desiibond
Keymaster
Apologies for not posting these lists every month as I have become a bit irregular w.r.t visiting forums.
‘extreme VFM’ tag means that the phone is better than anything else in that category and is better than few phones in next category. The list first:
LG Optimus Pro
Status: Widely available
Price: 9k-9.6k INR
Product page: http://www.lg.com/in...phones-C660.jsp
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Those who are looking for budget Android with qwerty keypad.
Blackberry Curve 8520
Status: Widely available
Price: 9.5k -10.5k INR
Product page: http://in.blackberry...ckberrycurve3G/
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Only those desperate for a Blackberry and with budget less than 10k
Nokia E5
Status: Widely available
Price: 9.2k-9.7k INR
Product page: http://www.nokia.co....oducts/nokia-e5
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
If you are always traveling and need a phone with great battery life and solid navigation, this is among the best you can get. Just forget about what people say about Symbian and it’s end of life. Even though it is announced, it is not going to happen any time soon. S60 on E5 is very much usable and this phone is simply the best qwerty device that you can get for budget inside 10k rupees.
LG Optimus One
Status: Available at many stores
Price: Around 9k-9.7k INR
Product page: http://www.lg.com/in...phones-P500.jsp
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy:
This, without a doubt is the best smartphone you can get inside 10k. LG has released Optimus Net to replace Optimus One. But I hardly find it better than Optimus One and give the vast amount of ROMs that O1 has, it is better to stick to O1 for now. If you are not bothered about battery life, go and get this one. If you are, then go get this one along with an extra battery. And btw, forget about LG’s past reputation. They nailed it with this one.
This brings us to an end to sub-10k market segment. Here is a short list of other worthy sub 10k smartphones:
Motorola Fire XT
Status: Available
Price: 12k – 12.5k INR
Product page: http://tinyurl.com/7ebohfk
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
If you cannot up the budget beyond 12k, this would be the droid to go for. Large display, decent multimedia features and good battery should keep your happy.
HTC Chacha
Status: Widely available
Price: 11.6k-12k INR
Product page: http://www.htc.com/i...a/overview.html
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Also known as facebook phone, this device is tailor made for facebook addicts. One touch access to facebook and to share content on facebook. If you love being on facebook or if you love chatting nonstop using qwerty and if you prefer factory UI that is beatiful, close your eyes and go for this one.
Blackberry Curve 9300
Status: Available
Price: 14.5k INR
Product page: http://in.blackberry...ckberrycurve3G/
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Nokia Lumia 710
Status: Available
Price: 14.5k – 15.5k INR
Product page: http://www.nokia.com...phone/lumia710/
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Those who are looking for a Windows Phone device and have a budget around15k, this would be the phone to pick. Though I would suggest to add another 2k-2.5k and get Samsung Omnia W, which is better than Lumia 710.
Sony Ericsson Live with Walkman
Status: Available
Price: 14.1k – 15k INR
Product page: http://www.sonyerics...man?cc=gb&lc=en
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Those who look for a phone that is really strong in multimedia. True to the name ‘live with walkman’ this phone is a superb multimedia.
Motorola Defy
Status: Difficult to find in the market
Price: Around 14k to 14.5k INR
Product page: http://bit.ly/aLySYQ
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
If you have a budget of 15k-15.5k, close your eyes and get this one. You cannot get a better smartphone for that price. Period!
Before we head to 15k+ segments, here is a tiny list of other decent smartphones inside 15k:
Nokia E6
Availability: Widely available
Price: 16.5k-17.5k INR
Product page: http://www.nokia.co....cts/nokia-e6-00
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
E6, with Symbian Anna OS is a pleasure to use. If you are looking for a business class phone with monster battery life and if you want a phone that can navigate you to through those unknown route and take care of your corporate data (emails, documents etc), go for this device. You can’t get a better device for the price.
