Cheaper phone: 8 Best Cheap Smartphones (2023): iPhone, Android, 5G

8 Best Cheap Smartphones (2023): iPhone, Android, 5G

Sure, you can find more powerful handsets in the rest of the world for the same amount of cash, but we’re not as lucky in the US. The A14 5G is the best value phone I’ve seen in some time, and if your budget is tight, it’s the way to go. 

Works on all three major US carriers.

Honorable Mentions

Moto G Power 5G

Photograph: Motorola

Motorola Moto G Power 5G 2023 for $300: This is one of the newest entries in Motorola’s Moto G series, and it’s fine (6/10, WIRED Review). My main problem with Motorola phones is that there’s no NFC, which means you can’t use them to pay your ticket fare on the off chance you left your wallet at home. Motorola also only promises one OS upgrade (with three years of security updates). You can get a much better deal with the devices above. However, there is a headphone jack, a microSD card to expand the 256 GB of storage, and a charger in the box.  

OnePlus Nord N300 5G for $230: This close-to-$200 smartphone has some pretty crazy specs, but naturally, there are a lot of caveats. It’s only available at T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile, and OnePlus has already delivered the only Android OS update this phone will ever get (Android 13). At least it’ll get two years of security updates. Still, there’s 5G connectivity, and I used tap-to-pay via Google Pay to get through New York’s subway turnstiles without having to pull a transit card out of my wallet. The 5,000-mAh battery cell easily lasts two full days, and I have no qualms with the 6.5-inch 90-Hz LCD screen. Additional perks include a microSD card slot, a fingerprint sensor, and a headphone jack. Performance is smooth and speedy, and my only real gripes are that there’s no water resistance rating and the cameras are just OK.

Avoid These Phones

I tested Samsung’s Galaxy A23 5G and found its performance annoyingly slow, which shouldn’t be the case for a $300 smartphone these days. I also don’t recommend Motorola’s Moto G Play 2023, Moto G Stylus 2023, Moto G Power 2022, and Moto G Pure 2022 because the above phones trounce them in every way and don’t cost much more. 

The Nokia G400 5G (6/10, WIRED Review) is a fine phone, but its software policy just isn’t as good as our top recommended devices above and its performance can be stuttery when you juggle multiple apps. The Nokia G100 was OK until the display started locking up and wouldn’t accept touch input. I tried a second unit and ran into the same issue. I have also tested the Doogee S89 Pro, a rugged smartphone. While I didn’t run into any glaring flaws, it’s a pain in the butt to carry around and uncomfortable in the hand, too. Sure, there’s a massive 12,000-mAh battery, but it didn’t last as long as I expected. The company has a spotty record with software updates, too. 

Should You Buy Now?

TCL and Nokia are launching a few new phones soon, but we’re confident with our top picks in this guide right now.  

Consider Last Year’s Flagship Phones

If none of these phones have the features you want or they aren’t as powerful as you’d like, your best option is to look for last year’s flagship smartphones, which might be steeply discounted. Sometimes they’re easy to find, but manufacturers may stop selling them altogether. Keep in mind that you’ll lose a year of software support, but that’s often still better than the software support available on cheap phones anyway. The OnePlus 10 Pro, for example, has dipped as low as $450.

Do You Need a 5G Phone?

5G is the latest cellular network and it’s widespread enough that you should try to stick to phones that support it. It’s not completely replacing 4G LTE, so you’ll see this in your status bar as you roam around the country. You can read more about it here, but in short, 5G comes in two major types: sub-6 and millimeter wave (mmWave). The latter is usually only available in flagship phones and allows you to access superfast speeds, but you’ll rarely encounter mmWave (think select areas in major cities and certain venues, like stadiums and airports). Sub-6 isn’t much faster than 4G LTE, but it has a broader range and is more widely accessible these days. Most of the smartphones we recommend here support sub-6 5G, even ones as low as $200. 

Check Network Compatibility

If you buy an unlocked phone on this list and try to take it to one of your wireless carrier’s retail stores, they may tell you it isn’t compatible with the network. It likely is. Just use a paper clip or SIM ejection tool to pop the SIM card out of your current phone, then slide that SIM into your new phone. If it doesn’t work at first, reboot the phone or wait a couple of hours.

