Best Smartphones Under Rs 20,000 (May 2018)

Mid-range smartphones are more popular among Indian consumers than budget smartphones and why shouldn’t they be? With every smartphone maker providing flagship like features in their mid-range phones, Indian consumers are tempted to buy these devices which offer a little of everything.

The rise in the sales of these smartphones has increased significantly making India one of the largest smartphone markets in the world.

If you are planning to buy an Android smartphone under Rs 20,000, here are some of the top devices for you.

Nokia 6 (2018)

The new Nokia 6 runs on Android 8.0 Oreo and is the part of Google's Android One program which means the handset will get OS updates for next two years.

Nokia 6 is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 630 octa-core processor coupled with 3GB of RAM.

The last year's Nokia 6 had Snapdragon 430 processor, Nokia claims that the new Nokia 6 is 60 percent faster than its predecessor. It has 32GB storage which is expandable up to 128GB through a hybrid dual-SIM configuration.

Nokia 6 features a 5.5-inch full HD (1920x1080) IPS display with traditional 16:9 aspect ratio. It sports a 16-megapixels rear camera with f/2.0 aperture, Phase Detection Autofocus and dual tone LED Flash. On the front is an 8-megapixel selfie camera with f/2.0 aperture. There is also a rear mounted fingerprint sensor with which users will be able to unlock the device.

Nokia 6 is backed by a non-removable 3000mAh which supports fast charging and can deliver up to 16 hours of talktime. Connectivity options includes- Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, USB Type-C, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, 3.5mm audio jack and GPS.  It measures 148.8 x 75.8 x 8.15mm.

Price- Rs 16,999

Buy At- Nokia’s website and Select Mobile Outlets 

Colours- black/copper, white/iron, and blue/gold.

Asus ZenFone Max Pro

Asus has launched their latest smartphone Asus ZenFone Max Pro (M1) in India. It is available in two RAM+Storage configurations- 3GB+32GB and 4GB+64GB which are priced at Rs 10,999 and Rs 12,999, respectively.

It will go on sale from May 3, exclusively through Flipkart.  Also, the metal body smartphone comes in two body shades- gray and black.

Asus ZenFone Max Pro runs on Android 8.0 Oreo out-of-the-box. It is powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor coupled with 3GB/4GB RAM and Adreno 509 GPU. The new device has 32GB/64GB internal storage which is expandable up to 2TB through a dedicated MicroSD card slot.

Max Pro features a 5.99-inch FHD+ (2160x1080) FullView display with 18:9 aspect ratio and 2.5D curved glass. For security, there is a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor and Face unlock feature.

It sports a dual rear camera setup with two 13-megapixel+5-megapixel sensors with which users can click pictures in bokeh mode. On the front is an 8-megapixel selfie snapper with Softlight LED.

Asus ZenFone Max Pro is backed by a 5,000mAh battery which Asus claims can give 199 hours of music playback, 25.3 hours of 1080p Video playback, and up to 42 hours of 3G talktime.

The battery also supports fast charging, it gets charged to 100 percent in 2 hours and 42 minutes. The company also touted that Max Pro’s battery gets full charged 30 minutes earlier than Redmi Note 5 Pro.

Connectivity options includes- Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, Micro-USB, Location, 3.5mm audio-jack, and 4G VoLTE. It measures 159 x 69 x 8.6mm and weighs 180 grams.

Price- Rs 10,999 (3GB) and Rs 12,999 (4GB) 

Buy At- Flipkart 

Colours- Black and gray

Redmi Note 5 Pro

Redmi Note 5 Pro runs on MIUI 9 which is based on Android 7.1.1 Nougat and powered by an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 processor coupled with 4GB/6GB RAM. It has 64GB of storage which is expandable up to 128GB through a MicroSD card in a hybrid dual-SIM configuration where second SIM slot doubles as a MicroSD card holder.

The handset features a 5.99-inch FHD+ (2160x1080) display with an 18:9 aspect ratio and Corning Gorilla Glass for protection.

It sports a dual camera at the rear which is the combination of 12-MP and 5-MP sensors with f/2.2 and f/2.0 apertures, respectively. The dual camera also have EIS (Electronic Image Stabilisation) and LED flash. The vertical placement of dual camera resembles iPhone X.

