Apple's iPhone 11 Pro starts at $1,000, while the iPhone 11 Pro Max starts at $1,099, and the Samsung Note 10 Plus starts at $1,099. These manufacturers, along with wireless carriers, offer monthly payment plans to help people accept these high prices, but no matter how you slice it, the price of flagships[1] is still a deterrent for many folks.
Thankfully, there are some outstanding affordable alternatives, and these alternatives have significantly improved over the past few years. Various manufacturers, including many from China and Korea, have compelling products that are becoming more popular as we reach smartphone saturation. Amazon has its Alexa Built-in phones[2] that offer reasonable prices on current models and ones that might be a year or two old but are still valuable options[3].
Also: Money no object? The 10 best smartphones you can buy right now[4]
It's tough to justify a $1,100 iPhone 11 Pro Max as your first phone, but any of these following phones may be great to have as a second phone for the beach or forest, or as a first phone for your teen, or in case of an emergency.
The best cheap phones
These phones are in order from lowest to highest price.
Coolpad Legacy for free
The new Coolpad Legacy, see my review[5], is designed with a large display, huge capacity battery with Quick Charge 3.0, high-quality