Chinese phones offer excellent value for money, with specs to rival flagship phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S7 and iPhone 7 and often at less than half the price. So if you want a great deal on a smartphone, look no further than our round-up of the best Chinese phones 2017.
What is the best Chinese phone?
| Best Chinese phone | Price | Key specifications |
| OnePlus 3T | £329 | OxygenOS (Android 6.0), Snapdragon 821, 6GB RAM, 64GB storage, 5.5in Full-HD, 3400mAh |
| Xiaomi Mi5s | £282 | MIUI 8.0 (Android 6.0), Snapdragon 821, 3/4GB RAM, 64/128GB storage, 5.15in Full-HD, 3100mAh |
| Xiaomi Mi Note 2 | £472 | MIUI 8.0 (Android 6.0), Snapdragon 821, 4/6GB RAM, 64/128GB storage, 5.7in Full-HD, 4070mAh |
Chinese phones offer excellent value for money, with specs to rival flagship phonessuch as the Samsung Galaxy S7 and iPhone 7 and often at less than half the price. So if you want a great deal on a smartphone, look no further than our round-up of the best Chinese phones 2017.
Also see: Best Phone Deals
You've probably heard of brands such as Huawei/Honor, ZTE and Lenovo, although you might not be aware that the latter makes phones as well as laptops. Xiaomi, too, is becoming increasingly popular worldwide, and is known as China's Apple. Also see: Best kids' phones 2017
But the problem with many Chinese phones is that they can be difficult to get hold of in the UK. To buy a Chinese phone in the UK you'll either need to look on a site such as eBay or Amazon, or go through a grey-market importer such as Geekbuying, GearBest or Coolicool. Be sure to read up on our grey-market tech buying advice before you do so.
Should you buy a Chinese phone in the UK? Why you should and should not buy a Chinese phone
Pros:
• Excellent value for money
• Competitive specification
• Usually dual-SIM
• None of your friends will have the same phone
Cons:
• Without an official channel through which to purchase you may unintentionally buy a counterfeit product
• Faulty devices may be difficult to return
• You may incur import duty (charged at 20 percent of the value on the shipping paperwork plus an admin fee)
• The phone may not work with your network (be sure to check before you buy)
• Google Play may not be preinstalled (as is the case with some Xiaomi and Meizu phones)
Best Chinese phone specifications: What to expect from a Chinese phone
The majority of Chinese phones we've reviewed have been dual-SIM dual-standby. We've found this to be a standard feature of Chinese phones at any price point. However, in the case of Huawei/Honor phones, which are among those that are officially sold in the UK, the UK variant is often not dual-SIM. You should also check whether the second SIM slot is in addition to or replacing the phone's microSD slot. Also see: Best dual-SIM phones 2017 and dual-SIM buying advice.
4G is a common feature even at the lower price points. An increasing number of phones will support 4G on both SIM slots, but dual-standby phones will ask you to select one or the other for data. And while we're used to seeing phones that standardise on nano- or Micro-SIM, Chinese phones can occasionally still feature full-size SIM slots (though this is now becoming much less common). Of course, you can pick up an adaptor from somewhere like Amazon for as little as a pound. Also see: What is 4G? Complete guide to 4G.
The fact that a Chinese phone supports 4G doesn't necessarily mean it will work on your UK network, mind. Always check a phone's frequency bands before purchase. In the UK we use LTE bands 3, 7 and 20, or look for 800-, 1800- and 2600MHz. EE operates on all three, Three on 800- and 1800MHz, O2 on 800MHz, and Vodafone on 800- and 2600MHz. Also see: How to tell if a phone is supported by your mobile network.
