The 10 Best Smartphones Under 25,000 Rupees

If you’re in the market for a new phone, there are a lot of options available – specially for the budget conscious crowd. The entry of Chinese manufacturers and established ones renewing the focus on entry level smartphones means consumers are spoiled for choice.

For some though, that adds a lot of confusion to the process of selecting a new phone to purchase. Fear not, we’ve done the work and have selected the top 10 smartphones under Rs 25,000 that you should consider buying.

A short introduction of the phone, followed by the reasons to consider and the specifications follow. As always, if you feel there is a phone that deserves a mention, feel free to post in the comments below.

Alcatel OneTouch X1

Alcatel recently entered the Pakistani market, bringing great budget phones with them.

The Alcatel X1 sports a Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor with 2 GB of RAM. The OS is a simplistic Android 5.1.1 Lollipop with no skins on top of it, which is a major plus point. It features a 13 megapixel back camera with a dual tone flash and a 5mp front camera with ultra pixel technology and an LED flash.

Reasons to consider:

• New brand
• Looks wise it beats all the other phones aside from Huawei’s Honor 5X.
• EyeVerify biometric hands free unlocking system to unlock your phone with just a glance

Alcatel OneTouch X1 Specifications

• CPU: 1.0 + 1.4 Ghz octa-core Cortex A53
• GPU: Adreno 405
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 415
• OS: Android 5.1 Lollipop
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE Cat4
  • GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
  • UMTS: 850/900/1900/2100
  • LTE: 1/3/7/8/20
• Display:
  • 5” AMOLED display with HD (1280 x 720) resolution
  • 2.5D Dragontrail front glass
• Memory:
  • RAM: 2 GB
  • Internal: 16 GB
  • Card slot: yes, up to 128 GB
• Camera:
  • Primary: 13 MP, autofocus, Dual tone LED Flash, video 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 5 MP Ultra pixel camera with LED flash
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.0, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS
• Battery: Lithium Ion 2150 mAh
• Price: Rs. 23,490
• Colors: Black, Silver

Alcatel Idol 3

Alcatel X1’s bigger more powerful alternative, the Idol 3 offers better specifications at the expense of X1’s superior design.

Powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 615 with 2 GB of RAM, it won’t slow down for general everyday tasks while providing entry level gaming experience. Like the X1, it features a 13MP back camera with an LED flash and can record 1080p video @30fps. The front camera is an 8MP shooter which can also record videos at 1080p.

Reasons to consider:

• Reversible interface allows usage while upside down unlike other phones which don’t.
• Dual front speaker setup with JBL audio with Clari-Fi technology
• NFC

Alcatel Idol 3 Specifications

• CPU: 1.0 + 1.5 Ghz octa-core Cortex A53
• GPU: Adreno 405
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 615
• OS: Android v5.0.2 Lollipop, upgradeable to v6.0.1 Marshmallow
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE Cat4
  • GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
  • UMTS: 850/900/1900/2100
  • LTE: 1/3/7/8/20
• Display:
  • 5.5” IPS LCD display with FullHD (1920 x 1080) resolution
• Memory:
  • RAM: 2 GB
  • Internal: 16GB/32GB (dual sim only)
  • Card slot: yes, up to 256 GB (single sim model)
• Camera:
  • Primary: 13 MP, autofocus, video 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 8 MP
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.1 A2DP, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n dual band, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS, NFC
• Battery: Non Removable Lithium Ion 2910 mAh
• Price: Rs. 24,490 (dual sim 32 GB variant)
• Colors: Dark grey, soft gold, metallic silver

Lenovo Vibe S1

Lenovo’s phones are also officially available in Pakistan and not limited to online retailers. The Vibe S1 is a good midrange smartphone and the MediaTek chip in it offers a performance similar to the Snapdragon 615.

Like the Alcatel X1, Lenovo Vibe S1 Lite also has a 13 MP rear camera with a dual tone LED flash with 1080p@30fps video recording. The front has an 8MP camera with an LED flash as well.

