 "Image Credit: Firstpost | Mehul Reuben Das")
Our list of phones under Rs 50,000 this month has a couple of surprises if you play your cards right (pun unintended). Needless to say, you can expect powerful processing hardware and excellent cameras and displays in this budget. After carefully considering a wide range of options available, here are the best smartphones selling in India within a budget of Rs 50,000 at the moment.
Best phones to buy under Rs 50,000 in India
OnePlus 11 5G
Typically, we would have considered the OnePlus 12R in this budget, and it is still an excellent option. But the top variant of the OnePlus 11 5G is currently selling for Rs 50,999 on Amazon India. On top of that, using one of many credit cards from popular banks, you can get a further Rs 3,000 off on the phone, making it an excellent deal. The phone is powered by Qualcomm’s previous flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, which is still very powerful, and you get 16GB RAM and faster 256GB UFS 4.0 storage to go with it.
The phone feels sturdy and great in hand courtesy of its aluminium body and curved edges. It has a 6.7-inch curved LTPO3 AMOLED display with a resolution of 3216x1440 pixels and 1300 nits peak brightness. This HDR10+ and Dolby Vision-compliant screen supports 10-bit colour depth and up to 120Hz variable refresh rate. The phone’s 5000mAh battery easily lasts for a day and a half of moderate use, and the bundled 100W charger takes it from empty to full in under half an hour.
The rear camera department is quite versatile starting with a 50MP primary camera with OIS (optical image stabilisation) and Hasselblad’s colour tuning. The support cast is equally impressive with a 48MP ultrawide camera with auto-focus that also doubles up as a quality macro camera, and a 32MP telephoto camera with 2X optical zoom that’s great for portrait photography too. The OnePlus 11 5G debuted with OxygenOS 13 based on Android 13 and is upgradeable to Android 14 with OxygenOS 14, with more updates expected in the future.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsOnePlus 11 5G price in India: Rs 47,999 (effectively) for 16GB RAM/256GB storage
Google Pixel 8a
Just like in the case of OnePlus, you can get the newly launched Google Pixel 8a in this budget by using the right payment method. The phone is powered by Google’s latest flagship Tensor G3 processor that also powers the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro, and you get 8GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. It sports a compact but sharp 6.1-inch OLED HDR display with Full HD+ resolution, 120Hz refresh rate and 2000 nits peak brightness. Its screen is protected by a Corning Gorilla Glass 3, while the phone has an IP67 rated ingress protection.
As you expect from Pixel phones, you get the purest version of Android 14 (and many more updates to follow) with the Material You Design language. Other than speedy OS updates, the Pixel phones are known for their camera capabilities, and the Pixel 8a is no different. It delivers admirably in that department courtesy of two cameras at the back. You get a 64MP primary camera with OIS and a 13MP ultra-wide camera with 120-degree FOV. It does a great job in different lighting and modes. The 13MP front camera clicks some neat selfies.
Google Pixel 8a price in India: Rs 49,999 (effectively) for 8GB RAM/128GB storage
Nothing Phone (2)
If you are looking for a good all-round phone with ample storage, look no further than the top variant of the Nothing Phone (2). The phone has a trademark design with a transparent back and LEDs. The Glyph lights at the back are not just cosmetic but provide a ton of functionality and customisation as well. The Nothing Phone (2) is powered by a still potent Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip and is accompanied by 12 GB RAM and 512 GB internal storage.
It has a 6.7-inch Full HD+ 10-bit LTPO OLED display with a peak brightness of 1600 nits, HDR10+ compliance and a variable refresh rate ranging from 1Hz to 120Hz. The photography department on the Nothing Phone (2) comprises a 50MP primary camera with OIS and a 50MP ultra-wide shooter with auto-focus. The camera performance is impressive in various modes, especially in good light. The 32MP front camera will please the selfie crowd.
A 4700 mAh battery keeps the phone powered for well over a day of moderate use. It supports 45W fast wired charging as well as 15W wireless charging. However, the company does not bundle a charger in the package and needs to be purchased separately. A good 45W USB-PD/PPS charger can juice it up fully in under an hour. The phone launched with Android 13 with Nothing OS 2.0, and can be updated to Android 14. The company has promised 4 years of software updates for this phone.
Nothing Phone (2) price in India: Rs 39,999 for 12GB RAM/512GB storage
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE 5G
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE 5G is another very good option in this budget with its 256 GB storage variant selling comfortably under 50K. This premium phone has an IP68-rated ingress protection along with an aluminium frame and glass back with Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection at the front and back. It has a 6.4-inch Full HD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a peak brightness of 1450 nits, HDR10+ compliance and 120Hz refresh rate.
Photography department on the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE 5G is quite versatile too. You get a 50MP primary camera with PDAF and OIS, a 12MP ultra-wide camera with 123-degrees FOV and an 8MP telephoto camera with OIS that provides 3X optical zoom. The camera performance is highly impressive as expected, and it can record videos in up to 8K resolution. A 10MP front camera takes care of selfies and video calls.
This Samsung phone is powered by a fairly powerful Exynos 2200 chip and is accompanied by 8 GB RAM and 256 GB internal storage. A 4500 mAh battery keeps it powered for over a day of moderate use and supports 25W fast charging as well as 15W wireless charging. You will need to buy a charger separately if you don’t have one already. It launched with Android 13 and is upgradeable to Android 14 with Samsung’s One UI 6.
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE 5G price in India: Rs 44,999 for 8GB RAM/256GB storage
iQOO 11 5G
We started this list with a phone powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip and we will end it with one too. The 16 GB RAM and 256 GB UFS 4.0 storage variant of the iQOO 11 5G is another powerful and feature-rich phone you can get your hands on under 50K. It has a sharp 10-bit 6.78-inch HDR10+ compliant E6 AMOLED display with a resolution of 3200 x 1440 pixels and 144Hz refresh rate. It is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus. The phone launched with Android 13 with FunTouch OS 13, and one can expect more updates going ahead.
The rear camera department consists of a 50MP primary camera with a Samsung GN5 sensor and OIS, accompanied by an 8MP ultra-wide camera and a 13MP telephoto camera that gives you 2X optical zoom and also doubles up as a portrait camera. The 16MP front camera handles selfies and video calls quite well. The iQOO 11 5G has a 5000 mAh battery that lasts for a day and a half of moderate use, and the bundled 120W fast charger promises to charge 50% of it in just 8 minutes, and fully in less than half an hour.
iQOO 11 5G price in India: Rs 44,999 for 16GB RAM/256GB storage