Top 10 Mobiles in 2021

Top 10 Mobiles in 2021

In the world of smartphones, we’ve reached a point where it’s no longer necessary to spend absurd amounts of money to get some pretty cool features in phones. Even in the mainstream segment, one can find some good deals if you know where to look.

If you have a budget of around Rs. 20,000, then you can find a pretty diverse set of good smartphones on offer. It was just last year that the in-display fingerprint sensor became all the rage in flagship phones, and today, you can actually get that in a phone under Rs. 20,000. Not only that, but due to stiff competition and recent price cuts, you can actually get a phone with a flagship-level Qualcomm SoC from 2018 in this price range too.

Like all our curated lists, the phones we’ve picked under Rs. 20,000 have all been well-received in our reviews and have a minimum rating of 8 out of 10. All our picks have individual strengths such as triple cameras, the allure of stock Android, bezel-less displays and even the raw power or the one of the best SoCs around, so you can pick the one that suits your usage the best.

Here the best phones you can buy under Rs. 20,000 in India right now.

Infinix Note 10 Pro

The Infinix Note 10 Pro boasts of a massive 6.95-inch 90Hz display and stereo speakers, and that helps it stand out from the competition. The big display makes the phone physically larger than some of its competitors. Infinix has picked the MediaTek Helio G95 processor which is a capable SoC focussed for gaming on the device. It is only offered in 8GB RAM and 256GB storage option which makes it a capable device for gaming.

The Note 10 Pro runs XOS 7.6 on top of Android 11 and comes with a fair amount of apps preinstalled. Infinix has also added features on top one of which also allows you to play a video in the background. The Note 10 Pro sports a quad-camera setup consisting of a 64-megapixel primary camera, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide angle camera, a 2-megapixel macro camera and a 2-megapixel black and white camera. Daylight camera performance was decent but low light performance was strictly average. Infinix Note 10 Pro packs in a 5,000mAh battery that delivers decent battery life and quick charging thanks to the bundled 33W charger.

Key Specs

Display
6.95-inch (1080)
Processor
MediaTek Helio G95
Front Camera
16MP
Rear Camera
64MP + 8MP + 2MP + 2MP
RAM
8GB
Storage
256GB
Battery Capacity
5000mAh
OS
Android 11

Poco X3 Pro

The main selling point of the Poco X3 Pro is its Qualcomm Snapdragon 860 SoC, which is a slightly faster version of the erstwhile flagship Snapdragon 855. This makes the X3 Pro perform very well in benchmarks and even in real-world tasks, including high-end games. You should have more than enough power to get through all your day-to-day activities. Battery life is also quite good, but the large battery makes this phone heavy and bulky. You don’t get 5G which might make this phone seem to lag behind some of its competitors. The full-HD+ screen has a 120Hz refresh rate. Its quality is serviceable but not as good as some others at this price level. Similarly, the cameras deliver acceptable performance but photo and video quality aren’t strong points of the Poco X3 Pro. With its eye-catching design and prominent camera bump, the Poco X3 Pro will appeal to young buyers who want performance above all else.

Key Specs

Display
6.67-inch (1080×2400)
Processor
Qualcomm Snapdragon 860
Front Camera
20MP
Rear Camera
48MP + 8MP
RAM
6GB
Storage
128GB
Battery Capacity
5160mAh
OS
Android 11

Moto G60

The Moto G60 s the first Motorola smartphone with a 108-megapixel camera and is priced quite aggressively. The Moto G60 is a big and bulky phone measuring 9.8mm in thickness and has a weight of 225g. This makes single-handed use a little tough. It has a big 6.8-inch LCD display with a 120Hz refresh rate. It has a hole punch at the top that houses the 32-megapixel selfie camera.

Moto G60 is powered by the tried and tested Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G processor and delivers good performance. It has only one variant in India offering 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Storage is further expandable using the hybrid SIM slot. The Moto G60 houses a 6,000mAh battery which makes it bulky. The battery offers a day and a half worth of battery life but charging time is long as the phone only gets a 20W charger in the box.

The Moto G60 has a triple camera setup at the back but does the job of four cameras. It has a 108-megapixel primary camera, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide angle camera that also clicks macros, and a depth sensor. Photos clicked from the Moto G60 were average and not as sharp as some of the other competition in daylight. The ultra-wide angle photos are upscaled to 12-megapixels and had some distortion.

Lowlight photos were also average as the phone failed to get the colour tone right. Night mode does not return a brighter image but fixes the colour tone issue. Motorola ships the Moto G60 with Android 11 with only the Facebook app pre-installed. This is a big plus considering most of the completion has spammy bloatware preinstalled.

