12 Best Smartphone deals under $190 Available now


The day when low-cost or cheap meant poor specifications are well behind us, now it is easy to buy a cheap phone with excellent mid-range hardware. We list 10 best smartphone deals available now!

12 Best Smartphone deals

Competition in China is fierce and a price war has broken out among large and small manufactures all of whom are now offering some of the best smartphone deals in the world today. This list contains all the best smartphone deals of phones costing less than $190.

Huawei Honor 3C 2GB

It has taken Huawei a long time, but finally they seem to have gotten a grasp on 1) What customers actually want 2) How to market their phones. The Huawei Honor 3C is easily the best smartphone which Huawei have launched in recent months, and to top it off it has a great price too.

Huawei Honor 3C

The Huawei Honor 3C is available in two versions, a $130 version with 1GB RAM, and $165 version with 2GB RAM. Both options have the same 5-inch 720p (1280 x 720) display, 5 mega-pixel f2.4 front camera, 8 mega-pixel F2.0 rear camera, 1.3Ghz quad-core MT6582 processor and support for TD-SCDMA, WCDMA and GSM networks.

CoolPad Halo F1

octacore coolpad f1 review

We recently posted a review of the CoolPad Halo F1, and can honestly say that this is another top smartphone, but believe it or not it is more affordable than the Huawei Honor and has an even better level of specification!

In China the Coolpad Halo F1 only comes in TD-SCDMA guise which has been subsidised by China Mobile to allow the phone to be priced at only $146. Even though China Mobile might be footing part of the specification is still amazing for the price.

What makes this one of our best smartphone picks is the fact that not only have Coolpad gotten the price so low, but they have also managed to squeeze in a 13 mega-pixel main camera, 5-inch 720p (1280 x 720) display, and a 1.7Ghz Octacore MT6592 processor from Mediatek!

Thankfully for those of you who don’t live in China and fancy getting your hands on the Coolpad F1, there is a WCDMA/GSM model of the phone in the works which has the same specs and same low price. What’s more Coolpad showed the phone off at CES this year meaning an official international launch could be possible!

Hasee ES0 S1

hasee ling ya e50

This is the first year that Hasee has been apart of the smartphone market, and they are doing their best to get write in to the mix and be part of the price war. The Hasee Ling Ya E50 S1 is the 2GB RAM version of the phone which costs only $150.

Other specifications are similar to the Huawei and include a 5-inch IPS 1280 x 720 display, 1.3Ghz quad-core MT6582 processor, 2GB RAM, 16 GB memory, Android 4.2 and a professional in app camera controls.

Hasee have only officially launched in China, but their laptops and PC’s are already on sale around the world, here’s hoping that the E50 has the same fate and it truly is one of the best smartphone options on the market today.

iNew V3

inew v3 review

The iNew V3 full review can be read here, but if you don’t have time for that let us just say that it is easily one of the best smartphone options money can buy. The device has a slim stylish design, combined with a stunning 5-inch OGS, Gorilla Glass display and quad-core processor.

The iNew V3 also has a 13 mega-pixel main camera, 5 mega-pixel front, USB OTG and NFC.

GuoMobile G1

jelly g1 phone

The GuoMobile G1 is a phone that we are personally familiar with but with a design similar to the HTC One their low-cost phone is quite the looker. Interesting design decisions include dual SIM support accessed on the left via sim trays, and a side mounted micro USB give the G1 a unique feel.

According to the official specs this Qualcomm Snapdragon powered phone has 1GB RAM, 16GB memory, alloy 7.8mm body, and 2.4mm bezels on either side of the 5-inch qHD display. The GuoMobile G1 is has an 8 mega-pixel rear camera, 2 mega-pixel front an is certainly one of the best smartphone options in this price bracket.

iOcean X7HD

iocean x7 hd hero

iOcean have taken their best smartphone of 2013 and given it a mid-range makeover. The iOcean X7HD has the same body and dimensions as last years flagship phone but with a more price conscious specification allowing the price to come in at below $180!

