Mid range Android Mobile Phone and Chipset

[xiaofan]

Just wondering how people here perceived as mid-range phone in terms of price range.

I actually considered sub US$299 as low end Android phones but it seems to me different people will have quite different understanding.

My own understanding of segmentation in Singapore context.
US$500 and above -- high end (roughly above S$700), but the price may seem to go up to be higher than S$800 or even higher.
US$300 - US$499 -- mid end (roughly S$400 to S$700)
US$299 and below -- low end (roughly below S$400)

Reference:

Techadvisor definition: US$350 to US$850 (US$850 seems to be too high to be considered as mid-range here in SG)
https://www.techadvisor.com/article/723509/best-mid-range-phone.html
GSMarena: GBP 200 to GBP300 as mid-range and then GBP300 to GBP450 as premium mid-range.
https://www.gsmarena.com/best_midrange_allrounders_buyers_guide-review-2032.phphttps://www.gsmarena.com/best_premium_allrounders_buyers_guide-review-2033.php

 

[xiaofan]

Updated in 15 May 2026

(Apple A series, Huawei Hisilicon Kirin and Spreadtrum Unisoc chipsets not included)

1. Qualcomm
https://www.qualcomm.com/products/mobile/snapdragon/smartphones#overview
1) Qualcomm mid-range

Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 (new)
Snapdragon 8s Gen 3

Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3
Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2

Snapdragon 7 Gen 4
Snapdragon 7 Gen 3
Snapdragon 7 Gen 1

Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 (new)
Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 (much slower than 7+ Gen 3)
Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 (much slower than 7+ Gen 2)

Snapdragon 782G (overclock version of 778G, not so popular)
Snapdragon 780G (not popular)
Snapdragon 778G (popular)

From the older 8 series
Snapdragon 8 Elite
Snapdragon 8 Gen 3
Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1
Snapdragon 888
Snapdragon 870

2) Qualcomm mid-low range

Snapdragon 6 Gen 5 (new)
Snapdragon 6 Gen 4
Snapdragon 6 Gen 3
Snapdragon 6 Gen 1

Snapdragon 6s Gen4
Snapdragon 6s Gen3

Snapdragon 695 (5G)

3) Qualcomm low-end

Snapdragon 4 Gen 5 (5G)
Snapdragon 4 Gen 4 (5G)
Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 (5G)
Snapdragon 4 Gen 1 (5G, lower clock version of 695)

Snapdragon4s Gen 2 (5G)

Snapdragon 6s 4G Gen2
Snapdragon 6s 4G Gen 1
Snapdragon 685 (4G)
Snapdragon 680 (4G)

2. MediaTek
https://www.mediatek.com/products/smartphones/dimensity-5g

1) MediaTek mid-range
Dimensity 8500 (new)
Dimensity 8450
Dimensity 8400
Dimensity 8350
Dimensity 8300
Dimensity 8250
Dimensity 8200
Dimensity 8100
Dimensity 1300/1200/8050
Dimensity 8020

2) MediaTek mid-low range
Dimensity 7400X
Dimensity 7400
Dimensity 7350
Dimensity 7300X
Dimensity 7300
Dimensity 7200
Dimensity 7050
Dimensity 7030
Dimensity 7025 Ultra (eg: Xiaomi M7 Pro 5G)
Dimensity 1080 (aka Dimensity 7050)
Dimensity 1050 (aka Dimensity 7030)
Dimensity 930 (aka Dimensity 7020)
Dimensity 920
Dimensity 900
Dimensity 820

3) MediaTek Low-end
Dimensity 6400
Dimensity 6300
Dimensity 6100+ (overclocked Dimensity 810)
Dimensity 810 (aka Dimensity 6080)
Dimensity 800U
Dimensity 720U
Dimensity 6020 (almost the same as Dimensity 700)
Dimensity 700
Helio G200 (4G only)
Helio G100 (4G only)
Helio G99 (4G only, roughly Dimensity 700 minus 5G)
Helio G96 (4G only)
Helio G85 (4G only)
Helio G81 (4G only)
Helio G80 (4G only)

3. Samsung
https://semiconductor.samsung.com/processor/
Exynos 2500 (high end) --? some version of S26 series ??
Exynos 2400 (high end) -- some version of S24 and S24+, all S24 FE.
Exynos 2200 (high end) -- all Samsung S23 FE
Exynos 1580 (mid-range) -- Galaxy A56 5G
Exynos 1480 (mid-range) -- Galaxy A55 5G
Exynos 1380 (mid-range) -- Galaxy A54 5G, Galaxy A35 5G, Galaxy A26 5G
Exynos 1330 (low to mid-range) -- Galaxy M14 5G, Galaxy A14 5G, Galaxy A34 5G, and Galaxy M34, Galaxy A16 5G, Galaxy A17 5G
Exynos 1280 (mid-range) -- Galaxy A53 5G, Galaxy A33 5G

 

[xiaofan]

1. Best Mid-Range Android Phones Fall 2025:

0:00 - Get on with it!
0:55 - Google Pixel 9a, Google Tensor G4 (4 nm)
2:59 - OnePlus Nord 5, Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 (4 nm)
5:03 - OnePlus Nord CE5, Mediatek Dimensity 8350 Apex (4 nm)
6:11 - Samsung Galaxy A56 5G, Exynos 1580 (4 nm)
7:21 - Samsung Galaxy A36 5G, Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 (4 nm)
7:54 - Samsung Galaxy S25 FE, Exynos 2400 (4 nm)
8:23 - Nothing Phone 3a & 3a Pro, Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 (4 nm) for both
9:54 - CMF Phone 2 Pro, Mediatek Dimensity 7300 Pro (4 nm)
10:38 - Motorola Edge 60 Fusion, Mediatek Dimensity 7300 (4 nm) - Global version
11:28 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 14 Pro+ 5G, Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 (4 nm)
13:00 - Xiaomi Redmi Note 14 Pro 5G, Mediatek Dimensity 7300 Ultra (4 nm)
14:03 - Xiaomi 15T, Mediatek Dimensity 8400 Ultra (4 nm)
15:24 - Poco X7 Pro, Mediatek Dimensity 8400 Ultra (4 nm)
16:53 - Poco F7 Pro, Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4 nm)
17:26 - Poco F7, Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 (4 nm)
18:07 - Honor 400 Lite, Mediatek Dimensity 7025 Ultra (6 nm)
19:07 - REDMAGIC 10 Air, Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (4 nm)
20:03 - Vivo V60, Snapdragon 7 Gen 4 (4 nm)




2. Best Mid-Range Android Phones Early 2024:

Google Pixel 7a, Google Tensor G2
OnePlus Nord 2T, Mediatek Dimensity 1300
OnePlus Nord 3, Mediatek Dimensity 9000
OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite, Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G
Samsung Galaxy A54 5G, Exynos Exynos 1380
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE, Exynos 2200 for internation edition
Nothing Phone 1, Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G+
Nothing Phone 2, Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1
Vivo V29, Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G
Vivo V29 Pro, Mediatek Dimensity 8200
Honor 90, Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 Accelerated Edition
Poco X4 GT, Mediatek Dimensity 8100
Poco F5, Qualcomm Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2
Poco F5 Pro, Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1
Poco X5 Pro, Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus, Mediatek Dimensity 1080
Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus Mediatek Dimensity 7200 Ultra
Xiaomi 13T, Mediatek Dimensity 8200 Ultra
Realme GT Master Edition, Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G
Realme 10 Pro Plus, Mediatek Dimensity 1080 - version 1, or Mediatek Dimensity 920 - version 2

Reference:

 

[xonix]

In general, I think most people ( at least the ones who actually read the specs ) will classify the phones according to their performance rather price points. There are many phones with middling specs that being sold close to flagship prices.

 

[xiaofan]

In general, I think most people ( at least the ones who actually read the specs ) will classify the phones according to their performance rather price points. There are many phones with middling specs that being sold close to flagship prices.

Good point. On the other hand, chipset is probably not everything either (eg: screen is important, storage can be important as well). And even spec may not be everything either. Reliability, Quality, FW support, etc, also play a part.

Brand is also important as it has some relationships with Quality and Reliability as well. For example, Apple has great quality in general. I also think Huawei is good. but it is rather unfortunate that Huawei is mostly outside of the picture since no more Google GMS and no more Kirin CPU.

