Chances are your next smartphone will be Chinese. Below we will give you quite a few good reasons for this. True, the label "Made in China" has a bad reputation, as it is synonymous with cheap "goods", and if anything, the Chinese have always been competitive on price. But we had to pay a high price for this: poor quality. That is now changing, at least in the realm of smartphones that are spitting against the tide. After years of just copying, they have now turned to innovation, and the result is smartphones that justifiably make the competition's pants shake. The Chinese have started their march into the mobile market and it seems that nothing can stop them, not even the patent offices.
These are the Chinese smartphones that beat the competition to the right:
Xiaomi Mi Max smartphone
The Mi Max is Xiaomi's latest flagship. It boasts a large, 6.4-inch screen with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels (it dwarfs the Mi Note and Mi Note Pro), and when combined with powerful hardware, it can jump in instead of a tablet. The following characteristics testify to the fact that the story did not come from the vine. There are three versions that differ in processor and amount of built-in and system memory. The one with the most "testosterone" has a powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor, 4 GB of system memory and built-in memory with 128 GB of space. The remaining pair "breathe on" the Snapdragon 650 processor and have 3 GB of system memory and built-in memory with 32 or 64 GB of space. All three 203-gram versions, packed in a metal case, have a camera with a resolution of 16 megapixels, a web camera that counts five million, a slot for a microSD memory card, a battery with a capacity of 4850 mAh, while the memory hosts the Android 6.0 Marshmallow operating system (with the new MIUI 8 home interface). If none of the above sounds surprising to you, let's put it all into context. You'll have to shell out only 200 euros for the entry-level model, and 270 for the most expensive, which is ridiculously cheap compared to the competition.
More information: Xiaomi Mi Max smartphone: Xiaomi holds good cards
OnePlus 3 smartphone
Forget the iPhone, forget the Galaxy, the OnePlus 3 is the new (old) king of the premium smartphone class. If the debut of the OnePlus brand, the OnePlus One, was a sensation and the OnePlus 2, like many sequels, disappointed, the third-generation OnePlus is ready to push the boundaries again. The basic version of the phone has 4 GB of system memory, which is in the same range as the Samsung Galaxy S7, HTC 10 and LG G5, but there is also a version with as much as 6 GB! The heart of both versions will be a powerful 4-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor (1.59 GHz). The base model will have 4 GB of system memory and 32 GB of storage space, while the more powerful model will have as much as 6 GB of system memory and 64 RAM. If the name of the OnePlus 2 is a battery with a capacity of 3300 mAh, the OnePlus 3 added 200 of them for a final 3500 mAh. Engineers installed a camera with 8 million pixels in the front, and a camera with even more pixels in the back. The NFC chip, which was sorely missed by the second generation, is back, and there is also a slot for a microSD memory card, which was the second big complaint of users against the brand when the second generation of phones was released. The OnePlus 3 will run on Android 6.0.1. For ultra-fast charging, OnePlus has teamed up with Oppo (the majority owner of OnePlus) to provide a low-voltage Super VOOC Flash Charge that can charge a (2,500 mAh) battery in 15 minutes!
More information: OnePlus 3: the smartphone that will run over the competition
READ MORE: These are the best smartphones of 2016
Honor 7 smartphone
Remember the name Honor, because you will surely hear about it a lot in the future. It is a sub-brand of the better-known Huawei brand, with which we Slovenians are already well acquainted. Do you want the ultimate mobile experience? Then the Honor 7 smartphone is perfect for you. It embodies the philosophy of the company, which wants to serve Generation Y with an unsurpassed user experience of the mobile Internet. Buying this phone feels like hitting tech week if buying a phone was the lottery. Why? Because the metal case, finished with the air brush technique, has a wide range of innovative smart functions and multimedia capabilities, which the user also accesses via the smart key and the fingerprint reader. Because it boasts a 5.2-inch Full HD display, a 64-bit Kirin 935 SoC and 3GB of RAM for data storage. Because it offers between 16 and 64 GB of internal memory and an L-shaped motherboard that prevents the device from heating up. Because a camera with a 20 MP resolution and a Sony IMX230 sensor, protected by sapphire glass, and an 8 MP camera with a wide-angle lens (front) take care of the image capture. Because the battery capacity is 3100 mAh and because the Honor 7 supports fast charging, which those who are on the road a lot will be grateful for. If that's not the week, we don't know what is. iPhone 7? Apple will have to spit in their hands for this.
