The choice of smartphones in a metal case is small. Why? Because manufacturers prefer to use either glass or plastic. It’s probably cheaper that way. And in case we are talking about flagship smartphones, wireless charging can be used along with glass. So, what is there in the metal market?
Meizu 16 6/64GB
One of the latest smartphones that can still be purchased in a metal case is the Meizu 16. However, there are some nuances here: the black and blue versions use metal, while the white version uses metal, which is covered with a layer of ceramic on top.
For its money, the smartphone turned out to be very good: a high-quality OLED matrix with a diagonal of 6 inches and a resolution of 2160 × 1080 pixels, a powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 chipset, 6 GB of RAM and 64 GB of main memory, a decent dual main camera, a fingerprint reader in the display.
The battery capacity is small by current standards: 3100 mAh, but there is a proprietary fast charging.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 6 inches / 2160 × 1080
- Device weight: 155g
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 710
- The amount of RAM / internal memory: 6 GB / 64 GB
- Battery capacity: 3100mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 20 MP / 12/20 MP
- Memory card slot: no
Meizu 16 6/128GB
The same smartphone, only with a large amount of internal memory – 128 GB. We did not find any other differences.
It is worth noting that there is no NFC module in both versions.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 6 inches / 2160 × 1080
- Device weight: 155g
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 710
- The amount of RAM / internal memory: 6 GB / 128 GB
- Battery capacity: 3100mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 20 MP / 12/20 MP
- Memory card slot: no
BlackBerry KEYone
BlackBerry KEYone is a rare guest on store shelves, but you can still find it. What is famous for?
This is one of those BlackBerry models that runs on the Android operating system. In addition, it has a physical keyboard right below the display – a very unusual solution. But the screen diagonal because of this idea is quite small – only 4.5 inches, and the resolution is high – 1620 × 1080 pixels.
The BlackBerry KEYone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of ROM. The battery with a capacity of 3505 mAh received support for fast charging. There is NFC.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 4.5 inches / 1620 × 1080
- Device weight: 180g
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 625
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 3 GB / 32 GB
- Battery capacity: 3505mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 8 MP / 12 MP
- Memory card slot: yes
Apple iPhone 7 32GB
This newer iPhone SE 2020 and iPhone 8 may feature a glass back cover, while the iPhone 7 model is made of metal. It is noteworthy that the smartphone is several years old, but it is still on sale.
This is one of the smallest flagships on the market with a 4.7-inch screen. It is distinguished by the fast speed of the system, IP67 water protection, stereo speakers, and a fingerprint sensor under the display. Of course, there is an NFC module.
The cameras are single, but even today they shoot very well.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 4.7 inches / 1334 × 750
- Device weight: 138g
- Processor: Apple A10 Fusion
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 2 GB / 32 GB
- Battery capacity: 1960mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 7 MP / 12 MP
- Memory card slot: no
Apple iPhone 7 128GB
The iPhone 7 128GB is no different from the iPhone 7 32GB except for the amount of internal storage.
Which option should you choose? We’d recommend opting for the 128GB iPhone 7 because most users will have plenty of storage capacity. 32 GB is not enough, also because some of them are used for firmware. However, even in this case, you can use cloud storage for data storage.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 4.7 inches / 1334 × 750
- Device weight: 138g
- Processor: Apple A10 Fusion
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 2 GB / 128 GB
- Battery capacity: 1960mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 7 MP / 12 MP
- Memory card slot: no
Xiaomi Mi Max 3 6/128GB
A smartphone from Xiaomi that can still be found on sale. It is still one of the largest smartphones on the market with a 6.9-inch screen. The battery is also impressive with a capacity of 5500 mAh, there is fast charging.
The smartphone is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 chip, the memory capacity is 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of ROM. The dual main camera is pretty good.
Note the considerable dimensions of the smartphone, weight (221 g) and the absence of an NFC sensor.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 6.9 inches / 2160 × 1080
- Device weight: 221g
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 636
- The amount of RAM / internal memory: 6 GB / 128 GB
- Battery capacity: 5500mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 8 MP / 12/5 MP
- Memory card slot: yes
Nokia 5
Nokia 5 is a smartphone with a non-separable aluminum body. It looks very cool even now.
The model is far from the newest, it runs on Android 7.1 firmware, and the chipset is Qualcomm Snapdragon 430. The memory capacity is 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of the main one. Installed 5.2-inch display.
