Smartphone Buyer's Guide: Summer 2014

A lot can change in a little while. We've just seen the launch of two new flagship phones, but there have also Mobile World Congress this February have now launched here, or have been announced (with official pricing) ahead of actual availability. Since you can now get a whole lot more for your money, it's time to update our Spring 2014 smartphone buyer's guide with new products, updates and pricing information.

been plenty of new launches across the board. Many of the phones that made headlines at the annual

We've narrowed down the enormous number of phones available today to just a few in each price band. We've considered a huge number of parameters, including price, performance, features and versatility, build quality, camera quality, battery life, and upgradability.

Methodology
We've divided the market into a number of price bands, based on current trends and the amount a buyer can usually stretch his or her budget by after having identified a reasonable model. Generally, the phones in each price band will be comparable in terms of features and capabilities. We've also considered current street prices, as opposed to MRPs, since these prices do drop over the course of a device's life, and what really matters is the price right now.

The cheapest devices that could possibly qualify as smartphones sell for between Rs. 5,000 and Rs. 9,000. Beyond that range and up to Rs. 14,000, it is now possible to buy a modern smartphone with all the basic features in place.

Between Rs. 14,000 and Rs. 30,000, we are firmly in mid-range territory. However, due to the massive difference between devices at either end of this band, we've subdivided it even further. Budget-friendly options now include models with quad-core processors and reasonably good cameras, with Indian brands muscling in on the territory formerly dominated by multinationals. You also have a wider range of platform options. A number of smartphones that were top end just a year ago, and are still perfectly serviceable, make up the higher end of this band.

Above Rs. 30,000, we have a variety of models that are nearly as powerful as the flagships of each brand. These are usually only one generation old, or "lite" versions of top-end products, and represent pretty good value for money.

Most current flagship models are priced between Rs. 40,000 and Rs. 65,000. In this range, you'll find each brand's most feature-laden phone. In fact, most are priced at around Rs. 45,000, with the upper reaches of this category made up of variants with more storage capacity.

Of course, if money is no object, there are phones even more luxurious that you can splash out on. Some of these have designer touches, or are built out of luxurious materials.

Here are our top picks in each category:

Rs. 5,000 - 9,000
The Nokia X Dual SIM (Review I Pictures) is a compelling product that lets users run a huge number of Android apps, with the benefit of Nokia's legendary construction quality and a recent price reduction. There's fresh competition, though, in the form of Sony's new Xperia E1 (approximate street price: Rs. 7,500) and Xperia E1 Dual (approximate street price: Rs. 8,250). Both versions of this phone are priced very reasonably and offer a mainstream Android environment and of course access to the Google Play store.

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