I’ve raved about this bargain phone for months and this Cyber Monday deal on it is unbeatable
I’ve looked at a lot of phone deals this Black Friday and Cyber Monday but none of them are as insanely good value as this one
Phone deals are ten a penny during the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales. Whether you’re looking for a discount on the best smartphones or a record-low price on a good-value mid-ranger, there’s something for everyone during this big deals blowout.
The deal I’ve got here falls into the latter category. I thought that the Motorola Edge 50 Fusion was a bargain at launch but has been discounted twice in quick succession to bring it down to its lowest-ever price of £251. If you’re looking for the best cheap phone deal this Cyber Monday, make no mistake – this is the one for you.
Before it hit this new low of £251, the Edge 50 Fusion was discounted down to £279 – which I still thought was a fantastic deal. Back when I reviewed it during the summer, the Edge 50 Fusion retailed for £350 and even at that price, I gave it a five-star rating, our Best Buy award and called it “the best sub-£400 phone I’d tested all year”.
A big part of this acclaim is down to the display, which feels like it was lifted off a much more expensive phone. This 6.7in AMOLED panel has a sharp 2,400 x 1,080 resolution, a ridiculously smooth 144Hz refresh rate and terrific peak brightness, hitting a massive 1,204cd/m2 on adaptive brightness in my testing. It’s also wonderfully colour-accurate, with the average Delta E colour variance score of 1.01 being much closer to the target value of 1 or under than I usually see at this kind of price.
General performance is decent enough, with nippy transition between apps and smooth scrolling, thanks to that overpowered refresh rate, but it’s the battery life that truly stands out. Lasting for 27hrs 2mins in our standard looping video test, the Motorola Edge 50 Fusion is one of the best in its price range for stamina and earned a spot on our best phone battery life ranking. Better still, the 68W charging (and provided plug) juice it back up quickly, too. In my testing, it took less than 40 minutes to go from empty to 100%.
The final point I want to highlight here is the main camera. This 50MP (f/1.9) shooter is above average for a £350 phone – at this new deal price, it’s a massive cut above. As you can see above, colours are vibrant, contrast is punchy without getting obnoxious and detail capture is excellent, even in tricky shaded areas. Best of all, the camera captures gorgeous images after dark, with great retention of detail and minimal visual noise throughout.
As with every phone, there are a couple of downsides to balance all of these high points: the excellent main camera is backed up by an average ultrawide lens and video only shoots 4K at 30fps, so you’ll need to make do with 1080p if you want to record at 60fps. There’s also no microSD slot or 3.5mm port, so you can’t expand the storage or plug in wired headphones. Both of these features are less common on mid-range phones but still worth pointing out before you make your purchase.
The Motorola Edge 50 Fusion is easily one of the most exciting and enticing cheap phone deals that I’ve seen over the Black Friday and Cyber Monday deals period. If you want to see what other treasures I’ve uncovered, head over to my live blog. Otherwise, our main deals hub has you covered on the best bargains across categories including air fryers, headphones, coffee machines and more.
