Best phones under Rs 60,000 (Dec 2023): OnePlus 11 5G, Apple iPhone 13 to Nothing Phone (2)

Here are the best smartphones available in India within a budget of Rs 60,000 this month. Image Credit: Firstpost | Ameya Dalvi

You missed the festive sales or didn’t feel the need to change your phone then, but now looking to spend close to Rs 60,000 on a premium smartphone? Don’t worry, we have you covered. There are still some real good deals out there and we have shortlisted the top 5 options available in that budget at the moment. You can choose from former flagships to current flagship phones. Take your pick.

Best phones to buy under Rs 60,000 in India

OnePlus 11 5G
Once again, we begin with the two most powerful phones with similar model numbers. The OnePlus 11 5G is packed with truly high-end features starting with Qualcomm’s flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip. You get its 8 GB RAM and 128 GB UFS 3.1 storage variant in this budget, and with the right credit cards, you can also score its top variant with 16 GB RAM and 256 GB UFS 4.0 storage effectively within this budget.

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Best phones under Rs 50,000 (Dec 2023): Samsung Galaxy S22 5G, Google Pixel 7a to Nothing Phone (2)

OnePlus 12 to be unveiled globally on December 5, will be available in India and internationally in January

The phone feels great in hand and has a 6.7-inch curved LTPO3 AMOLED display with a resolution of 3216 x 1440 pixels and 1300 nits peak brightness. This HDR10+ and Dolby Vision-compliant screen supports 10-bit colour depth and up to 120 Hz variable refresh rate. The phone’s 5000 mAh battery easily lasts for a day and a half of moderate use, and the bundled 100W charger juices it up in under half an hour.

At the rear, you get a 50MP primary camera with OIS and Hasselblad’s colour tuning. The support cast is equally impressive with a 48MP ultrawide camera with auto-focus that also doubles up as a quality macro camera, and a 32MP telephoto camera with 2X optical zoom that’s great with portrait shots too. The OnePlus 11 5G runs OxygenOS 13 based on Android 13 and one can expect several OS and security updates over the next few years.

OnePlus 11 5G price in India: Rs 56,999 for 8GB RAM/128GB storage

iQOO 11 5G
The iQOO 11 5G is also powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, and you can now get its 16 GB RAM variant with 256 GB UFS 4.0 storage comfortably in this budget. This phone has a sharp 10-bit 6.78-inch HDR10+ compliant E6 AMOLED display with a resolution of 3200 x 1440 pixels and 144 Hz refresh rate. It is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus. The phone runs Android 13 with FunTouch OS 13.

Rear camera department is helmed by a 50MP primary camera with a Samsung GN5 sensor and OIS. It is accompanied by an 8MP ultra-wide camera and a 13MP telephoto camera that gives you 2X optical zoom and also doubles up as a portrait camera. The 16MP front camera handles selfies and video calls quite well. The iQOO 11 5G’s 5000 mAh battery lasts for a day and a half of moderate use, and the bundled 120W fast charger claims to charge half of it in just 8 minutes, and fully in well under 30 minutes.

iQOO 11 5G price in India: Rs 51,999 for 16GB RAM/256GB storage

Samsung Galaxy S22 5G
From the two 11s, we jump to a 22. Samsung Galaxy S22 5G is another great option in this budget, and you can now get its 256 GB storage variant well under 60K on Flipkart. This phone has an IP68-rated ingress protection along with a compact design. It sports an aluminium frame and glass back with Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+ protection at the front and back. It has a 6.1-inch Full HD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a peak brightness of 1300 nits, HDR10+ compliance and 120 Hz refresh rate.

The photography department on the Samsung Galaxy S22 5G is quite impressive too. You get a 50MP primary camera with dual-pixel PDAF and OIS, a 12MP ultra-wide camera with Super Steady video support and a 10MP telephoto camera with OIS that facilitates 3X optical zoom. The camera performance is flagship grade as expected, and it can record videos up to 8K resolution.

This Samsung phone is powered by Qualcomm’s previous flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip and is accompanied by 8 GB RAM. A 3700 mAh battery keeps it powered for a day of moderate use and supports 25W fast charging as well as 15W wireless charging. It launched with Android 12 and Samsung’s One UI 4.1, and is upgradeable to Android 13 with One UI 5.x.

Samsung Galaxy S22 5G price in India: Rs 52,999 for 8GB RAM/256GB storage

Nothing Phone (2)
While the top variant of Nothing’s current flagship phone is still available under 50K, it is worthy of being in this list too. It is the only phone among the chosen ones here that offers 512 GB internal storage. Nothing Phone (2) has ample muscle too courtesy of a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip and 12 GB RAM. It retains the company’s unique design with a transparent back and LEDs. The Glyph lights at the back are not just cosmetic and provide a ton of functionality and customisation.

It has a 6.7-inch Full HD+ 10-bit LTPO OLED display with a peak brightness of 1600 nits, HDR10+ compliance and a variable refresh rate ranging from 1 Hz to 120 Hz. The photography department consists of a 50MP primary camera with OIS and a 50MP ultra-wide with auto-focus. The camera performance is impressive across various modes, especially in good light. The 32 MP front camera will have the selfie enthusiasts interested.

A 4700 mAh battery keeps the phone powered for well over a day of moderate use. It supports 45W fast charging as well as 15W wireless charging. However, a charger isn’t provided with the phone and needs to be purchased separately. A good 45W USB-PD/PPS charger can charge it fully in under an hour. The Nothing Phone (2) runs Android 13 with Nothing OS 2.0, and the company promises 4 years of software updates.

Nothing Phone (2) price in India: Rs 49,999 for 12GB RAM/512GB storage

Apple iPhone 13
With the launch of the iPhone 15 series, the Apple iPhone 13 with 128 GB storage is available well under 60K on Amazon India. The phone’s performance and camera quality are still commendable. Its photography department has two 12MP cameras at the back with the primary lens offering OIS, and the secondary capable of capturing ultra-wide shots. The performance in photography and videography is excellent, as one expects from an iPhone.

The Apple iPhone 13 has a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with a resolution of 2532 x 1170 pixels, and is compliant with HDR10 and Dolby Vision. The phone feels great in hand due to its compact size and reasonable weight. An IP68 rated ingress protection adds to its sturdiness. It is powered by Apple’s previous flagship A15 Bionic chip that also powers the iPhone 14, and is still fairly powerful for most tasks including gaming. The phone launched with iOS 15, and is upgradable to iOS 16, with more OS updates to follow over the next few years.

Apple iPhone 13 price in India: Rs 52,499 for 128GB storage