Reasons to consider:

• Screen with highest pixel density in the list at 441 ppi
• One of the most powerful System on Chips in the list with Mediatek MT 6753

Lenovo Vibe S1 Specifications

• CPU: 1.3 Ghz octa-core Cortex A53
• GPU: Mali-T760MP2
• Chipset: Mediatek MT6753
• OS: Android v5.1 Lollipop
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE Cat4
  • GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
  • UMTS: 850/900/1900/2100
  • LTE band 1/3/4/7/5/8/20/38/40/41
• Display:
  • 5” IPS LCD display with FullHD (1920 x 1080) resolution
• Memory:
  • RAM: 2 GB
  • Internal: 16GB
  • Card slot: Yes, upto 128GB
• Camera:
  • Primary: 13 MP f/2.2, phase detection autofocus, dual tone LED flash video 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 8 MP f/2.2, 1/3.2″, 1.4µm pixel size LED flash
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.0, A2DP, LE, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS
• Battery: Non Removable Li-Po 2700 mAh
• Price: Rs. 23,990
• Colors: Matte white, matte blue

Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus

The cheaper alternative to the S1 lite, the K5 plus offers similar specifications but for a smaller price tag.

It is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 616 and has 2 GB of RAM to hold your stuff. The back camera is largely similar with a midrange standard 13MP rear facing camera with an LED flash and a 5MP front camera. The display on this phone is also very similar to the Lenovo Vibe S1 lite, with a 5 inch 1080p (1920 x 1080) panel.

Reasons to consider:

• Screen tied with Vibe S1 for pixel density
• Dolby Audio
• Removable/Replaceable battery

Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus Specifications

• CPU: 1.5 Ghz quad-core A53 + 1.2 Ghz quad-core Cortex A53
• GPU: Adreno 405
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 616
• OS: Android v5.1 Lollipop
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE Cat4
  • GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
  • UMTS: 850/900/1900/2100
  • LTE bands unknown
• Display:
  • 5” IPS LCD display with FullHD (1920 x 1080) resolution
• Memory:
  • RAM: 2 GB
  • Internal: 16GB
  • Card slot: Yes, upto 32GB
• Camera:
  • Primary: 13 MP ,autofocus, LED flash video 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 5 MP
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.1, A2DP, LE, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS
• Battery: Removable Li-Ion 2750 mAh
• Price: Rs. 20,990
• Colors: Silver, Gold

HTC Desire 728

One of HTC’s sparse midrange phones, the Desire 728 also follows the industry standards of a midrange phone but with the caveat of a lower resolution 5.5 inch screen. However, it’s the only phone in this list that uses a Super LCD 2 display.

The rest is midrange standard with a 13 MP rear camera and a 5 MP front camera, with Android v5.1.1 Lollipop with HTC’s Sense UI on top. The Sense UI is the major differentiating feature for HTC against other midrangers.

Reasons to consider:

• Best camera on the list in terms of overall quality
• Sense UI is the most stable and fastest ones compared with other Android skins.
• The only one with a Super LCD 2 screen

HTC Desire 728 Specifications

• CPU: 1.3 Ghz octa-core Cortex A53
• GPU: Mali-T720MP3
• Chipset: Mediatek MT6753
• OS: Android v5.1.1 Lollipop with Sense UI
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE Cat4
  • GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
  • LTE band 1(2100), 3(1800), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 28(700), 38(2600), 39(1900), 40(2300), 41(2500)
• Display:
  • 5.5” SLCD 2 display with HD (1280x 720) resolution
• Memory:
  • RAM: 2 GB
  • Internal: 16GB
  • Card slot: Yes, upto 256GB
• Camera:
  • Primary: 13 MP, f/2.2, 28mm, autofocus, LED flash, video: 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 5 MP, f/2.8, 34mm, video: 1080p @30fps
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.1, A2DP, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, DLNA, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS
• Battery: Non Removable Li-Po 2800 mAh
• Price: Rs. 20,990
• Colors: White, Black

Samsung Galaxy J7

The Samsung Galaxy J7 has a 5.5 inch 720p (1280 x 720) resolution AMOLED screen.