The 5-inch display on the iOcean X7HD is a 1280 x 720 IPS unit with 3.26mm bezels on either side. a 8 mega-pixel camera takes u the year while a 5 mega-pixel front with 79 degree lens is on selfie duty.

The phone is powered by the wonderful 1.3Ghz MT6582 quad-core Mediatek processor, with 1GB RAM, 4GB memory plus there is room for dual sim cards and a SD memory card. The iOcean X7 HD is available through most larger online resellers now.

Go to page to of the 12 best smartphone deals under $190 [templatic_button link=”https://www.gizchina.com/2014/02/07/12-best-smartphone-deals-190-available-now/2/” size=”large” type=”basic”] Page 2 [/templatic_button] [templatic_contentbox type=”normal” title=”6 more phones listed on page 2!”]

Continue to the next page for 6 more best smartphone devices including models from;

  • Thunderbird.
  • Huawei.
  • Beidou.
  • Lenovo.
  • ZTE.
  • ETC

Go to page to of the 12 best smartphone deals under $190 [templatic_button link=”https://www.gizchina.com/2014/02/07/12-best-smartphone-deals-190-available-now/2/” size=”large” type=”basic”] Page 2 [/templatic_button] [/templatic_contentbox]

Disclaimer: We may be compensated by some of the companies whose products we talk about, but our articles and reviews are always our honest opinions. For more details, you can check out our editorial guidelines and learn about how we use affiliate links.

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76 Comments

  1. mfmx
    February 7, 2014

    Why the Lenovo A820? Not a bad phone, but you can even get the Lenovo S920 for under $190 now, and the A850 is currently much more popular than A820. The only thing going for the A820 is the slightly better camera (but without flash) and that there are editions for China Telecom and China Mobile if you need that.

  2. Ivo001
    February 7, 2014

    I own the iNew V3, and am quite happy with it. However, with current prices I might think that the Honor 2C 2GB, ZTE Geek and Halopad F1 are more bang for your buck.

    P.s How do i turn off the touch vibration on the keyboard?

    • February 7, 2014

      Settings > Language and Input > press the settings icon next to Android Keyboard (AOSP) > Uncheck Vibrate on keypress

  3. $3003525
    February 7, 2014

    no Jaiyu????

  4. highwind
    February 7, 2014

    Again no Star HD5000 and no Tronsmart TS7 (MT6582) although they beat atleast 80% of the phones from this list when it comes to price/performance…

    Instead we get TDSCMA-only phones (Red Hot Chili Thing), genereally unavailable phones (Huawei Honor 3C) and eyewash phones (iNew V3) as “best sub 180$ deals”

    • Airyl
      February 8, 2014

      Relax. Personally, I prefer all the phones that Andi recommended over the two you mentioned because the Tronsmart has an older processor and the Star looks pretty cheap. I do understand where you’re coming from, I just don’t think those two phones are really the best for under $190.

      • Aeonia
        February 9, 2014

        the new tronsmart ts7 has an mtk6582 processor..and is about 149 dollars..

      • highwind
        February 9, 2014

        As mentioned, the Tronsmart TS7 is available with MT6582 as well and as I already own it, I can confidently say, that it is a very good phone for the given price tag of ~150$
        It is especially better than the iNew V3, which has bugs (OTG/NFC sometimes not working, home button sometimes not reacting) a weak battery and false declaration of dimensions (not nearly as thin as advertised) for ~180$

  5. Allanitomwesh
    February 7, 2014

    Several flaws with this list.
    1.Huawei are on the list twice with the same phone,so it is really a list of 11.
    2.Thunderbird?No model number,no additional information,and were supposed to find it?
    3.The Lenovo is a one trick pony with the camera,it shouldn’t have made the list.

    4.the Coolpad is Octacore,therefore,the rest of the list should have octacores,or similar bench-marking/hardware.Thus it is a list of two,if you count the ZTE Geek
    5.I can’t buy anything on this list except the iOcean internationally,which defeats the point.

