5 smartphones under Rs 35,000 that you should avoid buying
There's no denying that these are great times for the smartphone industry. Improvements in design and hardware suggest gadgets lineups will only get better. From budget to truly high-end premium flagship phones, we've seen a number of great devices being launched by smartphone makers across multiple segments.
But amid all the impressive devices, there have been some that have really disappointed. Smartphones that have either been overpriced or just not lived up to the mark with the internals on board. Some have passed the former test, but failed miserably when it came to looks and design.
So with these in mind, here's taking a look at smartphones you are better off staying away from.
Redmi Y1
First up on the list is a budget device from one of the most loved smartphone makers in the country, Xiaomi. Announced in November 2017, the selfie-focused Redmi Y1 was launched at an attractive price — the device available in two variants — priced at Rs 8,999 for 3GB RAM and 32GB storage and Rs 10,999 for the model with 4GB RAM and 64GB internal storage.
At the time of the launch, the smartphone maker said that the Redmi Y1 would build on the successes of its other popular phones and mark a new beginning for the company. However, it ended up being a disappointment. And for obvious reasons.
The Redmi Y1 comes with a 5.5-inch HD screen, octa-core Snapdragon 435 chipset, a 16-megapixel front camera with selfie light, and 13-megapixel rear camera with PDAF and dual LED flash. It has microSD card support of up to 128GB, 4G VoLTE, and a 3080mAh-battery.
As is clear from the spec sheet, the HD display and the chipset let the phone down in terms of hardware, but it's the phone's rear camera that disappoints the most.
For a photography-centric device, the Redmi Y1 takes good selfies, but falters while clicking pictures using the rear camera.
Nokia 2
This has been a great year for Nokia under HMD Global's leadership. The Finnish smartphone maker has seen a great resurgence, which has seen it coming out with absolute winners such as the Nokia 8, which not only shined on the spec sheet but also in real world usage. To top it off, the phone also came with an extremely attractive price tag.
However, if the 8 was Nokia's winner for the year, it was its budget king, the Nokia 2 that was the year's disappointment. Put in a direct fight against other budget segment biggies, including the Redmi 5A, the Nokia 2 failed to impress with its choice of internals or even its price tag.
Overall, the phone — with its underwhelming specs and an asking price of approximately Rs 6,700 — looks like a device that Nokia got wrong.
OnePlus 5
It's not often that you see a flagship from a well-known smartphone maker such as OnePlus get flak for not being up to the challenge, but that was exactly the case with the OnePlus 5.
In terms of internals, the device represents decent value — including a full-HD AMOLED display, 6GB/8GB of RAM, 64GB/128GB of internal storage and a 16-megapixel camera. But decent can never cut it if you are in the market for a flagship killer. In times when the smartphone industry moved to Quad HD and bezel-less displays, the OnePlus 5 came with a display that was far from being the best in the market.
Even the design of the phone let a lot of its users down, while the phone's 16-Megapixel camera was let down by the lack of OIS — a problem that persists with the OnePlus 5T.
Overall, this was a device that could have been great but was let down by nagging issues that OnePlus should have figured out before bringing the next gadget in the flagship series to the market.
HTC U Play
In the early 2010s, HTC was a fan favourite. Its custom HTC Sense-UI made Android look cool and its phones came with above-par hardware at competitive prices.
However, as the years went by, HTC has seen a steep decline in fortunes, and in its ability to churn out winners every year too.
Make no mistake, the smartphone maker still does make some really great phones, but the HTC U Play does not make the list.
Launched at Rs 41,990 (currently available for Rs 24,999), the phone gets it wrong when it comes to the battery, SoC and even the camera.
Powered by a Mediatek Helio P10 octa-core processor (2.0GHz) paired with 4GB RAM, the phone struggles to get through a day on a single charge because of the inclusion of a below-par 2435mAh lithium-ion battery.
Its camera also fails to impress, and as such it's a phone one should stay away from.
Smartron srt.phone
Designed in association with India's favourite cricketer, master blaster Sachin Tendulkar, the srt.phone is the second smartphone by Indian smartphone maker Smartron. For many, this association in itself is a good enough reason to buy the smartphone. However, if you're looking for something more from your smartphone, you will be left disappointed.
To its credit, the smartphone comes with a good spec sheet for the price and a completely stock version of Android Nougat. However, announced for Rs 12,999, the smartphone met strong competition in the likes of the Redmi Note 4.
Further, its unimpressive design, poor cameras, sub-standard battery life and lack of a storage expansion also bring the phone down.
Overall, this is also a phone you can stay away from.
Also read: Union Budget 2018: Is the middle class the biggest loser?