Samsung Omnia W
Status: Widely available
Price: 17.2k-18k INR
Product page: http://tinyurl.com/d8u9hcf
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
If you are looking a for a phone that comes with a fresh looking OS and works out of the box and not interested in doing modding etc, not interested in spending time killing apps to make the UI lag-free, this one is for you. Windows Phone 7.5 is excellent right now and the Windows Phone application store is getting crowded. A minority OS right now but has potential to take the market in coming years.
Nokia N8
Status: Widely available
Price: 18k-19k
Product page: http://www.nokia.co....oducts/nokia-n8
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Blackberry Curve 9380
Status: Widely available
Price: 19.5k-20k INR
Product page: http://in.blackberry...rry-curve-9380/
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this one:
Thanks to BB OS 7.0, those who love to have a business class device and with budget under 20k can go for this phone, eyes closed. This phone, avaialble for just under 20k is the best berry under 20k.
LG Optimus Black
Status: Widely available
Price: 18k to 18.5k INR approx
Product page: http://www.lg.com/in...phones-P970.jsp
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this one:
Thanks to the IPS panel, the quality of text is amazing and sunlight visibility is very good, so are the viewing angles. If you are more into reading ebooks and webpages etc, this would be a perfect phone to get. Gaming on this phone is a pleasure, thanks to powerful GPU (and of course, superb display). Videos look crispy whether you are outdoor or indoor. If you are okay with loading a custom ROM, the phone feels much better and much more responsive.
Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro
Status: Widely available
Price: 19,000 to 19,900 INR
Product page: http://www.sonyerics...pro?cc=gb&lc=en
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Designed for professional use and for qwerty maniacs. There are many (like me) who love using a hard qwerty and this phone is tailor made for them
Other good devices inside 20k:
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play
Status: Difficult to find in the market
Price: 22k-23k INR
Product page: http://www.sonyerics...n#view=overview
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
With the heavy price cut in place, this is the best smartphone to go for for those who doesn’t mind the bulky size. With ever improving game catalogue and proper game controls, Xperia Play is without a doubt the best smartphone for gamers.
HTC Radar
Status: Available
Price: 22.5k-23.5k INR
Product page: http://www.htc.com/i...ones/htc-radar/
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Windows phone 7.5 is without a doubt the most fluid and feature rich OS out there right now. Yes, it’s restricted but use it once and you won’t go back to any other OS. Highly recommended. But, given that Nokia’s Windows Phone devices are just around the cornet, you can wait for Nokia’s offerings
Samsung Galaxy R
Status: Widely available
Price: 22k-23k INR
Product page: http://bit.ly/w45qXJ
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Anyone who can afford to pay 22k must go for this one. Truly value for money. If you want a powerful smartphone and don’t want to go beyond 25k, this would be the best you can get. The only other smartphone that can beat this one in terms of processing power/reliability/stability is Galaxy S II.
Other good devices inside 25k:
Nokia Lumia 800
Status: Widely available
Price: 28.3k -29.5k INR
Product page: http://www.nokia.com...phone/lumia800/
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
This is the best Windows Phone available in India. If you want a phone that does everything out of the box and don’t mind using Zune (which is pretty good in its current avatar), this is the best one for you. Nokia loyalists finally have a phone in India that can envy many.
Blackberry Bold 9790
Status: Widely available
Price: 25k-26k INR
Product page: http://worldwide.bla...erry-bold-9790/
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
If you wear a coat n tie, want to have that hardkey qwerty and also want to try a touchscreen, this phone is for you. BB OS 7 is excellent and the high resolution 16M color display complements it well. A perfect business class device, if you are ready to pay for higher data plan rates.
Samsung Galaxy S II
Status: Widely available
Price: 30k-31k INR
Product page: http://bit.ly/j5VDpq
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Absolute beast of a phone this is. Powerful, reliable, stable and has huge 3rd party developer support. If you have the money and are looking for most powerful smartphone available in the market, this one is for you.
Other good devices inside 30k:
Blackberry Torch 9810
Status: Widely available
Price: 31k INR
Product page: http://in.blackberry...lackberrytorch/
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
This is a complete berry. Touchscreen, hard qwerty, proper multimedia fetaures, power packed and brand new OS. If you are wearning a tie and if you are going to use touch screen more than hardkey qwerty but still want a phone that has hard qwerty, get this one else get Bold 9900. Overall, a superb phone from RIM.
iPhone 4
Status: Widely available
Price: 33,000 INR for 16GB and 40,000 for 32GB
Product page: http://www.apple.com/in/iphone/
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Blackberry Bold 9900
Status: Widely available
Price: 33,000 INR
Product page: http://us.blackberry...-bold-9900-9930
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Motorola Razr
Status: Widely available
Price: 32k-33k INR
Product page: http://www.motorola....ROLA-RAZR-IN-EN
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
Those who give priority to h/w design over UI. While SGS II has a better UI and more custom ROMs, Motorola Razr has way better build quality and has that premium look and feel to it. Moreover, it’s ruggedness helps if there is a phone throwing and phone munching kid at home.
Samsung Galaxy Note
Status: Widely available
Price: 32.5k-33.5k INR
Product page: http://www.samsung.c....html?type=find
The Good:
The Bad:
Who should buy this phone:
If you are one of those with big palm and can use a phone with a 5″+ display, get this one for it won’t disappoint you. It is everything that SGS II is and has bit more tricks up it’s sleeve. The included S Pen means that you can have lot of fun with drawing etc (hope there will be apps making full use of these Styluses).
‘extreme VFM’ tag means that the phone is better than anything else in that category and is better than few phones in next category. The list first:
- LG Optimus Pro
- Blackberry Curve 8520
- Nokia E5
- LG Optimus One <<extreme VFM>>
- Motorola Fire XT530
- HTC Chacha
- Nokia Lumia 710
- Blackberry Curve 9300
- Motorola Defy <<extreme VFM>>
- Sony Ericsson Live with Walkman
- Nokia E6
- Samsung Omnia W
- SE Xperia Pro <<extreme VFM>>
- Nokia N8
- Blackberry Curve 9380
- LG Optimus Black
- Samsung Galaxy R <<extreme VFM>>
- SE Xperia Play
- HTC Radar
- Nokia Lumia 800
- Samsung Galaxy S II
- Blackberry Bold 9790
- Blackberry Torch 9810
- iPhone 4
- Blackberry Bold 9900
- Motorola Razr
- Samsung Galaxy note
LG Optimus Pro
Status: Widely available
Price: 9k-9.6k INR
Product page: http://www.lg.com/in...phones-C660.jsp
The Good:
- Price
- Good qwerty keypad and capacitive touch display (2.8″, 240 x 320, 256k colors)
- Digital Compass
- 800MHz Qualcomm processor
- Wi-Fi hot-spot
The Bad:
- No video calling
- Low amount of RAM (256MB) and only 150MB on-board storage.
Who should buy this phone:
Those who are looking for budget Android with qwerty keypad.
Blackberry Curve 8520
Status: Widely available
Price: 9.5k -10.5k INR
Product page: http://in.blackberry...ckberrycurve3G/
The Good:
- Blackberry services that are among the best for privacy and data security
- Good qwerty keypad
The Bad:
- average display quality
- very poor multimedia
- weak processor
- no 3G and no 802.11n and no GPS
- poor battery life
Who should buy this phone:
Only those desperate for a Blackberry and with budget less than 10k
Nokia E5
Status: Widely available
Price: 9.2k-9.7k INR
Product page: http://www.nokia.co....oducts/nokia-e5
The Good:
- One of the best business class smartphones
- Superb qwerty
- Mighty battery life
- 3G, Wi-Fi, DLNA, GPS
- Document Editor
- Nokia maps.
The Bad:
- 256MB or RAM not that good for multitasking or heavy apps
- OS getting older and older every week.
