There are plenty of great smartphones available under Rs. 7,000.
With Android Go coming into the play, even the cheaper smartphones are now working flawlessly. There are so many great options even for the customers who are in a tight budget. So, in order to narrow down the confusion, here are the top 5 smartphones available under Rs. 7,000.
Redmi Go
Redmi Go is one of the cheapest Android smartphones.
Xiaomi's sub-brand Redmi recently launched their first Android Go powered smartphone in India, the Redmi Go. While the smartphone comes with lower specifications, a lighter version of Android makes up for it. Also, with the compromises, the company was able to bring the price to as low as Rs. 4,499.
Realme C1
RealMe C1 comes with a notched display
Realme C1 is currently known to offer the best bang for your buck. It features a 6.2-inch notched IPS LCD display. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 SoC coupled with the Adreno 506 GPU. It packs in 2GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage, which is further expandable using a microSD card. All of this comes in with a price tag of just Rs. 6,999.
Asus ZenFone Max M1
Asus ZenFone Max M1 comes with a plastic body.
Asus ZenFone Max M1 is a budget-oriented smartphone that has a lot to offer. The device comes with a 5.5-inch IPS LCD display with a resolution of 1440x720 pixels. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 430 processor coupled with Adreno 505 GPU. Asus ZenFone Max M1 is currently available at a starting price of Rs. 6,499.
Nokia 3.1
Nokia 3.1 offers stock Android experience.
Nokia 3.1 comes with a 5.2-inch IPS LCD display and a MediaTek MT6750 processor. The device packs in 3GB of RAM and 32GB of onboard storage. The Nokia 3.1 is a part of Google's Android One program and it runs on stock Android 9.0 Pie. The smartphone is available at a price of Rs. 6,999.
10.or D2 is a great budget smartphone as it comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 processor. It also comes with IPX7 rating which makes it one of the very few phones to come with water resistance under this price segment. It also sports a 13-megapixel camera at the back and a 5-megapixel selfie shooter.
During the Google I/O 2019, the company had a lot of things to show off including the new iteration of Android as well as the new budget Pixel devices. Apart from these, the company also introduced new features in some of its popular services. The Google Play Store now gets a new feature called Pending Transactions and here's what it does.
The Pending Transactions feature is a part of the new version of Google Play Billing Library. Apart from Credit Cards and Net Banking, there have been plenty of ways to purchase apps like UPI and eWallets. However, we never had the privilege to buy applications by paying cash. Though there have been Google Play gift cards, they often exceed the amount we need. So, in order to bring cash to the play, the company has released the Pending Transactions feature.
Once a user is ready to buy an app from the Google Play Store or even do an in-app purchase, they can opt for receiving a payment code. The payment code can then be taken to a nearby store, where they can complete the transaction by paying cash.
After making the payment at the store, the user will get the purchased app as well as an email proof within the next 10 minutes. However, the company does suggest that the user should wait for approximately 48 hours. Notably, if the user decides to ask for a refund, they will get Play Store Credit instead of a cash back.
With the new Pending Transactions feature, Google is trying to pull more people towards purchasing the full apps instead of depending on their free or trail counterparts.
Huawei Mate 20 Pro will be one of the first phones to get the Android Q update.
Google recently announced the next iteration of Android, the Android 10 Q. Smartphone manufacturers like OnePlus, Huawei and Nokia are allowing the users to download the Beta version of the operating system right away. However, for those who do not wanna try a buggy software, Huawei has finally brought ut the list of devices which will get the update very soon.
It is quite obvious that these smartphones are going to be the flagships from Huawei as well as Honor. The company claims that these smartphones will get the Android Q update immediately after Google’s Pixel phones get it. The list of smartphones includes the Huawei Mate 20, Mate 20 Pro, Mate 20 X, Mate 20 RS Porsche Design, P30, P30 Pro, Honor Magic 2 and the Honor View 20. The phones will also get an updated version of EMUI that will be based on Google's Android Q.
However, the company has not yet provided a timeline on the update for these smartphones. Google is expected to release the official update sometime on August, which means that Huawei should be pushing it out by late September or early October.
