BLU phones - Good deal or not?

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I've had a Blu-Win Jr for at least 2 years now. It's been reliable, but the screen stops working if I keep it in an outside pocket when I'm skating or skiing.
 
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There's lots of used smart phones like the Note 4 or S5 or S6 that are in the $150-$250 range. You just have to check the deal sites like slickdeals.net or fatwallet.com. I'd get something like that than get a limited new phone. The old flagship phones have faster processors and better resolution although a new phone would have the latest android on it. Maybe and old Google Nexus also.
 
I actually own one, am not a xenophobe, and can say that they are excellent phones. They offer cheaper variants with Amazon advertising on the home screen. Kind of annoying, so be sure to consider that.

The Vivo XL is incredible for the money. 3150mAh battery, octa-core, 2GB RAM, Sony Exmoor 13MP camera and Lollipop.
 
The blu r1 hd was 59$ on amazon with prime.

The lockscreen ads can be disabled with a simple lockscreen app takes about 2min.

Appears to no longer be available.

I'd probably go with a name brand before I paid blu@ retail.

As for the vivo XL it has 8 weak cores who cares how many cores if they are slow.
some apps only use a single core.
The mali t720 is weak too even compared to a mainstream chip such as the snapdragon 615.

Its an ok phone in the under 100$ range

The vivo xl is going for 150$ right now on amazon... you can get a nexus 5x for 199$

Also how often are you going to get security updates on a blu phone..
 
Rand --- Good points!

I guess my point of starting this thread was to determine if this "BLU" company made phones that worked and competed with the big names. Their CEO said in an article from: http://www.theverge.com/2013/3/18/4100006/why-blu-products-can-beat-samsung

Vizio may be Blu's best analog, though. "Vizio is the #1-selling TV brand," Ohev-Zion says. "Why? Because people understand, 'listen, it's the same technology and I'm getting a much better value without the enormous, billions-of-dollars overhead.'"

This company my be the new "Hyundai" for phones. Remember how [censored] Hyundai was in the 80's? Look at them now.
 
Originally Posted By: Rand
The blu r1 hd was 59$ on amazon with prime.

The lockscreen ads can be disabled with a simple lockscreen app takes about 2min.

Appears to no longer be available.

I'd probably go with a name brand before I paid blu@ retail.

As for the vivo XL it has 8 weak cores who cares how many cores if they are slow.
some apps only use a single core.
The mali t720 is weak too even compared to a mainstream chip such as the snapdragon 615.

Its an ok phone in the under 100$ range

The vivo xl is going for 150$ right now on amazon... you can get a nexus 5x for 199$

Also how often are you going to get security updates on a blu phone..


I was going to get the R1 HD as my second BLU phone (Studio X) just shat the bed. It was a warranty replacement for my first (BLU Studio 5.0C HD). They only gave me 30 day warranty on the replacement phone even though it was factory-new. I was disappointed to see that they don't seem to be available anymore. Nevertheless I found something that's comparable in a BLU Grand 5.5 HD. 5.5" phone with most of the same features as my last phone for under $100.

Every BLU phone I've had has gotten OTA updates at least 1x a year. Also, they run near-stock Android.

Unless my next one is a real turd (touch wood) I can't foresee buying anything but BLU phones; at the least generics.
 
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Originally Posted By: rooflessVW
Cheap, jittery Chinesium.

Much better to hop on Swappa and find a lightly used and cared-for device.



THIS is a BITOGism!!!!
 
Originally Posted By: CKN
Originally Posted By: rooflessVW
Cheap, jittery Chinesium.

Much better to hop on Swappa and find a lightly used and cared-for device.



THIS is a BITOGism!!!!


Most all cell/smartphones are made in China. I'm not sure how getting a used brand-name one negates that.
 
Originally Posted By: Ifixyawata
Originally Posted By: CKN
Originally Posted By: rooflessVW
Cheap, jittery Chinesium.

Much better to hop on Swappa and find a lightly used and cared-for device.



THIS is a BITOGism!!!!


Most all cell/smartphones are made in China. I'm not sure how getting a used brand-name one negates that.


I never said it wouldn't be made in China.

The idea is that you can get a WELL MADE flagship phone for the same price or just a touch more than a POS BLU phone.
 
I dont hate blu but the brand needs to be heavy on value

if its the vivo xl for 150$ vs the $199 nexus 5x that totally.

Or another example I got the moto G4 (NOT play) for $125

The moto G4 play is $99 right now. that is what I would say is the vivo xl's competition level.

Mediatek is low end as are most mali graphics

Basic not perfect analogy.
Say it has an 8core (like the vivo xl) is like saying I have a V8 engine..but they dont mention its 120hp. vs a 4 cyl with 200hp. Thats not perfect because some apps only run on 1 core which makes the weak 8 core extremely weak vs some 4 core chips.

I have nothing against blu but their msrp are bad value. They compare half the specs to flagship phones and act like its comparable.
 
I was faced with a similar decision a few months back. I was looking at then-new Moto G4 and comparing it against some of its competitors. After some research, I decided on the Motorola, and am quite happy with it. I paid a net of $100 for it when it first came out at Best Buy, after their $149 price match to Amazon (for the full unlocked version) and $50 Best Buy gift card. It has a 3,000+ mAh battery and I've found that it really does hold a charge for a day or day and a half under moderate-to-heavy use.

I'd consider Blu in the future, but I'd need to see some sustainably good reviews on them after years' of use. I keep my phones for a while and, while a hundred bucks isn't a huge gamble, I'd rather buy a known-good quantity once than something cheaper that I may need to do over again.

I do like the Qualcomm processor in the name brands over the Mediatek/no name processor cores in the off-brands. Our kids have some tablets that they never use that are powered by these same Mediatek-like processors. There's a reason they're cheap.
 
I replaced a Sony Xperia Z1 with the Vivo XL. It is a wonderful upgrade.

The 8-core mediatek outperforms the snapdragon 800 in my Z1. That said, it's a phone. Both are overkill for their uses. The most significant improvement is the extra 1GB of RAM.
 
Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
I was faced with a similar decision a few months back. I was looking at then-new Moto G4 and comparing it against some of its competitors. After some research, I decided on the Motorola, and am quite happy with it. I paid a net of $100 for it when it first came out at Best Buy, after their $149 price match to Amazon (for the full unlocked version) and $50 Best Buy gift card. It has a 3,000+ mAh battery and I've found that it really does hold a charge for a day or day and a half under moderate-to-heavy use.

I'd consider Blu in the future, but I'd need to see some sustainably good reviews on them after years' of use. I keep my phones for a while and, while a hundred bucks isn't a huge gamble, I'd rather buy a known-good quantity once than something cheaper that I may need to do over again.

I do like the Qualcomm processor in the name brands over the Mediatek/no name processor cores in the off-brands. Our kids have some tablets that they never use that are powered by these same Mediatek-like processors. There's a reason they're cheap.


Interesting and valid comparisons! I know they have been getting some nice reviews but based on some comments here, I think I'll hold-off a bit longer. The Moto G4 is apparently a very good phone for the money!
 
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