Best smartphones to buy under Rs 20,000 in India - August 2019

Are you hunting for a smartphone that won't dig a big hole in your pocket? If you have a budget of Rs 20,000, you can expect quite exciting features like industry-leading 6,000mAh battery, 48-megapixel Quad Camera setup, in-display fingerprint scanner, and best-in-class performance. Here are some best options for you:

Realme X

The Realme X boasts a 6.53-inch notchless Super AMOLED (FHD) display with a screen-to-body ratio of 91.2 percent for an immersive experience while browsing, watching videos and playing games. It boasts of new optical GOODIX in-display light-sensing fingerprint sensor with an optimized chipset for faster unlocking and enhanced sensitivity. The device is powered by the excellent Qualcomm Snapdragon 710, which runs on 10nm technology, the mighty Adreno 616 GPU, Spectra 250 ISP, and X15 Modem and VOOC Flash Charge 3.0.

It features a 16-megapixel AI pop-up selfie camera with Sony IMX471 sensor and 48+5MP Dual Rear Camera with the flagship Sony IMX586 sensor and a large f/1.7 aperture to capture exceptional photographs.

The premium flagship device is available in two colors, Polar White and Space Blue and two variants: 4GB RAM+128GB storage at Rs 16,999 and 8GB RAM+128GB storage, at Rs 19,999 on Flipkart and Realme online stores.

Xiaomi Mi A3

The Xiaomi Mi A3 sports a 6.08-inch (15.46cm) HD+ (1560 x 720 pixels) resolution AMOLED Dot Drop display with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection, an aspect ratio of 19.5:9 and a waterdrop-style notch. The phone is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 AIE coupled with Adreno 610 GPU for a superior experience and 11nm technology for lower power consumption and uninterrupted work and play. The phone runs on Android 9.0 (Pie) and is a part of Google's Android One program.

The Xiaomi Mi A3 comes with a 32-megapixel AI selfie camera with f/2.0 aperture for stunning shots and AI smart triple rear camera set up that includes a 48MP high-resolution primary sensor (f/1.79 aperture) with Sony IMX586 sensor, 118° ultra-wide 8MP secondary sensor with f/2.2 aperture, and 2MP depth sensor with f/2.4 aperture.

On the power front, the Xiaomi Mi A3 is equipped with an in-built 4,030 mAh high-capacity battery, which also supports 18W fast charging and Quick Charge 3.0 Technology. The Xiaomi Mi A3 is available in three colors: Kind of Gray, Not just Blue and More than White and two variants: (4GB + 64GB) priced at Rs 12,999 and (6GB + 128GB) at Rs 15,999.

Lastly, the Xiaomi Mi A3 will be one of the first devices to get an Android 10 update, the upcoming latest version of the Android mobile operating system.

Realme 5 Pro

The Realme 5 Pro sports a 6.3-inch (16.0cm) FHD+ Dewdrop display with 2340 x 1080-pixel resolution and 90.6 percent screen-to-body ratio. It is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 AIE and runs on ColorOS 6-based on Android P.

The Realme 5 Pro houses a 16MP AI-selfie camera with Sony IMX 471 Sensor and 48MP AI Quad Camera setup on the back that includes: 48MP Primary camera with Sony IMX 586 Sensor, 8MP wide-angle camera, 2MP portrait camera, and 2MP macro camera with 4cm shooting distance.

The Realme 5 Pro packs a 4035 mAh battery that supports 20W VOOC 3.0 Flash Charging technology and AI cooling feature. The phone is available in three variants: (4GB+64GB) priced at Rs 13,999, (6GB+64GB) at Rs 14,999 and (8GB+128GB) at Rs 16,999 and two colors Sparkling Blue and Crystal Green. The phone will go on sale on September 4, exclusively on Flipkart and Realme online stores.

