What is it? At $149.99, the Umidigi Bison is almost certainly the best value rugged smartphone of 2020.
What makes it special and why should I buy it? It is the first durable smartphone built by challenger mobile Chinese brand Umidigi and packs the sort of hardware components you'd encounter in devices twice the price - e.g. 128GB UFS 2.1 (not slower eMMC) and a total of five camera sensors. It's also the only model we know of that comes with customizable buttons. If you've found a cheaper equivalent, let us know via Twitter.
How much does it cost? It's available from Banggood for $149.99 (about £110/AU$198) until December 28 without any codes. That's an extra $100 off the current sale price of $249.99. Overall, you get more than 40% off its suggested retail price.
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What else should we know? The Umidigi Bison features the sort of hardware that we're accustomed to seeing in $300 rugged smartphones. It's got an eight-core Mediatek system-on-chip, 6GB of LPDDR4x RAM, 128GB onboard storage, a 6.3-inch 2340 x 1080px display, quad (48MP+16MP+5MP+5MP) camera sensors, a 24MP Sony front sensor, a massive 5Ah battery with Type-C connector, NFC, Android 10 and fast charging.
Any cons? None at this price.
Have you reviewed it? Not yet, but a review is coming soon.
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Bear in mind
- If this product ships from mainland China, it will take a month to reach either the UK or US (and potentially more). You may be levied an additional tax, either directly or through the courier.
- If you've managed to get hold of a cheaper product with equivalent specifications, in stock and brand new, let us know and we'll tip our hat to you.
