Looking to get a new mobile and these Chinese branded smart phones seem to be available at really competitive prices. Does anyone own any of these and are they any good in terms of build quality and reliability.

People buy them for various reasons. You can get something more suitable from them (e.g. dual Sim and/ginormous battery).

It is a risk but for a very tiny price you now get something with similar screen to a Moto G or 6s. The ultra low prices mean updates and even Cyagen Mod type Rom alternatives are nevermade available.

The popular brands have 'OK quality' but the ratings are often high related to the price paid. You would be amazed how many times people unkowingly rate up something with fake specifications.

I've not got one personally but I know a few people with them and they all seem to like them. The rule of thumb from what I've seen is if you need a phone just to surf the web, text, call, music or just stuff like Facebook and Whatsapp then the good ones are more than good enough.

That being said there are a few funny ones. Doing research is important. The best review website I know for them is unfortunately in German - http://www.chinahandys.net/, they sort what they consider the best ones by price range or display size. Google Translate would work with it or if you want details about anything specific I can translate for you on here.

Build Quality and Reliability wise they aren't meant to be that bad if you can choose the right one, you can get some solid design.

That's true, but conversely there is some utter garbage coming from China. I suppose with enough research it's possible to buy well, but it's difficult as some of the lesser known Chinese brands will have multiple versions of the same model with different internal specs for different markets.

It can be a minefield to get through before getting exactly what you thought you were ordering.

You can even end up with a phone with spyware installed into the firmware like the Star brand did some time ago.

I very recently got a Ulefone Paris through Gearbest.
I'm by no means a 'power user'!
The build quality is 'OK' rather than 'great' in that it feels somewhat 'lightweight' and a bit flimsy.
The dual sim support and SD card support are top notch and work flawlessly (I'm using Three and Kontakt Mobile). 4G is fine.
The screen is OK rather than stunning, as is the speaker.
I've had no hardware or software issues - except a problem with WiFi dropping which I've cured, but made so many changes I'm now not sure what the issue was (router or phone).
Battery life is not exceptional by any means - 12-15 hours on standby with light screen use.
There are some odd bundled apps that are lurking in the background, including a weird launcher, that I can't seem to uninstall - probably sending all my photos straight to Peking!
Yes, I'd get another, but only if the price was attractive enough compared to a mainstream brand.

I have recently purchased a Cubot X12 and am very happy with it. The only downside is the camera that professes to be 8mp is not "all that". Video seems ok and it is a good enough screen to watch tv and films etc. Good sound reproduction also. I paid £70 on Amazon. Came with a backing cover as well. Takes 2 sim cards if you so wish and call quality is good. Hope this helps.

I've had a Cubot GT-99 for the last Three years, its served me well as a phone and as a constant Wi-Fi hotspot at home (I don't have ADSL), despite pretty much running 24/7 throughout this time, its been fine and never let me down.

I've never once thought "Oh I wish i'd spent more on a phone because I can't do.....". I diagnose error codes on my car and regenerate its DPF from it, access a home CCTV system, and various remote controlled Wifi gadgets whilst i'm away as well as streaming etc, and it does it all, even though its now an 'old' model costing (then) less than £100.

But it all depends what YOU want at the end of the day, if you want to carry around a portable cinema or have features like Wifi Calling, then you might need to spend more on a 'name', but for everyday tasks you'll get a perfectly capable device for not a lot of money.

I'm hoping to eventually upgrade to a Cubot X15, purely for its 4G compatibility, assuming EE and Three actually roll it out here!.


Research is the key, I deal with China and HK everyday at work, and there are good businesses over there, run by honest people who go to work and want to earn a living just like in the West and ironically our products couldn't be competitive without their input. A lot of these genuine companies are still trying to break into the lucrative market in Europe and so aren't likely to jeopardise the delicate balance by flogging crap.

The people who have bad experiences buying from China are the ones who buy the first thing they see in a Chinese "Sale" and don't spend the time doing the research and reading the reviews or who really do believe that they can buy Apple or Samsung products from China for $100, and of course they'll be fake.

If you buy a Chinese "own brand" with a lot of feedback and reviews and which is popular in the Chinese market and you'll probably be fine. Contrary to popular belief the Chinese consumers don't buy their own crap, and Teenagers over there want the same gadgets and features as Teenagers over here. So if you stick to products which are popular in China, then the odds are, that you will get something reliable.

The trick is, to buy from a Vendor who has significant order history and positive feedback for the actual product you are interested in (not just general account feedback). Also spend some time on the various Android forums, where you'll find people from all over the World giving feedback and reviews on pretty much every decent Chinese phone.

I'm not saying don't do it, but look at the Vodafone Smart Ultra 6 first if you are in the £100-£150 price bracket. It's usually about £100 to buy and very cheap to unlock. You need to have very specific requirments (giant battery, dual sim, metal build) not to consider it. If the SU6 doesn't float your boat and you must gi the import route then have a look at the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 32gb.

If you can wait a month or so, the new 'Pro' variant with the Snapdragon 650 SoC looks like it's going to be a real cracker.

There's also the Redmi 3 (NB, not the Redmi Note 3) which looks set to be an absolute bargain when it launches.

I wont buy a chinese phone until 4g band 20 (800mhz) is included and it is not in the vast majority of them.

Perhaps consider a rebranded/tweaked chinese phone that has the uk 4g bands like the vodafone smart series (made by ZTE) or the wileyfox swift/storm etc

I've recently had a UMI Iron and the charger port broke after 2 months. Then i got a Doogee X5 Pro and the screen wasn't calibrated properly and the speaker sound was weak. There may be some bargains out there but don't expect the cheap phones to work as well as maybe a Samsung would.