- No video calling
- average camera and poor video recording quality
Who should buy this phone:
If you are always traveling and need a phone with great battery life and solid navigation, this is among the best you can get. Just forget about what people say about Symbian and it’s end of life. Even though it is announced, it is not going to happen any time soon. S60 on E5 is very much usable and this phone is simply the best qwerty device that you can get for budget inside 10k rupees.
LG Optimus One
Status: Available at many stores
Price: Around 9k-9.7k INR
Product page: http://www.lg.com/in...phones-P500.jsp
The Good:
- Android
- Good display
- Great GPU and decent CPU
- 3G, Wi-FI, GPS
- DivX/Xvid integration
- Document editor
- Almost stock android
- Loads of custom ROMs
The Bad:
- Battery life
- Average build quality
- Below average camera, no flash
Who should buy:
This, without a doubt is the best smartphone you can get inside 10k. LG has released Optimus Net to replace Optimus One. But I hardly find it better than Optimus One and give the vast amount of ROMs that O1 has, it is better to stick to O1 for now. If you are not bothered about battery life, go and get this one. If you are, then go get this one along with an extra battery. And btw, forget about LG’s past reputation. They nailed it with this one.
This brings us to an end to sub-10k market segment. Here is a short list of other worthy sub 10k smartphones:
- LG Optimus Net (successor to Optimus One)
- Spice Mi-310 (http://www.spiceglob...del.aspx?id=187)
- Nokia 500(http://www.nokia.com...ducts/phone/500)
- Dell XCD 35 (http://www.dell.com/...e-xcd35/pd.aspx)
Motorola Fire XT
Status: Available
Price: 12k – 12.5k INR
Product page: http://tinyurl.com/7ebohfk
The Good:
- Price
- 3.5″ 320 x 480 resolution display
- 800MHz Processor, 512MB RAM, Adreno 200 GPU
- 5mp camera, front facing video camera
- Android 2.3.4 (Gingerbread)
The Bad:
- Nothing in particular.
Who should buy this phone:
If you cannot up the budget beyond 12k, this would be the droid to go for. Large display, decent multimedia features and good battery should keep your happy.
HTC Chacha
Status: Widely available
Price: 11.6k-12k INR
Product page: http://www.htc.com/i...a/overview.html
The Good:
- Price
- Superb build quality
- Sense UI over Android Gingerbread
- Superb four row qwerty with dedicated facebook button and deep facebook integration
- 2.6†touch display
- front facing camera
The Bad:
- Poor multimedia performance (audio video playback, camera)
- Average battery life
Who should buy this phone:
Also known as facebook phone, this device is tailor made for facebook addicts. One touch access to facebook and to share content on facebook. If you love being on facebook or if you love chatting nonstop using qwerty and if you prefer factory UI that is beatiful, close your eyes and go for this one.
Blackberry Curve 9300
Status: Available
Price: 14.5k INR
Product page: http://in.blackberry...ckberrycurve3G/
The Good:
- BBM
- Excellent qwerty keypad with touch sensitive touch pad
- Upgradable to BB 6.0
The Bad:
- Low battery
- No video calling
- Very poor multimedia, near useless camera
Who should buy this phone:
- Blackberry boys
- Those for whom data security is of atmost important and want the best in class business features.
Nokia Lumia 710
Status: Available
Price: 14.5k – 15.5k INR
Product page: http://www.nokia.com...phone/lumia710/
The Good:
- 3.7″ 480 x 800 resolution Nokia Clear Black Display
- Windows Phone 7.5
- Qualcomm MSM8255 1.4GHz processor, 512MB RAM, 8GB internal memory
- 5mp camera with 720p video recording
- Active noise cancellation
- Price, Cheapest Windows Phone 7.5
- Offline navigation
The Bad:
- No memory expansion available
- Only 1300 mAh battery
- Poor audio quality
- No Video calling
Who should buy this phone:
Those who are looking for a Windows Phone device and have a budget around15k, this would be the phone to pick. Though I would suggest to add another 2k-2.5k and get Samsung Omnia W, which is better than Lumia 710.
Sony Ericsson Live with Walkman
Status: Available
Price: 14.1k – 15k INR
Product page: http://www.sonyerics...man?cc=gb&lc=en
The Good:
- 3.2″ 320 x 480 resolution display
- Qualcomm MSM8255 1GHz processor, 512MB RAM
- Android 2.3 Gingerbread, ICS update is work in progress
- Superb audio quality and music player
- Superb camera for a 15k phone, 720p video recording
- Front facing camera for video calling
- USB On-The-Go.
The Bad:
- Small battery (1200mAh)
- Only 320MB onboard storage
Who should buy this phone:
Those who look for a phone that is really strong in multimedia. True to the name ‘live with walkman’ this phone is a superb multimedia.
Motorola Defy
Status: Difficult to find in the market
Price: Around 14k to 14.5k INR
Product page: http://bit.ly/aLySYQ
The Good:
- Dust and water resistant
- Superb display
- Very good audio quality
- Great CPU and GPU
- Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic
- Superb battery life (among droids)
- Among the best when it comes to developer support. Loads of custom ROM available for use.
- Price
The Bad:
- Average camera performance
- no video calling
- Motoblur and official ROM stuck on Froyo
- Just a bit bulky
Who should buy this phone:
If you have a budget of 15k-15.5k, close your eyes and get this one. You cannot get a better smartphone for that price. Period!
Before we head to 15k+ segments, here is a tiny list of other decent smartphones inside 15k:
- Nokia 603
- SE Xperia Mini
- Spice Mi-410
- Huawei Ideos X5
Nokia E6
Availability: Widely available
Price: 16.5k-17.5k INR
Product page: http://www.nokia.co....cts/nokia-e6-00
The Good:
- Superb touch display with 640×480 resolution
- Terrific four row qwerty
- 8GB user memory onboard
- active noise cancellation using a dedicated mic
- Office document viewer
- Video calling and 720p video recording
- Battery goes on and on and on
- USB OTG
- Nokia maps navigation got even better, thanks to Symbian S^3 Anna OS
The Bad:
- Nothing in particular but can say that EDoF camera is one drawback
Who should buy this phone:
E6, with Symbian Anna OS is a pleasure to use. If you are looking for a business class phone with monster battery life and if you want a phone that can navigate you to through those unknown route and take care of your corporate data (emails, documents etc), go for this device. You can’t get a better device for the price.
Samsung Omnia W
Status: Widely available
Price: 17.2k-18k INR
Product page: http://tinyurl.com/d8u9hcf
The Good:
- Price. Total VFM
- Windows phone 7.5 is butter smooth
- 3.7″ 480 x 800 super AMOLED display
- 8GB onboard
- 1.4GHz processor, Adreno 205 GPU
- 720p video recording
The Bad:
- no memory expansion
- no Bluetooth 3.0 or USB 3.0
- Okayish camera and poor video recording quality
- average audio quality
- Zune client necessary for transfer of media etc
Who should buy this phone:
If you are looking a for a phone that comes with a fresh looking OS and works out of the box and not interested in doing modding etc, not interested in spending time killing apps to make the UI lag-free, this one is for you. Windows Phone 7.5 is excellent right now and the Windows Phone application store is getting crowded. A minority OS right now but has potential to take the market in coming years.
