Looking for a Smartphone with have good sound system.

[Sonic Angel Knight]

Hi.

I'm curious if Smartphones have started to become better with audio. I'm looking to get a phone. It doesn't have to be top tier performance or anything super fancy or sophisticated. Just need to meet these requirements. The ones in bold are a must, the others are willing to negotiate the value or worth between the prices.

• Android OS (Not sure what version is the latest)
• Stereo speakers (NO SPEAKERS ON THE BACK OF THE PHONE, That's dumb!)
• Unlocked and able to take more than one service provider (I heard there is one with dual sim card slots, one is good enough, but won't complain if it's more)
• Supports Expandable storage with SD cards.
• Decent battery life or replaceable battery. (Not sure if phones have battery soldered to the circuit board. But I had a tablet that did)
• Nothing under 6 inches. 7 inch screen should be good enough (17.78 for centimeters since I guess people use that measurement too)
• Decent camera, 1920X1080 resolution is good enough for me, but won't complain if it can go higher.
• Price range $100-$150 (The lower the better obviously)
• Not sure how important NFC was but the phone I used before had one

I don't really buy phones, the last one I had used a speaker on the back and no sd card slot for storage. The closest I got to a good sound system was the two Nvidia Shield devices. One look like a game controller and the other was a tablet. I prefer something that has stereo and no speakers on the back, has decent battery and good screen size. Or maybe tablets just do those features better. If anyone has ideas, don't hesitate to leave a post. Also, no comments about headphones, earphones, bluetooth audio, they will be ignored. Not trying to be rude, just keeping the topic.

 

[rcpd]

Your price point is severely limiting you to "budget" devices. Budget devices are budget devices simply because the manufacturer is cutting costs inside to keep the price reasonable. You're not going to get a phone in the $150 range that's particularly well known for audio unless you don't mind getting a phone that is a few years old and no longer receiving support.

Even then, you're asking a miracle to get all of the features you require. You're going to have to make some concessions. Probably the biggest one is on price.

 

[linuxares]

I check your requirement and there is no such phone on the market if you aren't going to the used market.

 

[sith]

yeah, reality check mate... you don't get all that for nothing, with a budget of $150 its used cheap crap or get a google pixel for free on a 2yr deal and concede the sd card and good speakers, get a bluetooth.

 

[Sonic Angel Knight]

So am I expected to pay $500 or near $1000 for a smartphone?

 

[rcpd]

So am I expected to pay $500 or near $1000 for a smartphone?

Not if you don't want to, no. But you do need to reevaluate what all you need in a smartphone. You can't have a flagship phone for $100-$150.

 

[FAST6191]

Did install some tablets for someone a few years back that claimed Dolby support, they weren't bad but were used more as a source via 3.5mm for a decent install.

That said outside of some fun tech (plasma, some aspects of bone conduction, infrasound) good speakers at that size are not really going to be a thing -- things the size of TVs still sound like arse (hence everybody buying sound bars) and they are far larger and fatter than most phones could ever imagine.

 

[CoolMe]

So am I expected to pay $500 or near $1000 for a smartphone?

Not necessarily, i'd say from $250 to $400 is reasonable for similar specs.
I'd take a look at the Samsung budget line phones like the A5 or A7 series. Though you should know there's the 5G models which are usually +$100 above the non-5G models, so keep that in mind..

 

[Sonic Angel Knight]

Not necessarily, i'd say from $250 to $400 is reasonable for similar specs.
I'd take a look at the Samsung budget line phones like the A5 or A7 series. Though you should know there's the 5G models which are usually +$100 above the non-5G models, so keep that in mind..

These Samsung galaxy A5 phones seem decent. Are they old and out of production? I just ask since the prices are lower than most phones I seen which usually end up close to $300.

 

[Hayato213]

These Samsung galaxy A5 phones seem decent. Are they old and out of production? I just ask since the prices are lower than most phones I seen which usually end up close to $300.

They are from 2017

 

[CoolMe]

These Samsung galaxy A5 phones seem decent. Are they old and out of production? I just ask since the prices are lower than most phones I seen which usually end up close to $300.

By "A5" & "A7" i meant A51, A52 and now they're at A53 i believe, each year they release a new model for each A series phones. You could go with whatever you want, you'd find some good deals on last year's models, depending where you live of course.

Here's some vids to check out :