Bang-for-the-Buck Budget Phone Comparo: Cherry Mobile Flare S8 Pro vs Xiaomi Redmi 7A

Bang-for-the-Buck Budget Phone Comparo: Cherry Mobile Flare S8 Pro vs Xiaomi Redmi 7A

Has Cherry Mobile Out-Xiaomi’ed Xiaomi?

Cherry is dead serious with its new Flare S8 Pro: armed with a sub-Php 6k price, the Flare S8 Pro is arguably the local brand’s most bang-for-the-buck offering to date. With features such as a 4000mAh battery, Helio P23 processor, 4GB RAM, 64GB internal storage, dual rear cameras, and a large 6.5-inch HD+ display, the Flare S8 Pro is set to dominate the sub-Php 6k segment.

But that doesn’t mean its rivals are going to roll over without a fight. Xiaomi officially announced the price for its latest budget phone today, the Redmi 7A, with an equally competitive price point. Is the Php 700 difference all worth it?

Redmi 7A specs

  • Qualcomm Snapdragon 439 octa-core processor
  • 2GB/3GB RAM
  • 5.45-inch HD+ display
  • 16GB/32GB internal storage
  • 13-megapixel main rear camera with PDAF, LED flash
  • 5-megapixel front camera
  • Dual SIM
  • 3G, LTE
  • WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS
  • Face unlock, P2i coating
  • 4000mAh battery
  • Android Pie with MIUI

Cherry Mobile Flare S8 Pro specs

  • MediaTek Helio P22 octa-core processor
  • 4GB RAM
  • 6.5-inch HD+ display
  • 64GB internal storage
  • Dual rear cameras: 20-megapixel main camera; 5-megapixel depth sensor; with PDAF, LED flash
  • 20-megapixel front camera
  • Dual SIM
  • 3G, LTE
  • WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS
  • Fingerprint Scanner, Face unlock, USB-C
  • 4000mAh battery with fast charging
  • Android Pie

Gorgeous design makes it more eye-catching

While both phones make use of plastic in their construction and build, Cherry Mobile has gone the extra mile to make their phone look better, thanks to the gradient colorway that’s available for the phone.

Even ground with processing power

The Flare S8 Pro is one of Cherry Mobile’s best offerings to date because it sports an Helio P22 processor, and is one of the most affordable phones locally to sport the chipset. The same can be said with the Redmi 7A, as it is one of the most affordable phones to have a Snapdragon 439 processor.

Both Helio P22 and Snapdragon 439 are octa-core processors and roughly have the same level of performance—at least in synthetic benchmark tests. While they have the same processing power, the Flare S8 Pro gets double the RAM and double the internal storage compared to the Redmi 7A, no matter what version of the Redmi phone you pick.

Bigger is better

The Flare S8 Pro is the clear winner here if you’re talking about the display, thanks to the sizable 6.5-inch HD+ display with a dewdrop notch. However, those who are not into large phones can go for the Redmi 7A, as its compact body houses a 5.45-inch HD+ display that is free of any bezels.

Flare S8 has better cameras, on paper at least

The Flare S8 Pro’s strong point are its cameras: you get a 20-megapixel for the front camera, while you have a 20-megapixel main camera and 5-megapixel depth sensor for the rear snappers. While it is easy to say that the Flare S8 Pro’s cameras trump the Redmi 7A’s snappers on paper, we will have to find out if that’s actually the case in practice.

Big batteries that matter

Aside from using updated octa-core processors, both the Flare S8 Pro and Redmi 7A come with a generous 4000mAh battery that should last at least a day of medium usage based on our previous experience with Helio P22 and Snapdragon 439 processors.

The Flare S8 Pro has a slight advantage over the Redmi 7A for offering fast charging and USB-C.

The premium is definitely worth it

Even if the Flare S8 Pro is Php 700 more expensive than the 32GB variant of the Redmi 7A, the premium is worth it especially with features like a bigger display, double the RAM and internal storage, and dual rear cameras.

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