How much do you need to spend for a good mobile phone?

You can spend anything from around £60 to more than £600 on a smartphone.

If you want a premium top-of-the-range phone, you’ll have to expect a dent of at least £500 in your bank account. Models in this range typically come with a large, extremely detailed and vibrant screen. Plus, they’ll have all the latest features – which can include anything from a fingerprint reader to a heart-rate monitor.

At around the £400 mark, you’ll find phones with a good screen, long battery life and a decent camera. They may not have extra swanky features – such as a fingerprint reader – and they’re more likely to have a plastic finish rather than the sleek metal casing found on pricier models.

Spend at least £100 to avoid a complete dud

Looking for a phone that can simply manage everyday tasks? You might be able to get away with spending around £200. Phones in this price range shouldn’t struggle with web browsing, running Google searches and taking phone calls – but might not be up to the task of running the latest and most demanding apps.

If you just want the cheapest option possible, we recommend you spend at least £100 to avoid ending up with a dud.

All this said, there’s no hard-and-fast link between price and quality. Indeed, we’ve found a few Best Buys that cost around £200 and less – and some models with a premium price tag offer disappointing quality.

iOS, Android or Windows: which OS is best?

The operating system (OS) is the software that powers your phone. It dictates what the phone menu looks like, what apps it can run and how easy it is to use. There are three main contenders to choose from: iOS, Android and Windows.

Apple iOS

All iPhones use iOS and, unlike Android, the experience of using the operating system is broadly similar whichever iPhone you buy. New updates to iOS are released each year, but some older iPhones may be able to run only older versions – for instance, only iPhones from and including the iPhone 5 can run the latest iOS 10.

If your iPhone isn’t compatible, you’ll miss out on some of the latest apps, features and security patches introduced by Apple.

• Pros It’s easy to use and quick to learn, even if you haven’t used a smartphone before. It provides access to the well-stocked Apple app store – where apps are vetted before being released so you can rest assured they’re safe to use.
• Cons Apple iPhones are expensive – the latest iPhone 7 (32GB) will set you back by around £600, while iPhone 7 Plus (32GB) costs more than £700. You’ll be able to find cheaper deals on older handsets, though. Apple iPhones also do not come with a micro-SD card slot, so you’ll need to choose the memory capacity carefully to avoid running out of space for your app, music and photo collection.

Source: www.which.co.uk