There’s always been a mist of confusion for the buyers that which phone to buy, when to buy and what to look at before making the final purchase. These all are the buying decisions that an interested person goes through thoroughly. Another crucial decision to make is whether to buy an old flagship smartphone or go with a current gen midrange one.
You can get the best bang for buck on newer budget phones while best features and performance is generally found on old flagship phones. But not that budget or mid range phones are slouch especially since the smartphone industry has evolved overall so much that you can end up buying an inexpensive phone and still not regret it in the long term with least differences.
Both – old flagship and latest mid range phones may have their own advantages and trade offs but the problem arises when there are budget restrictions. Sometimes, both these types of phones end up in the same or around the same price range which can often make the options more wide and thus difficult to determine which one to buy afterall. To easen up the confusion let’s compare various aspects of these by real life and practical usage.
I’ve been using a 2018 flagship phone Asus Zenfone 5z and recently grabbed the Realme Narzo 20 Pro which was launched in the month of September in 2020. Frankly speaking, in the first instance itself the old flagship i.e. Zenfone 5z aka Asus 5z felt more premium right off the bat thanks to the metal and glass build and the same can be noticed in other aspects as well, but Realme Narzo 20 Pro definitely excels in its own way as I mentioned in the hands-on review. Throughout the post, we’ll compare the midrange and flagship phones in context to Realme Narzo 20 Pro and Asus Zenfone 5z.
This will make things clear whether an old flagship phone is worth buying after 1 to 2 years of its launch.
Let’s get started by analysing various aspects of a smartphone, in this case an old flagship and a new mid range phone.
Display
A screen is one of the most important aspects of a phone, afterall it is the means of operating the phone where you watch content and interact with various apps.
Now in terms of comparing the displays of a new midrange with an old flagship phone, there has to be the technology of the display used, to be taken into account. But at the same time its about preferences too.
By display technology used, we mean the use LCD or AMOLED. You can find both AMOLED displays in majorly all flagships and even on modern day midrange phones launched in 2020-2021.
But nonetheless, display quality would be most certainly superior on flagship phones, be it old or now. That’s because the particular panel used would be of much better quality, able to produce accurate colours, may have high brightness (noticeable outdoors) and even low brightness levels when wanted.
Which to go for?
With this, you may have pretty much got the answer as to which would have better display. If you’re a entertainment enthusiast than I would suggest to go for a display which is crisp to look out, eye appealing and if its an AMOLED, that would be a cherry on top.
Context to Asus Zenfone 5z and Narzo 20 Pro in terms of Display
Narzo 20 Pro’s display is definitely larger by a few millimetres but yet doesn’t outperform Asus’ 2018 flagship phone. Text detailing and crispiness is mostly same on both but where the difference can be seen is largely on the saturation.
Performance
This is another aspect where modern day flagships be it old or new take the cake. No matter what processor or how well optimised newer midrange smartphones are, these can’t beat the raw performance of flagship phones.
This is largely due to flagship phones having way better GPU and CPU which cost a premium to manufacturers as opposed to midrange processors.
Flagship phones are able to run heavy games more smoothly and tend to have better thermal throttling, meaning can play a game for longer without heating. Though every phone heats and that’s a fact. Even the ROG Phone series.
Some of the best flagship processors on old phones you can get are Snapdragon 855, Snapdragon 855+ and Snapdragon 865. These are more then enough to play or run and app or game available on the Play Store. So if you’re getting an old flagship phone, make sure it has either of this in terms of Snapdragon processors.
On the Mediatek side of things, there aren’t many options. Also there aren’t actually Mediatek flagship phones in most countries outside of China for that matter. Dimensity 1000 or 1000+ are good ones launched recently.
On the other hand, midrange phones in terms of Snapdragon generally have 700 or 600 series which include Snapdragon 720G, Snapdragon 730G, Snapdragon 732G and Snapdragon 765G. More recently, Snapdragon 678G has also emerged on phones like iQOO Z3.
Which to go for?
If you’re a heavy multitasker a powerful processor should be a priority which Snapdragon flagships perfectly are able to provide. If not for regular social media scrolling, watching games and some amount of games, a midrange phone would get the job done easily especially modern day ones.
Context to Asus Zenfone 5z and Narzo 20 Pro in terms of Performance
Personally I would pick any if performance is considered. These days Mediatek SoCs (Helio G95 in Narzo 20 Pro) have become so good I tell you. Basic tasks like scrolling on homescreen, social media apps is a breeze, especially with 90Hz which that phone is able to handle pretty goo, even in games.
But if you want those maximum FPS in games such as Call of Duty Mobile, PUBG, Battlegrounds Mobile India which you can download here, than old flagship phones are the only choice you have. Apart from that, for a casual user, a newer midrange phone is more than enough, unless you even create and render videos on your phone.
Battery
Who doesn’t want a phone which runs longer on a single charge. Battery is the core of the phone, without which it renders whole phone useless.