MediaTek processors are a common feature within Chinese phones, and we're now beginning to see the deca-core Helio X20 in some Chinese phones. More often, though, the MediaTek processors inside Chinese phones are marketed as octa-core and 64-bit. Whereas many UK-sold octa-core flagships are sold with four cores tuned for performance and four for efficiency, here you'll usually find all eight cores running at the same speed; increasingly UK flagships now run quad-core chips from the Qualcomm Snapdragon family. Two- or even 3GB of RAM is not uncommon, and 4GB is often available as a top-end option, and expect to find 32GB of storage, with microSD support (often only to 32- or 64GB, rather than 128GB). Also see: What's the fastest smartphone 2017.
Rather than NFC, phones with MediaTek processors often come with a feature called HotKnot. This works in a similar way, allowing you to do such things as share files and play multiplayer games with other HotKnot-capable phones. You will almost certainly also find a fingerprint scanner, and thankfully most are now touch- rather than swipe-style scanners.
In the photography department a 13Mp Sony sensor with f/2.2 aperture is often found at the rear, while you'll usually get a 5Mp selfie camera at the front. The camera functionality is very similar to that of any other Android phone, but you may find the Face Beauty mode whitens your skin tone - the painting of a face white is a cultural tradition. There will be a slider somewhere that lets you turn off this effect. Also see: Best sounding phone 2017.
A full-HD screen is common, with Quad-HD much less so and HD screens still found in the cheapest models, and we've reviewed many a 5.5in-screen Chinese phablet. The screen is usually a good-quality IPS panel, and may often be marketed as having 2.5D Arc glass or 3D glass. This does not mean the screen is curved, but rather that the edges of the screen are slightly curved (like on the iPhone 7). Gorilla Glass is another common feature, which is fortunate because getting hold of a case for a Chinese phone is just as involved as buying the phone itself (we advise getting one at the time of purchase, although you often find one is supplied in the box).
Customisable gestures are not built into Android, but they are very common in Chinese phones. This means you are likely to be able to double-tap to wake the screen, and by drawing a letter onscreen in standby mode you will be able to launch an app of your choice. Many Chinese phones will also allow you to use gestures to trigger the camera shutter.
While we're on the subject of software, be aware that some Chinese phones are sold rooted. For many people that's a bonus - for example UMI's Rootjoy app lets you easily install any OS you like - but it will put off some customers. We advise you to check whether wireless updates are available or if you will have to manually update the phone before you buy, if you think the latter may cause you grief.
Best Chinese phones 2017
We've been reviewing Chinese phones supplied to us by Geekbuying, Coolicool and GearBest for a good couple of years now, but the honest truth is there are still many Chinese phones out there we have yet to review, and many, many Chinese phone manufacturers we've never even heard of. Some of those phones may deserve to join our list, but we won't recommend any Chinese phone we haven't physically held and tested.
Over time we will build up our collection of Chinese phone reviews, and in the meantime we offer this chart not as a definitive guide to buying Chinese phones but as a guide to what you can expect for your money when you buy from China. If you've found a Chinese phone not listed in our chart then check its spec and compare it to the phones we've reviewed here.
Best Chinese phone reviews
1. OnePlus 3T
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 10 February 17
- RRP: From £399, From US$439
- Buy from OnePlus
The OnePlus 3T will be unfairly compared, for now at least, to the phone that came before it. So let’s ignore it. On its own, the OnePlus 3T is everything a modern smartphone should be; slim, fast, and responsive, with above average battery life and cameras that produce stunning images. And then there’s the price. OnePlus may not like being known for it, but £399 remains an absolutely amazing price point for the phone on offer.
As long as you don’t want an iPhone, this Android handset stands side by side with the Samsung Galaxy S7 as the best example of a smartphone on the market today – once we’ve all got over that it came a little sooner than we had expected.
2. Xiaomi Mi5s
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 29 November 16
- RRP: £282.75, US$352.69
- Buy from GearBest
We cannot recommend the Xiaomi Mi5s enough. This is the smartphone every 2016 flagship wanted to be, and it comes with a price tag half that of theirs. Fantastic build quality, fantastic performance, fantastic storage, battery and connectivity options - the Xiaomi Mi5s gets a big thumbs-up from us.
