Which budget phone looks better on paper?

The arrival of Realme in the Philippines has really shaken up the entry-level market, enough that it’s worth re-examining the competition facing their first local offering, the Realme C1. Specifically, the Samsung Galaxy J6+ and the Huawei Y6 2018. Let’s take a look at the tale of the tape:

Realme C1 specs:

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 octa-core processor
• Adreno 506 GPU
• 2GB RAM
• 6.2-inch HD+ LTPS IPS display, Gorilla Glass protection
• 16GB of expandable storage
• 13-megapixel f/2.2 + 2-megapixel f/2.4 rear cameras with LED flash and PDAF
• 5-megapixel f/2.2 front camera
• Dual SIM
• 3G, LTE
• WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS
• 4230mAh battery
• Android 8.1 Oreo with ColorOS 5.1 UI

Samsung Galaxy J6+ specs:

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 quad-core processor
• 3GB of RAM
• 6-inch HD+ IPS LCD display
• 32GB of expandable storage
• 13-megapixel main camera with f/1.9 aperture, 5-megapixel secondary camera with
• f/2.2 aperture, LED flash
• 8-megapixel f/1.9 front camera
• Dual SIM
• 3G, LTE
• WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS, fingerprint scanner
• 3300mAh battery
• Android 8.1 Oreo

Huawei Y6 2018 specs:

• 1.4GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 processor
• 2GB RAM
• 5.7-inch HD+ IPS display,18:9 display aspect ratio, 1440 x 720 resolution
• 16GB internal storage, expandable via microSD up to 256GB
• 13-megapixel f/2.2 rear camera with PDAF, LED flash
• 5-megapixel f/2.2 front camera with selfie toning flash
• Dual-SIM
• 3G, HSPA+, LTE
• WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS
• Face unlock, USB OTG
• 3000mAh battery
• Android 8.0 Oreo with EMUI 8.0

Externals and Build:

Samsung’s Galaxy J6+ is the most premium of the three, sporting a glass back that you’d typically associate with more expensive handsets. But that comes at a literal cost, as the phone is much more expensive than the two other similarly-specc’d smartphones in this comparo.

Both the Realme C1 and Huawei Y6 2018 are made of plastic, though it’s not apparent when viewing both at a distance.

While all three are made from plastic, not all of them look the part. Huawei’s Y6 2018 looks the most premium, as it’s been treated to look like metal. The Realme C1 doesn’t have that faux metallic finish, instead, it has a plastic rear that tries to pass itself off like glass.

As far as build quality goes, all three look and feel great, and doesn’t feel like budget phones at all (the J6+ especially).

Display:

All three phones have HD+ displays, though the Realme C1 has the biggest of the three at 6.2-inches. The J6+ comes in at 6-inches, while the Y6 2018 is the smallest of the three, at 5.7-inches. Take note though that the C1 is the only phone of the three that has a notch. All three are IPS panels – sorry, no AMOLED here.

Cameras:

Two of the phones in this comparison have dual cameras, as are is common on most smartphones today: the Realme C1 has a 13-megapixel f/2.2 main camera with a 2-megapixel f/2.4 secondary shooter while the Galaxy Y6+ has a 13-megapixel main camera with f/1.9 aperture and a 5-megapixel f/2.2 aperture lens.

The Y6 2018 is the lone device with a single camera, with only a 13-megapixel f/2.2 shooter.

Theoretically, the Galaxy J6+ should be the best of the three when taking photos in low-light, as its cameras including the selfie shooter have relatively wide aperture lenses that let in more light in dark environs.

Hardware:

Of the three the Realme C1 has the most powerful processor, sporting a Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 octa-core chipset. This is good news since Snapdragon 425 which powers both the Galaxy J6+ and Y6 2018 is getting a little long in the tooth, despite being pretty power efficient.

Speaking of power efficiency, the Realme C1 has a very large 4230mAh battery that will be able to power the device for days, which is a stark contrast to the batteries of both of its rivals. Samsung’s Galaxy J6+ also has the best specs (processor notwithstanding) of the three, as it has 3GB of RAM, 32GB of expandable storage and a fingerprint scanner integrated into the power button.

Price:

As for pricing, the Realme C1 is pretty dang affordable, priced at just 5,490 when it goes on sale in Lazada. Huawei’s Y6 2018 is just a bit more, at Php 5,990. Samsung’s Galaxy J6+ is the priciest of the three, at a whopping Php 10,990.