Samsung Galaxy M30s

The Samsung Galaxy M30s is expected to launch in mid-September in India, giving a tough competition to Xiaomi Mi A3, Realme 5 Pro and others in this segment. According to the reports, the phone will come with an Infinity V display and will be powered by the Exynos processor that has not been seen previously in any M series smartphones in India.

The phone is expected to feature a 48-megapixel triple rear camera setup and industry-leading 6,000mAh battery with fast charging support. The Samsung Galaxy M30s is expected to be priced under Rs 17,000.

Vivo S1

The Vivo S1 boasts a 6.38-inch (16.20cm) Super AMOLED 1080×2340 (FHD+) display with a 19.5:9 aspect ratio and the screen-to-body ratio of 90 percent to provide a large screen experience. S1 features an industry-leading 32-megapixel AI front camera for amazing and high clarity selfies and a 16-megapixel primary camera (f/1.78) with Sony IMX499 Camera Sensor, an 8-megapixel sensor (f/2.2), and a 2-megapixel tertiary sensor (f/2.4) to capture exceptional shots.

Powered by an octa-core MediaTek Helio P65 SoC with a 12nm design and clock speeds of up to 2.0GHz, the Vivo S1 runs on Funtouch OS 9, Vivo's own operating system, based on Android 9.0 Pie. The smartphone is available in two colors Skyline Blue and Diamond Black and three variants: (4GB RAM + 128GB) priced at Rs 17,990, (6GB RAM + 64GB) at Rs 18,990 and (6GB RAM + 128GB) at Rs 19,990.

Lastly, the Vivo S1 is equipped with a 4,500mAh long-lasting battery and18W Dual-Engine Fast Charging technology.

Vivo Z1 Pro

The Vivo Z1 Pro sports a 6.53-inch (16.59 cm) FHD+ Display (2340 x 1080 pixels) with 90.77 percent screen-to-body ratio and 19.5:9 super-wide view for an immersive experience and vibrant visuals.

Powered by Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 AIE processor and 4 GB or 6GB of RAM, the Vivo Z1 Pro is coupled with Adreno 616 GPU, an advanced 10-nm design, a clock speed of up to 2.3 GHz to handle any task seamlessly. The phone comes with 64 GB of internal memory and also has a dedicated MicroSD slot that supports storage expansion upto 256GB. The phone runs on Android Pie 9.

On the imaging front, the phone boasts a 32-megapixel In-Display Front Camera with an aperture ratio of f/2.0 for stunning selfies and triple rear camera setup, comprising a 16-megapixel ( f/1.78) Main Camera, 8-megapixel Super Wide-Angle Camera (120 degrees) and a 2-megapixel Depth Camera for exceptional pictures.

The Vivo Z1 Pro houses an industry-leading 5000-mAh batter with just 8.85 mm thickness and 18W Dual Engine Fast Charging technology. Also, it supports the OTG reverse charging function, making charging hassle-free. The phone is available in two colors Sonic Blue and Sonic Black and is priced at Rs 14,990 for (4 GB RAM | 64 GB ROM) variant and Rs 16,990 for (6 GB RAM | 64 GB ROM) and Rs 17,990 for (6GB RAM | 128GB ROM) variant.

Huawei Y9 Prime 2019

The Huawei Y9 Prime 2019 features a 6.59-inch TFT LCD LTPS multi-touch capacitive touchscreen with 2340 x 1080 pixels resolution for smooth viewing experience. It runs on Android Pie v9.0 +EMUI 9.0.1 operating system with 2.2GHz Cortex A73 + 1.7GHz Cortex A53 Hisilicon Kirin 710F octa-core processor for smooth functioning and lower power consumption. Y9 Prime features 16MP front Auto Pop-up camera with f/2.2 aperture and 16-megapixel+8-mexapixel+2-megapixel AI triple rear camera setup with f/1.8 aperture, f/2.4 aperture, and f/2.4 aperture for high-quality pictures.

