Best phones under 20,000 (18 May 2020)

Best phones under 20,000

Phones under Rs. 20,000	Technical Mystery rating (out of 10)	Price in India (as recommended)
Poco X2	8	Rs. 16,999
Realme 6 Pro	8	Rs. 17,999
Samsung Galaxy M31	8	Rs. 15,999
Realme X2	8	Rs. 17,999
Samsung Galaxy A50	8	Rs. 15,899
Poco F1	8	Rs. 15,499
Asus ZenFone 5Z	9	Rs. 15,999

Poco X2

One of the newest additions to the list and the Poco family, the Poco X2 checks most of our boxes. This device is tall and has a big 6.67-inch display with a 20:9 aspect ratio. The display also boasts of a 120Hz refresh rate which is a bonus. The Poco X2 has a dual-camera punch-hole on the front, and a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, both of which aren't common features. The Poco X2 feels large and bulky. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G which is a powerful chip that can handle gaming quite well.

The Poco X2 has multiple variants: 6GB of RAM with 64GB of storage, 6GB of RAM with 128GB of storage, and 8GB of RAM with 256GB of storage. All three were priced under Rs. 20,000 when first launched, but the recent GST hike has caused each variant of the Poco X2 to go up in price by Rs. 1,000. The base variant is now priced at 16,999, the middle one at Rs. 17,999, and the top variant is at 20,999,

Poco has packed in a 4,500mAh battery and you get a 27W charger in the box. This phone sports a quad-camera setup at the back and we noticed that the photo quality in daylight is quite good. Low-light photo quality was also relatively impressive but not as detailed as during the day. Low-light video quality wasn't as good.

Realme 6 Pro

The latest device to launch in this price segment also managed to do quite well in our review. This device is powered by the new Snapdragon 720G SoC and has a dual-camera hole at the front. The device is well designed but is a little slippery as it has a glass back. This phone is also a little heavy at 202g. The Realme 6 Pro has a 6.6-inch display and the top corners are a bit too high to reach when using this phone single-handedly. Realme has used a 90Hz LCD display and a side-mounted fingerprint scanner.

The Realme 6 Pro is offered in three variants: 6GB of RAM with 64GB of storage, 6GB of RAM with 128GB of storage, and 8GB of RAM with 128GB of storage. Even following a price hike due to GST, all variants are available under Rs. 20,000

Just like the Poco X2, this smartphone has a quad-camera setup at the back. The cameras worked very well in daylight, but low-light performance could do with a few tweaks. The Realme 6 Pro has a 4300mAh battery and delivered excellent battery life when we reviewed it.

Samsung Galaxy M31

Samsung's M series has gained a lot of popularity since these models offer good value for money and are backed by a big brand. The Galaxy M31 uses the same blueprint as the Galaxy M30 and the Galaxy M30s. It sports a 6.4-inch full-HD+ AMOLED display and has a quad-camera setup at the back. It also packs a big 6,000mAh battery and a capable Exynos 9611 SoC.

Samsung offers the Galaxy M31 with 6GB of RAM and two storage options, 64GB and 128GB. The big battery offers fantastic battery life and this phone could go on for 2 days easily. The cameras are good in daylight, the wide-angle one offers a wider field of view but misses out on details. We did notice that the camera AI can go overboard in terms of saturating colours. The primary camera is a little slow while focusing and you can see minor grain in the output. With Night mode enabled, the Galaxy M31 delivers better low-light shots. We found video stabilisation to be average as well. 

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While it is not as powerful as the Realme 6 Pro or the Poco X2, the Galaxy M31 does deliver excellent battery life.

Realme X2

The Realme X2 brought a slew of noteworthy features to the sub Rs. 20,000 segment when it was first launched. It has a 6.4-inch AMOLED display with an embedded fingerprint scanner. It is also powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G processor. The Realme X2 has a quad-camera setup at the back and comes in a variety of colours.

Realme has packed a 4000mAh battery into the Realme X2 and also ships a 30W fast charger in the box which makes charging quick. The Realme X2 could handle day-to-day tasks and gaming very easily, and the battery lasted us over a day and a half. Realme sells three variants of the X2 in India, but due to the recent GST price hike of Rs. 1,000 each, only the two lower ones are available in this price range.

The quad-camera setup lets you take good photos in daylight. We liked our portrait shots, as the dedicated depth camera does a very good job of separating a subject from the background. Low-light camera performance is also good but there is some noise in the output. The Nightscape mode does help improve low-light photography.

Samsung Galaxy A50

The Samsung Galaxy A50 was launched at a price higher than Rs. 20,000, but over time it has fallen below Rs. 18,000 even accounting for GST. The Galaxy A50 is well designed and does look like a premium smartphone. This model has a 6.4-inch AMOLED display with a dewdrop notch. The Galaxy A50 does not feel heavy or bulky and is easily manageable.

The Galaxy A50 is powered by the Exynos 9610 SoC, and while it is capable, it isn't as powerful as some of the other smartphones on this list. Samsung offers two variants of the Galaxy A50, with 4GB RAM and 6GB of RAM. Storage remains unchanged at 64GB for both. It also has a 4,000mAh battery and comes with a 15W charger in the box.

The Galaxy A50 is a little older than many of the other smartphones on this list and has a triple camera setup. We found the camera performance to be average in daylight, and low-light camera performance isn't great. The device also has a fair amount of preinstalled bloatware and you'll have to deal with some spammy notifications.

Poco F1

Poco's first smartphone in the Indian market was a low-cost powerhouse. The Poco F1 is also one of the oldest models on this list. Launched in 2018, the Poco F1 is powered by the flagship processor from that year, the Snapdragon 845. Multiple price cuts since then have brought it down to the sub-Rs. 20,000 segment. In the recent past, the base variant has gone on sale for around Rs 15,000 which is quite impressive.

The Poco F1 is dated but packs some serious performance. It also has a 4000mAh battery for good battery life. There are three variants of the Poco F1: the base variant with 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage is priced at Rs. 15,499. The middle variant with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage is priced at Rs. 18,999.

The Poco F1 has a dual-camera setup at the back and takes decent photos in daylight, but low-light photos were average. While the Poco F1 can record 4K video it has an 8-minute cap which you need to keep in mind while shooting.

Asus ZenFone 5Z

The Asus ZenFone 5Z shares the same story as the Poco F1. This too is a 2018 flagship smartphone that has slowly dropped in price over time. However, the ZenFone 5Z offers better build quality and better cameras.

It is powered by the same Snapdragon 845 SoC as the Poco F1. There are three variants of the ZenFone 5Z: 6GB of RAM with 64GB of storage, 6GB of RAM with 128GB of storage, and 8GB of RAM with 256GB of storage. Apart from the top variant, the other options are available for under Rs. 20,000. The ZenFone 5Z also has a dual-camera setup at the back, and we found photo quality to be better than what the Poco F1 produces.