Amazon is holding its annual Spring Sale and is offering deep discounts on unlocked phones and select tablets. We picked out models from Samsung, Google and Motorola, with OnePlus having a special look.
Starting with the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, both 256GB and 512GB storage capacities are available with a $150 discount. The price is still over $1,000, but the phone will be supported for seven years, so you can spend your money now and not think about buying another phone until the 2030s.
The Samsung Galaxy S24+ is also $150 off, so even the 512GB model is under $1,000. In 7 years you will be grateful for the extra storage space.
Or, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5 is priced exactly the same – is it time to opt for a foldable phone? The next-generation Z model will likely be available around the start of the Olympics, but it will be quite some time before it drops to that price.
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 is $300 off, but it’s still quite pricey. Note that unlike the 2024 S flagship, the 2023 Z series only promises 4 OS updates and 5 years of security patches (and it’s already a year old). Additionally, both use last year’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.
Alternatively, you could spend $500 on a foldable phone, albeit a Motorola razr (2023). Don’t sound too disappointed, the 6.9-inch 144Hz LTPO AMOLED display is great, but the small cover display on the outside is limiting. The Snapdragon 7 Gen 1 isn’t perfect, but it’s the only foldable phone in its price range in the US.
The Motorola razr+ (2023) has a more practical 3.6-inch display and runs the more powerful (albeit now older) Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1. However, it’s $150 cheaper than the Z Flip5.
Apart from foldable phones, the Google Pixel 8 Pro is an alternative to the Galaxy S24 model. It has a 6.7-inch LTPO display, and the resolution is not exactly QHD+. The 50MP main camera has a large 1/1.31” sensor, and there’s a 5x periscope backed by a 48MP sensor and a 48MP ultra-wide angle. The Tensor G3 isn’t perfect, but it’s much better than its predecessor.
$750 may be too much for the Pixel, which will be replaced later this year. But how about $500 for the smaller Google Pixel 8? It has a 6.2-inch display, which is smaller than most Android phones. While it lacks a telephoto camera (the ultra-wide-angle is only 12MP), it still has a competent camera overall. Both Pixel 8 models will come with seven years of support, so that $500 can go a long way.
Or you can buy the Google Pixel 7a for $125. It uses an older Tensor G2 chipset and a 90Hz 6.1-inch display, wireless charging (only 7.5W, but still), plus software support is limited to 3 OS updates and 5 years of patches. Still, this is a pure Google experience for less than $400.
But wait, the OnePlus 12R is priced at $500 for the base 8/128GB model, and Amazon is also offering a $100 gift card. That’s actually almost the same price as the Pixel 7a, but you get a 6.78-inch LTPO 120Hz display (1,265 x 2,780px) and a powerful Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. 90W wired charging is also impressive. OxygenOS will be updated 3 times, and the phone will receive 4 years of security patches. If you want, you can get double the RAM and storage (16/256GB) for $100 more.
Additionally, the Moto Edge (2023) is priced at $350. This price includes a 6.6-inch 144Hz OLED display, Dimensity 7030, 50+13MP cameras, and a 4,400mAh battery with fast 68W wired charging and regular 15W wireless charging.
One cheap 5G connectivity offering from Motorola is the Moto G Power 5G (thanks to the Dimensity 930 chipset). The phone features an IPS LCD, 6.5-inch 120Hz FHD+, a separate 50MP camera on the back, and a 5,000mAh battery that only supports 15W slow wired charging.
If “cheap” and “5G” are on your shopping list, don’t get obsessed with the Samsung Galaxy A15 5G. The 6.5-inch FHD+ display is a 120Hz OLED panel, and you get a basic 5MP ultrawide camera paired with a 50MP main camera. The Dimensity 6100+ is slower, but has faster 25W charging for its 5,000mAh battery. Both the Moto and A15 have a microSD slot and a 3.5mm headphone jack, but the Moto also has more standard storage and built-in stereo speakers.
You’d be better off spending the extra $65 to get the Samsung Galaxy A25. The chipset features a faster chipset, Exynos 1280, capable of 4K video recording using a 50MP main chip. The ultra-wide angle has also been increased to 8MP. The rest is almost identical to the A15 5G, though.
We’re going to wrap it up with a couple of tablets. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE is in the mid-range position, and based on current discounts, the base FE model is quite affordable. But that’s not to say it only has 6GB of RAM – for $70 more you get 2 extra RAMs and double the storage.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 FE+ starts with 8GB of RAM, but the base model costs $500. Both tablets feature 90Hz IPS LCDs (10.9 inches on the smaller tablet, 12.4 inches on the larger tablet), but are otherwise nearly identical. Of course, the larger tablet also has a larger battery, at 10,090mAh and 8,000mAh respectively. Note that this generation is fully IP68 dust and water resistant (the S7 FE model is not).
The Google Pixel tablet also comes with a 10.95-inch IPS LCD, but the refresh rate is only 60Hz. The old Tensor G2 was a bigger issue, but this tablet remains primarily as a smart display with the included speaker dock, so battery life is less of a concern.
Finally, the Samsung Galaxy Tab A9+ is a solid tablet for under $200. It has an 11-inch 90Hz LCD display and four speakers, as well as a 7,040mAh battery. The Snapdragon 695 isn’t all that fast, but in this price range, we weren’t expecting much more. That said, it’s well worth paying the extra $50 for the higher-spec version—you get more storage, but 8GB of RAM is a really big upgrade.
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