Smartphones are ridiculously expensive, and U.S. wireless carriers like T-Mobile and Verizon go out of their way to make them seem affordable. I mean, why not buy a $950 Galaxy Note 8[1] if you only have to pay $0 down and $30 a month for it?
Let me list the reasons why: you’re still wasting hundreds of dollars you could use to buy or save for something else that may add value to your life. It also gives your wireless carrier a lot of control over you, since you can't leave a carrier until you pay off the balance on your phone. A phone you buy from your carrier likely won’t work on other networks either. Having a locked phone makes it harder to sell or use elsewhere should you decide to switch your LTE provider.
But mostly, why pay $800 - $1,000 when you can get a seriously great, cheap phone for half that price? The affordable smartphones below are WIRED Recommends award-winners. Our top pick is as good as almost any device you can buy, and our other picks strike a great balance between price and luxury.
Best Overall
OnePlus 5T ($499)
OnePlus
The OnePlus 5T (9/10 WIRED Recommends[2]) is one of our favorite Android phones at any price. It has the chops (and chips) to go head to head with any device, but costs $200-$500 less than its rivals. You just don’t see devices with top-of-the-line Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processors, AMOLED screens, 6GB of RAM, and 64GB of internal storage for $500. And if you do want to spend another $60, you can future proof it for another year or two, giving it 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage....