The BOLD N1 is a smartphone designed to offer flagship-level specs at a low price, and it… kind of delivers?

With a 6.4 inch, FHD+ AMOLED display, metal and glass body, dual rear cameras, in-display fingerprint sensor, support for wireless charging and wired fast charging, the BOLD N1 sure sounds like a flagship.

So why the $250 list price? You can probably thank the MediaTek Helio P70 processor for that. It’s not exactly flagship material.

BOLD is a new spin-off brand from Miami-based smartphone maker BLU, which has been selling budget and mid-range phones for a number of years.

The BOLD lineup is “dedicated exclusively to premium flagship and flagship-like devices” with “the latest technology at incredible pricing,” and the plan is to only launch one or two phones per year under the new brand, starting with the BOLD N1.

Specs include:

  • 6.4 inch, 2340 x 1080 pixel AMOLED display
  • MediaTek Helio P70 processor
  • 4GB RAM
  • 128GB storage
  • 13MP pop-up selfie camera
  • 16MP + 5MP (depth) rear cameras
  • 3,500 mAh battery
  • 18W fast charging support
  • Qi wireless charging
  • 3.5mm headphone jack
  • USB-C
  • In-display fingerprint sensor
  • Android 9 Pie
  • 3G bands: 850/900/1700/1900/2100
  • 4G bands: 4G LTE 1/2/3/4/7/8/12/13/17/28

The BOLD N1 is available from Amazon for $250, or for a limited time you can pick one up directly from the BOLDPHONE website for $200 thanks to a limited-time instant rebate.

press release

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21 replies on “BOLD N1 is a $250 smartphone with some premium features (AMOLED display, 128GB storage, wireless charging)”

  1. I’d rather they add NFC instead of wireless charging, if compromises had to be made. Not having NFC sucks.

  2. I ordered one from their site for $199 as impulse buy. Can’t find a single case or screen protector for it so I hope the included one are decent.

  3. seems pretty good, especially if they truly do the updates promised. I have the Umidigi F1 with the P60 processor and its very snappy, no complaints at all. I suspect this P70 will be totally fine.
    Just bought a used Huawei Mate 10 Pro for $220 or I would definitely have bought this at $200.

    also the Umidigi F1 can be had for $170 right now at amazon. definitely worth that.

  4. seems actually good. Just need a review for the software support and camera quality

  5. Definitely great value.

    Don’t get why they chose such a tall screen. Isn’t the point of going notch free (with pop-up cam) so that you can make the phone less tall and more compact without sacrificing screen real estate?

    1. Why?
      Because everyone is doing it. It’s no longer about what’s best for the consumer, but what’s easy and marketable.

      Another thing to note it says this is made from metal, that’s not true. It’s a Glass Unibody, in other words a “Glass Sandwich”.

      Just like all other devices: smudgy, slippery, fragile. Meaning a case is mandatory, unlike phones made from Kevlar, Aluminum, or Polycarbonate.

  6. Ok this is really an insane value, at least for America. I will reference this when apple announces a $750 828p display phone tomorrow.

    I realize Blu supposedly never gets updated to the latest android so that is something you’ll have to weigh but if you don’t care about that then this looks like a no brainer in this price point for a brand new phone.

    1. And if you watch the video they put out and i think its even mentioned on the site…They guarantee one year or basically one android version os update so android 10 and 2 years of security updates

    2. “Ok this is really an insane value, at least for America.”

      Is it? I’d rather buy an older, supported, flagship for the price to put LineageOS on it. I’m on the other side of the Pond, though.

      1. It depends on the flagship though.

        LG phones are bootloader locked.
        Samsung phones use the disappointing Exynos SoC and are prone to damage due to their curved, slippery, fragile construction.
        Google Pixel phones are 1-year behind the competition.
        And there’s practically no HTC, Sony, etc etc phones left in the market. Everything is either Mid-range, or they’re Chinese.

        Now that OnePlus has started waterproofing their devices and stepped into the flagship category, that’s probably the better alternative.

        1. Coincidentally, Samsung uses Qualcomm chips in the US because of some licensing issues, while using their Exynos chips in most countries around the world… And they are quite popular here. Most people just put a case on them. Most glass phones [providing wireless charging] are slippery, I haven’t noticed Samsung ones to be more slippery then the competition, like Huawei, another popular brand. Oh, the fake trade war between the US and China to have some show… And most OLED screens are expensive to replace. If you’ve found yourself to break your screens more often than the average folk, I suggest insurance. Otherwise, self-insure.

          OK, one think I’m worries about Samsung flagships are their batteries. Maybe you know something about this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n46s_iF_IV4

        2. “Google Pixel phones are 1-year behind the competition.”

          Speaking of previous years’ flagships, do you imply with this statement that there is no Pixel device worth buying at any price point ever?

          1. TL;DR – There’s not many options. AndroidOne devices are mostly midrange. Other flagships have Locked Bootloaders. Google Pixel phones are bad value on-release and a year later. The best option seems to be getting a proper flagship OnePlus device, not something disappointing like the OnePlus 6t or 7 (Sealed Battery, No waterproofing).

            Well, that’s just it, the Snapdragon versions cannot get Custom Roms.
            And if they could, that would fix so many issues. You can get rid of so much background tasks, and improve battery life and performance. And I’d say you would also improve security and obtain more features/customisation.

            Google Pixel phones, they really are a year behind the competition. Now, if they drop in price to meet the market conditions, it wouldn’t be so bad. Or if there’s some feature that’s exclusive to the Pixels, that could be a reason to get one.

            But overall, there is no Pixel ever worth buying. They come with higher prices than Samsung devices, offer less impressive hardware, and arrive 9 months later. A prospective Pixel users is usually better served waiting for another 3 months, and getting the next-gen of Samsung phone. Why? Because the Pixel devices hardly drop in price, and when they do, its usually to a smaller degree and at a later time.

            Sometimes there are random devices that show up and they meet expectations, and they can also be used as ex-flagships for Custom Rom purposes. The most recent one that comes to mind is the Razer Phone 2.

            I mean, if money is no object, you would get an iPhone. Or if it has to be Android, then you would get a Samsung and not care about “software updates” because you would just upgrade the device after 1 year, instead of, you know waiting for Google’s software division.

          2. It’s interesting that you say Pixels are never a good option. In your part of the world. In my part the one year old model is already nicely discounted. Or if you are adventurous you can pick up a nice refurbished piece from AliExpress. The Pixels’ main feature is said to be their cameras. They are also well supported by custom ROMs. Very well supported.

            So I’m a little confused about Samsung cameras (see the above Linus video I linked), otherwise the Pixel looks like a good second option from here. Even the Pixel 3a. I consider the plastic back a feature, not a bug.

        3. You imply this phone has better value than previous flagship?

          I have OnePlus 5T with FHD amoled, 8GB ram 128GB internal, UFS not emmc and snapdragon 835. Better value than this phone for same price.

    3. Upgrading Android requires way less development time now compare to a year ago. If they built this with treble, it shouldn’t be that hard to update.

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