We have seen a huge amount of revolutionary and amazing smartphones in 2019, but obviously not every amazing phone succeeded. 2019 was the year of foldable phones and 5G, but a lot of companies also launched awesome flagship killers and devices with an incredibly high value for money. Some of these devices are simply awesome and they deserved a lot of success, but it seems that just a small number of people realized their awesomeness and they turned out to be flops. Through this post, we tried to make some justice and we collected all the devices we consider the most underrated smartphones of 2019. If you are looking for a new device, we think you should definitely give a chance to one of the handsets in this list.
Top underrated smartphones of the year
Lenovo Z6
We think Lenovo Z6 is definitely the most underrated affordable smartphone of 2019. If you do not agree, tell us one single phone offering the power of the Snapdragon 730 chipset for less than 200 bucks. The Lenovo Z6 is also equipped with an amazing display: an OLED panel with a 120 Hz sampling rate (but 60Hz refresh rate) just like the iPhone Xs. Further, it has support for HDR10 and it even provides a high DCI P3 coverage.
Also, the Lenovo Z6 seems to be the most lightweight device packing a 4000 mAh battery: weighing just 159 grams! Last but not least, it features a triple camera with 2x optical zoom.
You can learn more about Lenovo Z6 by clicking here.
Asus Zenfone 6
Asus Zenfone 6 is the world’s first smartphone with dual flip-up rear cameras allowing the special dual-camera setup found on this device to be used both as rear cameras and front cameras. But this is not the only revolution: you can actually regulate the position of the cameras so that you can set them at any angle between 0 and 180°. For example, by rotating it by 90 degrees, you can take a photo of the ceiling without moving your smartphone. Let’s not forget that Asus Zenfone 6 also comes with a huge 5000 mAh battery making it one of the best flagships in terms of battery life. The phone even supports reverse charging so that you can use it as a power bank. Other impressive features are its notch-less display, stereo speakers, Snapdragon 855 chipset, and revamped ZenUI which is now close to stock Android. ASUS also promised it will get updated to Android 11.
You can learn more about Asus Zenfone 6 by clicking here.
Meizu 16T
This year Meizu released an amazing flagship killer but no one seems to have noticed it. We are talking about the Meizu 16T. It comes with a powerful Snapdragon 855 chipset and UFS 3.0 internal storage, as well as a big 4500 mAh battery, but its listing price starts from less than $350 (and let’s not talk about street prices)! Usually, at that price, you can only find mid-rangers with Snapdragon 7xx series processors. You even get stereo speakers and a notch-less AMOLED display with very narrow bezels. Unfortunately, it is only sold in China.
You can learn more about Meizu 16T by clicking here.
Xiaomi Mi 9T (Redmi K20)
The Xiaomi Mi 9T (also known as Redmi K20 in the Asian market) was literally overshadowed by its Pro version: Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro aka Redmi K20 Pro. That is why a lot of people ignored it. But it is very hard to find a so balanced mid-ranger at its price. First of all, it has a very nice hardware department (Snapdragon 730 and at least 6 GB of RAM) and a big 4000 mAh battery. It even packs pretty interesting cameras including a telephoto sensor. Further, it has an innovative design thanks to a notch-less display and a pop-up camera. And thanks to online street prices, it is even available for less than €250 globally.
You can learn more about Xiaomi Mi 9T by clicking here.
LG G8X ThinQ
Let’s go back to underrated flagship smartphones with the LG G8X ThinQ. It does not have any weak point and its price is also very interesting, yet it did not succeed. You can even get it with an accessory bringing an additional display, so it can be even considered an affordable alternative to foldable phones. Just like most of the LG phones, it has military certification and it is even waterproof. It offers top-notch performance thanks to the Snapdragon 855 chipset and UFS 2.1 storage. It has a big 4000 mAh battery with wireless charging and even a great rear camera with OIS. Yet there was never a lot of hype around it?
You can learn more about LG G8X ThinQ by clicking here.
Honor 20 Pro
The U.S. ban changed a lot of things for Huawei. The company did not even launch the latest flagship series from its sub-brand in the European market. Huawei sales declined after the ban and the same happened to Honor. But the Honor 20 Pro is one of the most compact flagship smartphones and the best Android camera phone under 6.3-inch. It mounts a 48 MP quad camera with OIS, 3x optical zoom and a dedicated macro lens. Despite its small dimensions, it packs a 4000 mAh battery and it even has a flagship-class hardware department with the Kirin 980 chipset. The punch-hole display makes it even more attractive.
You can learn more about Honor 20 Pro by clicking here.
Nubia Z20
The potentialities of a dual display are huge, but it seems most people do not think the same, given the small resonance of the Nubia Z20. The device is equipped with two displays: a traditional panel on the front and a smaller OLED panel on the back. Thanks to the secondary display it is easier to use the smartphone with one hand, you can save battery due to the lower resolution and you can even use the rear cameras as selfie cameras. Indeed, this device does not even pack a front camera in order to provide a truly full-screen experience. But it was incredibly nice rear cameras with a 48 MP main sensor (with OIS!), a telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom and a 16 MP ultrawide sensor. Its affordable price, the Snapdragon 855+ SoC and its big battery are contributing to making its value for money incredible, yet the public did not seem to appreciate it that much.
You can learn more about Nubia Z20 by clicking here.