If you need a new SIM, try ordering one online from your carrier or see if they’ll give you a SIM when you activate a line in the store (if you’re starting coverage). Tell them you have a phone. Many times, reps will want to sell you a phone; that’s one potential reason they might hassle you into buying a different device in the store.

Google Pixel 7A Review: The New Midrange Standard

The past week has been one of the busiest I’ve ever had. I flew to Dallas, Texas, for a friend’s wedding, drove to Austin to visit an in-law, drove back for the wedding festivities, then flew back to New York, only to head out to San Francisco the next day for Google I/O 2023. The good news is that the new Google Pixel 7A has been in my pocket all the while, through every leg and layover, and it’s never felt limited in any deal-breaking way. This is a $499 phone, and it’s just more evidence that you really don’t need to spend much more than that to get a good experience these days.

Is it the perfect phone? No. There are features missing here that some folks would want. Also, battery life is just OK, and the price has been hiked up $50 from last year’s model. To remedy this, Google is continuing to sell last year’s Pixel 6A at a lower price—$349—though you can routinely find it for sale at $299. That phone is still a good buy at either of those prices, but should you feel the need to spend a bit more, the Pixel 7A has just about everything you’d need.

The New Standard

The Pixel 7A mimics the design of the Pixel 7 and Pixel 6 series that came before. It’s clean and unique, and it’s easy to spot in a sea of iPhones and Samsungs—good if you want to feel different. It comes in Charcoal (black), Sea (baby blue), Snow (white), and Coral (orangey pink), the latter of which is exclusive to the Google Store. The blue is a little too faint for me—it often looks white—but the Coral is drop-dead gorgeous. I love a flashy phone.

The phone’s frame is made of recycled aluminum, and the back is a plastic composite that by no means feels cheap. (It’s also one less spot for cracked glass in case you drop the phone!) The front is made with Gorilla Glass 3, a product which is several years old at this point and isn’t as scratch- and crack-resistant as modern formulations from Corning, the company that creates the hardened glass. Using older Gorilla Glass is one of the easy ways to bring down the price of a handset. Safe to say, even if the back can’t crack as easily, it’s worth getting a case. This Pixel is IP67-rated for water and dust resistance though, so a drop in the pool won’t destroy it.

Photograph: Julian Chokkattu

The 6.1-inch OLED screen hasn’t shown any weaknesses, even when I stared at it while walking in full sun (not to mention 94-degree heat paired with disgusting levels of humidity) in Austin. Is it as bright as the Samsung Galaxy A54 5G, the Pixel’s closest competitor? No, but I rarely had to squint to read the display. You’re treated to a 90-Hz refresh rate as well, which means everything from playing games to scrolling Instagram feels more fluid, as the screen is outputting more frames per second than traditional 60-Hz screens. It’s a nice perk.

Performance is not an issue either. The Pixel 7A packs Google’s Tensor G2 chipset with 8 gigabytes of RAM, the very same stack that powers its flagship Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro. I’ve never seen the 7A stutter in my time with the phone. This chipset means you get access to many of the same G2-specific software features that debuted on the Pixel 7 series, such as Long Exposure in the camera app and Photo Unblur, which did effectively unblur some faces in my photos of the dance floor at the wedding.

The Pixel 7A is one of the few sub-$500 phones to feature wireless charging, and it’s about damn time this started showing up in cheaper phones. It’s so much nicer to plop your phone on a stand instead of hunting for a cable. That said, the 7A does skip some other niceties you might have liked to see, like a headphone jack, a microSD card slot, and a wall charger in the box (though you do get a USB-C to USB-C cable). The phone is also limited to 128 GB of internal storage; it’d be nice if Google took a page from Motorola and started offering 256 gigs.

Google has long had a lackluster in-display fingerprint sensor, and unfortunately the Pixel 7A follows that same path. On my first day of use, I had to put my thumb on the sensor a few times for it to unlock. It got drastically better over time, but I still needed to be more conscious and deliberate about finger placement than I was on other phones such as the aforementioned A54. It’s just not a great sensor.

best budget Android phones for gaming, big battery and good design

833838+03:00″ itemprop=”datePublished”> 21.02.23

Daniil Bazdyrev

I am sure that cheap does not mean bad

Author profile

Not everything that is inexpensive is assembled poorly or from the cheapest parts.

To reduce the cost of a smartphone, manufacturers often cut back on materials, parts, and features. For example, the screen may be bad, but the shell may be slow. But you can still find good models for 15,000 R.