    • February 7, 2014

      1) The Huawei is on the list twice as the 2GB is hard to get, but the 1GB is quite easily available internationally (as mentioned)

      2) The Thunderbird is called “Thunderbird” in English. A full article will be coming soon.

      3) The last time we wrote a list readers asked “why no Lenovo”. The Lenovo listed here isn’t a bad phone and is available well below the $190 price.

      4) This is a list of phones under $190, not only that but phones which international readers are actually able to buy. Not a list of Octacore phones, this will be coming soon.

      5) With an international readership we have to write about what is available regardless of location. All but the TD-SCDMA phones are available outside of China, and the others are available in locations where GizChina readers come from. The iOcean, ZTE Geek, Huawei Honor 3C 1GB, Lenovo, are all easily available, the rest are only available in certain areas.

      I’m glad you brought the points up though as I imagine many other readers have similar feelings and opinions too. Cheers 🙂

      • Allanitomwesh
        February 7, 2014

        Thanks for replying. I hold my point that the Coolpad and ZTE outshine the other phones on the list,but it is appreciated none the less that you take time to compile them.

        • February 7, 2014

          Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment 🙂

      • February 10, 2014

        Looking forward to reading Thunderbirdie’s article/post

        Keep em’ coming Andy 😉

  6. Colonel Zap
    February 7, 2014

    I miss the Zopo ZP700

    • highwind
      February 7, 2014

      Me not… there are better phones (especially in terms of the display resolution) for 10-20$ less

      • February 7, 2014

        Not a fan of the ZP700, the Huawei Honor 3C is much better for the money. If Zopo dropped the price then it would be worth it.

        • highwind
          February 7, 2014

          Agreed but check out the Star HD5000 as well

          MT6582, 1GB RAM, 8GB ROM, 5inch HD-Display, 2500mAh battery at only 139,90$ for international customers is a real bargain!

          A review would be very nice and I personally feel that it definitely deserves a spot on this list 🙂

          • February 7, 2014

            Yep, I will certainly need to give it a look 🙂

  7. mfmx
    February 7, 2014

    Why the Lenovo A820? Not a bad phone, but you can even get the Lenovo S920 for under $190 now, and the A850 is currently much more popular than A820. The only thing going for the A820 is the slightly better camera (but without flash) and that there are editions for China Telecom and China Mobile if you need that.

  8. Ivo001
    February 7, 2014

    I own the iNew V3, and am quite happy with it. However, with current prices I might think that the Honor 2C 2GB, ZTE Geek and Halopad F1 are more bang for your buck.

    P.s How do i turn off the touch vibration on the keyboard?

    • Andi Sykes
      February 7, 2014

      Settings > Language and Input > press the settings icon next to Android Keyboard (AOSP) > Uncheck Vibrate on keypress

  9. johnickz
    February 7, 2014

    When the Coolpad F1 will be WDCMA available?! Is there GPS malfunction in new 8-core chipset of MediaTek?

    • February 7, 2014

      Soon I hope, I really fancy one for myselft.

      • burnt_52
        February 7, 2014

        I agree, this is the best octacore phone I have seen but useless without WCDMA. Hopefully it will support more than just 2100MHz. Brilliant article btw Andi

        • February 7, 2014

          Thanks mate, glad you enjoyed it 🙂

      • Stefan Żeromski
        February 13, 2014

        Hi!, how do You know that WCDMA version of F1 is in works? I havent seen any simmilar information at another websites

  10. aaa
    February 7, 2014

    it those are really best from china then im removing gizchina from my bookmars and gonna buy phone from “top” manufacturers, like i did before.

    • johnickz
      February 7, 2014

      “12 Best Smartphone deals under $190” was the title..

    • Airyl
      February 8, 2014

      Good, go do that now. We don’t need negative scum who don’t know how to read like you around.

  11. Guest
    February 7, 2014

    no Jaiyu????