Nokia N8
Status: Widely available
Price: 18k-19k
Product page: http://www.nokia.co....oducts/nokia-n8
The Good:
- Price
- Strong build quality
- The best camera in smartphones
- Continuous autofocus in Video recording (after anna update)
- Gorgeous display
- 16GB internal storage
- Powerful GPU, making games run smoothly
- Nokia Maps navigation
- Active Noise Cancellation with dedicated mic
- DivX and Xvid support
- USB OTG
- HDMI Out
- Very good battery life for a feature rich smartphone
The Bad:
- Battery cannot be replaced by user
- Nothing else in particular
Who should buy this phone:
- Shutterbugs
- Multimedia lovers
- Frequent travelers
- Hell, this is one of those rare models that can cater to every kind of users needs. The OS is currently written off but with Anna and Belle updates, N8 can definitely match it’s rival droids in all round performance
Blackberry Curve 9380
Status: Widely available
Price: 19.5k-20k INR
Product page: http://in.blackberry...rry-curve-9380/
The Good:
- BB OS v7.0 is far better than previous versions of BB OS.
- NFC (0ptional)
- 3.2″ 360 x 480 resolution touch display
- 512MB of RAM and 800MHz processor
- Facebook and twitter integration, better social networking capabilities
The Bad:
- Average multimedia quality
- No video calling
- Poor battery life
- Need to pay for BIS and pricier dataplan to make full use of this device.
Who should buy this one:
Thanks to BB OS 7.0, those who love to have a business class device and with budget under 20k can go for this phone, eyes closed. This phone, avaialble for just under 20k is the best berry under 20k.
LG Optimus Black
Status: Widely available
Price: 18k to 18.5k INR approx
Product page: http://www.lg.com/in...phones-P970.jsp
The Good:
- LG Nova display (IPS panel with superb brightness)
- 2mp front facing camera for high quality video calling, 5mp primary camera with 720p video recording
- Gestures
- DivX, Xvide support
- 1GHz Cortex A8 processor with PowerVR SGX530 GPU
- Extremely thin and lightweight
- Very good ROM support
The Bad:
- Optimus UI is very poor
- Average audio quality
- no HD out
Who should buy this one:
Thanks to the IPS panel, the quality of text is amazing and sunlight visibility is very good, so are the viewing angles. If you are more into reading ebooks and webpages etc, this would be a perfect phone to get. Gaming on this phone is a pleasure, thanks to powerful GPU (and of course, superb display). Videos look crispy whether you are outdoor or indoor. If you are okay with loading a custom ROM, the phone feels much better and much more responsive.
Sony Ericsson Xperia Pro
Status: Widely available
Price: 19,000 to 19,900 INR
Product page: http://www.sonyerics...pro?cc=gb&lc=en
The Good:
- Great design
- Superb display, BRAVIA engine
- Awesome camera quality and 720p video recording quality
- Superb qwerty
- Very good battery life
- Powerful CPU/GPU
- Very Good Price
The Bad:
- Just a bit thick at 13.5mm and weights 142 grams
- No Bluetooth 3.0
- Average audio quality
Who should buy this phone:
Designed for professional use and for qwerty maniacs. There are many (like me) who love using a hard qwerty and this phone is tailor made for them
Other good devices inside 20k:
- Samsung Galaxy S-LCD
- LG Optimus Black
- Blackberry Curve 9360
- Nokia 701
Sony Ericsson Xperia Play
Status: Difficult to find in the market
Price: 22k-23k INR
Product page: http://www.sonyerics...n#view=overview
The Good:
- Game controls
- Display
- Active Noise cancellation
- Music quality
- Price
- Game catalogue and upcoming game list is promising
The Bad:
- Bulky
- Less power than dual core devices which are cheaper
- Average battery life
Who should buy this phone:
With the heavy price cut in place, this is the best smartphone to go for for those who doesn’t mind the bulky size. With ever improving game catalogue and proper game controls, Xperia Play is without a doubt the best smartphone for gamers.
HTC Radar
Status: Available
Price: 22.5k-23.5k INR
Product page: http://www.htc.com/i...ones/htc-radar/
The Good:
- Display (3.8″, 480 x 800 px is perfect for most users)
- Windows Phone 7.5 Mango, butter smooth and filled with features. Is a refreshing experience
- 1GHz Scorpion processor
- Decent camera with 720p video recording, front facing camera for video calling
- 8GB onboard
- Superb build quality
- Wireless content sync using Zune client.
