Gaming is everyone’s favorite hobby. Playing video games with friends, or alone, is an experience that is seldom replicated by any other medium. However, life always finds a way to intervene and prevent us from enjoying our favorite games. Being perpetually stuck at home, glued to a screen, is something only possible when you’re a teenager. As the years keep coming, it is increasingly more difficult to find time to game at home.
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Budget Pick
Gaming on the go has exploded in popularity over the last few years. Mobile technology has advanced significantly, and it is now possible to have an amazing gaming experience right from your phone. Finding a good phone for gaming at a reasonable price isn’t too easy, and that’s where this article comes in.
We will show you the seven best budget gaming phones to buy in early 2023., so stay tuned until the end to find what suits you best. Without further ado, let’s begin!
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Samsung Galaxy A51
| Pros: | Cons: |
| ✅ Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, NFC ✅ with A-GPS, GLONASS, GALILEO, BDS ✅ Prism Crush Black ✅ 2600 Megabits Per Second ✅ huge 6.5-inch display |
❌ not compatible with 5G ❌ low camera resolution |
Samsung’s affordable A series never fails to deliver on performance for a budget-oriented price. Though not top-of-the-line like their flagship S series, the A series offers enough power for those looking to game at an entry-level.
Samsung Galaxy A51 sports a huge 6.5-inch display, perfectly suited for gaming. The large screen gives you oversight of all you need to see, and it doesn’t compromise your FOV. Supported by an amazing octa-core processor, the A51 offers smooth performance and great thermals during long gaming hours.
The A51 also has 4GB of RAM, which is plenty for most gaming tasks in 2023. Alongside a 64GB or 128GB built-in storage, you will have no problems downloading and storing several modern games at a time. The device also supports expandable storage up to 512GB, giving you even more room for those massive gaming downloads.
What it lacks with a headphone jack (which is a major inconvenience), it makes up with its slick design, great performance, and an even greater price. An all in all amazing phone for the low price of 325 US dollars. You may even find it for less at your local mobile store.
Realme XT
| Pros: | Cons: |
| ✅ 6.4″ (16.2cm) dew-drop fullscreen ✅ Super AMOLED screen ✅ AI Quad Rear Camera ✅ In-Display Fingerprint ✅ Nano-SIM, dual stand-by |
❌ not compatible with 5G ❌ low camera resolution |
Realme has been one of the dominant brands in the affordable price range for quite some time now. Alongside Xiaomi and Poco, this brand always offers mobile phones at great value. This one in particular is no exception to the rule, offering everything the brand is known for: power and affordability.
At 6.4 inches big, the display doesn’t compromise on visibility whatsoever. This allows you to see every little detail in your games, whether it be close-range pixel galore, or that long-range enemy hiding in a bush. This bad boy sports an amazing, flagship-level Snapdragon 712 processor, which will let you play any game for however long you want. You’ll never have to worry about overheating or lag with this one.
Alongside that comes 128GB of internal storage and 8GB of ram, both amazing for this price range. This phone is tough to beat due to its price-to-performance ratio, and we can safely recommend it for your gaming needs in 2023. Realme never disappoints with their releases, so keep an eye on them in the future.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 Pro
| Pros: | Cons: |
| ✅ 6.3″ IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen ✅ FHD+ 1080×2340 pixels ✅ 19.5:9 ratio ✅ 4000mAh Battery ✅ Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) |
❌ not compatible with 5G ❌ low camera resolution |
Coming in somewhat cheaper than the Realme XT, Xiaomi’s mainline Note 8 entry is quite the powerhouse for the price. It features an amazingly large 6.5-inch display, which, like the others, offers all the visual fidelity you could ever wish for. Contrary to the Realme XT, it has a weaker but still powerful Snapdragon 675 chip which will give most phones in this price range a run for their money.
Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 8 Pro comes with 128GB of internal storage that is expandable up to 258GB. With that comes 6GB of RAM—a perfect size for all gaming needs. There’s also some nice additional tech like the Liquid Cool Vapor chamber that keeps your phone cool during long gaming hours. Whether you’re on a tedious commute to work or school, and in other scenarios, the Redmi Note 8 Pro lets you play for as long as you like.
The 4500mAh battery also supports long gaming hours and it won’t run out on you randomly as most phones do at this level. At any rate, Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 8 Pro is another strong contestant from this Chinese manufacturer that keeps on surprising us.
Motorola One 5G Ace
| Pros: | Cons: |
| ✅ 6.7″ FHD+ Max Vision Display ✅ FHD+ (2400×1080) ✅ 5000mAh Battery ✅ Water Resistant ✅ 64GB ROM |
❌ low camera resolution ❌ carrier locked to AT&T |
Motorola used to be a household mobile name that fell into obscurity over the years. Their inability to keep up with modern mobile manufacturers caused them to lose their favor with consumers. However, since 2018., their mainline One entries have been amazing budget-oriented options for those not willing to spend thousands of dollars on a new phone.
