The smartphone market has undoubtedly received a huge response throughout the year and all the manufacturers have released several devices across various price range.
However, there is plenty of innovation and potential in this area of the market, and several vendors are fighting for market share by releasing better configured and good looking devices.
While it obviously has given the user too many choices at a single price point, it has also left them confused on how to choose the perfect one.
To clear the mess, IB Times India has put together a run-down of some of the best smartphones released this year to give you a clear idea for buying the perfect one. As the line-up is vast, we are being specific and bringing out a series of articles on this particular topic.
Here is the first episode of this, where we have discussed about the pros and cons of the cheapest smartphones available in the market.
Lenovo A536
Available at little above ₹7,000 on the web, Lenovo A536 features a 5-inch TFT capacitive touchscreen, 1.3GHz MT6582M Quad Core processor, 1GB RAM and 8GB ROM memory. The device also features necessary MicroSD card slot, 5MP rear camera and a 2MP front camera. Powered with a 2,000mAh battery, the Lenovo A536 features Android Kitkat 4.4 on board.
Lenovo A536 is recommended for users who believe in an overall usable device with a running capability of a day in a single charge.
Panasonic T40
Panasonic T40 has a 4-inch WVGA IPS display with 480x800 pixels. It comes with a 5.0 megapixel primary camera and 2.0 megapixel rear camera. With 1GB RAM and 8GB ROM (Internal Storage Space), T40 features Android 4.4.2 Kitkat OS. It also features all the connectivity options a user would look for, including WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0 and GPS to name a few.
Available in Black, Red and White, this phone looks and feels solid in hand. Panasonic also customised the interface with a few brilliant moves. Available at ₹6,190 online, the only let down of this phone is its battery, which is just a 1,500 mAh.
Karbonn Sparkle V
The price, configuration, feel, usability and operating system of Karbonn's recently released three Android One handsets are identical, the only reason behind choosing Karbonn Sparkle V is nothing but its current price.
Available at just ₹5,999, this phone features a 4.5-inch IPS LCD screen with a resolution of 854x480 pixels at 217.7ppi. Powered by a 1.3GHz Quad Core, Mali 400 GPU, 1GB RAM and 4GB internal memory, this is the one among Android One project, which will be the first budget phones to get the upcoming Lollipop 5.0 update.
Asus Zenfone 4 A400CXG
Available at just ₹5,899, Asus Zenfone 4 A400CXG comes in the top choice for numerous reasons. It boasts of a 4-inch screen with 800x480 pixels, and the screen is protected by Soda Lime glass, which is ASUS's own scratch resistant technology. Powered by an Intel Atom Z2520 processor, 1GB RAM and 8GB of storage, A400CXG looks decent in hand.
The only drawback of this phone is its secondary camera. As selfie enthusiasts are increasing these days, at least 2.0 megapixel camera has become a standard now. But better processing capability, tough build and 8GB of inbuilt storage makes it a decent buy.
Spice Dream Uno H Android One Phone
The Spice Dream Uno H Smartphone is another version of their Android One series handset focusing on the Hindi speaking population of the country.
The Spice Dream Uno H is a dual SIM 3G Android Smartphone and is powered by a Quad-Core 1.3GHz processor. Running on Android Kitkat 4.4.4, Spice Mobile has promised to get the Lollipop 5.0 update soon for the phone. The device also features a 4.5-inch display and features an expandable storage capacity of 32GB. The 5 MP Auto Focus rear camera clicks sharp images while the 2 MP front camera will appeal to selfie lovers.
The device also comes equipped with a 1700mAh Li-Po battery with a claimed standby time of up to 160 hrs and a talk time of up to 1020 min (2G) and up to 620 min (3G).
Moto E
Available for ₹6999 at Flipkart at the time of filing this story, Moto E scores among most searched smartphone of this year. Launched by Motorola focusing the price conscious customers of this country, the Moto E offers corning gorilla glass protection, splash proof water resistant coating, responsive touchscreen and elegant look.
The Moto E also features 1.2GHz dual-core Snapdragon 200 SoC with Adreno 320 GPU, 1GB of RAM and Android Kitkat 4.4 operating system in a well built casing.
However, the camera of Moto E is somewhat inadequate in challenging lighting conditions and it also lacks autofocus but the price-to-performance ratio and the user experience speaks for it.
Xiaomi Redmi 1S
Following the Redmi Note release, Xiaomi first decided to stop selling this popular Android smartphone. But the good news is after the temporary ban on Xiaomi Redmi Note 3G edition, the manufacturer might continue selling this smartphone until the ban lifts.
Available at ₹5999 only on Flipkart through pre-booking, the Redmi 1s is powered by a 2,000 mAh battery with a well designed interface on top of Android Jellybean 4.3 operating system. The smartphone features an 8MP rear camera and a 1.6MP front camera with a 1.6GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 Soc, 1GB RAM and 8GB of ROM memory.
Huawei Honor Holly
Priced just ₹1,000 more than the Xiaomi Redmi 1s, the Huawei Honor Holly is the toughest competitor of MOTO E and Xiaomi Redmi 1s and leads with few advantages like more storage and better camera capability.
Featuring a 5-inch HD display, 1.3GHz quad-core processor and 1GB RAM Honor Holly features 16GB on-board memory with memory expansion support through MicroSD card. The Honor Holly also features an 8MP primary camera and a 2MP secondary camera and is powered by a 2,000 mAh battery.
The Honor Holly is a decent overall performer with an impressive battery life. Available at ₹6999 the only drawback is its keyboard and we suggest buyers to install a third-party keyboard for smoother experience.
Samsung Galaxy Core Prime
Choosing Galaxy Core Prime instead of one of the most successful smartphone of 2014 Moto G 2nd generation has several reasons including the price (almost ₹2000 less than Moto G), form factor (2.8mm slimmer and weighs 13g less than Moto G), slightly better processor (1.3GHz quad-core instead of 1.2GHz) and front camera (2MP instead of Moto G's 1.3MP).
Boasting a 4.5-inch WVGA TFT display with 480x800 pixels resolution (MOTO G features a 720p screen), the smartphone features a 1.2GHz quad-core processor along with 1GB of RAM memory and 8GB of in-built memory storage.
The Galaxy Core Prime also supports memory expansion up to 64GB. Sporting a 5MP with autofocus rear camera and a 2MP front camera, the device is powered by a 2000 mAh battery
Yu Yureka
It might sound too early to feature a smartphone in the list but the operating system and hardware specification speaks for it. Featuring almost similar specs of HTC's Desire 820, which is considered as a premium smartphone, the YU Yureka will certainly acquire huge attention particularly from the young crowd across the country.
Powered by a 1.5GHz octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 MSM8939 64-bit processor along with Adreno 405 series GPU and 2GB of RAM, Micromax's YU Yureka is expected to do well with all sort of application including games. Coupled with 16GB of in-built storage, the YU Yureka also sports a 13MP rear and a 5MP front camera.
Powered by a 2,500mAh battery and CyanogenMod 11 OS the YU Yureka will be available at ₹8,999 through Amazon India's retail website. To grab the phone, buyers need to pre-book the device.
