Budget 15-20K "Best" Android phone for under 20k?

iPwnz

iPwnz

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Can you guys give me some personal recommendations for the best phone under 20k? Regardless of the specs or brand or even what I want.
Please state your reasons for it if possible. I'm thinking of getting one during this Republic Day sale if possible.

I've also read the template and looked into my requirements and couldn't find a phone which I really like so I'll choose only the relevant info from the template (just for formality's sake).

1. Budget?
A: INR 20k max.

2. Preferred display size, type and resolution?
A: FHD. Super AMOLED would be great (M51)

3. Preferred connectivity options? (4G, 3G, 2G etc).
A: 4G. Don't need 5G.

4. Do you have any brand preference or dislike? Please name them.
A: I like Moto for its stock Android. I used to hate Xiaomi phones for its MIUI interface and bloatwares. And Oppo, Vivo phones etc. I should mention that I don't know how to root phones.

5. What is your intended use for this phone (internet, camera, multimedia, mails etc.)?
A: Camera, video recording and light gaming. I need 60fps for 1080p. Don't need 4k.

6. Single SIM/ Dual SIM?
A: Dual SIM with dedicated MicroSD card slot

7. New or Used?
A: New is preferred. Old is fine if I get a good deal on phones less than 2 years old with good battery life. 2+ years is a big NO. Especially those users who play games a lot and charge a hundred times a day.

8. Any other requirements?
A: Need good battery backup. Nothing less than 5000mah battery if possible. Fewer options I know. Need SD730G chipset minimum.

9. If you have already considered a phone, then please mention the model
A: Samsung M51 has almost everything which I need. What it doesn't have are: 60fps video recording and stabilized video recording. Just these two
Moto Fusion Plus. But it doesn't have a dedicated MicroSD card slot. I want to add 128GB card. Also 5000mah battery. If it had 6000mah battery it would have been an instant pick.
Moto G9 Power. This was my first choice. But the the HD+ screen and lack of dedicated card slot hurt it.
I currently own a Moto G5+.

What do you guys think?
 
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Oh I meant my backpack and I never carry a wallet haha. I don't take my phone when I go out. And when I do go out I carry my backpack or slingbag 99% of the times to carry my water flask.
 
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iPwnz said:
Is the Poco X3 Pro not available in 256GB? Gsmarena shows an 8/258 variant.

Xiaomi Poco X3 Pro - Full phone specifications

m.gsmarena.com m.gsmarena.com
Phone has SD860 SoC.
I think it would be a great option for those who don't mind miui if available for under 25k.
Click to expand...
an x3 pro owner here. it should be the de facto choice for anyone looking for a phone under 20k if longevity of the device is the main priority. it is my secondary phone and i don't use it for anything other than pubg but it kicks ass for the price i paid. one strange thing is it performs worse than 855 (still 10/10 for that price). and miui is intolerable though i'm sure the average user won't care. switched to aosp and oh god the difference is night and day. custom ROM scene is already so alive.

one thing it REALLY impressed me is the speakers, sounds much clearer and slightly louder than 12 pro.
 
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Muathaz said:
an x3 pro owner here. it should be the de facto choice for anyone looking for a phone under 20k if longevity of the device is the main priority. it is my secondary phone and i don't use it for anything other than pubg but it kicks ass for the price i paid. one strange thing is it performs worse than 855 (still 10/10 for that price). and miui is intolerable though i'm sure the average user won't care. switched to aosp and oh god the difference is night and day. custom ROM scene is already so alive.

one thing it REALLY impressed me is the speakers, sounds much clearer and slightly louder than 12 pro.
Click to expand...
i like this kind of feedbacks, how easy is it to bootloader unlock switch roms and the banking app compatibility ?
 
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I want to get Mi 11x but cannot due to lockdown restrictions. Have Samsung M51 right now. Have a 6K amazon pay cash back coupon (amazon spin & win) It will cost 20K net net if I buy with this cashback and hdfc cc discount.
 
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burntwingzZz said:
i like this kind of feedbacks, how easy is it to bootloader unlock switch roms and the banking app compatibility ?
Click to expand...
it is fairly easy to unlock bootloader contrary to what i thought. there is a 7 day waiting period after you request for unlock initially.
there are already numerous ROMs and the one I am on (Arrow OS) is completely stable and bugfree. i'm also on a custom kernel now however i'm not sure if there's any benefit to it. i have not tried any banking apps as of now but it should work fine with magisk hide.

miui is super laggy and chrome ran in like 30 fps. arrow os rom is super duper smooth and looks clean!

only major cons:
vibration feels cheap af after using phones with haptic feedback and strong vibration for a few years.
lcd display (9/10 for an lcd tho)
touch feels noticeably inaccurate compared to iphone (maybe i'm nitpicking here).
 
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Muathaz said:
an x3 pro owner here. it should be the de facto choice for anyone looking for a phone under 20k if longevity of the device is the main priority. it is my secondary phone and i don't use it for anything other than pubg but it kicks ass for the price i paid. one strange thing is it performs worse than 855 (still 10/10 for that price). and miui is intolerable though i'm sure the average user won't care. switched to aosp and oh god the difference is night and day. custom ROM scene is already so alive.

one thing it REALLY impressed me is the speakers, sounds much clearer and slightly louder than 12 pro.
Click to expand...
How did my dumbass miss this release lol. I bought a used LG G8x for 17k. The dual screen is nice, but almost none of my earphones / headphones jack fit the puny slot in the dualscreen case (KZ stock cable, even tried TRN cable but the 3.5mm jack thing. Battery life is decent, but went to crap when I installed lots of apps, but a built-in utility told me the apps which were using too much power (Paytm and some others). It also suggests occasional reboot of phone. Using greenify right now and it definitely improved the battery life.

Camera is crisp enough for me, though could be better a low light. Ultra wide is definitely fun. Since this is my first AMOLED display it looks gorgeous but I feel the phone is biiiig. There is small support for custom ROMs but since they haven't sorted fingerprint reader, I haven't tried them out yet. Also really unsure if custom roms can implement the dualscreen case. There seems to be a growing interest in custom ROM, so fingers crossed!
 
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I'll wait for the "clean" miui and a sale if I'm to go for the Poco X3 Pro.
But I prefer longer battery life over performance so still prioritizing the Samsung F62. I don't play a lot of games and my time spent on mobile will considerably reduce once I get my PC up and running (waiting for my carpenter to show up zzzzz)...
 
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