More information: Honor 7 – a smartphone that will mix the small with the big
Meizu MX 5 smartphone
There is fierce competition in the upper-middle class of smartphones, but it seems that Meizu's successor to the popular MX4 model, the Meizu MX5, will have no problem competing with its rivals, neither with those in its category ("welterweights"), nor with the "heavyweights" models of premium brands. With the difference that it will be half the price of the latter. The least muscular version, the one with 16 GB of memory, will cost just over 250 euros. The phone is decorated with a metal case and a 5.5-inch screen protected by Gorilla Glass 3 with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, under which the Chinese have hidden a 64-bit and 8-core MediaTek MT6795 processor with a clock speed of 2.2 GHz (Cortex-A53 ). It also boasts 3 GB of system memory, a PowerVR G6200 MP4 graphics card (frequency 700 MHz), a primary camera with a resolution of 20.7 million pixels and a secondary, i.e. the front, with a quarter of them. The Meizu MX5 measures only 7.6 millimeters in width, and its weight is only 149 grams. Nevertheless, it has a powerful 3150 mAh battery that boasts McHarg technology. This makes it possible to charge a completely empty battery to half in just 20 minutes. There are versions with 16, 32 or 64 GB of memory.
More information: Meizu MX 5 – a mid-range smartphone that can easily blend in with the elite
Bluboo Picasso smartphone
Bluboo Picasso is a smartphone for young people without a fick. But make no mistake. This does not mean that it is technologically impoverished and that it works more like a child's toy than a serious phone. But it is true that you can get it for, say and write, 60 euros! If that's not a student price for a no-strings-attached phone, then we don't know what is! Bluboo Picasso may be an unfortunate name for a smartphone, but if you put aside the ridiculous name, behind it lies a sophisticated device that, despite its ridiculously low price, does not make many compromises, which you would expect for a budget phone. Not on a design level, not on a technical level, because it was far from robbed of the characteristics typical of more expensive phones. Let's see if that's true. A 4-core processor MediaTek MTK6580 (1.3 GHz), 2 GB of system memory and 16 GB of built-in memory is hidden under the 5-inch screen with a resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels. The Mali-400MP graphics card takes care of the graphics, the 2500 mAh battery for autonomy, and the camera with a resolution of 8 million points for photos and videos. The engineers installed the Android 5.1 Lollipop mobile operating system on its memory, which has a slightly modified graphic interface. It comes in blue, brown, yellow, pink, white, black and green with a diamond pattern on the front.
More information: Bluboo Picasso - a smartphone for young people without fick
Zopo Speed 8 Smartphone
The Chinese manufacturer Zopo is considered a specialist in the world of mobile phones. It is a young brand that bets on technically advanced and colorful phones, and in the MotoGP class on Jorge Lorenzo. After all, he is its ambassador and in many ways personifies their phones. Their latest phone, the Zopo Speed 8, will take on the competition like the Lorenzo does. Uncompromising and without awe. Zopo may not be Apple or Samsung by name, but even Jorge Lorenzo wasn't the new Rossi a few years ago, and he has every chance of becoming one. With his latest phone, the Zopo Speed 8, which is the successor to the "seven", he threw down the gauntlet to the giants of mobile telephony, because the phone is incredibly fast, which is why even much more expensive and proverbially better mobile phones are watching his back. It boasts a 5.5-inch Full HD IPS "visor", a USB Type-C input ("double-sided" USB), and its "engine" is a 64-bit 10-core (!) Helio X20 processor with 4 horses (read : 4 GB RAM) and 32 GB ROM. At the back, the engineers dedicated a camera with a resolution of 21 million pixels, which is provided by the latest Sony IMX230 sensor and enables a focusing speed of only 0.2 seconds (PDAF technology). The rear camera is accompanied by two LED flashes, and one flashes the front camera with a resolution of 8 million pixels. Of course, the Zopo Speed 8 also has a fingerprint reader, which is also a photo capture button. The top and bottom of the case are adorned with a speaker and a microphone, which are new additions to the otherwise characteristic curved edge of the phone. Autonomy is ensured by a 3600 mAh battery, and MediaTek technology allows it to charge quickly. The designers gave it the Android 6.0 Marshmallow operating system and NFC technology, which makes the Speed 8 also serve as a digital wallet. And speaking of the wallet. The purchase of this phone will cost her 300 euros.