I looked at what was on sale in stores at the beginning of 2023, noticed the best options and tested them to rank the best low-cost smartphones.

Selection criteria

The smartphone market in Russia has changed a lot lately. According to M-Video-Eldorado, Chinese brands accounted for 60% of the market in 2022. The most popular manufacturer is Xiaomi, followed by Realme. Samsung, the leader of previous years, fell to third place. The top 5 also included Apple and Tecno, a new brand for Russians.

Current smartphones up to 15,000 R are designed for communication, music, video and browsing. They are not suitable for amateur photographers or active gamers. Heavy games work stably on models from 23,000 R with more powerful processors, and only flagships from 40,000 R are given really good pictures and videos.

In addition to the price, I recommend paying attention to several parameters.

Shield. Manufacturers of budget models often save on displays – they put matrices with a low HD resolution like 1650 × 720 pixels. The image on such panels is not very high quality, the picture is loose, individual pixels are visible. It is better to choose devices with Full HD + resolution – 2220 × 1080 pixels and higher. This is the gold standard for modern smartphones.

Processor. The comfort of use depends on the power of the processor: the stability of the phone, the speed of launching and switching applications. Most processors in budget devices are slow, but there are balanced options like the MediaTek Helio G99.

It is difficult to understand the power in terms of frequency and number of cores – it is better to look for reviews or comparisons in benchmarks. The most common test is called AnTuTu, good budget devices get 250,000-300,000 points in it. If the rating of the device is below 200,000 points, it will work slowly and may slow down even in ordinary applications like navigator or social networks.

RAM. It determines how many programs can run simultaneously without interfering with each other. For a budget smartphone, the minimum comfortable amount of RAM in 2023 is 4 GB.

Expensive for a budget phone: Poco M4 Pro 5G review

But if possible, it’s better to pay extra for 6 or 8 GB of RAM. Such a smartphone will quickly switch between a browser and a couple of social networks, and you can safely keep a navigator or music streaming in the background.

Built-in memory. The minimum comfortable volume is now 64 GB. Apps and games take up a lot of memory space, as do high-resolution photos. If you need to store a lot of photos, music and movies on your phone, it is better to choose models with 128 GB or with support for microSD memory cards.

Chamber. Quality camera modules are expensive and require a powerful processor. Therefore, budget smartphones shoot much worse than mid-range and top-end models.

Chinese brands are cunning by installing three cameras and declaring a resolution of up to 50 megapixels. The modules themselves are still budget, and the lenses and processing algorithms are primitive, so they don’t shoot very well. In addition, out of three lenses, usually only one is really useful – the main one.

Autonomy. Battery capacity is measured in milliamp-hours – mAh. The larger the value, the longer the smartphone, all other things being equal, can work. Now it is worth focusing on values ​​​​from 4500 to 5000 mAh.

Screen brightness and resolution, processor power, and the quality of software optimization also affect the operating time. Two different phones with the same batteries can differ in autonomy by one and a half to two times.

After studying the range of stores and customer reviews, I selected eight models that met the selection criteria:

1. Infinix Note 12 2023.
2. Poco M5.
3. Poco M4 Pro 5G.
4. Tecno Pova 3.
5. Samsung Galaxy A23.
6. Realme C35.
7. Tecno Camon 19.
8. Xiaomi Redmi 10C.

Of these, I chose five that fit the categories

• The best choice
• Most autonomous
• With the best camera
• Entry level
• Up to 10 00 0 Р

Our recommendations

Best choice	Most autonomous
Infinix Note 12 2023	Tecno Pova 3
Powerful processor and great screen – the most advanced phone in its class	Big screen phone with huge battery. Some can replace the tablet
In “M-video” – 14 999 R; on Yandex Market – from 14 186 R	In MTS – 16,990 R; on Yandex Market — 14 490 Р

Best up to 10,000 R
Xiaomi Redmi 10C
Long battery life, no scratches and less than 10,000 R. But slow
In “M-video” – 9999 R; on Yandex Market – from 9110 R

The best choice

Infinix Note 12 2023

Powerful processor and excellent screen – the most advanced phone in its class

M-video – 14,999 R;
on Yandex Market – from 14,186 R

The most autonomous

Tecno Pova 3

Phone with a large screen and a huge battery. Some can replace the tablet

In MTS – 16 990 R;
on Yandex Market — 14,490 R

With the best camera

Samsung Galaxy A23

A simple smartphone with a good set of cameras, optical stabilization and good performance