Just like last year, the beta version of Android is not only available for the Pixel devices but also for some other smartphones like OnePlus 6T, Huawei Mate 20 Pro, Realme 3 Pro, Xiaomi Mi 9 and more. As for the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, there is a catch. The interested users should have a Google Developers Account and they should have uploaded at least one app to the Google Play Store.
Soon after the ban got lifted, TikTok becomes one of the top rated apps.
It was not that long ago when the Madras High Court declared a ban against the popular social media platform, TikTok. The app was earlier called musical.ly and it recently changed it to TikTok. However, the agenda remained the same where it allowed users to share short videos. After the ban lifted, the app again managed to climb the stairs soon enough to become one of the top-rated free apps on the Google Play Store and the Apple App Store.
While such news might come as a surprise to some, the others know the reason behind it is the promotion that the company is running right now. TikTok is asking users to share "#ReturnofTikTok" on social media to win Rs. 1 lakh.
Sumedhas Rajgopal, Entertainment Strategy and Partnerships Lead, TikTok (India), said in a statement, "We would like to express our deepest gratitude and thank our over 200 million users in India for the overwhelming response, support and love they have shown towards TikTok." “We are looking forward to continuing our journey with our TikTok family and actively work towards ensuring a safe and positive in-app experience for our users,” he further added.
TikTok was banned for over six days and it was unavailable to download on both the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. The ban was lifted on April 30 and soon after that, the company announced a new promotion plan. Within the last week, TikTok easily climbed up the ladder and it is, once again, one of the top-rated applications on both Android and iOS platforms.
Google has rolled out Android Q's third developer preview.
Google has finally announced the next big Android update, Android 10 Q. The update brings in tons of exciting changes including a system-wide dark mode, Improved biometric authentication and much more. Android Q has reached its 3rd Beta stage and it is finally available to more than just Google Pixel devices.
While Google Pixel devices are always the firsts to get an Android update, the company has been trying to change it since the introduction of Project Trebble. Now, apart from Pixel, Pixel XL, Pixel 2, Pixel 2 XL, Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL, there are nearly 15 devices from other OEMs that support the latest Developer Preview of the Android Q operating system. This list of devices include some really popular devices like the OnePlus 6T, OnePlus 6, Huawei Mate 20 Pro, Asus ZenFone 5Z, Xiaomi Mi 9 and more.
As there are multiple devices on the list, it is quite obvious that they will have different types of steps to get the new operating system installed. So, you can head over to the Android Q Beta Device list to know about the steps of your device. However, we will share the steps for some of the popular options.
While other manufacturers make it quite simple, Huawei only allows those to download the update who have some experience in development. The company confirms this by asking the user to link his Google Developer's account to his Huawei account. So, if you are not a developer, you will not be able to try the latest taste of Android.
Google Pixel devices
In case you are the lucky ones with a Google Pixel device, the steps are pretty easy.
Now register your Pixel device for the Android Q Beta program
Once registered, head over to your phone and check for any available updates.
OnePlus devices
Even OnePlus has kept the steps fairly simple for its users.
Download the Android Q Developer Preview file for your OnePlus device from the link given below OnePlus 6 OnePlus 6T
Copy the file to phone's internal storage
Now head over to Settings > System > System Updates and click on the top right icon to find Local upgrade.
Now select the installation package that you copied earlier to the phone's internal storage.
Once the update is complete, hit Restart.
Before going through the above steps, make sure you take a complete backup of your phone as this might erase everything. Also, it is not recommended to use the Developer Preview ROM on your daily driver as they are usually not stable and come with dozens of bugs that can even affect day-to-day usage.
A lot of rumours came into rest when Google took the stage at Google I/O 2019 to unveil the all-new Google Pixel 3a and Pixel 3a XL smartphones. While these phones look quite similar to the flagship devices, they have a ton of changes on the inside. So, here are some of the alternatives you might want to consider before locking your choice.
OnePlus 6T
OnePlus 6T will also get the recently released Android Q update.
When looking for smartphones in the range of Rs. 30,000, the OnePlus 6T becomes an obvious choice. It also makes a great alternative for Pixel 3a as it brings a near-stock Android experience. The OnePlus 6T also sports a water drop style notch and comes with flagship grade hardware including a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 chipset. It is currently available at a starting price of Rs. 32,999.
