Best Mid-Range Smartphones above Rs 15000 (May – June)

There are few interesting mid-range smartphones launched in May with competitive specifications and better build quality. Below you find the devices that are priced between Rs. 15,000 – Rs. 25,000. Unlike the budget devices, these devices come with superior build quality and offers lag-free user experience. This month we also have a smartphone from Indian manufacturer which offers high-end specifications listed alongside the global brands. While there aren’t many options to choose from, below are the list of those few devices.

• Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) – Rs. 15,990

The Galaxy J7 (2016) is the successor for the Galaxy J7 that launched in 2015. It comes with 5.5-inch HD Super AMOLED display while in China, it was launched with Full HD resolution. Under the hood is an octa-core processor clocked at 1.8GHz. It comes with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of onboard storage along with a MicroSD card slot. Coming to the cameras, it includes 13MP rear camera with an aperture of f/1.9 and laser autofocus. There is also a 5MP front camera that comes assisted by LED flash.

The device supports dual SIM and runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow with TochWiz UI overlaid. It is kept powered on by a 3,300mAh battery that can give at least a day of usage. Connectivity options include 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, NFC, Bluetooth, GPS, and a MicroUSB 2.0 port. The device includes the S Bike mode that was introduced with Galaxy J3 2016. It will be available in Gold, Black, and White colors and is priced at Rs. 15,990. It measures 151.7 x 76 x 7.8 mm and weighs 170 grams.

• Coolpad Max – Rs. 24,999

After launching the three popular Note 3 series device under Rs. 10,000 price range, Coolpad now came up with a Rs.24,999 priced Coolpad Max. The device comes with an all metal build and feels slim in hand by measures just 7.6mm thickness. It will be available exclusively on Amazon India and comes in Royal Gold and Rose Gold colors. It runs on Android 5.1 Lollipop with highly customized CoolUI 8.0 laid on top. The device offers dual SIM dual Standby with 4G LTE connectivity.

The device features a 5.5-inch Full HD display along with 2.5D Gorilla Glass 4 protection. It is backed by Snapdragon 617 octa-core processor clocked at 1.5GHz along with 4GB of RAM. There is 64GB of internal storage that can be expanded additionally upto another 128GB. It comes with 13MP primary camera and a 5MP front camera. The Coolpad Max is powered by 2,800mAh battery along with Quick Charge 3.0 supported 9V/2A power adapter.

• Nextbit Robin – Rs. 19,999

Last year, Nextbit had launched the Nextbit Robin in the U.S after successful Kickstarter campaign for $400. Now in May 2016, the device was launched in the Indian market exclusively through Flipkart and is priced at Rs. 19,999. The device runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow with the customized UI. Though it is completely built out of plastic, the device doesn’t feel cheap. The device can automatically store the least used apps in cloud thus clearing the onboard storage.

It comes with 5.2-inch IPS display with Full HD resolution. The device comes powered by the Snapdragon 808 hexa-core processor along with 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. It has a 13MP rear camera with dual LED flash and a 5MP selfie camera on the front. It is backed by a 2,680mAh battery that also support Quick Charging. The device comes with dual speakers and dual amplifiers for better sound output. It has a single SIM slot that supports 4G LTE along with other basic connectivity features including NFC.

• Smartron tPhone – Rs. 22,999

After launching the Windows 10 powered Smartron tBook tablet last month, the company had officially launched its first ever smartphone Smartron tPhone. It comes with a Gorilla Glass 3 protected 5.5-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) AMOLED display. The device is powered by the last years Snapdragon 810 octa-core processor. It has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of onboard storage. The device offers dual SIM dual standby and runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow out-of-the-box.

Talking about the camera, the tPhone includes 13MP rear camera with dual tone LED flash and a 5MP selfie camera on the front.  It comes with USB Type-C port which supports Qualcomm’s Quick Charge 2.0. The 3,000mAh battery on this device might give at least a day of usage. It will be available in Orange, Grey, Blue and Pink colors. Coming to the pricing, it is priced at Rs. 22,999 which seems to be slightly overpriced. There even better alternatives like Xiaomi Mi 5 that comes with flagship specifications at slightly higher price.

• ZUK Z2 – Rs. 18,500 (approx)

After launching the Z1 and Z2 Pro, Lenovo’s subbrand ZUK came up with the ZUK Z2 which is priced very aggressively at just 1799 Yuan; 200 Yuan lesser than the Xiaomi Mi 5. It comes with a 5-inch Full HD display with 2.5D glass laid on top. Under the hood is the Snapdragon 820 quad-core processor coupled with Adreno 530 GPU and 4GB of RAM. It comes only in 64GB storage variant, while the Z2 Pro has 6GB RAM variant with 128GB of storage. The fingerprint sensor is integrated into the home button the front.

On the camera front, it has a 13MP rear camera with LED flash and PDAF, and an 8MP selfie camera with an aperture of f/2.0. It is backed by a 3,500mAh battery which can be charged from 0% to 80% in just one hour with the help of fast charging. The device runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow based ZUI 2.0 OS while the international variants will get Cyanogen 13 OS. Connectivity options include 4G LTE, VoLTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.1 LE, GPS/A-GPS, and a USB 2.0 Type-C port.

• ASUS Zenfone 3 – Rs. 17,000 (approx)

ASUS launched the three new high-end smartphones Zenfone 3, Zenfone 3 Deluxe, Zenfone 3 Ultra. While the Deluxe and Ultra are costing more than $450, the basic Zenfone 3 is priced at just $249. It comes with a metal frame and is covered with 2.5D Gorilla Glass 4 on front and back. The device sports a 5.5-inch Full HD resolution display and comes powered by the Snapdragon 625 octa-core processor. The Zenfone 3 series smartphone are first ASUS smartphone to offers fingerprint sensor; it is placed on the rear of the Zenfone 3.

The Zenfone 2 is the first smartphone to offer 4GB RAM, and now the Zenfone 3 comes with 3GB/4GB RAM while Zenfone 3 Deluxe packs 6GB of RAM. There will be 32GB and 64GB storage variants which include MicroSD card slot. It features a 16MP rear camera with laser autofocus and OIS. On the front is an 8MP sensor with the wide-angle lens. It is backed by a 3,000mAh non-removable battery and sports dual SIM card slots with 4G LTE support. It measures 152.59 x 77.38 x 7.69 mm and weighs 155 grams.