The Bad:
- Price could be lower
- Poor GPU
- Battery should’ve been bigger and user-replaceable
Who should buy this phone:
Windows phone 7.5 is without a doubt the most fluid and feature rich OS out there right now. Yes, it’s restricted but use it once and you won’t go back to any other OS. Highly recommended. But, given that Nokia’s Windows Phone devices are just around the cornet, you can wait for Nokia’s offerings
Samsung Galaxy R
Status: Widely available
Price: 22k-23k INR
Product page: http://bit.ly/w45qXJ
The Good:
- Price (absolute VFM)
- Mightily powerful (dual core Nvidia Tegra 2, 1GB of RAM, 2GB ROM)
- 4.2″ SC-LCD display with 480×800 resolution)
- 8GB of onboard storage
- compatible with Tegra Zone gaming store
- Decent camerawith 720p recording
- Front facing camera
- DivX/Xvid support
- Great battery life
- Document Editor
The Bad:
- Kies is highly irritating
- USB 3.0 doesn’t have High speed transfer support
Who should buy this phone:
Anyone who can afford to pay 22k must go for this one. Truly value for money. If you want a powerful smartphone and don’t want to go beyond 25k, this would be the best you can get. The only other smartphone that can beat this one in terms of processing power/reliability/stability is Galaxy S II.
Other good devices inside 25k:
- HTC Incredible S
- Nokia E7
- Dell Venue Pro
Nokia Lumia 800
Status: Widely available
Price: 28.3k -29.5k INR
Product page: http://www.nokia.com...phone/lumia800/
The Good:
- Build quality. Nothing else comes close, not even the iPhone 4
- Windows Phone 7.5: Buttersmooth UI
- Nokia maps offline navigation, the best in the industry
- 3.7″ Nokia CBD (AMOLED)
- 16GB onboard storage
- 1.4GHz scorpion processor
- 8mp Carl Zeiss camera with 720p video recording
- Active Noise Cancellation
- Superb multimedia performance
The Bad:
- Price (should cost 3-4k less)
- no memory expansion
- No front facing camera
- Depends on Zune client for media transfer
Who should buy this phone:
This is the best Windows Phone available in India. If you want a phone that does everything out of the box and don’t mind using Zune (which is pretty good in its current avatar), this is the best one for you. Nokia loyalists finally have a phone in India that can envy many.
Blackberry Bold 9790
Status: Widely available
Price: 25k-26k INR
Product page: http://worldwide.bla...erry-bold-9790/
The Good:
- BB OS 7.0
- Excellent qwerty
- 2.4″ capacitive touch display
- 768MB of RAM, 8GB storage, 1GHz processor
- Excellent build quality
The Bad:
- Price
- No front facing camera
- Poor multimedia performance
- Higher data plan rates. Phone is useless without a data plan and BBM connectivity.
Who should buy this phone:
If you wear a coat n tie, want to have that hardkey qwerty and also want to try a touchscreen, this phone is for you. BB OS 7 is excellent and the high resolution 16M color display complements it well. A perfect business class device, if you are ready to pay for higher data plan rates.
Samsung Galaxy S II
Status: Widely available
Price: 30k-31k INR
Product page: http://bit.ly/j5VDpq
The Good:
- Mightily powerful (dual core Exynos, 1GB of RAM)
- 16GB of onboard storage
- Stunning display quality
- Very good camera, records videos as 1080p
- 2mp front facing camera
- NFC, Active noise cancellation
- DivX/Xvid support
- Good battery life
- USB OTG
- Bluetooth 3.0 HS
- Gestures
- Terrific developer support
The Bad:
- Nothing in particular
Who should buy this phone:
Absolute beast of a phone this is. Powerful, reliable, stable and has huge 3rd party developer support. If you have the money and are looking for most powerful smartphone available in the market, this one is for you.