  12. provokanter Tabellenführer
    February 7, 2014

    Again no Star HD5000 and no Tronsmart TS7 (MT6582) although they beat atleast 80% of the phones from this list when it comes to price/performance…

    Instead we get TDSCMA-only phones (Red Hot Chili Thing), genereally unavailable phones (Huawei Honor 3C) and eyewash phones (iNew V3) as “best sub 180$ deals”

    • Guest
      February 8, 2014

      Relax. Personally, I prefer all the phones that Andi recommended over the two you mentioned because the Tronsmart has an older processor and the Star looks pretty cheap. I do understand where you’re coming from, I just don’t think those two phones are really the best for under $190.

    • Guest
      February 9, 2014

      the new tronsmart ts7 has an mtk6582 processor..and is about 149 dollars..

    • provokanter Tabellenführer
      February 9, 2014

      As mentioned, the Tronsmart TS7 is available with MT6582 as well and as I already own it, I can confidently say, that it is a very good phone for the given price tag of ~150$
      It is especially better than the iNew V3, which has bugs (OTG/NFC sometimes not working, home button sometimes not reacting) a weak battery and false declaration of dimensions (not nearly as thin as advertised) for ~180$

  13. Allanitomwesh
    February 7, 2014

    Several flaws with this list.
    1.Huawei are on the list twice with the same phone,so it is really a list of 11.
    2.Thunderbird?No model number,no additional information,and were supposed to find it?
    3.The Lenovo is a one trick pony with the camera,it shouldn’t have made the list.

    4.the Coolpad is Octacore,therefore,the rest of the list should have octacores,or similar bench-marking/hardware.Thus it is a list of two,if you count the ZTE Geek
    5.I can’t buy anything on this list except the iOcean internationally,which defeats the point.

    • Andi Sykes
      February 7, 2014

      1) The Huawei is on the list twice as the 2GB is hard to get, but the 1GB is quite easily available internationally (as mentioned)

      2) The Thunderbird is called “Thunderbird” in English. A full article will be coming soon.

      3) The last time we wrote a list readers asked “why no Lenovo”. The Lenovo listed here isn’t a bad phone and is available well below the $190 price.

      4) This is a list of phones under $190, not only that but phones which international readers are actually able to buy. Not a list of Octacore phones, this will be coming soon.

      5) With an international readership we have to write about what is available regardless of location. All but the TD-SCDMA phones are available outside of China, and the others are available in locations where GizChina readers come from. The iOcean, ZTE Geek, Huawei Honor 3C 1GB, Lenovo, are all easily available, the rest are only available in certain areas.

      I’m glad you brought the points up though as I imagine many other readers have similar feelings and opinions too. Cheers 🙂

    • Allanitomwesh
      February 7, 2014

      Thanks for replying. I hold my point that the Coolpad and ZTE outshine the other phones on the list,but it is appreciated none the less that you take time to compile them.

    • Andi Sykes
      February 8, 2014

      Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment 🙂

    • Multicorechina.com
      February 11, 2014

      Looking forward to reading Thunderbirdie’s article/post

      Keep em’ coming Andy 😉

  14. Guest
    February 7, 2014

    I miss the Zopo ZP700

    • provokanter Tabellenführer
      February 7, 2014

      Me not… there are better phones (especially in terms of the display resolution) for 10-20$ less

    • Andi Sykes
      February 7, 2014

      Not a fan of the ZP700, the Huawei Honor 3C is much better for the money. If Zopo dropped the price then it would be worth it.

    • provokanter Tabellenführer
      February 7, 2014

      Agreed but check out the Star HD5000 as well

      MT6582, 1GB RAM, 8GB ROM, 5inch HD-Display, 2500mAh battery at only 139,90$ for international customers is a real bargain!

      A review would be very nice and I personally feel that it definitely deserves a spot on this list 🙂

    • Andi Sykes
      February 8, 2014

      Yep, I will certainly need to give it a look 🙂

  15. ZecaMarol
    February 7, 2014

    “The 2GB version of the Huawei Honor 3C has only just launched in China making it quite difficult to buy for international fans […]”

    Andy,
    When the 2GB version of the Honor 3C will be available for international customers?

    • February 7, 2014

      I don’t believe that Huawei will launch it officially internationally, we will just have to wait for resellers to pick it up.