In M-video — 15 499 R;
on Yandex Market – from 14,389 R

Entry level

Realme C35

Similar to iPhone 12, but five times cheaper. Not suitable for active users, as its processor is weak

V “M-video” – 12 999 R;
on Yandex Market – from 9990 R

The best up to 10,000 R

Xiaomi Redmi 10C

Holds a battery charge for a long time, does not scratch and costs less than 10,000 R. But it works slowly

V “M-video” – 9999 R;
on Yandex Market – from 9110 Р

But we do not distort or embellish the reviews. The choice of specific things does not depend on whether we receive a commission.

Product reviews in Tinkoff Magazine are independent. We make a verdict based on reviews of things and devices that we carefully studied, or how these things performed during editorial tests.

For reviews, we either request goods from the manufacturer for a test, or we buy them ourselves, or we study reviews in other publications and user opinions. Our reviews are subjective, but honest and expert: opinions are written by authors who have more than one review behind them. The editorial team of Tinkoff Magazine double-checks the texts, proofreads them and conducts fact-checking.

All prices are at the time of publication of the material, but we update them periodically to keep the reviews up to date.

The best choice – Infinix Note 12 2023

Infinix is ​​a Chinese smartphone manufacturer that, together with Tecno, is part of the Transsion holding. The company produces models with good value for money. The latest Note 12 2023 is no exception – it’s the cheapest smartphone at this level of performance.

The powerful MediaTek Helio G99 processor is installed here. This is a mid-range chip: switching between applications is fast, heavy games run at medium settings. 8 GB of RAM is more than other models in the selection. 128 GB built-in storage. In all respects, the best option.

The screen is one of the best in the selection, using a bright AMOLED matrix with Full HD+ resolution. There is no increased hertz, the screen refresh rate is the standard 60 Hz, so jerks are noticeable when scrolling quickly through menus and sites.

Large diagonal – 6.7 inches. The back cover is semi-matte and hardly collects fingerprints. The camera block is designed in the form of a large round washer located in the left corner. In my opinion, it even looks too unusual.

5000 mAh battery – standard in the mid-range segment, enough for a day of heavy use. There is a fast charge of 33 W, which charges the smartphone in an hour. A powerful power supply is already included – it does not need to be purchased separately, unlike the flagships of Apple and Samsung.

Best Standalone Smartphones: 7 Successful Big Battery Models

The camera consists of two modules. During the day, the main 50MP camera produces clear and bright pictures. In difficult conditions like twilight and darkness, a smartphone can blur the frame, but almost all budget devices sin with this. The second camera is needed to blur the background when shooting portraits.

Infinix Note 12 2023 has NFC for contactless payments, a separate slot for two SIM cards and a memory card, loud stereo speakers.

How much:

• in M-video – 14 999 R;
• on Yandex Market — from 14,186 rubles.

Alternative. The Poco M5 has the same processor as the Infinix Note 12 2023 but is otherwise simpler. It uses 4 or 6 GB of RAM, and the size of the internal memory can be 64 or 128 GB.

Instead of an AMOLED panel, the Poco M5 has a simpler 6.58-inch 90Hz IPS screen. The black color on it seems grayish, viewing angles are worse, there is no support for Always on Display, and the brightness is one and a half times lower than that of Infinix. But on the other hand, the display is spared from high-frequency PWM flicker – for some susceptible users, it causes eye fatigue.

I like the material of the back panel – leather-look plastic. The smartphone does not slip in the hands, and the back side is not covered with scratches and fingerprints. You can carry your smartphone without a case and not worry about its appearance.

The 5000 mAh battery lasts for a day and a half of active use. There is no fast charging, the device will have to be connected to the outlet for two hours.

Of the minuses, I can single out the MIUI 13 shell: the interface is overloaded with unnecessary functions and ads, the system may start to slow down or give errors in unexpected places.

How much:

• in DNS – from 11 990 R;
• on Yandex Market – from 11,400 R.

The most autonomous – Tecno Pova 3

The main feature of Tecno Pova 3 is a 7000 mAh battery. With such a battery, you can count on two days of active work. This is especially impressive against the background of individual flagships, which have to be charged every day, or even twice a day.

