Best Phones Under 12000 in India

The Redmi Note 8 is quite popular in the segment in India, and if you have a higher budget of around Rs 12,000, you can get a higher storage and RAM variant of the device. The Redmi Note 8 looks far more premium than its price, and that’s because of a shiny new finish from Xiaomi that’s topped off with Gorilla Glass 5 on both sides. The Note 8 is powered by the Snapdragon 665 which is good enough to handle the basic tasks of browsing, shooting, reading and playing casual games. The Redmi Note 8 also sports a 6.3-inch IPS LCD display along with P2i splash-proof coating on top. At the back, there is a quad camera stack led by a 48MP primary camera, followed by an 8MP ultrawide camera, a 2MP macro camera and another 2MP depth sensor. There’s also a 4000mAh battery inside with support for 18W fast charging.

The Realme 5s is yet another addition to the company’s ever expanding budget lineup. The phone is almost identical to the Realme 5 except for the camera stack at the back. The Realme 5s is a powerful budget smartphone that is powered by the Snapdragon 665 SoC that’s good enough for browsing and casual gaming. You can pick the variant with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage. The phone rocks a 48MP quad camera setup that includes an 8MP ultrawide lens, a 2MP macro lens and another 2MP depth sensor.

The Vivo U20 is quite packed with features for the price it comes at. That includes a 6.53-inch IPS LCD panel with good brightness along with FHD+ resolution. There’s a Snapdragon 675 SoC under the hood that does have a positive impact in the gaming performance. On top of that, you can snag the 6GB RAM variant in that price. The phone offers a triple camera setup with a 16MP camera, an 8MP ultrawide lens and a 5MP depth sensor. The Vivo U20 comes with a 5,000mAh battery with 18W fast charging.

The Realme 5i takes on the Redmi Note 8 head on with almost identical specs but offers a different polycarbonate-based design with premium colour finish which makes it more affordable. Inside, there's a Snapdragon 665 SoC which is combined with up to 4GB RAM and 128GB storage, making the top variant perfect for storing movies, photos and games. The Realme 5i uses a 12MP quad camera setup that also includes an ultrawide lens, a macro lens and a depth sensor. There's also a 5000mAh battery inside.

The Samsung Galaxy M30s used to be a good deal under Rs 12,000 but after the recent hike in GST rate for mobile phones, it's now slightly more expensive. The Galaxy M30s punches above the price-segment it launched in. The phone offers a bright and vivid AMOLED display with Gorilla Glass 3 on top. The body is made of plastic and houses three cameras at the back including a 48MP primary camera, a 5MP ultrawide lens and another 5MP depth sensor. The phone itself is powered by the Exynos 9611 SoC with up to 6GB RAM and 128GB storage. But the USP of the Galaxy M31 is the battery life. The phone rocks a massive 6,00mAh battery that easily delivers up to two days of battery life.

The Moto G8 Plus is part of the popular G-series from Moto and was also priced under Rs 12,000 at launch. Later, the price was hiked after the GST rates were increased. While this is not Android One branded, it still runs on the stock Android interface with some extra features from Moto that are quite useful. The G8 Plus offers a 6.3-inch IPS LCD display with FHD+ resolution. The Snapdragon 665 SoC under the hood ensures you get decent performance out of the phone while 4GB RAM and 64GB storage makes it just about adequate for regular usage. The Moto G8 Plus also comes with a 48MP triple camera setup at the back that also includes a 16MP ultrawide sensor and another 5MP depth sensor.

The Mi A3 is an Android One-powered device from Xiaomi and runs on the stock Android interface with no extra bloatware or additional features. The phone itself is quite lightweight and easy to use one-handed for its compact form factor. Furthermore, you get an AMOLED display with HD resolution which is protected using Gorilla Glass 5. The rear panel is made of plastic and houses a 48MP primary camera, an 8MP ultrawide camera and another 2MP depth sensor. The phone runs on the Snapdragon 665 and comes with up to 6GB RAM and 128GB storage. The phone will also receive two years of Android updates from Google.

The Realme 6 is one of the best smartphones you can buy right now in this segment. Although the price is slightly higher than the Rs 12,000 you may have, it’s perfectly worth it to spend that extra premium. At that price, you get the powerful MediaTek Helio G90T SoC under the hood that boosts the gaming capabilities of this device to a large extent. The phone also comes with a 90Hz refresh rate display, a first for a smartphone in this segment. That once again improves the general experience of using the smartphone with the UI becoming a whole lot smoother. The Realme 6 also comes with a 64MP primary camera along with three other lenses at the back. There’s another 8MP ultrawide lens, another 2MP macro lens and a 2MP depth sensor. On the front, you get a 16MP selfie camera drilled into the display. The Realme 6 also looks quite good with an unique gradient design and a glass-tic body. Topping it off is a large 4,300mAh battery with support for 30W fast charging. The phones run Android 10-based Realme UI.

The Motorola One Action is a smartphone that has a built-in action camera. Motorola offers a stabilised video mode to capture things in motion. The phone is also Android One powered with a clean, stock Android interface and the promise of regular updates. The One Action is powered by the Exynos 9609 SoC and comes with 4GB RAM and 128GB storage. There’s a 3500mAh battery inside.

The Redmi Y3 is a selfie-focused smartphone that comes with a powerful 32MP front camera. The selfie camera is capable of delivering sharp selfies in both natural light and in low-light thanks to a dedicated night mode. It’s also a fairly capable daily driver powered by the Snapdragon 632 SoC with up to 4GB RAM and 64GB storage. At the back, there’s a dual camera unit with a 12MP primary sensor and another 2MP depth sensor that’s fairly feature packed but is light on the details. The Redmi Y3 is powered by a 4000mAh battery.