Key Specs

Display
6.80-inch (1080×2460)
Front Camera
32MP
Rear Camera
108MP + 8MP + 2MP
RAM
6GB
Storage
128GB
Battery Capacity
6000mAh
OS
Android 11

Realme 8 Pro

Realme 8 Pro is the successor to the Realme 7 Pro and gets a bold design. It is slimmer than its predecessor and comes in flashy colours. The main change on the Realme 8 Pro is the quad-camera setup at the back which houses a 108-megapixel primary camera. The phone is light and easy to hold.

It sports a 6.4-inch AMOLED display with a hole punch for the selfie camera in the top left corner. The display has full-HD+ resolution and an in-display fingerprint scanner. It is also powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G processor, with 6GB or 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 128GB of UFS 2.1 storage. You get a 4,500mAh battery that is capable of fast charging at 50W.

The camera performance is a hit or miss with the Realme 8 Pro. Daylight photos were average and did not have as much detail. The phone does a good job with portrait shots and the macros too were sharp but limited to 2-megapixels in resolution. Camera performance in low light was decent with better details in nighmode.

Realme 8 Pro managed to deliver good battery life and lasted for 26 hours and 14 minutes in our HD video loop test. The 50W bundled charger is quick to charge the phone up getting it to 75 percent in 30 minutes.

Key Specs

Display
6.40-inch (1080×2400)
Processor
Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G
Front Camera
16MP
Rear Camera
108MP + 8MP + 2MP + 2MP
RAM
6GB
Storage
128GB
Battery Capacity
4500mAh
OS
Android 11

Redmi Note 10 Pro Max

Xiaomi is raising the profile of its mainstream Redmi Note series with specifications that are sure to grab attention. The Redmi Note 10 Pro Max has a 108-megapixel camera but is otherwise identical to the Redmi Note 10 Pro, and the price difference between the two might not be worth it. This phone has a fantastic 6.67-inch full-HD+ 120Hz HDR10 Super AMOLED display with an embedded front camera. It’s bright, crisp, and vibrant. You get a Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G SoC and up to 8GB of RAM with 128GB of storage. There’s a 5020mAh battery and you get a 33W charger in the box. The rear 108-megapixel camera takes good shots in the daytime but don’t expect incredible detail in distant objects. The 5-megapixel telemacro camera is even more interesting and really does allow for some creative framing. Performance overall in everyday use is pretty good, and so is battery life. The phone heats up a bit when gaming. The body is slim and light, and this makes the Redmi Note 10 Pro Max easy to use and carry around.

Key Specs

Display
6.67-inch (1080×2400)
Processor
Qualcomm Snapdragon 732G
Front Camera
16MP
Rear Camera
108MP + 8MP + 5MP + 2MP
RAM
6GB
Storage
64GB
Battery Capacity
5020mAh
OS
Android 11

Realme Narzo 30 Pro 5G

The Realme Narzo 30 Pro 5G is currently the least expensive 5G phone in India with a starting price of Rs. 16,999. The all-plastic body has held up well so far, ergonomics are good, and it doesn’t feel very heavy even though it weighs about 194g. The side-mounted fingerprint sensor works very well. All that’s needed is a quick tap to unlock the phone. The display is a 6.5-inch full-HD+ LCD panel with good levels of brightness and colour saturation.

The Realme Narzo 30 Pro 5G runs on the MediaTek Dimensity 800U SoC, which has a built-in 5G modem, and is quite powerful and power efficient. Software on the Realme Narzo 30 Pro 5G is a bit of a letdown since it’s still Android 10 and not 11, which is what many others are offering. Performance of the Realme Narzo 30 Pro 5G has been pretty solid as the SoC handles multitasking or demanding tasks such as gaming, pretty easily. Battery life is equaly good.

The cameras on the Realme Narzo 30 Pro 5G are your run-of-the-mill setup. There’s a primary 48-megapixel camera, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera, and a 2-megapixel macro camera. The cameras perform decently but low-light performance is weak.

The bottom line is, if you’re considering the Realme Narzo 30 Pro 5G, I’d recommend sticking to the base variant.

Key Specs

Display
6.50-inch (1080×2400)
Processor
MediaTek Dimensity 800U
Front Camera
16MP
Rear Camera
48MP + 8MP + 2MP
RAM
8GB
Storage
128GB
Battery Capacity
5000mAh
OS
Android 10

Realme X7 5G

The Realme X7 5G comes in at an attractive price and boasts of the brand new MediaTek Dimensity 800U processor, plus 5G (dual-SIM, dual-standby) and an eye-catching design. The pattern on the back and giant brand slogan might not be to everyone’s taste, but that’s only on the ‘Nebula” version, and there’s also a sober ‘Space Silver’ option. The Realme X7 has a 6.4-inch AMOLED screen with an in-display fingerprint sensor. It’s relatively light and compact but still has a 4,310mAh battery and delivered excellent runtime during our review. You can use the bundled proprietary 65W fast charger, but this phone actually charges at up to 50W. The screen is pleasant enough and the speaker is quite good. Games and videos were both enjoyable. The cameras however are somewhat disappointing, with capturing just average detail in many situations. The Realme X7 5G is a strong contender in its price segment.

Key Specs

Display
6.40-inch (1080×2400)
Processor
MediaTek Dimensity 800U
Front Camera
16MP
Rear Camera
64MP + 8MP + 2MP
RAM
6GB
Storage
128GB
Battery Capacity
4310mAh
OS
Android 10

Infinix Zero 8i

The Infinix Zero 8i is a tall smartphone with a big 6.85-inch display with 90Hz refresh rate. It has got a dual selfie camera setup embedded in the top left corner. The Zero 8i isn’t thick, and the curved sides make it comfortable to hold. Infinix has put the fingerprint scanner on the power button which is slowly becoming the norm these days even for budget smartphones. The positioning of the fingerprint scanner is convenient but I can’t say the same about the volume buttons which are on the same side.

There is a selfie flash towards the top of the display, which is neatly hidden from sight. The Zero 8i is available in two colours, Silver Diamond, and Black Diamond. II found the Infinix Zero 8i to be a little too heavy, tipping the scales at 210g. It packs in a 4,500mAh battery and s capable of 33W fast charging but ships with an 18W charger in the box.

Infinix has picked the MediaTek Helio G90T processor. There is 8GB of RAM and 128GB of UFS 2.1 storage. You get a triple-slot tray on the Infinix Zero 8i to accommodate dual Nano-SIMs and a microSD card. The Infinix Zero 8i unlocks quickly while using the fingerprint scanner as well as the face unlock feature. The big display on the Zero 8i makes content engaging and I enjoyed streaming video on it. Stereo speakers would have enhanced the overall experience.

The Infinix Zero 8i has a quad-camera setup with a 48-megapixel primary camera, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera, a 2-megapixel depth sensor and a low-light sensor For selfies, there’s a 16-megapixel primary camera and an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera.

Daylight shots were average and managed decent detail. Shots from the ultra-wide-angle camera lacked detail and had a slightly different colour tone. Lowlight camera performance was average and it lacked detail. Night mode had a better output but fine grain was visible on zooming in.

If you are looking for a smartphone to game on, the Zero8i definitely has the performance. The camera performance isn’t the best and it could have done with a slightly bigger battery.

Key Specs

Display
6.85-inch (1080×2460)
Processor
MediaTek Helio G90T
Front Camera
16MP + 8MP
Rear Camera
48MP + 8MP + 2MP + AI lens
RAM
8GB
Storage
128GB
Battery Capacity
4500mAh
OS
Android 10

Realme 7 Pro

The Realme 7 Pro is the spiritual successor to the Realme 6 Pro, boasting of big upgrades such as an AMOLED display, stereo speakers, and 65W fast charging. The Realme 7 Pro features the same mirror-split design on its back as the Realme 7, but it’s a lot slimmer (8.7mm) and lighter (182g), even compared to the Realme 6 Pro. Sadly, this phone ditches one big feature from the Realme 6 Pro, and that’s a high screen refresh rate.

The Realme 7 Pro performed well as it features the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G SoC as the 6 Pro. Realme UI ran pretty smoothly without missing a beat. The Super AMOLED display was great for watching videos on, and this experience was enhanced by the stereo speakers. There’s a 4,500mAh battery in the Realme 7 Pro, which on average easily lasted for more than one day starting on a full charge.

The rear cameras on the Realme 7 Pro include a 64-megapixel Sony IMX682 main camera, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide angle camera, a 2-megapixel depth camera, and a 2-megapixel macro camera. Regular photos taken in daylight generally looked good. HDR was handled well, details were good, and colours looked natural. Low-light photos were decent, without much visible grain, and details were fairly good even in darker regions.

Key Specs

Display
6.40-inch (1080×2400)
Processor
Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G
Front Camera
32MP
Rear Camera
64MP + 8MP + 2MP + 2MP
RAM
8GB
Storage
128GB
Battery Capacity
4500mAh
OS
Android 10

iQoo Z3

While the iQoo Z3 does not follow in the footsteps of the gamer-centric iQoo 3, it succeeds as an affordable smartphone that not only looks good, but also offers a good processor considering its price. The iQoo Z3 uses the Qualcomm Snapdragon 768G, a mid-range SoC that surprisingly makes it to this affordable smartphone. While the performance of this new SoC is noticeable, it’s not a gigantic leap over the competition. This is where the other interesting hardware bits of the iQoo Z3 comes in. There’s a triple-camera setup that performs well in daylight but suffers in low light. The 4,400mAh battery charges to 100 percent in just 60 minutes using the included 55W charging adapter. The 120Hz LCD panel is useful for gamers thanks to its 180Hz touch sampling rate. Factor in that attractive price tag, and iQoo seems to have a solid contender.

Key Specs