While most high-end phones come equipped with a gyroscope and/or magnetometer sensors, it’s a different story for mid-range and below devices which are stuck with basic sensing technologies like an accelerometer. And with VR (Virtual Reality) and AR (Augmented Reality) becoming the next big things in the mobile platform, is your phone compatible for you to fully enjoy these new type of media contents?
Although phones without gyro could still play AR or VR contents, only the hardware that is equipped with the said sensor could fully enjoy the experience. So below we listed the top budget Android smartphones that are future proof in terms of multimedia compatibility.
List of top budget Android phones with gyroscope and/or magnetometer
Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus / K5 Note – along with the vanilla Vibe K5 and Vibe K5 Note, the Vibe K5 Plus is a capable Android mid-ranger launched this year that is compatible with the proprietary Lenovo TheatreMax VR glass and controller. The phone also works with other glasses and headsets.
Asus Zenfone 2 Laser 5.5S – Asus was able to launch a Philippine variant Zenfone 2 Laser 5.5S that has a gyroscope and decent specs including a reliable camera setup for about P8,000 price.
Asus Zenfone 2 – this budget flagship phone introduced last year is still doing good up until today. And with its price sitting below P9,000 pesos, the Zenfone 2 is one of the most compelling choices if you’re looking to have an Android phone that’s VR and AR ready.
Lenovo Vibe K4 Note – not only this phone has gyroscope for VR, it has also a high-res audio setup like the Dolby Atmos for the better entertainment experience.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 / Note 3 Pro – both the Mediatek and Snapdragon 652 variants are supplied with gyroscope sensors, surprisingly, even on the lower Redmi models. This makes almost all Xiaomi smartphones well-suited to AR and VR media content.
Moto G4 / G4 Plus – though not popular as other brands in the Philippines, the Lenovo-owned Moto G4 series gets complete sensor treatment including gyroscope (magnetometer to be confirmed). The smaller Moto G4 variant is the cheapest yet as capable as to the Moto G4 Plus in most sections.
Asus Zenfone 3 – the beefed up spec sheets on the new Zenfone 3 standard models ensure powerful performance and wide support in the multimedia category including support for AR and VR.
OnePlus One / OnePlus 2 – if you’re still looking for a mid-range phone with top class specs, both the OnePlus One and OnePlus 2 are great options. These two also sport a gyro sensor along with the OnePlus 3.
So is your phone on the list? Let’s know if you think we’ve missed other devices that are worth mentioning.
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Who wrote this article, Donald Trump? It says “budget” phone…Budget, to a lot of people is $55 to $120…all of these phones are $180 and go up…I think “Upper-Mid Priced Phones” would have been a better title.
Have you been happy with metro PCS service? Looking to switch and have seen good and bad reviews of metro’s data coverage and customer service. Thanks!
I dropped MetroPCS, for H20 on day ONE after seeing how had tower signal was.
I dropped their service on day ONE and went with H20….Metro’s tower signal is “spotty” at best and H20 uses AT&T towers. I only bought the phone because it was at a great price and had a nice, big screen 🙂
Thanks for replying. Can I ask where you are? I don’t mean exactly, I’m in northern Indiana.
I’m in Birmingham, Alabama. I’m right on the edge of the city and get pretty good reception in my office. These people, when they write these articles, they really don’t take certain things into account. You can sign up with a company like MetroPCS for their “monthly” phones and cancel it after one month and then unlock the phones (online) and get on a service you like better. Unlocking is relatively easy if you follow the instructions and most phones unlock for about $20-30
Thanks Jeff. A great view and great review. These so called writers forget where most started from. Budget is exactly what you describe and I identify with it. I do want access to the new technology of VR and need NEED it at a low cost.
Im looking for phones under 30 bucks this is not my budget
The new Moto G4 / G4 Play release by Lenovo do not have magnetometer unfortunately, unlike the original Moto G4 Play 1562.
i HAVE A MOTOG4PLUS IT DOES NOT HAVE GYROSCOPE