Their latest entry, the One 5G Ace, is an amazing phone that can be scored for around 200 dollars. Featuring a huge 6.7-inch display and a great 4885mAh battery, the phone lets users comfortably play and enjoy any form of entertainment for long periods. The screen has amazing colors and brightness options which make it fantastic for outdoor use.
It has a ton of gaming features that are often missing even from more expensive models. The Adreno 619 GPU will provide you with a genuinely surprising performance for a 200-dollar phone, and it is a serious contender on the market today. There’s 128GB of internal storage, alongside 4GB of RAM, which should satisfy all of your memory needs.
The Snapdragon 750G processor gives you flagship-level performance in this exceptionally low-price range, and that’s something worth considering. You should snag one of these if you’re on a budget and want to pick up a great gaming phone.
TCL 10L Unlocked
| Pros: | Cons: |
| ✅ 256GB large storage ✅ Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, USB, NFC ✅ 6.53” FHD+ Dotch LCD display ✅ superior clarity day & night ✅ AI camera(48MP+8MP+2MP+2MP) |
❌ not compatible with 5G ❌ compatible with GSM carriers |
Rarely can anyone boast of a good phone under $200. However, the TCL 10L Android begs to differ and offers stellar performance for this insanely low price. It features an amazing 6.53-inch screen with FHD+ resolution that has exceptional colors and quality. This will let you game indoors and outdoors equally well, and have an overview of everything that’s happening.
This non-compromising design continues with 6GB of RAM and an incredible gaming-oriented Snapdragon 665 octa-core processor. Considering this is a sub-200-dollar phone, these two features alone are worth the price already. However, it doesn’t end there. This phone comes with expandable 64GB internal storage that can go up to 258GB with an SD card.
Though the battery is on the lesser side at 4000mAh, it should be well enough to keep you gaming comfortably for prolonged periods. A genuinely wild entry, the TCL 10L is a serious contender to all mid-range phones out there. Rarely do we see this much value in a mobile phone these days.
Motorola G9 Power 2021 XT2091
| Pros: | Cons: |
| ✅ USB Type C connector ✅ large screen size ✅ operating System Android 10.0 ✅ modern design ✅ FHD+ resolution |
❌ not compatible with 5G ❌ low camera resolution |
How much battery does the Motorola G9 Power have? Yes.
This insanely good phone at this price range comes with a whopping 6000mAh battery that will outlive you. You can get about 60 hours of battery life on a single charge. Yes, you’ve read that right. Two and a half days’ worth of battery life on one single charge. That alone should be worth the $250 price tag. But of course, there’s more.
There’s a 6.8-inch display. Nothing else needs to be said about that. It has a 64MP camera with incredible quality. TurboPower 20 charging technology that sees hours of battery life pumped in just a few minutes. An SD card slot that can go up to 512GB! All of this and more unparalleled features make this phone an insanely good option in the sub-300-dollar price range.
And yeah, there’s the Snapdragon 662 processor that has flagship-level performance in games. What else does one need to consider purchasing this phone? Motorola, despite their relative obscurity, has come back strong with these budget-friendly options that speak for themselves more than any words could.
Xiaomi Poco X3 NFC
| Pros: | Cons: |
| ✅ 5160 Milliamp Hours ✅ 6GB RAM ✅ 5160mAh battery ✅ great performance ✅ great for gaming |
❌ not compatible with 5G ❌ low camera resolution |
Though Poco now makes its own phones and no longer relies on Xiaomi, their brief spell together spawned some amazing phones. One such is undoubtedly the Poco X3 NFC, an amazing phone worth every penny. The sub-200-dollar market has become a serious battleground for phone manufacturers, which only benefits the end user.
It has an awesome Snapdragon 732G processor that gives you performance well above its pay grade. There’s quality software running under the hood, keeping everything at peak performance and giving you an enjoyable gaming experience.
The 6.67-inch screen packed with a colossal 5160mAh battery allows players to play for insanely long periods while enjoying all the fidelity of a good and large screen. This phone is fast, insanely fast, and at this price range is a steal. For those who like taking pictures more than gaming, there’s also a 64MP camera that will snap some pretty fantastic photos.
All in all, this phone is hard to beat.
Also read: Best Gaming Mouse Under $50 – Top 10 Ranked!
Conclusion
Budget gaming is all the craze lately. Picking up a good device for this purpose can be difficult, as it has become quite saturated with all manufacturers chipping in. We hope we’ve settled the matters for you with these seven amazing options that each outmatch the other.
(5 votes, average: 4.60 out of 5)
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