It comes in two different SoC packages, one with a Snapdragon 615 chipset, and the other with Samsung’s own Exynos 7580 chipset. It does have NFC but only in the Snapdragon version.

Note: Official Pakistani version of J7 does not have 4G LTE, online retailers may have both 3G only and 4G LTE versions available.

Reasons to consider:

• Bigger battery compared with most other phones in the list.
• NFC (snapdragon model)
• Best AMOLED panel in terms of color depth and quality

Samsung Galaxy J7 Specifications

• CPU: 1.4 Ghz quad-core Cortex A53 + 1.0 Ghz quad-core Cortex A53 (Snapdragon version)   1.5 Ghz Octa core unknown chip (Exynos)
• GPU: Adreno 405 (Snapdragon) Mali-T720MP2 (Exynos)
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 615, Exynos 7580
• OS: Android v5.1.1 Lollipop upgradeable to Android v6.0.1 Marshmallow
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE
  • GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
  • HSDPA: 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
  • LTE band 1(2100), 3(1800), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 20(800), 40(2300)
• Display:
  • 5.5” AMOLED display with HD (1280x 720) resolution
• Memory:
  • RAM: 1.5 GB
  • Internal: 16GB
  • Card slot: Yes, upto 256GB
• Camera:
  • Primary: 13 MP, f/1.9, 28mm, autofocus, LED flash, video: 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 5 MP, f/2.2, 23mm, LED flash
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.1, A2DP, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, NFC (Snapdragon only)
• Battery: Removable Li-Ion 3000 mAh
• Price: Rs. 21,990 (3G only version) Rs. 24,990 (4G version)
• Colors: White, Black, Gold

Huawei Honor 5X

Arguably the best on this list, Huawei Honor 5X is the only midrange offering which has a fingerprint scanner onboard for faster unlocking and some measure of security.

The only downside of this device is that the UI is laggy and is somewhat unstable, something that can be remedied by flashing a better ROM. It has standard midrange specs with a Snapdragon 616 on board with 2 gigabytes of RAM. The camera is also fairly standard with a 13 MP rear camera and a 5MP front shooter.

Reasons to consider:

• All metal body
• Fingerprint scanner
• DTS Sound with Stereo Speakers
• Battery on par with Samsung Galaxy J7

Huawei Honor 5X Specifications

• CPU: 1.5 Ghz quad-core Cortex A53 + 1.2 Ghz quad-core Cortex A53
• GPU: Adreno 405
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 616
• OS: Android v5.1.1 Lollipop upgradeable to Android v6.0.1 Marshmallow with Emotion UI
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE
  • GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
  • HSDPA: 900 / 2100
  • LTE band 1(2100), 3(1800), 7(2600), 8(900), 20(800)
• Display:
  • 5.5” IPS LCD display with FullHD (1920 x 1080) resolution
• Memory:
  • RAM: 2 GB
  • Internal: 16GB
  • Card slot: Yes, upto 256GB
• Camera:
  • Primary: 13 MP, f/2.0, 28mm, autofocus, LED flash, video: 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 5 MP, f/2.4, 22mm
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.1, A2DP, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS
• Battery: Non-Removable Li-Ion 3000 mAh
• Price: Rs. 25,000
• Colors: White, Grey, Gold

Sony M4 Aqua

Although it is a tad older than its competitors in the list, with a less than stellar screen to go with, it is offers a waterproof experience that no other midranger can provide.

The screen is a 5 inch HD (1280 x 720) IPS panel and the processor is the midrange standard Snapdragon 615 with 2 GB RAM. The storage is on the low side with only the 8GB variant available in Pakistan but Sony has added a microSD card slot for an additional 256GB of memory if you need it.

