Unlocked phone under $200 that has a great camera?

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O2Bfree

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DH and I are flip-phone users, but I want to get a smartphone for our one-month trip to France in May. A main reason is for a camera, as I don't want to lug around my DSLR. But we'll also get a SIM card over there so we have data/calling/texting while traveling. I'm considering the Motorola Moto G6 or G6 Play, but reviews indicate that the cameras are not so great.

Can anyone comment on the picture quality from a Moto G6 or G6 Play, or suggest another unlocked phone under $200 that has a great camera? I suppose I could pay more, and then feel obligated to become full-time smartphone user...
 
I have a Moto G6 and I have no complaints about the camera. I'm not a camera buff though. It's just a matter of convenience that I almost always have it on hand, and it's good enough for me. The reviews I remember said that it's pretty good.
 
We have Moto G7 Plays... we bought for $170 on sale at BestBuy but last time I looked they were $200. Camera is fine to me. Great smartphone for a reasonable price.
 
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My daughter and MIL both have the G6. It's a great mid-range Android handset. In decent lighting, like outdoors, they get great photos. Indoors, not so much. Somewhat dull and grainy. You'd have to spend considerably more to get better low-light photos.

I have a OnePlus 3T, which was a flagship of it's day (late 2016 release) and sold for about $450. DW has a G4, which was released about the same time. We can take identical indoor photos and mine are consistently better quality. From what I can tell, looking at DD/DMIL's photos, the G6 seems to be better than the G4 indoors, but not significantly.
 
You're not going to get a "great" camera for an under $200 unlocked phone. The camera will be functional, and fine for sharing pics on facebook or whatever, but not print/frame quality. Zoom will also be an issue. If you're used to the quality of a DSLR, you'll notice.

For places in the "trip of a lifetime" sightseeing category, I lug my DSLR. I did get a decent cross body padded bag so it doubles as a carry all for photo trips, and doesn't feel like I'm carrying something since my hands are free when it's not in use. You're going for a month so you're taking a decent amount of luggage anyway, I'd squeeze it in.
 
For that $200, I agree you can't go wrong with the G series. Just keep in mind this is not a top of the line Apple which is 5x higher in price.

I find the cameras to be adequate for most usage.

I got a G7 for DW for $199 on Black Friday. The camera doesn't really have much improvement, so to save a few bucks, stay with the G6 which now is down in price.
 
Thanks everyone for the comments on the camera. No doubt reviewers who look at lots of cameras will compare features unfavorably to more expensive models they've tried. So the G6 may still be my choice.
 
Aerides said:
You're not going to get a "great" camera for an under $200 unlocked phone. The camera will be functional, and fine for sharing pics on facebook or whatever, but not print/frame quality. Zoom will also be an issue. If you're used to the quality of a DSLR, you'll notice.

For places in the "trip of a lifetime" sightseeing category, I lug my DSLR. I did get a decent cross body padded bag so it doubles as a carry all for photo trips, and doesn't feel like I'm carrying something since my hands are free when it's not in use. You're going for a month so you're taking a decent amount of luggage anyway, I'd squeeze it in.
Click to expand...

We are hoping to travel light, ala Rick Steves. Once we get our stuff gathered though, I think I will see how the DSLR fits into the luggage picture.
 
pb4uski said:
We have Moto G7 Plays... we bought for $170 on sale at BestBuy but last time I looked they were $200. Camera is fine to me. Great smartphone for a reasonable price.
Click to expand...

Now I'm checking out the G7 too. I found a reviewer's G7 photo gallery:

https://www.cnet.com/pictures/moto-g7-these-photos-were-taken-with-a-300-phone/

The reviewer put Google's camera app on the phone. Photos 18 through 24 show pictures taken without and with the app, which added a nice touch to the picture quality.

Maybe the G7's price will drop in the next couple months, since everyone got new phones for Christmas. ;)
 
O2Bfree said:
DH and I are flip-phone users, but I want to get a smartphone for our one-month trip to France in May. A main reason is for a camera, as I don't want to lug around my DSLR.
Click to expand...

Just my opinion, but I would rather buy a small pocket sized point and shoot camera for a trip like that than use a smart phone camera. Then choose a phone as a phone, not a camera.
 
Google Pixels bought used on your local CraigsList. The cameras in them have always been highly rated AFIK.

The other advantage of the Pixels (and the Moto G7) is that you can sign up for the Google Fi phone plan. I think their total is now over 200 countries where you can call for 20 cents/minute or less and buy data at $10/gig, paying only for what you use. Buying SIMs is a pain and may cause you to be out of contact when you most need it. (https://fi.google.com/about/plans/)

(Last April we landed in Vienna and had a luggage problem. It worked out but in the mean time we were able to contact the guide who was meeting us and sort out plans. We would not have been able to do this if we needed to buy a SIM, as we were still in the baggage area.)
 