On the front is a 20-megapixel Sony IMX376 sensor with f/2.2 aperture, AI-based Beautify 4.0 and LED selfie-light. Users can click Portrait mode with both rear and front camera.

The dual-SIM handset is backed by a 4,000mAh non-removable battery with fast charging. There is also a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor with which users can unlock the device. Connectivity options are- Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.2, 4G VoLTE, Micro-USB, 3.5mm audio-jack, and GPS. It measures 158.6 x 75.45 x 8.05mm and weighs 181 grams.

Price Rs- 14,999 (4G RAM) and Rs 16,999 (6GB RAM)

Colours- gold, blue, rose gold and black

Buy At- Flipkart, Mi.com, and Mi Home

Honor 9i 

Honor 9i runs on EMUI 5.1 based on Android 7.0 Nougat. It is powered by Huawei Kirin 659 Octa-core processor coupled with 4GB RAM. It has 64GB internal storage which is expandable up to 128GB through a MicroSD card.

Honor 9i features a 5.9-inch FullView FHD (2160x1080) display with 18:9 aspect ratio. It sports a dual rear camera setup of 16-MP+2-MP with LED flash. On the front is also a dual camera setup of 13-MP+2-MP with soft flash and bokeh effects.

The dual-SIM Honor 9i is backed by a 3340mAh battery that can deliver up to 20 hours of talktime. There is a fingerprint sensor on the rear which is used for unlocking the device.

Connectivity options are- Wi-Fi- 802.11 b/g/n, Micro-USB 2.0, USB OTG support, 4G VoLTE, Bluetooth 4.1, GPS, and GLONASS. The handset measures 156.2 x 75.2 x 7.5mm and weighs 164 grams.

Price- Rs 17,999

Colours- platinum gold, midnight black and navy blue

Buy At- Flipkart

Mi Max 2

Mi Max 2 is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor coupled with 4GB of RAM. It has 64GB internal storage which is expandable up to 128GB through a MicxroSD card.

Mi Max 2 runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow with MIUI 8- company’s custom ROM on top. It features a 6.44-inch HD (1920x1080) IPS display with 2.5D glass. The handset is powered by a non-removable 5300mAh battery which can last for two days, supports Quick Charge 3.0 for fast charging.

It sports a 12-megapixels rear camera with f/2.2 aperture and dual LED Flash, on the front is an 5-megapixels selfie-camera. The storage in the device can be expanded up to 128GB through a MicroSD card.  Mi Max 2 comes in metallic body with rounded edges.

The device has a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor just like its predecessor. The dual-SIM (nano+micro) device is compatible with 4G. Unlike Mi 6 which dropped the 3.5mm audio-jack, Mi Max 2 has a 3.5mm audio-jack on the top.  

Connectivity options include - Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band Wi-Fi technology, Bluetooth v4.2, USB Type-C, A-GPS and GLONASS. The smartphone is also equipped with an infrared blaster which acts as a universal remote for TV and air-conditioners.

Price- Rs 15,999

Colour- Black

Buy At- Amazon, Mi.com and Flipkart

Moto G5s Plus

Moto G5s Plus runs on Android 7.1.1 Nougat and powered by 2.0 GHz Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 625 processor coupled with 4GB RAM. It has 64GB internal storage which is expandable up to 128GB through MicroSD card.

Moto G5s Plus features a 5.5-inch full-HD (1920x1080) display with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. It sports a dual camera setup at the rear with 13-MP+13-MP dual sensors with f/2.0 aperture and LED flash. On the front is an 8-MP selfie camera with wide-angle lens, f/2.0 aperture and LED flash. Front camera comes with Beautification mode, Pro mode, and Panorama.

The dual-SIM handset is backed by a 3000mAh battery which lasts for a day. With TurboPower charging, you can get 6 hours of battery life in just 15 minutes. It features a fingerprint sensor at the bottom of the display which can unlock the device.

Price- Rs 13,999

Colours- lunar grey and blush gold

Buy At- Amazon and Moto Hubs