Top 5 Chinese Smartphones for Under $200 – July 2017


Best Chinese Smartphones Under $200

The month of July comes with a completely revamped list, exception made for the habitual Xiaomi handset we are accustomed to find and which some of you may already have in mind. This is also the month of “tri-bezel-less” phones and we have some of them appearing on this list. Let’s check them out!

Top 5 Chinese Smartphones for Under $200

1. Vernee Mars Pro

Vernee Mars Pro

The Vernee Mars Pro is one of the most interesting phones to hit the market in the month of June. The handset features a really redefined design with ultra slim side bezels and an array of internal hardware that’s not much less appealing.

Specifically we’re talking about the powerful and efficient MediaTek Helio P25 it packs, together with a whopping 6GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage (also expandable). Other specs include a 5.5-inch Full HD display coated in 2.5D Corning Gorilla Glass 3, 13MP rear camera with F/2.0 aperture, 5MP selfie shooter and a 3500mAh capacity battery.

The Mars Pro runs Android Nougat out of the box and supports 4G LTE Networks, including band 20.

2. Xiaomi Redmi Note 4X

Xiaomi’s budget-friendly Redmi Note 4X has been in our under $200 for as long as we’ve been making them and that’s for a good reason. The handset is just a great mix of powerful hardware, build quality and software features.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 4X is powered by the super power efficient Qualcomm Snapdragon 625, paired up with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage (expandable). We also find a nice 5.5-inch FHD display, a 13MP rear shooter with F/2.0 aperture, a 5MP selfie snapper and a big 4100mAh capacity battery for an outstanding autonomy.

The Redmi Note 4X runs MIUI V8 based on Android Marshmallow and supports 4G connectivity on different networks, but there’s no band 20 support.

3. Bluboo S1

Bluboo S1

The Bluboo S1 is the first of the two tri-bezel-less phones to turn up on this list. The latest handset from the Chinese features a stunning design with seemingly no side bezels and a super thing top one.

The hardware inside is also quite interesting, we indeed have a good performing MediaTek Helio P25, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage (expandable). Looking further we find a dual camera setup composed of a primary Sony Exmor RS 13MP rear camera and a 3MP secondary one, the selfie snapper is instead 5MP.

The Bluboo S1 which sports a 5.5-inch FHD IPS display coated Corning Gorilla Glass 4, is fueled by a 3500mAh battery, runs Android Nougat and supports 4G LTE networks with band 20 being among them.

4. Maze Alpha

The Maze Alpha is the other bezel-less phone to make it on the list. Maze’s device is quite similar to the previously mentioned Bluboo S1 but packs a bigger 6-inch Full HD IPS display.

Other hardware includes a MediaTek Helio P25 clocked at 2.5Ghz, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal memory expandable through microSD. On the back of the phone we find a Samsung S5K3L8 13MP shooter, meanwhile on the front we’re limited to 5MP selfies.

The Alpha is powered by a big 4000mAh capacity battery, supports WiFi at 5Ghz, 4G LTE networks including band 20 and runs the latest Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box.

5. LeEco Le Pro 3 X722

Probably due to an high demand and low stock of ZUK Z2, LeEco le Max 2 and Xiaomi Mi 5, the LeEco Le Pro 3 X722 is the only Qualcomm Snapdragon 820-equipped device currently available at less than $200.

Other than the still beastly powerful Snapdragon 820 CPU, the LeEco Le Pro 3 X722 comes with 4GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage (non expandable). The smartphone sports a 16MP Sony IMX298 camera with F/2.0 aperture and slow-motion video recording (120fps), and an 8MP front-facing shooter.

The LeEco Le Pro 3 supports pretty much any 4G LTE band around the globe, it’s fueled by a big 4070mAh and runs Android Marshmallow out of the box.

On a side note; while the LeEco Le Pro 3 X722 is still a great smartphone for under $200, if you can afford to spend a few extra bucks we definitely recommend getting either a ZUK Z2, LeEco le Max 2 or Xiaomi Mi 5.

Top 5 Chinese Smartphones for Under $200 – Conclusion

Best Chinese Smartphones Under $200

What do you guys think about our picks? Would you have chosen differently? Let us and other Gizchina readers know in the comments section below!

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22 Comments

  1. Captain Woof
    July 15, 2017

    I still find it impressive that the Chinese manage to make a flagship phone from last year for only 200$ (SD820). Just wow…

    • Johhny John
      July 16, 2017

      They didn’t, they loose money, the prices got dropped alot, 100 % on some of the phones.

