Apple iPhone 12 Mini to Samsung Galaxy Note 20: Top smartphones under Rs 60,000 (Sept 2021)- Technology News

Ameya DalviSep 16, 2021 10:37:46 IST

Once the smartphone budget crosses Rs 50,000, it’s a different world altogether. A lot of recent aspirational handsets can be found between the 50k to 60k price band. Case in point, we have two Apple iPhones in this list. You also get the top variants of previous-generation flagship phones here, at significantly less than their launch price, making them a much more sensible purchase now. So let’s look at the top options you can get your hands on in case you have set aside a budget of Rs 60,000 for your next phone.

Best phones to buy under Rs 60,000 in India

Apple iPhone 12 Mini

Let’s start with the first of the two iPhones. The 64 GB variant of the smallest of Apple’s iPhone 12 series phones can be purchased under Rs 60,000 currently. While the size of phones over the past couple of years have been bloating, the Apple iPhone 12 Mini hopes to reverse that trend. And it’s not just about a smaller footprint, but the availability of proper flagship features in that form factor without missing out on anything important from its larger siblings is praiseworthy. I wonder why other manufacturers haven’t followed suit yet. 

The Apple iPhone 12 Mini is pretty much the iPhone 12 in a smaller shell. In fact, it has a sharper display in comparison in terms of pixel density, thanks to its compact 5.4-inch Super Retina XDR OLED screen. At its core is the A14 Bionic chip that powers the entire iPhone 12 series. Two 12 MP cameras (primary with OIS and ultrawide) at the back offer top notch performance in different lighting conditions, and can shoot some excellent videos too. It runs the latest iOS 14, and one can expect newer OS updates for another four years at least.

Apple iPhone 12 Mini price in India: Rs 59,999 for 64 GB storage on Flipkart

(Also Read: Apple launches iPad, iPad Mini, Apple Watch Series 7, iPhone 13 series: Specifications, pricing, availability)

Apple iPhone 11

The mid variant of the Apple iPhone 11 (Review) with 128 GB storage can be comfortably purchased in this budget. It is powered by Apple’s previous-generation A13 Bionic chip that’s still powerful enough. You get a 6.1-inch Liquid Retina IPS LCD display with the typical 326 PPI pixel density that you get on most iPhones, along with scratch-resistant glass and an oleophobic coating. Just like the iPhone 12 Mini, this phone too is IP68 rated dust and water resistant.

You have dual 12 MP cameras at the back. The main camera supports OIS, while the second lets you capture ultra-wide shots. Needless to say, the camera performance is top-notch as one expects from an Apple smartphone. You also get a 12 MP camera at the front for selfies and FaceTime. The 3,110 mAh battery lasts for a day of moderate use and supports 18 W fast charging as well as Qi wireless charging. The Apple iPhone 11 launched with iOS 13, and is upgradable to the new iOS 14. 

Apple iPhone 11 price in India: Rs 55,999 for 128 GB storage on Amazon India

(Also Read: Vivo X60 Pro, iQOO 7 Legend 5G to Asus ROG Phone 5: Best phones under Rs 50,000 (Sept 2021))

OnePlus 9

Amazon India is offering a Rs 4,000 discount (at the time of writing) on the top variant of the OnePlus 9 (Review), making it a neat deal at Rs 50,999 effectively. The OnePlus 9 has a 6.55-inch Full HD+ Fluid AMOLED display with a 120 Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ compliance. The phone has an elegant design with a glass body protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5 at the front and back. 

The rear camera department isn’t as stacked as its Pro variant, but you do get the Hasselblad colour calibration here too. Photography is handled by a 48 MP primary camera, a 50 MP ultrawide camera with auto-focus — one of the best ultrawide cameras around, and a 2 MP mono camera. The cameras manage to shoot some impressive images in different lighting conditions with natural colours. There’s a 16 MP front camera located in a tiny punch-hole at the top of the screen to take care of selfies and video calls. 

The 5G-ready OnePlus 9 is powered by Qualcomm’s flagship Snapdragon 888 chip and you get the 12 GB RAM variant with 256 GB of UFS 3.1 storage in this budget. Its 4500 mAh battery lasts over a day of moderate use comfortably, and even better, the bundled 65 W Warp charger juices it up fully in about half an hour. The phone runs OxygenOS 11 based on Android 11.

OnePlus 9 price in India: Rs 50,999 to Rs 54,999 for 12 GB RAM/ 256 GB storage

Samsung Galaxy Note 20

The price of the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 has dropped under Rs 60,000. It has a 6.7-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED Plus display with HDR10+ compliance. It is powered by an Exynos 990 chip which is still powerful enough to run with the best. And then there’s the famous S-Pen that is the standout feature on all Samsung Galaxy Note series phones, now with a bunch of new tricks up its sleeve. The Note 20 is bundled with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB of internal storage. It launched with Android 10 but is upgradeable to Android 11 with Samsung’s One UI 3.

There are three cameras at the back: a 12 MP primary camera with OIS, a 12 MP ultrawide camera and a 64 MP telephoto camera with OIS that provides 3X Hybrid zoom. The camera performance is excellent, with great detail and accurate colours in captured images across various modes. This phone can also record high-quality videos up to 8K resolution. A 4,300 mAh battery keeps the phone running for over a day of moderate use. Did I mention the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 is IP68 rated dust and water resistant?

Samsung Galaxy Note 20 price in India: Rs 55,999 onwards for 8 GB RAM/ 256 GB storage

Asus ROG Phone 5

The top variant of the Asus ROG Phone 5 (Review) with 12 GB RAM and 256 GB storage is a little hard to find due to limited stock, but is a great option in this segment, especially for gamers. The phone has the fastest processing hardware around, along with several optimisations and enhancements to give the gamers a superlative mobile gaming experience. The phone is powered by Qualcomm’s flagship Snapdragon 888 SoC, and flaunts a 6.78-inch Full HD+ 10-bit AMOLED display with 144 Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ compliance. 

The rear camera department consists of a 64 MP primary camera, 13 MP ultra-wide shooter and a 5 MP macro camera. Though this phone is targeted primarily at mobile gamers, the cameras are no pushover. The Asus ROG Phone 5 has a huge 6,000 mAh battery for long, uninterrupted gaming sessions, and the bundled 65W fast charger can charge its large battery in under an hour. This phone runs Android 11 with ROG UI. In case you cannot find the higher capacity version in stock, you may consider its 8 GB RAM and 128 GB storage variant for a good Rs 8,000 less.

Asus ROG Phone 5 price in India: Rs 57,999 for 12 GB RAM/ 256 GB storage

(Also Read: Apple’s iPhone 13 is here and so is the meme-fest, replete with new kidney jokes)