Reasons to consider:

• The only phone with water proof capabilities
• Good looks, similar to the Xperia Z3
• NFC

Sony M4 Aqua Specifications

• CPU: 1.5 Ghz quad-core Cortex A53 + 1.0 Ghz quad-core Cortex A53
• GPU: Adreno 405
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 615
• OS: Android v5.0 Lollipop will upgrade to Android v6.0 Marshmallow soon
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE
  • GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
  • HSDPA: 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
  • LTE band 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 20(800)
• Display:
  • 5” IPS LCD display with HD (1280 x 720) resolution
• Memory:
  • RAM: 2 GB
  • Internal: 8 GB
  • Card slot: Yes, upto 256GB
• Camera:
  • Primary: 13 MP, f/2.0, autofocus, LED flash, video: 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 5 MP, 720p
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.1, A2DP, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual band, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, NFC
• Battery: Non-Removable Li-Ion 2400 mAh
• Price: Rs. 24,490
• Colors: Black, White, Coral, Silver

Qmobile Noir Z12

With specifications close to the industry leaders in the midrange price category, Qmobile deserved a spot on this list with their Noir Z12. This phone is the only one aside from Infinix Zero 3 with 3 gigabytes of RAM among the others which have either 1.5GB or 2 GB of RAM. It contains a Mediatek MT 6753 chipset, which rivals the midrange standard Snadragon 615.

Reasons to consider:

• The highest RAM in the list at 3 gigabytes
• Highest battery capacity in the list at 3150 mAh
• Readily available

Qmobile Noir Z12 Specifications

• CPU: 1.3 Ghz octa-core Cortex A53
• GPU: Mali-T720MP3
• Chipset: Mediatek MT6753
• OS: Android v5.1.1 Lollipop with Amigo OS 3.1
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE
  • GSM: 850/900/1800/1900
  • HSDPA bands unknown
  • LTE bands unknown
• Display:
  • 5.5” AMOLED display with HD (1280 x 720) resolution
• Memory:
  • RAM: 3 GB
  • Internal: 32 GB
  • Card slot: Yes, upto 256GB
• Camera:
  • Primary: 13 MP, f/2.0, autofocus, LED flash, video: 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 5 MP
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.0, A2DP, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS
• Battery: Non-Removable Li-Ion 3150 mAh
• Price: Rs. 23,300
• Colors: Gold

Infinix Zero 3

One of the best options for the budget conscious, this phone launched exclusively on Daraz.pk and later spread to other stores.

It contains a Mediatek Helio X10 chipset with 3 GB of RAM. You get either 16GB or 32GB of internal storage with a microSD card slot allowing for upto 2 Terabytes of expandable storage. It offers a 20.7 megapixel camera which should be praised for having the highest pixel count in the list, even if it’s not the best in overall quality. A normal 5 MP front camera is available on the front.

Reasons to consider:

• Cheapest at Rs. 20,899 (16GB)
• Highest pixel count at 20.7 mega pixels
• Long lasting big battery (Li-Po lasts longer than Li-Ion) at 3030 mAh
• Fastest processor and GPU package among the competition with Mediatek Helio X10

Infinix Zero 3 Specifications

• CPU: 2.0 Ghz octa-core Cortex A53
• GPU: PowerVR G6200 GPU
• Chipset: Mediatek Helio X10
• OS: Android v5.1 Lollipop
• Supported Networks: 2G, 3G, 4G LTE
  • GSM: 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
  • HSDPA: 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
  • LTE band: 1(2100), 3(1800), 7(2600), 38(2600), 39(1900), 40(2300), 41(2500)
• Display:
  • 5.5” IPS LCD display with FullHD (1920 x 1080) resolution
• Memory:
  • RAM: 3 GB
  • Internal: 16/32 GB
  • Card slot: Yes, upto 2 TB
• Camera:
  • Primary: 20.7 MP, phase detection autofocus, LED flash, video: 1080p @30fps
  • Secondary: 5 MP
• Connectivity: Bluetooth v4.1, A2DP, LE, LTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, Wi-Fi Direct, DLNA, hotspot, GPS with A-GPS and GLONASS
• Battery: Removability unknown Li-Po 3030 mAh
• Price: Rs. 20,899 (16 GB)
• Colors: Gold, Silver, Grey