Blackview has produced quite a few budget phones and the A8 model is probably the best we’ve tested so far. It costs just $50 and it is a good device for the price. Learn more in the full review.

Blackview A8 Review: VIDEO

Blackview A8 Review: UNBOXING

It was a pleasant surprise when we saw that Blackview included some nice extras like a flip-style case and a pair of earphones with this $50 phone.

Blackview A8 Review: DESIGN and DISPLAY

It is pretty cool that this cheap phone has a metal frame that goes all around the device, the buttons are tactile and the overall build quality is great.

The loudspeaker is not going to impress you much but it is actually not bad at all for a cheap phone and it easily rival some $100 devices.

The backplate can be removed and underneath it you can find a replaceable 2000mAh battery, 2 SIM card slots and the microSD card slot. Keep in mind that the phone does not support 4G network but the 3G signal reception is good and I didn’t have call quality issues.

The phone feels nice in the hand too. The only shortcomings would be non-backlit capacitive buttons and the lack of the notification LED light. Instead, you are getting a front firing LED flash for night selfies.

The phone has a 5” 720p display and it is probably the best we’ve seen on the $50 phone. It is sharp and vivid and you can’t ask more from a phone this cheap.

Blackview A8 Review: HARDWARE and PERFORMANCE

The Blackview A8 is not going to be your next powerhouse device but the specs are pretty good for the price. It sports a quad-core 1.3GHz MTK6580 chip, 1GB of RAM and 8GB of expandable storage.

This phone is definitely not for gamers but it is still possible to play games like Asphalt 8 on the lowest graphics settings.

Blackview A8 Review: BENCHMARKS

Blackview A8 Review: USER INTERFACE

The phone runs on Android 5.1 with Blackview’s skin on top of it, which removes an app tray but adds some features and customization options.

There are some themes, skins and some nice looking widgets to play with. Also, you can find some gesture controls, which work very slowly.

The UI performance is good but not perfect. You can expect some minor hiccups or skipped frames in animations. On the other hand, I didn’t have any major lags.

Blackview A8 Review: CAMERA

The image quality is not really impressive but this is what you have to expect from a $50 phone. Still, you can get some okay looking daylight images that could be used for social media. However, don’t expect great results in low-light.

Blackview A8 Review: BATTERY LIFE

The 2000mAh battery will give you just around 3 hours of screen-on time on a mixed use, which is not very impressive.

Blackview A8 Review: CONCLUSIONS

Blackview A8 is a phone that has a great build quality and even metal frame in its construction and it costs just $50.

Also, it has decent HD display, the UI has some extra features and the phone is easily manageable in one hand.

However, you should expect some minor hiccups in the UI and the battery life could be better.

Still, the phone is a great offering for $50. In fact, it is one of the best we’ve tested in this price range of phones and it can be highly recommended for those who are on a very tight budget.