More information: Zopo Speed 8 – a smartphone to be desired
Oppo F1 Plus smartphone
The Chinese manufacturer Oppo is an increasingly popular provider in the field of mobile telephony. Their sales are counted in the tens of millions, and the resolution of the "selfie camera" (front camera) on their Oppo F1 Plus smartphone is also counted in the tens of millions. With all smartphones, the front cameras are technically behind the rear camera, but with the Oppo F1 Plus, the picture is just the opposite! The smartphone, which is known as Oppo R9 in the eastern market, has two equivalent cameras. The front, "selfie camera" even has a slightly higher resolution, which is 16 million pixels, which is 3 million more than the "classic" one. A logical move considering that we take more pictures with the front camera than with the rear one, which is intended for normal photography. And let's not stop only at the resolution of the camera. Under the 5.5-inch screen with a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels (401 ppi), the Oppo F1 Plus smartphone hides an 8-core MediaTek MT6755 processor, which is assisted by 4 GB of working memory. The storage space is 64 GB, and the data storage space can be expanded up to 128 GB with a microSD memory card. The 145-gram F1 Plus runs the Android 5.1 operating system, spiced up with the Color OS 3.0 graphical interface, and autonomy is ensured by a 2850 mAh battery.
More information: Oppo F1 Plus Smartphone – Selfie Master
Coolpad Modena smartphone
The Coolpad Modena smartphone, named after the Italian city, is decorated with a 5.5-inch screen, a 64-bit 4-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor. The graphics card ensures an exceptional experience with 3D games. This 8.6 mm and 15 gram 4G LTE smartphone with dual SIM technology is the ideal solution for those who travel often and want to enjoy luxurious colors and a "cinema" screen. It is available in white, black and gold. It is equipped with 8 MP and 2 MP cameras and an LED flash, and a number of functions, such as makeup correction, night shoot option, HDR and smile capture, as well as the option to delete elements that we do not like in the photo, ensure excellent photos. It also offers "smart gestures" technology, which can be used to call up the three most frequently used applications with one gesture. With our finger on the screen we simply draw C for web browser, E for music player and M for music. Or double-tap the screen. The battery has 2500 mAh, the RAM is 1 GB, and the ROM is 8 GB, which can be expanded to 32 GB with a microSD memory card. It is powered by Android v5.1 operating system.
More information: Coolpad Porto and Coolpad Modena – flagships of the Coolpad smartphone brand
Huawei P9 smartphone
The Huawei P9 is the world's first smartphone with two Leica cameras and offers the user the best innovations in the field of photo capture - that is, Leica know-how packaged in the form of a smartphone. Each camera performs a specific task. The P9's RGB camera specializes in capturing color, while the black and white camera excels at capturing photo detail. The two rear cameras on the P9 work in tandem, allowing the user to capture incredibly detailed, deep and colorful photos. With the P9's in-house Hybrid Focus technology built in, it captures photos with lightning speed, precision and stability. The P9 supports focusing based on three methodologies – laser and depth and contrast calculation – and automatically selects the one that best suits the circumstances. The phone captures the DNA of its predecessor, or the entire P series of smartphones. Each Huawei P9 is a perfect synergy of 2.5D glass and aluminum used in the aerospace industry. There will be six color variants of the P9 smartphone.
More information: Huawei P9 and P9 plus: new standards of smartphone photography