On the memory front, the Huawei Y9 Prime 2019 comes with 4GB RAM and 128GB internal memory which is expandable up to 512GB. It is equipped with a 4000 mAH lithium-ion battery for a long-lasting experience. The phone is available in Emerald Green and Sapphire Blue color variants at Rs 15,990 on Amazon and other retails stores.

Realme 5

The Realme 5 boasts a 6.5-inch (16.5cm) Mini-drop HD+ display with a screen resolution of 1600 x 720 pixel and 89 percent screen-to-body ratio. The Realme 5 is the first smartphone in India to feature Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 AIE processor and runs on ColorOS 6-based on Android P. The phone houses a13MP AI-selfie camera and AI Quad Camera setup on the back that comprises of a 12-megapixel Primary camera, 8-megapixel Wide-Angle lens, 2-megapixel Macro lens, and a 2-megapixel Portrait lens.

The Realme 5 has taken a giant leap with a 5000mAh battery, which is the biggest on a Realme smartphone, till now. The smartphone is available in three variants: (3GB+ 32GB), (4GB+64GB) and (4GB+128GB) and will go on sale August 27, exclusively on Flipkart and Realme online stores. The phone is available in two color options and three variants: (3GB RAM+ 32GB) priced at Rs 9,999, (4GB RAM+64GB) at Rs 10,999 and (4GB RAM+128GB) at Rs 11,999.

Motorola One Action

The Motorola One Action boasts a 6.3-inch (16cm) CinemaVision Full HD+ display with a screen resolution of 2520 x 1080 pixels, an aspect ratio of 21:9 and 84 percent Screen to Body Ratio, that elevates viewing experience with visuals stretching from one edge to another. The phone is powered by octa-core Samsung Exynos 9609 SoC (2.2 GHz) paired with Mali G72 MP3 GPU, for superior gaming and browsing experience. The phone comes with 4G of RAM onboard and runs on Android 9 Pie and is a part of the Android One program. The phone comes with 128GB of onboard storage with Universal Flash Storage (UFS) and a hybrid microSD card slot which supports storage expansion up to 512GB.

On the imaging front, the smartphone features an ultra-wide action camera with the ultra-wide-angle lens that lets you capture more in every frame (nearly four times more). The Motorola One Action houses an AI-enabled triple rear camera system that includes a 12-megapixel main camera with f/1.8 aperture and 1.25micron pixel size, 5-megapixel depth sensor for perfect portrait shots and a 16-megapixel video camera sensor with 117-degree field-of-view, binned to 4MP with Quad Pixel 2.0micron and f/2.2 aperture. The smartphone's ultra-wide action camera is equipped with an enhanced video stabilization feature for smooth videos.

The Motorola One Action packs an in-built 3,500 mAh battery, which can go a full day on a single charge and 10W Rapid Charging support. The Motorola One Action has been launched at Rs 13,999 in two-color editions i.e. Denim Blue and Pearl White and will be exclusively available on Flipkart, starting from August 30 at 12 PM.

HTC Wildfire X 

The HTC Wildfire X sports a 6.22-inch (15.8 cm) waterdrop display with a screen resolution of 720 x 1520 pixels and 88.8 percent screen-to-body ratio. The phone is powered by a powerful 2.0GHz octa-core MediaTek Helio P22 processor and 3GB RAM and runs on Android Pie 9.

The HTC Wildfire X houses an 8-megapixel selfie camera and triple rear camera setup that includes a 12-megapixel primary camera (1.25 micrometer), 8-megapixel secondary lens and 5-megapixel Depth sensor with bokeh effect and loss-less 2x optical zoom capability. It packs a 3,300 mAH Li-Polymer Battery and supports 10W fast charging.

The smartphone comes with a personal security feature called 'MyBuddy' which helps the users to track their device's location with ease. It can trigger a loud alarm and also transmit the real-time audio or video of the surrounding if the user feels threatened or senses danger. The phone is available in two variants: (3GB RAM + 32GB storage) priced at Rs INR 10,999 and (4GB RAM + 128GB storage) at Rs 13,999.