Technology

Android Smartphone Buying Guide For Indians

Buying Guide – Everyone have their own preferences while buying a smartphone. Some buy based on the brand they like, some buy based on features and some based on budget. Sometimes people become tentative when they see others and burn their pockets. Here are few buying guide points to keep in mind before buying a smartphone.

Be Emotionless

Never buy anything in hurry. Do not buy things which are not economical for you. Do not get influenced by other’s smartphone. Try to figure out what you actually need inside a smartphone. Do not spend 2K-5K more to get a smartphone with 6 GB or 8 GB when your daily activites are very basic or minimal.

Make a List

First and foremost thing to do is the list of activities you do with your phone. List should have the activity and hours of usage. For Example here is the below list based on my usage. You don’t need to have exact values, approximate values will do.

Critical Requirements

1. Large Battery
2. Good Storage Space
3. Good Performance
4. Mobile Brand with good reviews.

List of Main Activities

1. Messaging Apps
2. Data Voice Calls
3. Web Browsing

Activities Usage

1. Calls – 0 to 15 min per week
2. Data Voice Calls ( Like Whatsapp) – 15 min to 2 hour per week
3. Video Calls – 0 to 1 hour per week
4. Messaging Apps – 8 hours to 10 hours per week
5. Web Browsing – 8 hours to 10 hours per week
6. