Mid range Android Mobile Phone and Chipset

[LexusIS]

I agree X7 pro have sufficient hardware for day to day usage if you are not into gaming. The only cons for X7 vs F7 is the sofware update. If only X7 also follow 4+6 years then that will be perfect.
With the current price of 319 (X7 pro) vs 419 (F7 pro), it is really worth considering to upgrade to F7 pro for 2 more years software update.

Cool thanks so much both bro Xiaofan & ceestudent. Just missed the boat will wait for 11 / 11 and hopefully deal is better.

 

[xiaofan]

Dimensity 8450 is the top MediaTek mid-range chlpset but not many phones are using it.

Oppo Reno 14 Pro is the main model using it. The price is of course on the high side.

 

[xiaofan]

Waiting for the Q3 update with xiaomi 15tpro and 17 etc...

Haha, Xiaomi 15T Pro and Xiaomi 17 are high end phones which do not belong to this thread.

Poco F7 Pro does not belong to here by right, but the pricing makes it a mid-range phone in terms of pricing but with rather high end spec.

Xiaomi 15T and Poco F7 do belong to mid-range phones with mid-range chipset.

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)

 

[xiaofan]

5G modem and RF system from Qualcomm, from the first gen X50 to latest X85.
https://www.qualcomm.com/modems#products

Top 5G SIM routers and portable WiFi products often use Qualcomm 5G modem chipset, X55, X62, X65, X72, X75 and even latest X82/X85.

ZTE latest high end FWA and MBB product use X75.
https://www.zte.com.cn/global/about...ship-in-5g-fwa-mbb-at-mwc-barcelona-2025.html

Fibocom just announced X82 and X85 based modules for FWA.
https://www.fibocom.com/en/newscent...ating-5g-advanced-ai-development.html?id=8757

 

[xiaofan]

MediaTek 5G modems: M70, M80 and M90.
https://www.mediatek.com/technology/5g/5g-modem

MediaTek 5G CPE solution : T750, T800, T830 and T930.
https://www.mediatek.com/networking-and-connectivity/5g-broadband

 

[xiaofan]

Huawei HiSilicon Balong 5000 is used by some Huawei 5G CPEs.
https://www.hisilicon.com/en/products/balong/balong-5000

 

[xiaofan]

Unisoc Makalu IVY510 is a popular 5G modem used in lower end 5G FWA/MBB products.

It was launched in 2019 but still popular now, just like Qualcomm X55 which was also launched in 2019.
https://www.cnx-software.com/2019/0...ivy510-5g-modem-in-collaboration-with-huawei/

 

[xiaofan]

Samsung Exynos 5G modem 5123/5300/5400.
https://semiconductor.samsung.com/processor/modem/

 

[xiaofan]

ZTE primarily uses Qualcomm 5G Modem-RF systems in its commercial 5G customer premises equipment (CPE) and mobile devices. However, its semiconductor arm, ZTE Microelectronics, has developed a 5G baseband chip for its own use in network infrastructure.

 

[xiaofan]

5G-enabled FWA CPE shipments now the majority in 4 out of 7 regions globally​

https://gsacom.com/press-release/5g...-the-majority-in-4-out-of-7-regions-globally/

 

[xiaofan]

For those who want to use 5G SIM Card Router to replace Fibre Broadband or as a Backup, please check out the following Thread. Good ones are not that cheap.

https://forums.hardwarezone.com.sg/threads/wifi-router-for-5g-sim-card.7151503/

 

[xiaofan]

1) Coming back to this thread, for the mid-range 5G phones, the main CPU (which often integrate the 5G modem) is of course very important.

The CPU will also decide the gaming performance along with the construction (eg: cooling) and software tuning.

2) Then some people will put more focus on the camera: CMOS sensor, lenses used, OIS function, Video capture , ISP, software tuning, AI, etc.

Top camera phones are usually too flagship phones.
https://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/mobile/best-camera-phone

On the other hand, some mid-range phones may have decent camera performance as well (usually not Poco brand, but rather brand like Oppo and Vivo).

3) Screen: LCD Vs OLED, size, resolution, etc

4) Connectivity is also an important aspect, WiFi 6 are common for mid-range phones as WiFi 7 is usually only available in high end phones. NFC is often a desired feature as well.

5) Dual SIM and eSIM capability

With the cheap SIM Only plan, eSIM capability may become an important feature to have.

For example, my Poco X7 Pro does not support eSIM (only dual SIM), so I will need two phones to test M1 Maxx and Eight, since I need to keep my main SingTel SIM Only number.

6) Some people may want specific features like 3.5mm audio jack, memory expansion, FM Radio, IR remote, etc. They may become rare even for mid-range phones though.

 

[LexusIS]

Interesting that you would think Poco X7 Pro to be laggy. But I guess you may have higher requirements.

To me it is very smooth. The SOC used is MediaTek Dimensity 8400 Ultra which is certainly pretty powerful. 12GB RAM is also more than enough.

In fact my old Poco X4 GT is also very smooth with Dimensity 8100 chipset and 8GB RAM.

To me Dimensity 8000 series chipset seem to be pretty good for my use cases. Qualcomm Snapdragon 7 series should be fine to me as well.

Take note I don't play games. I also do not have high requirements for camera. Therefore Poco X series seem to be a good choice for my budget for main phone (S$300 to S$400, good for two to three years usages, 5G capable, NFC).

As for the so-called bloatware, I just uninstall them. I do not touch system apps so I will not use tools like ADB to remove system apps. I also follow common recommendations to disable most of the advertisement in HyperOS.

Finally bought the Poco X7 Pro during the 11.11 sale, much better price than during 10.10.

Overall, it seems to be faster and doesn't lag when playing Lazada or shopee games. Now i just need to find out which bloatware that i can safely uninstall.

 

[xiaofan]

Best phones in 2025 from TechSpurt

Best budget phone: Nothing CMF Phone 2 Pro, MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Pro chipset.

Best mid-range phone: Nothing Phone 3a, Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chipset.

 

[xiaofan]

Best budget phone from TechSpurt for Winter 2025

Best Budget Phones 2025.

Nothing Phone 3a, Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 (4 nm)
Nothing Phone 3a Lite,
CMF Phone 2 Pro, Mediatek Dimensity 7300 Pro (4 nm)
Xiaomi Redmi Note 14 Pro 5G, Mediatek Dimensity 7300 Ultra (4 nm)
Poco F7, Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 (4 nm)
Poco X7, Mediatek Dimensity 7300 Ultra (4 nm)
Poco X7 Pro, Mediatek Dimensity 8400 Ultra (4 nm)
OnePlus Nord CE5, Mediatek Dimensity 8350 Apex (4 nm)
Motorola G56 5G, Mediatek Dimensity 7060 (6 nm)
Motorola G35, Unisoc T760 (6 nm)
Motorola G06 Power, Mediatek Helio G81 Ultra (12 nm), 4G only
HMD Fusion, Snapdragon 4 Gen 2 (4 nm)
Infinix Hot 60 Pro+, Mediatek Helio G200 (6 nm), 4G only

 

[xiaofan]

Another YouTube recommendation.

Best mid range phone: Google Pixel 9a. Alternative is Nothing Phone 3a Pro.

Best budget phone: Nothing CMF Phone 2 Pro

 

[xiaofan]

This video is worth watching even though it only mentions value phones for a short while. But you may watch the full video in case you want to raise the budget for better phones.

Best value phone: Nothing CMF Phone 2 Pro

Alternatives: Moto G Play 2926, Google Pixel 9a, iPhone 17 base model.

 

[xiaofan]

Higher tier of the mid-range phones:

Samsung Galaxy S25 FE
Google Pixel 9a
Apple 16E

 

[xiaofan]

Googke AI Overview for the upcoming Dimensity 8500 chipset.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
The MediaTek Dimensity 8500 is a powerful upcoming 4nm mid-range smartphone chipset, expected to launch in early 2026, offering flagship-level performance with an all-big-core CPU (Cortex-A725) clocked up to 3.4GHz and a strong Mali-G720 GPU, aiming for over 2 million AnTuTu scores, and appearing in phones like the Redmi Turbo 5 and Honor Power 2.
Key Features & Specs:

• Process: TSMC 4nm
• CPU: All-big-core Octa-core (1x 3.4GHz + 3x 3.2GHz + 4x 2.2GHz Cortex-A725)
• GPU: ARM Mali-G720 (MC8) clocked around 1.5GHz
• Performance: Expected AnTuTu scores over 2 million, surpassing Snapdragon 8 Gen 3/8s Gen 4 in some GPU aspects.
• Target Segment: High-end mid-range / affordable flagship devices.

Expected Devices:

• Redmi Turbo 5
• Honor Power 2
• POCO X8 Pro
• Realme Neo 8 SE, iQOO Z11 Turbo (rumored)

 

[xiaofan]

News about Dimensity 8500
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Media...h-minimal-performance-upgrades.1192174.0.html