Perhaps a Nokia 7.1 would work. Not 100% sure of the Nokia price point but should be close since the 7.2 is out. My experience is that the Nokia camera is better than the Moto G5's, but newer Motos might have narrowed this gap. Google Pixel 3 is better still but much more expensive.

I generally travel with my relatively cheap smartphone and a mirrorless fixed lens camera. No DSLR lugging and great photos. Maybe just take your DSLR with its normal lens?

Enjoy your trip!
br
 
The advantage to buying relatively cheap phone is that you might find it useful. once you use it a bit overseas. The MotoG4 (or G6 or G7) is a perfectly adequate phone. If you like it you could switch to it.

I would think you could find a used one on ebay or whatever, from people who had working phones but just wanted to upgrade.
 
RunningBum said:
... I would think you could find a used one on ebay or whatever, from people who had working phones but just wanted to upgrade.
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+1 on that.

I buy almost all of our phones on CraigsList locally because I like to be able to see the merchandise before paying. There are always early adopters who have bought the next wonderful thing and will take a multi-hundred dollar loss for me.
 
O2Bfree said:
Now I'm checking out the G7 too....
Maybe the G7's price will drop in the next couple months, since everyone got new phones for Christmas. ;)
Click to expand...

I bought DW one for Xmas to replace her G3. It was on sale at Costco for C$159 (U$125)

Amazing phone for the price. I think it takes good photos but I am no camera afficianado.
 
Koogie said:
I bought DW one for Xmas to replace her G3. It was on sale at Costco for C$159 (U$125)

Amazing phone for the price. I think it takes good photos but I am no camera afficianado.
Click to expand...
That's an incredible price for a G7. Sure it wasn't a G7 play?

In any case, be aware there are differences between the G7, G7 play, G7 plus, G7 power, and that includes the cameras. (Same applies to G6, G5, etc.)

Here's a link to the differences.

https://www.cnet.com/news/moto-g7-vs-g7-play-g7-power-and-g7-plus-all-specs-compared/
 
Yes, sorry, it was the G7 play. I felt it was adequate as DW is not what you would term a "power user" :LOL:
 
Lastly, the G7 Play and the G7 Power fall a half-step below the Moto G7. Though they have the same processor as the G7, they only have one rear camera each, and the G7 Play has a smaller, lower-resolution 5.7-inch display.
Click to expand...

The smaller footprint is the principal reason that we went with the G7 Play vs the other G7 models. A few years ago, I had bought a G4 for me and found after a couple weeks that it was uncomfortable in my front left pant's pocket so I gave the G4 to DW and bought a G4 Play for me.

This time we both got the exact same phone so when DW has problems I am familiar enough with the phone to help her. Even when she had the G4 and I had the G4 Play there were slight differences that I had to sort through before helping her with issues she had.
 
FWIW - I've been monitoring the prices of the Moto G7 Power now for the past month.
The Moto G8 for the USA looks like it will be released sometime in the next couple months. I'm betting on the G7 to go on sale again sometime soon.


edit : monitoring the G7 Power pricing. Check camelcamelcamel.com for Amazon pricing history.
 
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Seems like we have a fan club for Moto G series here. :)

Back to the OP. Someone mentioned the possibility of using a pocket digital camera. I still have mine and I used that on my trips. I'm very happy with the results. But I typically don't get a SIM to handle foreign cell locations. We leave our phones at home. (Blessed quiet?)

I may change my tune next Europe trip, though. Probably bring both the 8 year old pocket camera, and the cell phone. I'll probably get a SIM too for the phone.
 
mountainsoft said:
Just my opinion, but I would rather buy a small pocket sized point and shoot camera for a trip like that than use a smart phone camera. Then choose a phone as a phone, not a camera.
Click to expand...

I do have a little 10 MP camera I could bring. So that's not entirely off the table. Gosh, I'm glad I'm retired now so I have time to ponder these things!
 
JoeWras said:
Seems like we have a fan club for Moto G series here. :)

Back to the OP. Someone mentioned the possibility of using a pocket digital camera. I still have mine and I used that on my trips. I'm very happy with the results. But I typically don't get a SIM to handle foreign cell locations. We leave our phones at home. (Blessed quiet?)

I may change my tune next Europe trip, though. Probably bring both the 8 year old pocket camera, and the cell phone. I'll probably get a SIM too for the phone.
Click to expand...

My pocket camera is an 11-year old Fujifilm Finepix that I still use sometimes, and it does fine for my level of photophilia. Yeah, if I brought a Moto G and the Fuji, then we could use the Fuji for lower-light settings where the Moto might not work as well.
 
As of 1-17-20 the G7 Power is still free when you add a line on T-Mobile. DW and I both switched to T-Mobile just before the first of the year. 2 new G7 Power phones on the 55+ plan. Phone cost = 0 up front and 0 monthly after rebates over 2 year period. If you are thinking of changing, it might work for you.
 
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