Poco F1 has a lot to offer at a price way less than Pixel 3a's.
Just like the Pixel 3a, the Poco F1 also comes with a polycarbonate build. However, it makes up for it by providing flagship grade internals at a relatively lower price point. It comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 SoC coupled with Adreno 630 GPU. It packs in up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. Xiaomi Poco F1 is currently available at a starting price of Rs. 19,990.
Vivo V15 Pro
Vivo V15 Pro brings in a pop-up selfie camera and an in-display fingerprint scanner.
While the Pixel 3a only has the cameras to impress you, the Vivo V15 Pro has got a lot more up its sleeve. It comes with a 32-megapixel pop-up selfie camera and the 5th generation in-display fingerprint scanner. The device also sports a 48-megapixel camera at the back. It comes with a more powerful the Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 coupled with 6GB of RAM. All of this comes in at a price of Rs. 28,999.
Honor View 20 comes with the company's flagship Kirin 980 chipset, which is based on a 7nm process. The smartphone also sports a punch hole design and it comes with a 48-megapixel camera at the back. The smartphone is available in India with a price tag of Rs. 37,999.
Even though the Google Pixel 2 is quite old, it still has a more powerful processor when compared to the Pixel 3a. It also comes with a glass body which gives it a more premium feel than the polycarbonate body on the 3a. The device is also a bit on the expensive side but it is quite worth it at Rs. 39,999.
Phones like ZenFone Max Pro M2 come with a 5,000 battery
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 is the successor the popular Asus Zenfone Max Pro M1 which was dubbed one of the best budget segment smartphones of 2018. With a glass backed sleek design and performance backed by the Snapdragon 660, is the Max Pro M2 a great deal? Let's find out.
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2: Specifications
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 coupled with an Adreno 512 GPU and 3/4/6 GB of RAM depending on the variant you choose. It sports a 6.26-inch (1080 x 2280 pixels) notched LCD display. For optics, it features a 12-megapixel f/1.8 primary sensor along with a 5-megapixel f/2.4 sensor and an LED flash on the back. For selfies, it packs a 13-megapixel f/2.0. All of this is backed by a 5,000mAh.
The display features a top angled Notch
The device sports a glass back panel with a plastic frame. It runs Google’s Android 9.0 Pie with almost stock Android UI on the top. The phone sports a hybrid dual SIM card configuration, a 3.5mm headphone jack and a micro-USB port for charging & data syncing.
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 Review: Design
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 features a glass back with a plastic frame. The look and feel of the smartphone is great in hand. The smartphone sports Gorilla Glass 6 on the back and front which is unheard of in this price segment.
The front of the device looks a lot like other smartphones in the market
The front has a huge chin on the bottom. The device sports a 6.26-inch, 19:9 aspect ratio notched LCD display. The front camera, earpiece, and the proximity sensor are all placed inside of the notch which is angled for a better look.
On the back, there is a dual camera module paired with an LED flash aligned in a vertical orientation. The phone bears Asus's logo and the fingerprint sensor on the back. The colour matching accent on the camera lens really makes the phone stand out.
The back with the glass looks amazing
On the right edge, there is the power button along with the volume rockers just above it. The left side only holds the sim card tray, which consists of a hybrid dual SIM card slot. On the top edge, there is a secondary microphone for noise cancellation and on the bottom edge, there is the micro-USB port along with a primary microphone, headphone jack, and the speaker grille.
Overall, the design of the smartphone is great. The angled notch and the accents on the rear camera lens make the smartphone stand out. The glass back instead of metal or plastic improves the look as well as the feel in hand.
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 Review: Software
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 runs Google’s Android 9.0 Pie operating system with an almost stock Android UI on top. Unfortunately, the smartphone is not under Android One program, so future software updates are not promised as such, but a stock UI is a very appreciated gesture.