The huge battery affected the dimensions: this is the largest phone in the selection. Tecno Pova 3 weighs 230 g, it has a huge screen – 6.9inches. It is worth taking a smartphone in hand before buying and checking whether it is convenient to use it. The display is good: a high-quality IPS-matrix accurately reproduces colors, and with an increased frequency of 90 Hz, the pages in the browser and the interface scroll smoothly. But in terms of brightness and contrast, the screen is inferior to AMOLED.

Tecno Pova 3 looks catchy. In the blue version of the smartphone, the strip on the back panel glows and flashes when there are calls or notifications. In other versions, it is simply brilliant. The main body is made of matte plastic and hardly collects fingerprints.

The equipment for a state employee is good: 6 GB of RAM, a 128 GB drive and a MediaTek Helio G88 processor. The smartphone does not slow down and does not freeze. The main camera here, although at 50 megapixels, shoots mediocre. During the day, the pictures are overexposed, with unnatural colors, and at night they are blurry, with an abundance of noise.

Tecno Pova 3 has a practical design with a 3.5mm headphone jack, a fingerprint scanner conveniently located on the side, and a microSD slot separated from the dual SIM tray. There is NFC for contactless payment via Mir Pay.

Tecno’s weak point is the proprietary shell of the operating system. It works rather slowly, the menu with applications opens with jerks. But the software can still be improved with updates. But there are many useful programs: call recording, a quick access panel, the ability to hide applications behind a password.

How much:

• in MTS – 16 990 R;
• on Yandex Market – 14 490 R.

With the best camera – Samsung Galaxy A23

Samsung budget smartphones are popular because of the well-known brand. They are often inferior to models from China in terms of performance, but the 2022 line turned out to be successful.

Samsung Galaxy A23 is an inexpensive smartphone with a good set of cameras. The 50MP main module takes decent shots with high detail and excellent HDR effect. It even has optical stabilization for better night shots. The ultra wide-angle camera is great for capturing large objects that can’t fit through a normal lens.

Galaxy A23 is available in several versions with different amounts of RAM and permanent memory. We are considering a model with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of internal memory, as it fits best in the budget up to 15,000 R. But this is not the best option: in this configuration, the phone cannot quickly switch between several applications. Galaxy A23 with 4 GB of RAM is only suitable for those who use the smartphone not very actively, it is better to take the version with 6 GB.

The 5000 mAh battery lasts for a day and a half. The device supports fast charging at 25 W, but there is no such power supply in the kit – you will have to buy it separately. There is NFC for contactless payments via Samsung Pay and Mir Pay.

Large screen – 6.6 inches, Full HD+ resolution. The PLS-type matrix is ​​bright, with rich colors, but there is no perfect black here. Thanks to the display frequency of 90 Hz, the image is also very smooth.

Samsung has developed one of the most convenient Android skins – One UI. It has a well-thought-out and clear menu with settings, many useful features, and high-quality animations.

But the case is the main drawback of the Samsung Galaxy A23. It is made of glossy plastic and is instantly covered with streaks and scratches. It’s better to buy a case right away – unlike most Chinese brands, Samsung does not put it in a box.

How much:

• in M-video – 15 499 R;
• on Yandex Market — from Rs. It can be seen that when creating the model, the developers were inspired by recent iPhones.

  Flat edges, slim body, and neat camera setup make the Realme look noticeably more expensive than it really is. The green version looks especially cool – this color is rare.

  Separate microSD tray, NFC, headphone jack and fingerprint reader in the power button. The 6.6-inch screen is large and clear enough. It uses an inexpensive IPS-matrix with a V-shaped cutout for the camera and a frequency of 60 Hz. There is a function in the settings that automatically reduces the screen resolution to save energy, but because of it, the image becomes unpleasantly hazy.

  Realme C35 loses in power to most devices in the selection. But the Unisoc T616 processor and 4 GB of RAM are enough for the interface to work without noticeable slowdowns, and applications to run reasonably quickly.

  Review of Realme 10 – “people’s” smartphone for 15,000 R

  The resolution of the main camera of Realme C35 is 50 MP. But she shoots averagely at best. In modern smartphones, the quality of images depends much more on processor power and the quality of processing algorithms, and not on optics and the number of megapixels. A budget device with an entry-level chip cannot compete with more expensive models even with the same camera modules. Daytime shots are moderately detailed, with natural tones, but noise and blur appear at night.