Of course different people may also have different experiences and may have different preferences with the brand. For example, I will avoid Samsung and Xiaomi (including Redmi and Poco) due to past bad experiences (Samsung Galaxy S3 LTE, Galaxy S4 LTE+, Xiaomi Mi Max). They may have changed but I would rather avoid them.

 

[keenklee]

IMHO.
Eh... i buy phone based on how manufacturer segmented them.

Aside from phones, in the past, manufacturer like Samsung would segment tablets based on the processor.
As processors becomes faster and faster, besides processors, they also segment based on screen size and features.

 

[caterham7]

Personally ignore segmentation such as low/mid/high

Choose according to usage requirements and budget

E.g. previously brought export korea refurbished samsung note10, just $250 from qoo10. Low-end price, but flagship specs

 

[keenklee]

IMHO.
I agree on the requirements.

The challenge for me is the requirement I want at times do not exist.
Like I was looking for an 8" tablet that support Netflix HD.
After waiting patiently for quite sometime, finally managed to get an export
8" Samsung tablet that can do that at a very nice price point.

Also was looking for a cheapo mobile with NFC. Manage to find an export Samsung
at very nice price point.

 

[xiaofan]

IMHO.
Eh... i buy phone based on how manufacturer segmented them.

Aside from phones, in the past, manufacturer like Samsung would segment tablets based on the processor.
As processors becomes faster and faster, besides processors, they also segment based on screen size and features.

Last time for my own use I preferred to buy last year's flagship phone with Telco Contract subsidy. I have bought Samsung Galaxy S3 LTE when the S4 was out, then Galaxy S4 LTE+ when the S5 was out. I also bought the Huawei P20 when P30 was nearly out.

After switching to Singtel SIM Only Plan, I got Realme X50 5G late last year to replace the Huawei P20. I also got the Realme 7 5G for my mum-in-law to replace her Oppo R11s (bought using the contract subsidy as well).

Now my requirements are more or less like the following for my own use, or for my parents-in-law.
[My wife will only use iPhone].
1) No Samsung or Xiaomi (including Redmi and Poco)
2) 8GB RAM, 128GB Flash storage or 256GB storage
3) 5G ready chipset (Snapdragon 6/7 series or MediaTek Dimensity series), no MTK Helio.
4) S$300 to S$500
5) Dual SIM (usually a given for Android)
6) NFC is nice to have
7) Local set with warranty

Last October, Realme X50 5G (SD765G, S$399) and Realme 7 5G (Dimensity 800U, S$329) fit the above requirement quite well. It seems to me I have less choices now that Realme does not seem to offer phones here. But Oppo phones (last year model like Reno 5Z 5G, Dimensity 800U) may be an okay fit. I looked at Vivo but I do not see a good fit.

 

[keenklee]

IMHO.
Err... I buy for others the latest flagship at times skip generation. Then I kop their old flag to use.
IIRC, the only flagship that I buy for myself was Note2 and Note10+.

 

[007Mi6]

2 years ago anything above 60hz screen is high end.

Today mid range needs to be above 60hz, otherwise is low end.

Samsung mid range $600-800 is others high end (Realme, Poco).

 

[xiaofan]

One interesting chipset is Snapdragon SD680 (4G only), it is slow even compared to MTK Dimensity 700, and of course slower than SD695 or Dimensity 800U. In fact, it is worse than SD480 in terms of CPU and Gaming performance.

https://nanoreview.net/en/soc-compare/qualcomm-snapdragon-680-vs-qualcomm-snapdragon-480https://nanoreview.net/en/soc-compare/qualcomm-snapdragon-680-vs-mediatek-dimensity-700https://nanoreview.net/en/soc-compare/qualcomm-snapdragon-695-vs-qualcomm-snapdragon-680https://nanoreview.net/en/soc-compare/qualcomm-snapdragon-695-vs-mediatek-dimensity-800u
And indeed it is mostly used by low end or low-mid range phones, for example, Samsung Galaxy A23, Realme 9/9i, Vivo Y35 and Xiaomi Redmi Note 11.

 

[xiaofan]

2 years ago anything above 60hz screen is high end.

Today mid range needs to be above 60hz, otherwise is low end.

Samsung mid range $600-800 is others high end (Realme, Poco).