The smartphone sports almost an stock Android UI
Features like a built-in theme engine in the smartphone and the ability to modify various settings that you can't on the stock Android are always a plus, but stock Android means there will be no nuances or unforeseen bugs and crashed in the software. There are battery optimizations tweaks and some minor changes in the software, but they don't affect the look and feel of the software. Overall, the software experience of the Zenfone Max Pro M2 is something we all would like other companies to implement.
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 Review: Performance
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 sports a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 coupled with an Adreno 512 GPU and 3GB/4GB/6GB of RAM. We had the 4GB variant for review purposes, so your performance mileage might differ, depending on the unit you purchase. We ran our usual benchmark tests to evaluate the performance of the phone. AnTuTu failed to run on it as it was consuming a lot of battery and the device's battery management features kicking in. I don't know, how I feel about the software killing of apps based on battery usage.
Asus ZenFone Max Pro M2 sports a dual-camera setup at the back
On GeekBench, it managed to get a single core score of 1438 and a multi-core score of 5130. The performance numbers of the device on paper were average.
While playing light games such as Temple Run and Crossy Chicken, the phone runs smoothly. Games like PUBG Mobile and Asphalt 9 Legend's also work fine with a slight lag after long gaming hours. Considering the price of the smartphone, it performs pretty well.
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 Review: Display
Asus ZenFone Max Pro M2 sports a notch up front
Asus utilizes a notch design similar to the one seen on Apple's iPhone X but slightly smaller and more angled for a better look. The Zenfone Max Pro M2 sports a 6.26-inch, 19:9 aspect ratio LCD display. The brightness turns up high enough to offer great sunlight visibility and turns down enough to offer comfortable usage experience even in the complete darkness.
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 features a 12-megapixel f/1.8 primary sensor along with a 5-megapixel f/2.4 sensor and an LED flash on the back. For selfies, it packs a 13-megapixel f/2.0. Although, not everything depends on a camera’s megapixel count as we have seen in the past.
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The rear camera of the device offers images with good details and great colour reproduction. The saturation and contrast are great. The camera boosts, the colour of the images a little bit, but it is not noticeable easily.
Front camera of the Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 is also not so bad. The colours are not natural and are a bit boosted. The beauty mode is annoying, which gets turned on automatically whenever you open the camera. With the beauty mode is turned to its maximum, the colours are so highly boosted that subject looks weird and unnatural.
Overall, apart the camera quality of the smartphone is great.
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 Review: Battery
The battery life of the Zenfone Max Pro M2 is great
The Zenfone Max Pro M2 comes with a 5,000mAh battery, which lasts for a little over 24 hours on a single charge. Charge time with the included charger is around one and a half hours, which is great. Overall, you would like to charge the smartphone during the night, before going to bed, so as to it doesn’t die on you in the middle of the day leaving you stranded.
We ran PCMark’s Work 2.0 Battery Life test, which subjects the phone to heavy usage and finds out how the battery performs in those conditions. The device yielded a result of 12 hours and 50 minutes, which lines up with the battery capacity in the smartphone and our day to day usage.
Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 Review: Conclusion
Overall, the smartphone is good to buy. At the time of writing this review, the Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 starts at Rs. 9,999 with 3GB RAM, 32GB storage. and costs Rs 11,999 for the 4GB RAM, 64GB storage variant and 13,999 for the 6GB RAM and 64GB variant.
At that price point, the performance not particularly top of the line, but the stock Android and Gorilla Glass 6 makes up for that. The micro-USB port is a disappointment but the 10W charger and the 5,000mAh battery lasts extremely well.
Competitors like Xiaomi and Huawei are offering customers way better performance for the price but cut down on other areas. Overall, the stock android, amazing battery life, and great look and feel with the protection of Gorilla Glass 6 do trump most other smartphones in this range.
It sports a 12.2-megapixel Sony IMX363 sensor on the back with Dual-Pixel focus technology.
Google Pixel 3a sports a 6-inch full HD+ gOLED display with a resolution of 2220x1080 pixels with Dragon Trail glass on top for protection. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 processor paired with an Adreno 615 GPU along with a Titan M Security module.
It comes with 4GB of RAM along with 64GB internal storage. The device will run Google's Android 9.0 Pie operating system, which users can update to the Android Q beta version. The company is promising a minimum of three years of OS and security updates.