Be it any phone, a battery which can last at least a full day is always more preferable. Be it by software optimisation or a larger capacity. In the case of better battery life among a old flagship and new midrange phone, the latter does a better job in most of the cases.
Why? Flagship processors are extremely power hungry due to the high demanding performance in every task. On the other hand, midrange phones first of all have a huge batteries to start with and secondly, are power efficient. Like for instance, if you look out for a phone around Rs. 15,000 literally almost all phones provide a bare minimum of 4500 to 5000mAh capacities. Whereas on flagships, a 4500mAh is usually the norm and in just some exceptional phones like Galaxy S21 Ultra and Mi 11 Ultra have 5000mAh battery.
Also considering the fact that in these days with the high refresh rate trend, 120Hz can certainly make a huge mark on your battery life throughout the day. But that’s not a concern if you’re looking for a old flagship phone as most likely they would have a 90Hz or the casual 60Hz display panel.
Oh and also midrange phones have improved so vastly that you can find phones with 65W charging speeds, more specifically Realme phones with the likes of the Realme Narzo 20 Pro itself and Realme 7 Pro. Get good battery life and charge in jiffy! That’s insane.
Which to go for?
This is very subjective and matters from person to person. Also, if you’re grabbing a used flagship phone, don’t expect the battery to be any great. Or maybe get it replaced with a brand new one.
All in all, midrange phone tend to provide better battery life as compared to flasgships
Context to Asus Zenfone 5z and Narzo 20 Pro in terms of Battery
Without any doubt, the 4500mAh on Narzo 20 Pro crushes the 3300mAh capacity of Zenfone 5z. There’s no competition here.
Camera
These days, the market is filled with numbers game. 48MP, 64MP and even 108MP can be found on phones under Rs. 20,000. But the reality, isn’t what you think. Also “quad-camera” is purely a marketing gimmick from smartphone brands to attract as much audience as possible. One camera would be the main one, ultra-wide and other two are most likely 2MP macro and depth. Which, are extremely underwhelming.
One of the most improved midrange smartphone brand would be Xiaomi with their Redmi Note series. Others are also improving. But the point is, camera is one of the most differentiating factor on any phone. This is where old flagships mostly have an edge.
Camera optimisation and software matters the most whatever the hardware may be. Brands undergo tons of investment in terms of time and money into R&D to make the camera experience is great as possible.
Which to go for?
If one is a photography enthusiast than a old flagship phone will suit your needs pretty well. Midrange phones may have 64MP, 108MP large sensors but still do not catch up with the former. Also since the camera sensor on flagship phones are also high-end, installing third party camera mods like Gcam can do wonders.
Context to Asus Zenfone 5z and Narzo 20 Pro in terms of Camera
Zenfone 5z slightly takes the lead here. Though ultra-wide is way larger on Realme Narzo 20 Pro which gives it an edge. Images clicked are more detailed, OIS helps a ton in videos, indoor images are not as soft and exposure levels are also maintained by Zenfone 5z.
In-Hand Feel
Unlike 2021 mid-flagships like Mi 11x series, Realme X7 Max, phones at that price are always made from subtle more premium materials like metal and glass. But this also totally depends which you’re going for.
In the midrange segment only a few offer glass back phones especially in 2021 where probably only Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro/Pro Max have a glass back. Others either have a glossy or matte plastic. There was time, we were just starting to get glass backs from most of the brands but with so much improvement in other aspects of a phone like camera and performance, that had to be compromised.
All in all, flagship phone old or new will most likely offer a better and premium in-hand feel. These feel a bit more sturdy to hold and give a sense of satisfaction.
Which to go for?
Totally depends which to pick. Above are more important priorities in a phone. But if you really want a premium phone which would be last year’s flagship then considering this can be a factor for you but not everyone else.
Context to Asus Zenfone 5z and Narzo 20 Pro in terms of In-Hand Feel
There’s no doubt Zenfone 5z has metal frame and glass back which is any day better than Narzo 20 Pro’s entire plastic build. Also, since the battery is a bit large its also bulky and weighs more.
Software Updates
Buying an old flagship may mean less software support. So always check the actual date of it and look for official statements by the brand regarding the longevity of the updates it will receive.
Final Conclusion
So to answer the main question, whether to go for an old flagship or a new midrange phone? As stated above with several points, if you’re okay with getting a phone which is beast in performance and camera quality but not so much in terms of battery life then a old flagship is the one to go for.
On the other hand, if a large battery only can suit your needs then a midrange phone would be the better option here.
| BASIS | NEW MIDRANGE PHONE | OLD FLAGSHIP PHONE |
| DISPLAY | ✔ | |
| PERFORMANCE | Tie | Tie |
| BATTERY | ✔ | |
| CAMERA | ✔ | |
| IN-HAND FEEL | ✔ |
The market is filled with tons of phones from brands like Xiaomi, Samsung, Motorola and especially Realme which has been launching tons of phones recently. So in that context, you have a plethora of midrange options to choose from.
