The Oukitel C50 is way extra spectacular than a $180 cellphone has a proper to be.
Jack Wallen/ZDNET
What is the deal?
Oukitel’s low-cost C50 smartphone has develop into even cheaper for Black Friday. All three colorways have dropped all the way down to $180 over on the corporate’s on-line retailer.
Additionally: The best Black Friday deals: Live updates
ZDNET’s key takeaways
- The Oukitel C50 is offered for buy now, with specs that make it effectively price its $270 price ticket.
- With greater than sufficient horsepower, this inexpensive Android cellphone performs like a tool twice its worth.
- The shortage of an App Drawer (by default) was off-putting, however that may be overcome with a configuration change or a third-party dwelling display launcher (comparable to Nova Launcher).
I have been reviewing Android phones for a very long time. One factor that has struck me currently is the standard of inexpensive phones. Once I first began reviewing Android gadgets, each time I obtained an inexpensive cellphone, I knew precisely what to anticipate: underpowered, fabricated from low-cost supplies, and specs barely able to operating the OS.
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Over the previous few years, nevertheless, sub-$300 Android telephones have progressed to the purpose the place they don’t seem to be solely viable alternate options however typically fairly good. No, they will not beat the likes of the Google Pixel or the latest Samsung Galaxy, however for anybody seeking to purchase a cell phone on a finances, these gadgets are now not the underside of the barrel.
Such is the case with the Oukitel C50. The Oukitel model has actually impressed me currently, and this cellphone isn’t any exception. Even the digital camera can barely be faulted (extra on that in a bit). Certain, there are variations that set the flagship telephones aside from the C50, however when you’ll be able to’t afford the premium worth, these variations are simply put aside.
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Earlier than I get to my expertise, let’s speak specs.
- CPU: MediaTek Dimensity 6100+
- Reminiscence: 8GB of RAM + 128GB of storage (As much as 1TB)
- Show: 6.8-inch HD+ at 90Hz
- Battery: 5,150mAh
- Working system: Android 14
- Shade: Gray, Inexperienced, Blue
- Weight: 208g
- Supported carriers embrace: Dash, T-Cell
My expertise
Once I first unboxed the C50, my response was that it wasn’t a bad-looking cellphone. It actually will not place in any high 5 lists for aesthetics, however it’s additionally not going to be routinely disregarded. Greater than something, because of the digital camera lens placement and the flat edges, the machine type of resembles an iPhone. I am positive this was by design, and I don’t blame Oukitel one bit for making that decision. The cellphone even has a transparent case to guard the perimeters and again.
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Once I accomplished the setup, the C50 actually impressed me. For a $270 Android cellphone, it performs remarkably effectively. I’ve used telephones twice the worth, and so they did not carry out as easily. Animations are clean, apps open rapidly, and switching between apps is quick.
The one efficiency problem was with picture processing. Not like the Pixel 8 Professional’s prompt seize, the C50 barely lags when snapping pictures. Initially, I feared this might end in blurry pictures, however the digital camera carried out admirably, though it lacks depth-of-field adjustment for background blur.
Our yard, as seen by the C50 digital camera.
Jack Wallen/ZDNET
So far as apps are involved, I used to be shocked at how little bloatware was on the machine. Often, with such telephones, there are a variety of pointless apps that you need to take away. The C50 included the same old Google apps, an FM radio app, a SIM toolkit, and never way more.
There may be, nevertheless, one little gripe I’ve found with lots of a majority of these telephones… the house display launcher. The C50 appears to be like prefer it has a reasonably customary Android dwelling display, however you may rapidly uncover there isn’t any App Drawer out of the field. All apps are put in on the house display, which makes for a cluttered interface. If you wish to add an App Drawer, you may have to put in a third-party dwelling display, comparable to Nova Launcher, or you’ll be able to merely change the Settings app. Open the House Settings (long-press the house display and faucet the Settings icon). Subsequent, faucet Launcher Model after which allow the App Drawer. After enabling the App Drawer, you may also configure Android to not set up new apps to the house display, and also you’re good to go.
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Battery life has been strong, too. I simply reached the top of my day on a full cost. I charged the C50 to 100% and, after mild utilization, discovered it may lengthen effectively previous the 24-hour mark. After all, your mileage might range (relying on the apps you employ and the way a lot you employ them).
Lastly, the show is vibrant, permitting me to see what’s on the display in all kinds of lighting circumstances. The one time I struggled to see effectively sufficient was when capturing pictures outside within the vibrant solar. To essentially see with sufficient readability, I needed to discover a little bit of shade, however for on a regular basis apps like Gmail and Chrome, there have been no points.
ZDNET’s shopping for recommendation
It is easy: for those who want a reasonable Android cellphone, the Oukitel C50 is tough to beat. For $270 proper now, this machine performs effectively above its worth level and appears much more premium than it has a proper to. With an honest sufficient digital camera, excellent efficiency, a strong battery, and a vibrant show, you would do far worse than this.
My solely recommendation could be to put in a third-party dwelling display launcher so as to add an App Drawer again into the combination. Apart from that, the Oukitel C50 is price each penny.
