Best Affordable Flagship Smartphones Of The Year 2019

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You don't have to spend a fortune to experience flagship-grade smartphone performance in the year 2019. This year the smartphone companies have introduced handsets that are priced less than Rs. 40,000 but offer the same level of flagship performance that a handset priced above Rs. 70,000 brings to the table.

 

Flagship Smartphones

Yes, we are talking about the value flagship smartphones that pack in all the modern features and are backed by the top-of-the-line hardware and even run the latest software. The following list ranks the best affordable flagship smartphones of the year 2019 that you can buy today in the Indian market.

Realme X2 Pro
 

Realme X2 Pro

Available at a starting price of Rs. 29,999, the Realme X2 Pro is India's most affordable smartphone that offers a 90Hz display and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855+ chipset. Another highlight of the smartphone is the 64MP quad-lens camera setup and unbelievably fast charging speeds. You can charge the big 4,000mAh battery of this device in just 35 minutes as the handset is equipped with the company's 50W Super VOOC Flash charge technology

The Realme X2 Pro sports a 6.5-inch OLED screen with 1080 x 2400p resolution. The display supports HDR+ and 100 % DCI-P3 color gamut and gets bright enough to comfortably use the handset outdoors. 

With the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855+ chipset, 8GB/12GB LPDDR4X RAM and 128GB/ 256GB UFS 3.0 storage, we did not experience any lag or app crash during our time with the device. The smartphone also offers clean and loud ultra-linear dual speakers that support Dolby Atmos surround sound and Hi-Res audio. Besides, the Realme's in-screen fingerprint scanner and the face unlock is blazing fast and accurate. As far as camera is concerned, the Realme X2 Pro features a versatile quad-lens rear camera featuring a 64MP+ 8MP (wide-angle) + 13MP (telephoto & Macro camera) + 2MP depth sensor setup.

Overall, it's a smartphone to buy in minimum investments if you want to experience the latest advancements in mobile technology.

Redmi K20 Pro

Redmi K20 Pro

Next in line is the Redmi K20 Pro, an excellent budget flagship smartphone that offers everything you would expect from a premium handset. The Redmi K20 Pro comes in the most discrete gradient finish ever seen on a smartphone. Xiaomi Redmi K20 Pro flaunts a 6.39-inch notch-free Super AMOLED display. The Redmi K20 Pro's screen supports DCI-P3 color gamut, HDR 10 and is also Widevine L1 certified. 

The Redmi K20 Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 855 chipset that features 8X Kryo 485 cores and is paired with 6GB and 8GB LPDDR4X RAM to handle multitasking. Running on the new MIUI 11, the Redmi K20 Pro is a delight to use. What truly impressed us is the 3-lens camera setup at the rear panel. With our tests, we can say that the Redmi K20 Pro offers best-in-class camera performance in the sub-40K price-point. The vertically stacked camera assembly houses 48MP lens (f/1.8) 8 MP Telephoto Lens (f/2.4) with PDAF/Laser AF, 2x optical zoom, and a 13 MP Ultrawide lens (f/2.4). The camera can shoot videos in 4K-2160p@30/60fps, 1080p@30/120/240fps, and 1080p@960fps. You can also record slow-motion videos at 120fps and 240fps.

As far as battery life is concerned, the Redmi K20 Pro's 4,000mAH battery cell can easily last for more than a day. The company is shipping an 18W charger in the box, which is the only deal-breaking feature as the competitors are offering much faster-charging speeds at somewhat similar price-points. The Redmi K20 Pro is now selling at an unbelievable price-point of just Rs. 26,200 for the 6GB RAM variant.

Asus ROG Phone II

Asus ROG Phone II

The third spot in our list goes to the Asus ROG Phone II, which is every gamers delight. Available at a starting price of Rs. 37,999 for the 8GB RAM + 128GB ROM variant, the Asus ROG Phone II brings some mind-blowing features and top-of-the-line hardware. It blows the OnePlus 7T out of the water by offering the world's first 120Hz AMOLED display, massive 6,000 mAh battery and improved Air triggers. At the core of the ROG Phone II is the speed-binned Snapdragon 855+ SoC and latest Adreno GPU making it the obvious choice for the power users and avid gamers.

