We have entered a new year and soon, the smartphone market will be flooded with several new options. It’s no surprise that the first week itself will see at least two new mid-premium smartphones in India – Vivo V23 Pro and Xiaomi 11i HyperCharge. The Vivo phone is launching on January 5 while Xiaomi will unveil its first smartphone of the year the very next day. Both these smartphones are likely to be priced around Rs 30,000. So, this is probably the best time to re-visit the best options available in the market right now.
Xiaomi’s Mi 11X was one of the best smartphones to launch under Rs 30,000 last year and remains to be one of our top recommendations in January 2022. Similarly, OnePlus Nord 2 is a great all-rounder at this price, offering something in nearly all departments. Other smartphones in this price category also come with good, high-refresh displays, decent cameras and fast charging tech.
Most of these smartphones also support 5G connectivity now. In case you are planning to upgrade the phone, here are the best smartphones under Rs 30,000 in India right now.
Mi 11X
As mentioned before, Mi 11X was probably the best mid-range smartphone to launch in India in 2021. The smartphone comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 processor. It features a 6.67-inch AMOLED Full-HD+ display with a 120Hz refresh rate. The handset packs a 4520mAh battery with 33W fast charging support.
It sports a 48-megapixel primary camera, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera, and a 5-megapixel telemacro camera. The Mi 11X is available in India at a starting price of Rs 27,999 for the 6GB RAM model and goes up to Rs 29,999 for the 8GB RAM option.
Our verdict – The Mi 11X has three things that go in its favour, including good performance, excellent display, and decent battery life. However, the poor cameras and average speaker performance are big issues.
Read our full review here
OnePlus Nord 2
The first OnePlus Nord phone revived the mid-premium category and Nord 2 has only taken the legacy ahead. The phone is powered by MediaTek Dimensity 1200-AI and runs on Android 11-based OxygenOS 11.3. It is an excellent all-rounder with a 6.43-inch AMOLED display with 1080×2400 pixels screen resolution with a 20:9 aspect ratio.
The Nord 2 sports a 50-megapixel Sony IMX766 primary camera, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera, and a 2-megapixel mono camera. The handset also packs a 32-megapixel selfie camera. The smartphone packs a 4500mAh battery and comes with Warp Charge 65 support.
The price in India starts at Rs 27,999 for the 6GB RAM model, while the 8GB comes at Rs 29,999.
Our verdict – The OnePlus Nord 2 is a great all-rounder device and packs a fantastic processor for gaming. The handset offers an excellent premium feel and gives a solid battery life.
Read our full review here
Poco F3 GT
Next on the list is a phone which isn’t talked about as much as it should be – Poco F3 GT. The smartphone was launched amid a lot of hype and targeted young gamers at a tight budget. It features a MediaTek Dimensity 1200 processor, has a 120Hz AMOLED display and comes with Maglev triggers on the side panel for gaming.
It packs a massive 5065mAh battery with 67W fast charging support. The Poco F3 GT supports 5G and offers dual stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos. The handset features a 64-megapixel primary camera, an 8-megapixel ultra-wide …….