Indeed Samsung the higher end of the A series (still mid-end phones) is at that price range. For example, Galaxy A73 5G (SD778G) is already listed at S$698 (8GB/128GB) and S$798 (8GB/256GB). And then you may get pretty high end phones with that price range from Realme or Poco.

For Oppo/Vivo, higher end of Oppo Reno series and Vivo X series are high end already.

 

[xiaofan]

Looking at the current Qualcomm chipsets, the following chipsets are targeted at mid-range.

Snapdragon 680 4G, 690 5G and 695 5G (2020/21)
Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 (not yet available in phones yet)
Snapdragon 750G and 765/765G/768G 5G (2020)
Snapdragon 778G/778G+ and 780G 5G (2021/2022)
Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 (2022) (not yet available in phones yet)

Ref: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Qualcomm_Snapdragon_processors

 

[xiaofan]

MTK offerings for mid-range (8000/8100/9000/9000+ will be belonging to high end):
Dimensity 700 Series:700/720
Dimensity 800 Series:800U/800/810/820
Dimensity 900 Series:900/920/930

By right, Dimensity 1000/1100/1200/1300 belong to high end as well. However, Dimensity 1100 Series seem to be used by some mid-range phones. 1300 series seem to be used or will be used by the premium mid-range phones.

Ref:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_MediaTek_processors#Dimensity_Series_(2020–present)

 

[8-lane]

@xiaofan I must say u're quite gd at writing theses...

 

[jinsatkilife]

Last time for my own use I preferred to buy last year's flagship phone with Telco Contract subsidy. I have bought Samsung Galaxy S3 LTE when the S4 was out, then Galaxy S4 LTE+ when the S5 was out. I also bought the Huawei P20 when P30 was nearly out.

After switching to Singtel SIM Only Plan, I got Realme X50 5G late last year to replace the Huawei P20. I also got the Realme 7 5G for my mum-in-law to replace her Oppo R11s (bought using the contract subsidy as well).

Now my requirements are more or less like the following for my own use, or for my parents-in-law.
[My wife will only use iPhone].
1) No Samsung or Xiaomi (including Redmi and Poco)
2) 8GB RAM, 128GB Flash storage or 256GB storage
3) 5G ready chipset (Snapdragon 6/7 series or MediaTek Dimensity series), no MTK Helio.
4) S$300 to S$500
5) Dual SIM (usually a given for Android)
6) NFC is nice to have
7) Local set with warranty

Last October, Realme X50 5G (SD765G, S$399) and Realme 7 5G (Dimensity 800U, S$329) fit the above requirement quite well. It seems to me I have less choices now that Realme does not seem to offer phones here. But Oppo phones (last year model like Reno 5Z 5G, Dimensity 800U) may be an okay fit. I looked at Vivo but I do not see a good fit.

i guess the thing these alternative phones is bad camera

 

[xiaofan]

i guess the thing these alternative phones is bad camera

I would not say that they have bad cameras. For sure the cameras are not as good as the flagship phones. Just an example, Oppo Reno series (even the lower end Z variant) actually have decent cameras. And I am perfectly fine with the camera of my Realme X50 5G version (SD765G).

To me there is too much focus on camera and CPU for high end Android phones -- which I do not need.

 

[xiaofan]

Looking at the forum recommendations, it seems the followings are popular.
https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/mid-tier-phone-to-recommend-preferable-under-600.6787224/https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/...52s-or-any-other-alternative-for-400.6813497/
1) iPhone SE 2022 -- only mid-range iPhone
2) Google Pixel 6a, price is on the high side; Pixel 6 may belong to high end phones.
3) Samsung Galaxy A52s (SD778G) and A53 (Exynos 1280), A73 (SD778G) and A33 (Exynos 1280)
4) Poco X4 GT (Dimensity 8100), Poco X4 Pro 5G (SD695). Poco F4 (SD870) may belong to high end phones.
5) Realme GT Master (SD778G)
6) Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G (SD695)
7) Oneplus Nord 2 CE (Dimensity 900) or Nord 2 CE Lite (SD695)
...

 

[xiaofan]

Nice video from Malaysian Youtuber. Samsung Galaxy M52 does not seem to be available from SIngapore. Poco phones are high on his list.