  2. Βασίλειος Βασιλείου
    July 15, 2017

    how do you list a phone that it doesn’t even get an actual unboxing video not mention that it doesn’t been in stock by the maze company?I have preorder the maze but I have cancel it because of the way that maze act.

    • July 15, 2017

      Do you mean an unboxing video from a third source? Because Maze definitely posted one on their Youtube channel.
      And yes, I somewhat agree to what you’re saying but if we’d only consider smartphones from 100% reputable brands we’d only list Xiaomi phones and few other ones.

      • Oscar
        July 15, 2017

        Shouldn’t you be only recommending 100% reputable brands? It baffles me that you would even say this. The only brands people should really ever consider are Xiaomi, Meizu, Oppo, ZTE, Oneplus, Huawei, LeEco and Vivo. If you like taking risks then go for another brand but if you want a phone which will “work” with little to no issues and that’s on par with Samsungs, LG’s, HTC’s and every other good brand sold in Europe then you want to go for these brands only.

        • July 15, 2017

          Please note I said “100% reputable” and not simply reputable, so yes, pretty much those you listed. But as you know they don’t have lots of devices under $200 that are worth what you pay for; you either get obsolete hardware or design.
          In my opinion. the under $200 category is where you can be a bit more adventurous and take some risks, and for those who won’t, we still have great Xiaomi and LeEco alternatives for them.

          • z4ck
            July 17, 2017

            completely agree with you
            I’ve preordered maze alpha too but I’m still waiting because It’s an adventure for me and I prefered more than doogee mix or bluboo s1 or umidigi crystal.

        • johala02
          July 17, 2017

          Then it will be a very boring list I suppose. I think you can take some chances and get a lot for the money. I have bought Vernee before and they have all worked fine.

  3. July 15, 2017

    Good picks for those that like 5.5 inch phones. I prefer 5 inch phones myself.

  4. Allanitomwesh
    July 15, 2017

    A good list, I’d swap the maze for the umi z, which is actually available

  5. Captain Woof
    July 15, 2017

    I still find it impressive that the Chinese manage to make a flagship phone from last year for only 200$ (SD820). Just wow…

    • Johhny John
      July 16, 2017

      They didn’t, they loose money, the prices got dropped alot, 100 % on some of the phones.

  6. Βασίλειος Βασιλείου
    July 15, 2017

    how do you list a phone that it doesn’t even get an actual unboxing video not mention that it doesn’t been in stock by the maze company?I have preorder the maze but I have cancel it because of the way that maze act.

    • Pierre
      July 15, 2017

      Do you mean an unboxing video from a third source? Because Maze definitely posted one on their Youtube channel.
      And yes, I somewhat agree to what you’re saying but if we’d only consider smartphones from 100% reputable brands we’d only list Xiaomi phones and few other ones.

    • Guest
      July 15, 2017

      Shouldn’t you be only recommending 100% reputable brands? It baffles me that you would even say this. The only brands people should really ever consider are Xiaomi, Meizu, Oppo, ZTE, Oneplus, Huawei, LeEco and Vivo. If you like taking risks then go for another brand but if you want a phone which will “work” with little to no issues and that’s on par with Samsungs, LG’s, HTC’s and every other good brand sold in Europe then you want to go for these brands only.

    • Pierre
      July 15, 2017

      Please note I said “100% reputable” and not simply reputable, so yes, pretty much those you listed. But as you know they don’t have lots of devices under $200 that are worth what you pay for; you either get obsolete hardware or design.
      In my opinion. the under $200 category is where you can be a bit more adventurous and take some risks, and for those who won’t, we still have great Xiaomi and LeEco alternatives for them.

    • johala02
      July 17, 2017

      Then it will be a very boring list I suppose. I think you can take some chances and get a lot for the money. I have bought Vernee before and they have all worked fine.

    • z4ck
      July 17, 2017

      completely agree with you
      I’ve preordered maze alpha too but I’m still waiting because It’s an adventure for me and I prefered more than doogee mix or bluboo s1 or umidigi crystal.

  7. Moose
    July 15, 2017

    Good picks for those that like 5.5 inch phones. I prefer 5 inch phones myself.

  8. Allanitomwesh
    July 15, 2017

    A good list, I’d swap the maze for the umi z, which is actually available

  9. Partha Dutta
    July 17, 2017

    I am disappointed that Bluboo did not include TDD Band 40 within its phone. I hoped of purchasing one but disappointed. If they want global sale, they could have done it.

  10. Partha Dutta
    July 17, 2017

    I am disappointed that Bluboo did not include TDD Band 40 within its phone. I hoped of purchasing one but disappointed. If they want global sale, they could have done it.