Top 10 Smartphones Under Rs 15,000 (August): Vivo Z1 Pro, Realme 3 Pro, Note 7 Pro, Galaxy M30, Honor 10 Lite

With another new launch, the fight at the under Rs 15,000 range continues to intensify. Vivo launched a surprise budget killer, Vivo Z1 Pro to take on Redmi Note 7 Pro and Realme 3 Pro in the country.  Samsung stays strong with Galaxy M30, and Asus keeps the game going. Honor 10 Lite is back.

The company is also planning to launch its recently released 9X smartphones in the country.

The August edition of the top smartphones under 15,000 rupees list remains largely with a new addition, the Z1 Pro. Realme U1 is out, while Xiaomi Mi A2 sticks to the last. Xiaomi will also soon be replacing its popular Mi A smartphone with the latest edition. Here goes our new August list of the top 10 smartphones under Rs 15,000.

These devices are ranked based on camera performance, gaming experience, multitasking optimisation, display quality and battery performance.

Redmi Note 7 Pro

Starting with the most-popular smartphone in the list, Redmi Note 7 Pro continues to top the list of current best smartphones under 15,000 rupees. The top mid-range smartphone from Redmi comes with a premium glass design body on the out sandwiched between Corning Gorilla Glass 5 body. Redmi Note 7 Pro on top has a 6.3-inch Full HD+ dot notched display.

Note 7 Pro runs on the 11nm Snapdragon 675 processor with on MIUI 10 top based on Android 9 Pie backed by a 4,000mAh battery supporting 18W fast charge.

At the back, Redmi Note 7 Pro packs in a dual camera system comprising of the 48MP Sony IMX 586 sensor as its primary lens coupled with a 5MP secondary depth sensor. The smartphone is available starting at just Rs 13,999 via Flipkart and Mi.com.

Vivo Z1 Pro

The newly launched Vivo Z1 Pro is the latest to join the under 15,000 list. house a massive battery powered by fast charging capabilities. The smartphone comes with a 6.53-inch Full HD+ display offering a screen-to-body ratio of 90.77 per cent and a punch-hole inside the display. Z1 Pro is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 processor with a 3 camera system at the back panel.

Coming to optics, Vivo Z1 Pro uses a 16-megapixel sensor, an 8-megapixel super-wide secondary sensor and finally a 2-megapixel depth sensor. Upfront, the Vivo phone packs in a 32-megapixel selfie shooter. Vivo Z1 Pro runs on Android 9 Pie with Funtouch 9.0 on top.

As a plus, Vivo Z1 Pro comes with a huge 5,000mAh battery. It supports 18W fast charging technology and also packs in a fast charger inside the box. It takes around 2 hours to fully charge from 0 to 100 perfect. Charging it for around 40 minutes can ease you through the day.

Realme 3 Pro

Up next, Realme has it’s mid-range winner under 15,000, the Realme 3 Pro. The super budget smartphone from Realme scores high in almost all the departments. Realme 3 Pro comes with a high polycarbonate body on the featuring a 6.3-inch full HD+ water drop notched display on top. It has added Gorilla Glass 5 with a gradient design at the back. At the back, the smartphone has a dual camera setup featuring a 16MP Sony IMX 519 sensor.

The main sensor has an f/1.7 aperture coupled with a 5MP depth sensor with an f/2.4 aperture. Up front, Realme 3 Pro uses a 25MP selfie shooter with an f/2.0 aperture.

Running on Qualcomm Snapdragon 710 processor, Realme 3 Pro available in two variants with the new ColorOS 6.0 on top based on Android 9 Pie. The whole Realme 3 Pro package is backed by a 4,045 mAh battery supporting VOOC 3.0 fast charging (20W) with a Micro USB powered brick inside the box.

Samsung Galaxy M30

Taking the list further, it’s the hit Samsung Galaxy M30 smartphone next on the list. Samsung Galaxy M30 is one of the only smartphones in list to feature a triple camera setup at under Rs 15,000. Galaxy M30 dons a 6.4-inch Super AMOLED Full HD+ display featuring a water drop notch on top called the Infinity-V display. On the outside, it’s a high-quality plastic polycarbonate body with gradient finishes.

The smartphone runs on Samsung’s own in-house Exynos 7904 SoC octa-core chip coupled with 4GB or 6GB of RAM.

The triple camera system on Galaxy M30 features a 13-megapixel f/1.9 primary shooter coupled with a 5-megapixel ultra-wide lens and a third 5-megapixel depth lens. Galaxy M30 runs on Android 8.1 Oreo with One UI on top backed by a massive 5,000mAh battery with support for 15W fast charging (ships with the fast charging supported adapter in the box).