All of this is backed by a 3,700mAh battery with support for 18W fast charging. The company claims that the device can provide users up to 14 hours of video playback life on a full charge.
It sports a 12.2-megapixel Sony IMX363 sensor on the back with Dual-Pixel focus technology. The back camera also supports OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation) and EIS (Electronic Image Stabilisation). On the front, it features an 8-megapixel selfie camera.
The device will run Google's Android 9.0 Pie operating system, which users can update to the Android Q beta version.
Google Pixel 3a sports a 5.6-inch full HD+ gOLED display with a resolution of 2220x1080 pixels with Dragon Trail glass on top for protection. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 processor paired with an Adreno 615 GPU along with a Titan M Security module.
It comes with 4GB of RAM along with 64GB internal storage. The device will run Google's Android 9.0 Pie operating system, which users can update to the Android Q beta version. The company is promising a minimum of three years of OS and security updates.
All of this is backed by a 3,000mAh battery with support for 18W fast charging. The company claims that the device can provide users up to seven hours of battery life on a 15-minute charge.
It sports a 12.2-megapixel Sony IMX363 sensor on the back with Dual-Pixel focus technology. The back camera also supports OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation) and EIS (Electronic Image Stabilisation). On the front, it features an 8-megapixel selfie camera.
The new Pixel 3a lineup of smartphones come with dual SIM card support. The first being a physical SIM card slot and the second one being an eSIM.
Google has launched its new 'affordable' series of Pixel 3 smartphones, globally at its annual developer's conference, Google I/O 2019 taking place in Mountain View, California. The lineup consists of the Pixel 3a and the Pixel 3a XL priced at Rs 39,999 and Rs 44,999, respectively. Both will be only available in one configuration - 4GB RAM/64GB internal storage.
Both the smartphones will be sold exclusively on Flipkart and Google Stores in India. The company has started accepting pre-orders on Flipkart as of now. They will be made available to consumers starting May 15 in the Indian market.
The new Pixel 3a lineup of smartphones come with dual SIM card support. The first being a physical SIM card slot and the second one being an eSIM, similar to the new Apple iPhones. Currently, only Airtel and Reliance Jio support eSIM card functionality, however, as smartphone manufacturers increase eSIM compatibility more players are expected to release eSIM support.
These devices have been launched in three colour variants globally - White, Black and Purple. However, Google will not be making the Purple colour option available in India for consumers to purchase.
Google Pixel 3a: Specifications
Google Pixel 3a sports a 5.6-inch full HD+ gOLED display with a resolution of 2220x1080 pixels with Dragon Trail glass on top for protection. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 processor paired with an Adreno 615 GPU along with a Titan M Security module.
It comes with 4GB of RAM along with 64GB internal storage. The device will run Google's Android 9.0 Pie operating system, which users can update to the Android Q beta version. The company is promising a minimum of three years of OS and security updates.
All of this is backed by a 3,000mAh battery with support for 18W fast charging. The company claims that the device can provide users up to seven hours of battery life on a 15-minute charge.
It sports a 12.2-megapixel Sony IMX363 sensor on the back with Dual-Pixel focus technology. The back camera also supports OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation) and EIS (Electronic Image Stabilisation). On the front, it features an 8-megapixel selfie camera.
Google Pixel 3a XL: Specifications
Google Pixel 3a sports a 6-inch full HD+ gOLED display with a resolution of 2220x1080 pixels with Dragon Trail glass on top for protection. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 670 processor paired with an Adreno 615 GPU along with a Titan M Security module.
It comes with 4GB of RAM along with 64GB internal storage. The device will run Google's Android 9.0 Pie operating system, which users can update to the Android Q beta version. The company is promising a minimum of three years of OS and security updates.
All of this is backed by a 3,700mAh battery with support for 18W fast charging. The company claims that the device can provide users up to 14 hours of video playback life on a full charge.
It sports a 12.2-megapixel Sony IMX363 sensor on the back with Dual-Pixel focus technology. The back camera also supports OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation) and EIS (Electronic Image Stabilisation). On the front, it features an 8-megapixel selfie camera.