LG G8s ThinQ

LG G8s ThinQ

Third in our list for the best value for money flagship smartphone is the LG G8s ThinQ, which is for consumers who prefer practicality over gimmicky features. The handset phone's body is MIL-STD-810 compliant, which can withstand far more damages than its contemporaries like the OnePlus 7T and another sub 40K handsets. It also offers 3.5mm headphone jack, conventional fingerprint scanner and a microSD card slot. 

While the G8s ThinQ fails to offer a 90Hz panel, the 6.21-inch OLED screen with 19.5:9 aspect ratio and 2248 x 1080 pixels resolution is a delight to use. The G8s ThinQ's OLED panel offers impressive viewing angles and good sunlight visibility. It is also protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5. The smartphone is backed by a Snapdragon 855 SoC.

We loved testing the triple-lens camera setup on the LG G8s ThinQ. The camera setup features a 12 MP primary sensor + 13 MP wide-angle sensor + 12 MP telephoto lens. The 12MP primary lens and telephoto lens is OIS stabilized plus you also get the industry-leading 137-degree field-of-view. Besides, the G8s ThinQ is the only smartphone that offers a dedicated Pro video mode to shoot video footage. The LG G8s ThinQ can record 4K videos at 60fps and 30fps, 1080p videos at 60fps/30fps and 720p videos at 30 fps. 

Overall, at Rs. 35,990, the G8s ThinQ is a great budget flagship smartphone from a trusted brand that takes care of basics and offers great overall performance.

Black Shark 2

Black Shark 2

At Rs. 31,999 for the 6GB RAM and 28GB ROM, the Black Shark 2 is an excellent deal for avid gamers. It's the phone you should go for if you have a limited budget and wants to experience the no-compromise gameplay on a mobile device. Backed by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset paired up with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB storage, it is one-of-the-most powerful gaming smartphone in the Indian market. 

The pro-gaming handset flaunts a 6.39-inch Super AMOLED HDR-10 compliant display, which also supports DCI-P3 Color Space. The screen has a 240Hz with a response time of just 43.5ms, which makes the gameplay ultra-smooth. Moreover, the display on the Black Shark 2 also comes equipped with TrueClarity MEMC processing technology, which eliminates unintended judder and blurs while playing the fast-paced action games. There's no other handset at Rs. 31K that offers such amazing display specs. 

Besides, the Black Shark 2 also features a dedicated game mode- Shark mode and Ludicrous Mode, which runs the phone at its maximum capabilities for butter-smooth gameplay experience. Some other notable features of the Black Shark 2 include- Gaming AI, Direct Touch Liquid Cooling System 3.0 and the Lowest Latency Touch in the market.

Nubia Red Magic 3S

Nubia Red Magic 3S

The recently launched Nubia Red Magic 3S also makes for an excellent value for money flagship smartphone. Priced at Rs. 35,999, the Nubia Red magic 3S comes equipped with the Snapdragon 855 Plus SoC and offers two RAM variants- 8GB RAM and 12GB RAM (Rs. 47,999). The Nubia Red Magic 3S is backed by a 5,000 mAh battery and flaunts a 90Hz AMOLED display. Nubia has only offered a single 48MP rear camera on the gaming handset. There's a dedicated GameBoost switch button to enable the game space 2.1 mode for the better gaming experience. Besides, the Nubia Red Magic 3S also offers quick toggles for RGB lighting.

OnePlus 7T

OnePlus 7T

Last but not least, OnePlus 7T is also a really good value for money flagship smartphone. At Rs. 34,999, the OnePlus 7T offers a fluid 90Hz AMOLED Super AMOLED display, premium design, SD855+, smooth software experience (after the recent update, earlier it was super buggy), good haptic feedback, glitch-free performance, smooth gameplay and loud stereo speakers. 

Sadly, the handset fails to offer an official IP rating, 3.5mm headphone jack, microSD card slot and good camera performance. Buying the OnePlus 7T only makes sense if you are willing to invest in the OnePlus ecosystem for its superfluid OxygenOS experience.

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