3. Xiaomi Mi Note 2
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 8 December 16
- RRP: £472.99, US$589.99
- Buy from GearBest
The Mi Note 2 was wrongly overshadowed at its launch. This is a gorgeous big-screen Android phone with very decent performance, a great camera and plenty of storage. We'd like to see a Quad-HD screen on Xiaomi's flagship phone, but this one should prove plenty sharp and clear. Google apps are not preinstalled, but there is a workaround if you are happy to do some tweaking.
4. Xiaomi Mi Mix
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 3 February 17
- RRP: £799.91, 997.78
- Buy from GearBest
It might sound expensive, but the £799 Xiaomi Mi Mix actually offers very good value when you consider its meaty core hardware and generous 256GB of storage - it's certainly less than you'd pay for an iPhone 7 Plus. This isn't a phone you buy with budget in mind, however: the Mi Mix is the phone you buy when you want onlookers to say "Oh my gosh, what is that? It's amazing - I want one of those!" The Mi Mix is a revolutionary phone that we hope is a sign of things to come, with that gorgeous bezel-less display, beautiful ceramic body, fantastic performance, long, long battery life and all the other fancy tech we can't even pronounce, let alone understand. No matter - it works. Highly recommended.
5. Huawei Mate 9
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 12 January 17
- RRP: £599.99, US$599.99
- Best contract deal today:
£31.50, no upfront cost
Huawei’s Mate 9 is, in our opinion, the best in the Huawei line-up, boasting an impressively large battery alongside powerful internals, an improved dual-camera setup and a sleek, gorgeous design. The benchmark results were some of the best we've seen, bringing excellent value for money. EMUI 5 makes a huge difference to the overall experience too, and we can’t wait to see whether Huawei’s new technology will actually improve the performance of the smartphone over time.
6. Xiaomi Mi 5
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 31 May 16
- RRP: £263.75 (plus import duty), US$300
A fantastic Android flagship that comes in at an outrageously low price, the Xiaomi Mi 5 has the braun and the beauty to match the greats. Perhaps not a wise choice for first time Android users, but those comfortable in customising the setup will love the excellent-value, gorgeously designed Xiaomi Mi 5.
7. UMI Z
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 31 January 17
- RRP: £192.40, 239.99
- Buy from GearBest
The UMI Z is an excellent-value Android phone with a large battery, a decent screen, the most powerful MediaTek processor you can get and a very good selfie camera. Unfortunately the primary camera doesn't quite live up, but it's otherwise difficult to fault. With full UK 4G connectivity it's a greatbuy.
8. Xiaomi Redmi Pro
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 21 September 16
- RRP: £256.04, 329.99
- Buy from GearBest
The Xiaomi Redmi Pro offers unbeatable value for money at around £250, undercutting every flagship yet offering much the same performance and many comparable features. Due to the lack of Google Play and a number of Chinese preinstalled apps we’d recommend Xiaomi phones only to seasoned Android users, however.
9. Honor 8
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 5 September 16
- RRP: £369.99 inc VAT, US$399
The Honor 8 is a fantastic smartphone, but the price has gone up from the Honor 7. In return for the additional expense you get a fantastic dual-camera, a sleek and stylish design, a faster fingerprint sensor and a beautiful display, which combined make the Honor 8 a worthy competitor to the OnePlus 3.
10. Elephone S7
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 12 January 17
- RRP: £177.11, US$219.99
- Buy from TomTop
The Elephone S7 is a very good-looking phone at an affordable price, with decent performance and a generous helping of storage. On the down side the cameras are disappointing and the rear panel is plastic. Even at this price you don't need to compromise so heavily.
11. Elephone P9000
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 11 March 16
- RRP: 193.98 (plus import duty from China)
We’re very impressed with the Elephone P9000, which is a great all-round Android phone at an unbelievable sub-£200 price. It’s fast, battery life is good, it’s feature-packed and it even runs Marshmallow. Wireless- and quick-charging-, NFC-, USB-C-, dual-SIM- and microSD support are the icing on the cake. Recommended.