  The shell from Realme is clear and convenient, without built-in ads. It does not load the processor with complex animations, it is well optimized. This is almost a pure Android OS: only the icons have been changed and a few features have been added, such as the black and white screen mode.

  The phone works without difficulty for a day and a half with active use. There is fast charging, but in fact it is quite slow – at 18 watts. Realme C35 is charged from the supplied power supply in two hours.

  How much:

  • in “M-video” – 12 999 R;
  • on Yandex Market – from 9990 R.

  Best up to 10,000 R – Xiaomi Redmi 10C

  If the budget is limited to 10,000 R, you will have to reduce expectations in almost all respects. Screen and performance suffer the most in this segment.

  In my opinion, the most acceptable option within R 10,000 would be Xiaomi Redmi 10C. It has a simple 6.71″ HD screen. From a close distance, individual pixels can be seen.

  The back panel and frame are made of plastic, which does not even try to disguise itself as glass or metal. But there are no fingerprints left on the body, the ribbed cover is difficult to scratch.

  Three versions of Redmi 10C with different amounts of memory can be found on sale. With a limited budget, the average configuration will be optimal – with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of permanent memory.

  The performance of Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 processor is enough for simple games, normal applications start with a slight delay. Desktops with widgets can slow down, and heavy applications like Vkontakte or navigator can sometimes freeze.

  Xiaomi Redmi 10C is suitable for calls, chatting in instant messengers, watching YouTube and using banking applications. The smartphone can also be used as a spare: it has a long battery life and is inexpensive.

  How much:

  • in M-video – 9999 R;
  • on Yandex Market – from 9110 R.

  We post circles, beautiful cards and news about technology and pop culture in our telegram channel. Subscribe, it’s great there: @t_technocult.

  Do not root. How to disable ads in Xiaomi smartphones on MIUI 13 using the simplest methods / Smartphones

  The attitude towards advertising sewn into the shell of a smartphone is usually unambiguous for the majority: “I paid money for nothing to watch ads!” Moreover, the manufacturer does not prescribe this feature of his gadget in promotional materials. Only when you see “recommended programs” or “recommended actions” in a particular system application, you understand: that’s why the device was cheaper than analogues! And not only Xiaomi sins with this – such “recommendations” (sometimes in a more rude form) can be found, for example, in TECNO and Infinix smartphones, to some extent – in Huawei and Honor devices (but within branded application stores). However, the fact that Xiaomi is not alone does not make the life of owners of smartphones on MIUI with ad units much more pleasant.

  However, there are no more hardcore cases, like banners that appear directly in the gallery when viewing photos or on the notification panel – now Xiaomi is acting much more gently and “natively”. Various “recommendations” can be found in the proprietary service with Mi Picks applications (formerly Get Apps), system applications (where they are presented as tips on caring for a smartphone), Mi Video and Mi Music applications (recommendations from there for viewing / listening really fall into ribbon on the notification panel) and some other, not always obvious places. MIUI tries not to annoy the user – but if it does, then use the instructions from this article and get rid of ads completely. You don’t need to get root rights and perform any specific operations with a smartphone for this – everything we talk about in the material can be done by simply clicking on the device settings. We will talk about the latest version of the proprietary shell – MIUI 13.

  ⇡#

  Revoking authorization from the built-in ad service

  Revoking permission from the built-in ad serving service is the first and foremost step in getting rid of ads. In applications and individual services, Xiaomi openly points to advertising settings and allows you to turn them off manually, which we will discuss below, but there is also a general advertising service that collects information about user actions and “penetrates” the system with ads. It hides under the not immediately clear abbreviation MSA, meaning MIUI System Ads, which can be translated as “advertising in the MIUI system. ”

  You can find and disable it at the following address: ” Settings”\u003e “Password and Security”\u003e “Access to personal data” . Also, some users recommend unchecking the nearby MIUI Daemon service, but this seems to be an unnecessary action – this service collects information about the user’s actions for service purposes, and not for advertising. However, if you wish, you can disable it as well – this will not affect the user experience.

  It is also worth noting that, for some reason, it is not always possible to disable MSA on the first try – it is worth going in and checking if the checkbox is still unchecked after rebooting the gadget, for example. And maybe take it off again – that should definitely work.