Redmi Note 7S

The recently-launched Redmi Note 7S takes the next spot replacing the regular Redmi Note 7. The new Redmi Note 7S from Xiaomi is currently the cheapest 48MP camera smartphone in India. Under 15,000 rupees, Note 7S packs in the same 6.3-inch Full HD+ notched display in an 19.5:9 aspect ratio featuring a glass sandwich body with Gorilla Glass 5 protection and the same level protection on the other side of the device.

Redmi Note 7S is powered by Snapdragon 660 processor coupled with 3GB/4GB of RAM and 32GB/64GB of built-in storage, expandable upto 256GB via a microSD card.

At the back, Redmi Note 7S comes with a dual camera setup featuring a 48MP main sensor coupled with a 5MP secondary depth sensor. Do note, it’s the Samsung ISOCELL GM1 48MP sensor, and not the Sony 48MP sensor. Up front, Note 7S sports a 13MP sensor with an f/2.0 aperture. Note 7S is backed by a 4,000mAh battery running on the latest Android 9.0 Pie based MIUI 10.

Asus ZenFone Max Pro M2

Movingg onto the next device, the second generation Asus Zenfone Max Pro M2 at its current price does make a great option at under Rs 15,000. The new  Zenfone Max Pro smartphone is now available in India starting at just Rs 9,999. Zenfone Max Pro M2 offers excellent value for money backed by some great features. The Asus smartphone comes with a 6.22-inch Full HD+ notched display protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 6.

Max Pro M2 runs on the much-dependable Snapdragon 660 processor, dual cameras including Sony IMX 486 sensor and 4K video recording support.

On top, the smartphone runs on flawless stock Android experience with 8.1 Oreo (Android Pie update out) and a massive 5,000mAh battery capable of running for at least two days on moderate use. The smartphone supports 18W fast charging, but doesn’t come with a fast charger.

Realme 2 Pro

This Realme smartphone from last year, the Realme 3 Pro predecessor still remains of the best smartphones you can currently buy at under 15,000 rupees. Realme 2 Pro is now available starting at Rs 12,990 offering great value for money at the price. The smartphone runs on Snapdragon 660 processor, same as Redmi Note 7 or Max Pro M2.

Realme 2 Pro comes with a Full HD+ 6.2-inch water drop notch display, dual rear cameras and a 3,500mAh battery.

Realme also rolled out new Android 9.0 Pie Color OS 6 update. While a few specs may seem outdated, but still the smartphone is one of the best smartphones you can under 15,000. There are a few offers also available on the Realme 2 Pro smartphone on the official Realme website.

Honor 10 Lite

Huawei and Honor phones can continue using US-made products and services, so Qualcomm chips, Corning glasses and Google services will stay on Huawei phones. Honor 10 Lite is currently available in two options in the country: base model with 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage starts at Rs 11,999.

Honor 10 Lite packs in a 6.21-inch Full HD+ notched display running on HiSilicon Kirin 710 SoC coupled with up to 6GB RAM and up to 64GB internal storage.

At the back, the Honor device sports a dual camera system featuring a 13-megapixel primary sensor on the back and a 2-megapixel secondary depth sensor. Upfront, Honor 10 Lite comes with a 24-megapixel sensor, backed by a 3,400mAh battery.

Samsung Galaxy M20

The other Samsung bestseller, the Galaxy M20 claimed a top spot in the mid-budget segment. Galaxy M20 sports a 6.3-inch full-HD+ offering a screen resolution of 1080 x 2340 pixels with a Infinity-V styled notch on top in an 19.5:9 aspect ratio and glossy plastic back. Samsung Galaxy M20 runs on Exynos 7904 chip coupled with 3GB or 4GB RAM with 32GB and 64GB of storage respectively.

The storage can be further expanded up to 512GB with an external microSD card. At the back, Galaxy M20 comes with a dual camera setup comprising a 13MP (f/1.9) main sensor coupled with a 5MP ultra-wide angle sensor.

Up front, the Samsung smartphone has an 8MP (f/2.0) sensor with an in-display flash. Galaxy M20 runs on Android 8.1 Oreo with One UI on top backed by a massive 5,000mAh battery with support for 15W fast charging (ships with the adapter in the box). The base model of the smartphone currently starts at only Rs 9,990 a piece.

Xiaomi Mi A2

Coming to final smartphone at under 15,000 bucks, the second generation Xiaomi Mi A2 smartphone is currently available at a permanently discounted price of Rs 10,999 for the base model. Launched last year a starting price of Rs 16,999 in August, Mi A2 with clean stock Android seems a reasonable option at under 15,000 if you wish to experience seamless pure Android Pixel-like UI.

The company recently launched the third generation Mi A3 in Spain. The device will soon be replacing Mi A2 in the country at the same price range.

The smartphone is an Android One device, directly backed by Google when it comes to security patches and two guaranteed version upgrades. Mi A2 runs on Snapdragon 660, Android Oreo, dual cameras, widescreen 18:9 notch-less display and a 3,000mAh battery supporting QC 4.0 fast charge.