phone still has a better output compared to this smartphone that has the 108MP. And the other thing that  you guys should consider for the smartphones  that you’re going to buy...

That you’re going to buy this year 2021, is if it has an optical  image stabilization, not just on its rear camera but also in the front camera. And aside from that guys, it should also have an ultra-wide camera and telephoto lens and nothing else. Because the standard back then, 2020, 2019, the more cameras the better. Don’t get me wrong guys, sometimes it’s really good, but most of the time, there’s a lot of unnecessary cameras that you don’t need.

For example, there’s a 2MP black and white lens. There’s 2MP macro lens. I mean I know it may be useful to some people like, maybe let’s say 30% or 40%, but guys, those 60% or 70%  of the people don’t really use it including us. So there guys. Don’t focus on the megapixels but how good the image processing of a smartphone is. And lastly guys, this one...Actually, I don’t talk about it very often in my videos, but I would like you  to consider this one when you’re buying a smartphone. What I want guys is the ear piece quality and the haptic feedback. You should also consider these aspects. Most of the smartphones  that have a really good haptic feedback are the OnePlus or the Realme. If you’ll remember back then, the POCO F1s haptic feedback is not that good.

Actually, it’s not really good. Another example would be the Redmi Note 9 Pro. It gave me like a flagship level of haptic feedback. So yes guys. Those are the things that you should consider before buying a smartphone this year 2021. And before I end. I’m sorry guys because its long, but I know you learned a lot of things. 

I just noticed that over time, the reasons why we’re buying a smartphone are disappearing. An example of this is  the smartphones nowadays don’t have headphone jack anymore. The future releases of S series from Samsung won’t have expandable storage anymore. Or some won’t have a charger anymore. It started with Apple, then followed by Xiaomi, and other brands will also follow  that eventually.

And I even saw an article stating that the next iPhone this year will be port less. I don’t know if this is true, but I hope it’s not. Or if worst-case scenario its true, I hope the accessories  won’t be that expensive. So, it’s really hard to keep up.

That’s all that I noticed in the past few months or the past few years, and I know it’s the same with you. So that’s basically it guys for my video today. Again, it’s your Tech Girl, Mary, and see you on my next Time. Bye guys!

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