Other good devices inside 30k:
- Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc S
- HTC Sensation
Blackberry Torch 9810
Status: Widely available
Price: 31k INR
Product page: http://in.blackberry...lackberrytorch/
The Good:
- BB OS 7.0
- Excellent slide up qwerty
- 3.2″ capacitive touch display with 480×640 resolution
- 768MB of RAM, 8GB storage, 1.2GHz processor
- Excellent build quality
- 720p video recording (rarity for Blackberries)
- Xvid/DivX support
The Bad:
- Price
- No front facing camera
- Poor multimedia performance
- Higher data plan rates. Phone is useless without a data plan and BBM connectivity.
Who should buy this phone:
This is a complete berry. Touchscreen, hard qwerty, proper multimedia fetaures, power packed and brand new OS. If you are wearning a tie and if you are going to use touch screen more than hardkey qwerty but still want a phone that has hard qwerty, get this one else get Bold 9900. Overall, a superb phone from RIM.
iPhone 4
Status: Widely available
Price: 33,000 INR for 16GB and 40,000 for 32GB
Product page: http://www.apple.com/in/iphone/
The Good:
- Premium build quality
- Breathtaking display
- Good camera
- iOS
- front facing camera
- Superb battery life
- Active Noise cancellation
The Bad:
- Price
- Far behind top level droids in all round performance and feature set.
Who should buy this phone:
- The best phone with simple UI that money can buy
- Apple loyals
Blackberry Bold 9900
Status: Widely available
Price: 33,000 INR
Product page: http://us.blackberry...-bold-9900-9930
The Good:
- Very good build quality
- Touch screen and very good qwerty
- BB 7 OS
- 1.2GHz processor and 768MB of RAM, 8GB of storage
- DivX and Xvid support
- 720p video recording
- Blackberry Internet Services
The Bad:
- Price
- BB7 is better than BB6 but still far from being perfect in the new era
- No video calling
Who should buy this phone:
- The best traditional looking Blackberry
- Among the best for those who prefer Business class device.
Motorola Razr
Status: Widely available
Price: 32k-33k INR
Product page: http://www.motorola....ROLA-RAZR-IN-EN
The Good:
- Very good build quality (water and scratch resistant, has kevlar back panel)
- Extremely thin, sexy looks
- Good 4.3″ display
- 16GB onboard storage
- Powerful. Dual core processor, 1GB of RAM.
- Bluetooth V4.0 with LE+EDR
- 802.11 b/g/n dual-band wifi
- quality 8mp camera, 1.3mp front facing camera.
- Active noise cancellation
The Bad:
- Price
- GPU is not as powerful as that the competition has
Who should buy this phone:
Those who give priority to h/w design over UI. While SGS II has a better UI and more custom ROMs, Motorola Razr has way better build quality and has that premium look and feel to it. Moreover, it’s ruggedness helps if there is a phone throwing and phone munching kid at home.
Samsung Galaxy Note
Status: Widely available
Price: 32.5k-33.5k INR
Product page: http://www.samsung.c....html?type=find
The Good:
- Price
- Powerful, 16Gb on board storage space, 1.4GHz dual core CPU with Mali-400MP.
- Monster 5.3″ display with HD resolution (720p)
- Monster battery @ 2500mAh
- Comes with S Pen stylus
- USB OTG
- Superb camera (same as that on SGS II)
- Active noise cancellation, NFC, barometer sensor, Document editor etc etc
The Bad:
- Size (of phone and of the display)
- Pentile matrix panel is not something that should be put on a 33k flagship devices
Who should buy this phone:
If you are one of those with big palm and can use a phone with a 5″+ display, get this one for it won’t disappoint you. It is everything that SGS II is and has bit more tricks up it’s sleeve. The included S Pen means that you can have lot of fun with drawing etc (hope there will be apps making full use of these Styluses).
