These days, most people define budget smartphones as those priced between ¥1,000 and ¥2,000. However, in my memory, budget phones used to refer to those priced around ¥1,000 or even below that mark.
Back then, those sub-¥100 phones were the backbone of the budget smartphone market. But now, they are gradually being forgotten, becoming tears of the past. As a young person myself, I've witnessed it all unfold.
Chapter 1: Nokia, the Walnut-Cracking Phone That Lasts 6 Years
Back in the era when mobile phones were still called handheld cellular phones and gradually found their way into households everywhere, the Nokia 3310 was the first phone many people laid their eyes on.
Released and launched in 2000, the Nokia 3310 initially retailed for 59 euros. Taking into account the exchange rate at the time and inflation, the 3310 should be considered one of the earliest widely popular thousand-yuan-level phones in China.
In those days, spending 1000 CNY at once was considered a luxury, but thanks to the excellent quality of the Nokia 3310, the lifespan of this phone was quite long.
Starting from two years was the norm for feature phones in the 2000s, but Nokia phones lasted even longer, especially the 3310. Challenges like cracking walnuts were just the basic tests for it, and it could still function normally even after falling from a great height. These were widely circulated true stories at the time.
Moreover, the ability to replace the battery was a standard feature for phones back then, and the Nokia 3310 was no exception, keeping this phone active in the market for 6 years. Priced just right and with outstanding quality, the Nokia 3310 became a classic choice for most users at that time, until the era of smartphones arrived.
Chapter Two: The Era of Smartphones - The Legendary Entry of Affordable Phones Sweeping Away Shanzhai Brands
Although many phones running the Symbian OS already had features similar to smartphones before the arrival of iOS and Android, most of those phones came from dominant brands like Nokia, Motorola, and Sony Ericsson, with relatively high prices.
Therefore, for the mid-range market, it wasn't until the arrival of the Android system that mid-range phones experienced a resurgence, albeit starting with shanzhai manufacturers.
The cost of smartphones in the smartphone era naturally increased, and the complexity of system tuning was much higher than in the feature phone era. Initially, many big brands struggled to balance price and functionality. Therefore, the mid-range market with lower prices became dominated by shanzhai phones, with various shoddy products and rampant false advertising.
On July 31, 2013, Xiaomi officially released the Redmi 1 in the QQ Zone. The first generation Redmi phone featured a 4.7-inch screen, a 1.3MP front camera, an 8MP rear camera, MediaTek MT6589T processor, pre-installed MIUI V5 customized ROM based on Android 4.2, 1GB of RAM, 4GB of internal storage, and was priced at only 799 CNY.
Redmi sparked a trend of affordable phones, and subsequently, brands like Honor, Smartisan, Meizu, and K-Touch launched their own phones featuring MediaTek MT6589 processors to compete with Redmi.
The entry of a large number of mainstream brands has completely cleared out the knockoff phone market. If the Nokia 3310 represents the memories of the previous generation regarding affordable phones, then the Redmi 1 undoubtedly belongs to our generation as a classic.
The Redmi 1 is a pivotal model in the development of affordable smartphones, playing a crucial role in their promotion and popularization. Affordable phones became synonymous with value for money, greatly favored by students.
Chapter Three: When a few hundred CNY can significantly enhance the overall experience, how will people choose?
As knockoff phones exit the stage, competition among various phone manufacturers intensifies, especially in the affordable phone market.
There's a world of difference in user experience between a 1000 CNY phone and a 1200 CNY one, and similarly between a 1200 CNY phone and a 1500 CNY one. Even when we can buy phones with flagship-level configurations for over 2000 CNY, how will people choose?
Take Redmi, for example. The Redmi 13C, priced at 1049 CNY, offers slightly better performance than the Snapdragon 680 and a regular LCD screen. For an additional 200 CNY, the Redmi Note 12T Pro, priced at 1292 CNY, boasts a comprehensive upgrade in configuration, featuring former flagship-level performance, a high refresh rate screen, and a more exquisite design with better craftsmanship.
The Redmi K70, equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 2nd generation processor, a 2K OLED screen, and larger memory, is priced at only 2387 CNY.
As times change, the value of a few hundred CNY is no longer comparable to what it used to be. I believe more and more people will choose to add these few hundred CNY to get a comprehensive improvement in user experience, while also ensuring that the phone won't lag after prolonged use, effectively increasing its lifespan.
Clearly, most people are making choices that make them more comfortable and durable, while phones priced around a thousand CNY have become an option only when budgets are extremely limited.
In conclusion,
With the development of the economy and the fierce competition among major manufacturers, it's inevitable that there are fewer smartphones priced around a thousand CNY. The value contained in a few hundred CNY is far less than before, making more and more users no longer have to struggle with choices.
The new models introduced by major manufacturers and the price reductions on older phones have solidly segmented each low-price range, where even a slight increase in budget can provide a leading user experience and lifespan.
Therefore, smartphones priced at a few hundred CNY are gradually being forgotten. Although sometimes I may reminisce about the past era, this phenomenon is a law of historical development, signaling the end of the era of hundred-yuan phones.