12. OnePlus 2
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 8 March 16
- RRP: £249, US$249
The lack of NFC, a microSD card slot, a removable battery, and quick- and wireless charging means the OnePlus 2 is not a flagship killer. It does have some killer new features though, including USB Type-C, 4G dual-SIM support and some powerful hardware. At the reduced price of £249 (we don't recommend the 16GB OP2), it's an unrivalled deal.
13. OnePlus X
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 15 June 16
- RRP: £189 (Onyx)
The OnePlus X was the best value smartphone of 2015. We love the premium design in a smaller form factor to the firm’s other phones. Software is a strong point and you get a gorgeous screen. However, cuts had to be made somewhere and the X is lacking features such as NFC, 11ac and Wi-Fi. It also is missing the fingerprint scanner and USB Type-C port found on the OnePlus 2. Battery life isn’t great and cameras aren’t best in class but this is a great phone for the price.
14. Xiaomi Redmi 3S
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 11 August 16
- RRP: £100, 153.93
- Buy from Xiaomi Tech
Right now the Redmi 3S Pro is available for just an extra £5 over the 3S, but ordinarily we would have said you will struggle to find better value for money than what is offered by Xiaomi's new Redmi 3S. This budget Android phone is feature-packed and capable, and has a new fingerprint scanner. You can't expect any more for £120, just remember that Google Play isn't installed out of the box.
15. Xiaomi Redmi Note 4
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 13 February 17
- RRP: £192.93, 245.99
- Buy from GearBest
The Redmi Note 4 isn’t a huge upgrade over the Redmi Note 3 in terms of core hardware, with simply a greater amount of storage and a faster processor, but the design changes are a huge improvement over its predecessor. If you don’t care about looks and can make do with less storage then the cheaper Redmi Note 3 may well meet your needs. The Redmi Note 4 remains a great buy, but the omission of Google Play support may put off some users. O2 and Giffgaff customers should also note the lack of support for 800MHz 4G.
16. Ulefone Future
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 14 July 16
- RRP: £188.57, 244.46
- Buy from Ulefone
Ulefone has attempted to build a futuristic phone with the Future’s edge-to-edge display and USB-C port. For a mid-range Android phone performance is good, and the design is good, even if the phone is on the heavy side. We can’t turn a blind eye to the camera quality, although a software update should be able to fix the issues we saw.
Read our Ulefone Future review.
17. Xiaomi Mi Max
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 29 June 16
- RRP: £212.04, US$274.89
- Buy from Xiaomi Tech
If you want a huge phone and you don’t want to pay as large a wedge of cash, the Xiaomi Mi Max is a fantastic phablet with good looks, decent performance, strong runtime and, most importantly of all, a gigantic screen. Not ideal for novice users, but otherwise the Mi Max is a highly recommended smartphone.
18. Lenovo ZUK Z1
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 6 November 15
- RRP: £228.47 inc VAT (free shipping from EU warehouse)
The Z1 is a good first attempt from ZUK. It's not a super-cheap budget phone, but we think the price is about right given the hardware inside. Standout features include the 5.5in full-HD screen, large battery, 64GB of built-in storage and USB-C port. Although there's no removable battery or microSD card support, you could argue that you need neither.
19. Meizu M3 Note
- Rating:
- Reviewed on: 19 June 16
- RRP: £132.58, 199.89
- Buy from Meizu
The Meizu M3 Note is a great phone, with outstanding battery life and a nice metal unibody design, but it isn’t a patch on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3, which is faster and comes with a better camera, more up-to-date software and, importantly, a cheaper price tag. That said, it’s difficult for us to recommend to UK users (particularly novice UK users) the Meizu M3 Note over other budget Chinese smartphones we’ve tested, given that Google Play is not preinstalled and so much of it has not been adapted from Chinese.
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