  16. anon
    February 7, 2014

    No Xiaomi Red Rice? Why?

    • February 7, 2014

      The Redrice will be replaced soon, plus I wanted to introduce a few new models we hadn’t covered much before.

  17. johnickz
    February 7, 2014

    When the Coolpad F1 will be WDCMA available?! Is there GPS malfunction in new 8-core chipset of MediaTek?

    • Andi Sykes
      February 7, 2014

      Soon I hope, I really fancy one for myselft.

    • burnt_52
      February 8, 2014

      I agree, this is the best octacore phone I have seen but useless without WCDMA. Hopefully it will support more than just 2100MHz. Brilliant article btw Andi

    • Andi Sykes
      February 8, 2014

      Thanks mate, glad you enjoyed it 🙂

    • Stefan Żeromski
      February 13, 2014

      Hi!, how do You know that WCDMA version of F1 is in works? I havent seen any simmilar information at another websites

  18. Guest
    February 7, 2014

    it those are really best from china then im removing gizchina from my bookmars and gonna buy phone from “top” manufacturers, like i did before.

    • johnickz
      February 7, 2014

      “12 Best Smartphone deals under $190” was the title..

    • Guest
      February 8, 2014

      Good, go do that now. We don’t need negative scum who don’t know how to read like you around.

  19. Stelios
    February 7, 2014

    Guys whats the best smartphone right now under 250$ and with CE Mark on it?

    • Airyl
      February 8, 2014

      I would recommwnd the Zopo ZP980+ (octa core). It’s supposed to be approximately $249.

  20. Guest
    February 7, 2014

    “The 2GB version of the Huawei Honor 3C has only just launched in China making it quite difficult to buy for international fans […]”

    Andy,
    When the 2GB version of the Honor 3C will be available for international customers?

    • Andi Sykes
      February 7, 2014

      I don’t believe that Huawei will launch it officially internationally, we will just have to wait for resellers to pick it up.

  21. Guest
    February 7, 2014

    No Xiaomi Red Rice? Why?

    • Andi Sykes
      February 8, 2014

      The Redrice will be replaced soon, plus I wanted to introduce a few new models we hadn’t covered much before.

  22. Guest
    February 7, 2014

    Guys whats the best smartphone right now under 250$ and with CE Mark on it?

    • Guest
      February 8, 2014

      I would recommwnd the Zopo ZP980+ (octa core). It’s supposed to be approximately $249.

  23. Samuel
    February 8, 2014

    Hello, where would the Faea 2 or {2s} fit in this list?
    Is its opensource enough advantage over these phones. i think of buying FAEA. Please recommend me.

    • February 8, 2014

      When I tested the F2S I found it to be a little on the buggy side. It is great that FAEA have opened up but by the time a fully working ROM is available for these phones they are going to be seriously out of date.

      • samuel
        February 8, 2014

        So please which one would you recommend? between $190- $210

  24. Guest
    February 8, 2014

    Hello, where would the Faea 2 or {2s} fit in this list?
    Is its opensource enough advantage over these phones. i think of buying FAEA. Please recommend me.

    • Andi Sykes
      February 8, 2014

      When I tested the F2S I found it to be a little on the buggy side. It is great that FAEA have opened up but by the time a fully working ROM is available for these phones they are going to be seriously out of date.

    • Guest
      February 8, 2014

      So please which one would you recommend? between $190- $210

  25. Melsyoo
    February 9, 2014

    Woah, thanks for including the ZTE Geek. I hadn’t heard about it yet for some reason. What do you think; should I get the ZTE Geek or the Coolpad F1, or should I wait till something better appears?

  26. Melsyoo
    February 9, 2014

    Woah, thanks for including the ZTE Geek. I hadn’t heard about it yet for some reason. What do you think; should I get the ZTE Geek or the Coolpad F1, or should I wait till something better appears?

  27. Johann von Schadowitz
    February 27, 2014

    What is a good place do buy the ZTE Geek?

  28. Johann von Schadowitz
    February 27, 2014

    What is a good place do buy the ZTE Geek?