Best phones under Rs 20,000 (Jan 2024): OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G, Motorola G84 5G to Samsung Galaxy F34 5G

Our list of smartphones under Rs 20,000 this month has handsets with a good mix of features and performance. But that’s a given, right? Other than reasonable processing power, high refresh rate displays and 5G compliance, we also have phones that boast of features like optical image stabilisation (OIS) on the main camera, which is rare in this budget, and quite a few of them also offer 256GB internal storage. So let’s meet the best under 20K at the moment. Best phones to buy under Rs 20,000 in India Motorola G84 5G The Motorola G84 5G is probably the most feature-packed of the lot in this budget, starting with a 6.5-inch Full HD+ pOLED display with 120Hz refresh rate and 10-bit colour depth. This is the first of the three phones in this list to flaunt a 50MP primary camera with OIS, which we should stop terming as a rarity in this segment. You also get an 8MP ultrawide camera with auto-focus, which can double up as a macro camera. Its 16MP front camera should please the selfie enthusiasts.

This phone has an IP54 rated ingress protection that makes it splash-resistant. The Motorola G84 5G is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 chip that is decent enough for this segment. You get 12GB RAM and 256GB internal (expandable) storage to go with it. It has a 5000 mAh battery that keeps it running for close to a day and a half of moderate use, and a 33W fast charger is bundled along. It runs Android 13, and like most Motorola phones, the G84 has a clean and near-stock Android user interface. Motorola G84 5G price in India: Rs 18,999 for 12GB RAM/256GB storage Motorola G54 5G While the G84 is clearly a superior phone overall, the Motorola G54 5G isn’t too far behind and saves you a good Rs 3,000 despite offering comparable features and storage. This phone too has a 50MP primary camera at the back and with optical image stabilisation. You also get an 8MP ultrawide camera with auto-focus, which doubles up as a macro camera. A 16MP front camera does a good job with selfies and video calls. It has a 6.5-inch Full HD+ IPS LCD with 120 Hzrefresh rate for a flicker-free experience.

This phone has a water-repellent design with a modest IP52 rating. The Motorola G54 5G is powered by a MediaTek Dimensity 7020 chip, and you can get its 12GB RAM and 256GB internal (expandable) storage variant under 16K at the moment. Its 6000 mAh battery keeps it powered for over two days of moderate use, and a 33W fast charger is bundled along. It runs Android 13, and again, the G54 has a clean and near-stock Android user interface. Motorola G54 5G price in India: Rs 15,999 for 12GB RAM/256GB storage Samsung Galaxy F34 5G The Samsung Galaxy F34 5G too flaunts an impressive list of features other than the Samsung brand name. Right at the top of that list is a 6.5-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED display with 120Hz refresh rate and 1000 nits peak brightness. It is protected against scratches by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass 5. Just like the Motorola phones above, this Samsung phone also flaunts a 50MP primary camera with OIS. Support cast features an 8MP ultra-wide camera and a 2MP depth sensor. You get a decent 13MP selfie camera up front. [caption id=“attachment_13657972” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Image Credit: Firstpost | Mehul Reuben Das[/caption] The Samsung Galaxy F34 5G is powered by an Exynos 1280 SoC and you get 8GB RAM and 128GB internal storage to go with it. The storage can be expanded further with a microSD card. A 6000 mAh battery keeps the phone powered for close to two days of moderate use. The company doesn’t bundle a charger along and you will need to spend a few hundred bucks extra if you don’t have one already. The phones run Android 13 with Samsung’s One UI 5.1. Samsung Galaxy F34 5G price in India: Rs 17,999 for 8GB RAM/128GB storage OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G From 50MP cameras, it is time to jump to one with 108 megapixels. Even better, Amazon is offering a further Rs 1,000 off on the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G for Republic Day. Megapixel count aside, the primary camera is quite good and does most of the heavy lifting. It has a 2MP macro camera and a 2MP depth sensor for company. You get a 16MP front camera for selfies and video calls. This phone is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 chip, and you get its 8 GB RAM and 128 GB storage variant in this budget. [caption id=“attachment_13657982” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Image Credit: Firstpost | Ameya Dalvi[/caption] This entry-level Nord 3 series phone has a 6.72-inch Full HD+ IPS LCD display with a 120 Hz refresh rate and is noticeably bright even outdoors. The battery backup is pretty standard with a 5000 mAh battery keeping it powered for over a day and a half of moderate use. The company bundles a 67W fast charger that can charge over 75 per cent of the battery in less than half an hour. The OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G runs Android 13 with OxygenOS 13 with more OS and security updates expected over the next couple of years. OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G price in India: Rs 18,999 for 8GB RAM/128GB storage Lava Agni 2 5G From the home grown brands, the Lava Agni 2 5G is one phone that ticks most of the requisite boxes in this budget and looks quite good too. The striking feature of this phone is its 6.78-inch Full HD+ curved AMOLED display with a 120 Hz refresh rate and 10-bit colour depth. The company claims that the Agni 2 is the first phone in India to use a Mediatek Dimensity 7050 chip, which is a good choice for this segment. It is accompanied by 8 GB RAM and 256 GB internal storage.

Rear camera department consists of a 50MP primary camera, supported by an 8MP ultra-wide shooter, a 2MP macro camera and a 2MP depth sensor. A 16MP front camera takes care of selfies and video calls. The Lava Agni 2 5G has a 4700 mAh battery that lasts well over a day of moderate use, and the company bundles a 66W fast charger that claims to charge 50 per cent of it in just 16 minutes. The phone runs Android 13, and the company promises to keep things clean and free of ads or bloatware. Lava Agni 2 5G price in India: Rs 19,999 for 8GB RAM/256GB storage