In a world of expensive flagship phones that all look the same year after year, the midrange phone has quietly been catching up. In fact, almost a month ago, I switched to one of these four phones as my everyday phone and to my surprise, I actually don’t really miss my flagship S24 Ultra. Don’t get me wrong, there are benefits, but the midrange experience is closer than you might think if you choose the right one. So in this video, I want to compare these four phones which offer much of the flagship experience at nearly half the price.
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Samsung Galaxy A56 👉 https://amzn.to/4lFoBZ1
iPhone 16e 👉 https://www.apple.com/iphone-16e/
Nothing 3a Pro 👉 https://mikeobrienmedia.com/nothing3aPro
Google Pixel 9a 👉 https://amzn.to/4cRiXPC
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Disclaimer: This video is purely based on my experiences, research, and opinions. You and only you are responsible for your actions. I made this channel to advise viewers and I truly hope to help you all out. I love making these videos and connecting with my viewers!
One or more of the products shown in this video may have been sent to me at no cost. This does not influence my opinions; I always cover both pros and cons.
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ADDITIONAL NOTES:
PRICES
Samsung Galaxy A56 - $439 on Amazon (purchased)
Pixel 9a - $499 (loaner)
iPhone 16e - $599 (loaner)
Nothing 3a Pro - $459 (gifted)
Also, the Nothing 3a $379
Now you'll notice throughout this video. There's a comment theme. There are two schools of thought on mid-range phones. You could either do everything that a flagship does, but at a slightly less good level. Or you could do fewer things but at a flagship level
DESIGNS
Nothing 3a Pro
Extra button
IP64
Glyph interface
Glass back, plastic sides - feels weird to me
Pixel 9a
Ultra slim, no major bump!
Polycarbonate back
Aluminum rails
CHUNKY bezels are hard to un-see
IP68
A56
Aluminum frame
Gorilla glass victus back
IP67
iPhone 16e
Slim no bump
Glass and aluminum
Opposite buttons is nice
Action button is useful
IP68
Wobble test
I’ll have links below if you want to see the colors of each
BIOMETRICS
Pixel optical sensor is frustrating but face unlock usually beats me to my pin so :)
Face ID on iphone
DISPLAYS
Nothing 3a Pro = 3000 nits, 6.77” 120Hz AMOLED FHD+
Galaxy A56 = 1900 nits, 120Hz, FHD+ Super AMOLED 6.7”
Pixel 9a = 6.3” actua display 60-120Hz also 1080p
iPhone 16e = 6.1” 60Hz TrueTone display
CAMERA COMPARISON
Primary - all 4
Ultrawide - only 3
Telephoto - only 3a Pro
Macro - only A56. Others can get close with other lenses though
SOFTWARE
Satellite sos on iphone
FEATURES
Nothing: Essential Space
SPEAKERS
iPhone rattles, maybe dust in there? Otherwise it sounds really good
Otherwise minimal differences
SPEED
App open test
Nothing = Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 5G - feels surprisingly snappy thanks to the aminmations
iPhone has A18 with 2 fewer cores than Pro, but still top notch
Pixel has Tensor G4, same as flagships
A56 feels the slowest with Exynos chip but is not that slow
BATTERY
Nothing = 5000mAh battery, claimed 26 hrs of youtube. 50W fast charging, NO WIRELESS
Galaxy = 5000mAh, claimed 29 hrs playback, 45W wired charging. NO WIRELESSS?!
Pixel = 5100 mAh battery, claimed 30 hrs, pretty legit. 23W charging, also qi wireless
iPhone 16e = 26 hrs claimed, 7.5W wireless, 15/20W wired
Wireless charging? Again, do it best with wired, or do both mid-level (slower)
LONGEVITY
6 OS upgrades for Galaxy, iPhone will likely get 5 years, 7 years of OS upgrades for Pixel, and 3 OS upgrades for Nothing
TIMESTAMPS:
0:00:00 Introduction (Rise of mid-range phones)
0:00:38 Prices
0:02:28 Design
0:06:40 Biometrics
0:08:59 Displays
0:10:20 Cameras
0:12:22 Software
0:16:52 Speed Test
0:17:57 Battery