  After disabling MSA, most advertising in Xiaomi smartphones should disappear. But in some applications it will remain – you need to run through them and turn off ads manually.

  If you decide to leave recommendations in MIUI, but do not want your smartphone to collect personal information, you can do so. This is done at: “ Settings” > “Password and Security” > “Privacy” > “Advertising Services”. And there you already disable personalized advertising.

  ⇡#

  Disabling ad personalization from Google

  Since we have already started disabling ads in MIUI, you can also disable ad personalization from Google in its own services.

  You can do this at: “ Settings” > “Privacy” > “Advertising”. There, uncheck the box “Disable ad personalization” . You won’t be able to turn off ads at all – there is no such option, which the system will remind you of when you turn off personalization.

  ⇡#

  Disabling ads on the MIUI desktop

  Let’s move on to specific applications and places where “recommendations” can appear in MIUI. Sometimes they pop up right on the screen of recently opened apps on Xiaomi phones. To prevent this from happening, you need to disable ads on the desktop.

  This is done at: “ Settings” > “Desktop”. Below we find item “Show offers” and uncheck the box.

  ⇡#

  Getting rid of ads in folders on the desktop MIUI

  But not all ads are removed from the desktop in this way – the system is complex and multi-stage. If we open any folder, for example “Games” or “Others”, we will see that along with already installed applications, a number of programs recommended for installation may hang in it. Or it may not hang anymore – in some cases, disabling the MSA is enough.

  If you still see it, touch the name of the open folder as if to rename it – and you will see the switch “Recommended today” . Turn it off and you no longer see recommendations.

  ⇡#

  Removing ads in the store Mi Picks

  This is most likely the main way Xioami makes money from ads embedded in the company’s smartphones – to sell the recommendations of various applications in its store. Like an octopus, these recommendations cover the entire system, and for the most part we solved this problem by disabling MSA. But you can also remove ads inside Mi Picks (aka Get Apps) itself.

  To do this, in the application, you need to find item “Tools” at the bottom, there touch gear in the upper right corner , then find item “Privacy” and already there uncheck item “Personal recommendations” 9 0028 .

  ⇡#

  Disabling ads from the application installation window in MIUI

  Some advertising can also be found even in the application installation window, when MIUI notifies that the system has checked the program and you can use it.

  We get rid of it by touching the gear in the upper right corner of and then unchecking the item “Receive recommendations” .

  ⇡#

  Disable ads in Xiaomi system applications

  Security. In general, advertising in the section on user security is a rather ironic thing.

  You can turn off “recommendations” here by touching, as usual, the gear icon in the upper right corner of and then deactivating the item “Receive recommendations” . You can also do this for the “nested” item “Cleaning” . Having selected it, we again find the gear and the same item – and deactivate it here too.

  Downloads. I would like to refer to the experience of disabling ads in the “Security” section, but in fact, in different system applications, this is implemented a little differently.

  “Recommendations” in the “Downloads” application are removed as follows: in the upper right corner look for an icon in the form of three vertical dots , then select item “Settings” and already there we find the familiar “Get recommendations” . Disable.

  Themes. In the Themes application, too, everything is original. To get rid of ads here, you need to take a different path.

  In the lower right corner of select the person icon , then look for item “Settings” and there we disable two items at once: “Show ads” and “Personal recommendations” .

  Conductor. Here disabling built-in advertising is hidden a little deeper and more cunningly.

  We find in the upper left corner of the icon in the form of three stripes and then follow the path “Settings” > “Information”. By the way, in my case, the checkbox with “Receive recommendations” was removed by default. Maybe it will be the same in your case, but still check.

  Mi Video . And finally, the two most advertised applications are built-in services for searching and watching videos or listening to music. You can simply remove them if you wish, but if you plan to use them, you can do this by disabling built-in ads. Let’s start with the video.

  In by the lower right corner we find the icon “Profile” , in the window that opened – the icon gear in the upper right corner , there we find the switches “ online recommendations” and “Personal recommendations” . The first can be turned off only for 90 days, then they will turn on again – but they can be turned off again, and so on an unlimited number of times.

  Music . And finally, the Music app.

  Find it here at upper left corner main screen icon with two sliders . On the screen that opens, select “Settings” , then – “Advanced settings” and there is already item “Show ads” .

  Also, ads could previously be found in the system browser, but I could not find it in MIUI 13 – Xiaomi probably abandoned its own web browser.