There is an NFC sensor and a fingerprint sensor.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 5.2 inches / 1280 × 720
- Device weight: 159g
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 430
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 2 GB / 16 GB
- Battery capacity: 3000mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 8 MP / 13 MP
- Memory card slot: yes
Blackview BV9500 Plus
Blackview BV9500 Plus is an amazing smartphone. It received a shock-resistant case with protection against water, fast and wireless charging, and also a powerful 10,000 mAh battery! So don’t be intimidated by the weight of this device – over 360 g!
The diagonal of the screen is 5.7 inches with a resolution of 2160 × 1080 pixels. There is a dual camera on the back, but the scanner was located in the side power button (even before it became fashionable).
The platform is not bad, especially for the money asked for the BV9500 Plus: a MediaTek Helio P70 processor, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of ROM.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 5.7 inches / 2160 × 1080
- Device weight: 365g
- Processor: MediaTek Helio P70
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 4 GB / 64 GB
- Battery capacity: 10000mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 13 MP / 16 / 0.3 MP
- Memory card slot: yes
BQ 5535L Strike Power Plus
It should be noted right away that in the case of the BQ 5535L Strike Power Plus, not the entire body is made of metal, but its back cover.
This is a very interesting smartphone: tell me, where else for little money can you find a device with an NFC module, a powerful 5000 mAh battery and a fingerprint sensor?
The diagonal of the screen in this model reaches 5.45 inches at a resolution of 1440 × 720 pixels, and the budget Unisoc SC9863A acts as a chipset. The amount of memory is 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of ROM.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 5.45 inches / 1440 × 720
- Device weight: 180g
- Processor: Unisoc SC9863A
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 2 GB / 16 GB
- Battery capacity: 5000mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 5 MP / 13 MP
- Memory card slot: yes
BQ 6035L Strike Power MAX
BQ 6035L Strike Power MAX is an older version of the BQ 5535L Strike Power Plus, therefore, by the way, they are so similar in appearance.
BQ 6035L Strike Power MAX smartphone is more expensive and interesting in terms of technical solutions. So, the screen diagonal has been increased to 6 inches (resolution – 2160 × 1080 pixels), and the battery capacity is an impressive 6000 mAh. The rear camera is double versus single, and the capacity of the internal memory is doubled – up to 32 GB.
The back cover is made of metal.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 6 inches / 2160 × 1080
- Device weight: 197g
- Processor: Unisoc SC9863A
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 2 GB / 32 GB
- Battery capacity: 6000mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 8 MP / 13/2 MP
- Memory card slot: yes
Xiaomi Redmi 4X 16GB
Surprisingly, the “old” Xiaomi Redmi 4X can still be bought! As is the case with some other smartphones, the back cover is made of metal Redmi 4X, while the inserts above and below it are plastic.
By modern standards, a smartphone is not able to surprise: a Qualcomm Snapdragon 435 chip, 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of ROM, a matrix with a diagonal of only 5 inches, single cameras. You can’t count on a fresh version of Android.
But the battery capacity is good – 4100 mAh, however, without fast charging.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 5 inches / 1280 × 720
- Device weight: 150g
- Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 435
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 2 GB / 16 GB
- Battery capacity: 4100mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 5 MP / 13 MP
- Memory card slot: yes
BQ 5528L Strike Forward
In the case of the budget BQ 5528L Strike Forward, both the frame and the back cover are made of metal, and the inserts are made of plastic. They probably act as an antenna.
For its price, the smartphone is very good: it uses a good 5.45-inch matrix with a resolution of 1440 × 720 pixels, a simple but dual main camera, a platform based on the Unisoc SC9863A processor and 2 GB of RAM. Built-in memory capacity – 16 GB.
The battery capacity is 3000 mAh, there is a fingerprint scanner.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 5.45 inches / 1440 × 720
- Device weight: 148g
- Processor: Unisoc SC9863A
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 2 GB / 16 GB
- Battery capacity: 3000mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 5 MP / 13 / 0.3 MP
- Memory card slot: yes
Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017) 16GB
Another “old” smartphone, which can be purchased new at the time of this writing.
At the time of the release, the Samsung Galaxy J5 was quite good: a cool metal case, a decent 5.2-inch AMOLED screen with a resolution of 1280 × 720 pixels, a proprietary Exynos 7870 chipset, 2 GB of RAM and 16 GB of ROM.
Single cameras – at that time it was the norm. NFC sensor announced.
- Screen diagonal / resolution: 5.2 / 1280 × 720
- Device weight: 160g
- Processor: Exynos 7870
- The amount of RAM / built-in memory: 2 GB / 16 GB
- Battery capacity: 3000mAh
- Camera resolution front / rear: 13 MP / 13 MP
- Memory card slot: yes
