The 15K budget has been a sweet deal for those not wanting to spend extra on their latest smartphone. If you’ll actually see, it makes a lot more sense than over splurging on a phone, because every new phone becomes ‘old’, after a 6-8 month cycle. So, here’s what we think are the top smartphones you could buy between Rs.10,000 and Rs.15,000.
It’s small, but it’s fast and powerful. It’s got a 1GHz processor and is future proofed as well. The Sony Ericsson Live with Walkman is the only one in this category that is definitely going to get Ice Cream Sandwich. Sony’s hit a really sweet deal for consumers with the Live with Walkman, at this price point.
Here are the specs of the SE Live with Walkman:
3.2-inch scratch resistant capacitive touchscreen with a 320 x 480 pixel resolution 3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi, DLNA GPS with A-GPS support Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, USB 2.0 5 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash, 720p video recording Secondary VGA camera Stereo FM radio with RDS Memory expandable up to 32GB via microSD card 3.5 mm handsfree socket
The Facebook phone, HTC ChaCha is one of the few Android phones that has a very good keyboard. Plus, most will agree with us that Sense UI brings an entirely different experience to users. It may have a small landscape screen, but as we saw in our review, we had absolutely no problems browsing or manoeuvring through the fluid interface. As an added bonus, it’s got some brilliant Facebook integration.
Here are the specs of the HTC ChaCha:
2.6-inch capacitive touchscreen with Corning Gorilla Glass and a 480 x 320 pixel resolution 3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi GPS with A-GPS support Bluetooth 3.0 with A2DP, USB 2.0 5 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash, 480p video recording Secondary VGA camera Stereo FM radio with RDS Memory expandable up to 32GB via microSD card 3.5 mm handsfree socket
Another relatively tiny smartphone, but another impressive one. The HTC Explorer is a budget Android, but it’s fluid like cream. In our review, this one did even better than the LG Optimus Net, which had a bigger screen and a faster processor (as opposed to the 600MHz one on the Explorer). Sense 4.0 has been included to elevate your Android experience as well. The Explorer is just a little above Rs.10,000 and makes for a great budget Android.
Here are the specs for the HTC Explorer:
3.2-inch capacitive touchscreen with a 320 x 480 pixel resolution 3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi GPS with A-GPS support Bluetooth 3.0 with A2DP, USB 2.0 3.15 megapixel camera, 480p video recording Stereo FM radio with RDS Memory expandable up to 32GB via microSD card 3.5 mm handsfree socket
BlackBerry is still amongst the most popular phones in India. Be it business needs or BBM, it’s still selling well in the Indian market. The 9300 is an upgrade over the 8520 with some extra toppings. With smartphone prices dropping by the hour, the 9300 at this price is definitely a sweet deal.
Here are the specs of the BlackBerry Curve 9300:
2.46-inch screen with a 320 x 240 pixel resolution 3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi GPS with A-GPS support and BlackBerry Maps Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, USB 2.0 2 megapixel camera Memory expandable up to 32GB via microSD card 3.5 mm handsfree socket
Old is gold. The DEFY+ featured in our first article, the top smartphones under Rs. 20,000 and the original DEFY stands strong in this one. IP67 certification and build quality that puts other Androids to shame, the 800MHz powered DEFY is still going strong, even though it’s an oldie.
Here are the specs of the Motorola DEFY:
3.7-inch capacitive touchscreen with Corning Gorilla Glass and a 480 x 854 pixel resolution 3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi, DLNA GPS with A-GPS support Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, USB 2.0 5 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash Stereo FM radio with RDS Memory expandable up to 32GB via microSD card 3.5 mm handsfree socket
It’s undoubtedly been one of the more popular phones in the recent past, at least in the Indian market. The Galaxy Ace is powered by an 800 MHz processor and is one of the older phones of this lot. Its update, the Galaxy Ace Plus is coming soon, but till then, this one holds the fort.
Here are the specs of the Galaxy Ace:
3.5-inch scratch resistant capacitive touchscreen with a 320 x 480 pixel resolution 3G, EDGE/GPRS, Wi-Fi, DLNA GPS with A-GPS support Bluetooth 2.1 with A2DP, USB 2.0 5 megapixel autofocus camera with LED flash Stereo FM radio with RDS Memory expandable up to 32GB via microSD card 3.5 mm handsfree socket
The reviews for each of these phones can be viewed by clicking on their individual names. That’s our list of smartphones that are worth buying between 10k and 15k. We hope that this narrows down your decision making, if you’re buying a smartphone in this price range. We’re also hoping that the MWC brings us some new smartphones in this price range. Or, at the very least, it brings down the prices of the existing top tier smartphones.
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