HMD Pulse Pro

Look, let's cut to the chase. The HMD Pulse Pro sits squarely in the budget arena, a place where compromises are expected, but even by those standards, this phone feels… unfinished. You're getting a decent enough screen for everyday scrolling and a battery that'll see you through the day, which are respectable wins at this $179 price point. However, the Unisoc T606 processor is the elephant in the room, hobbling performance to the point where even moderately demanding apps will struggle, and forget about serious mobile gaming. While HMD is touting software support and repairability – commendable efforts in a disposable tech world – those are features you'd ideally want in a device that performs better to begin with. It’s a phone that ticks a few boxes, sure, but the core experience feels undercooked, leaving you wondering if the trade-offs are truly worth it.

For the buyer on a razor-thin budget who absolutely prioritizes battery life and a clean software experience over raw power or gaming prowess, the Pulse Pro might just squeak by. It’s a testament to HMD’s ambition in the Australian market, as EFTM notes, but it’s a tough sell when competitors, even in this segment, offer a more well-rounded package. The plastic build, while contributing to its affordability, doesn’t exactly scream premium, and the overall feeling is that of a device that prioritizes specs on paper over a polished user experience. If your needs are strictly basic – calls, texts, social media browsing, and very light app usage – then the Pulse Pro could be a functional, if unexciting, option. But for anyone seeking a bit more zip or the ability to handle more than just the essentials, you'll likely find yourself frustrated by its limitations far sooner than you'd hope.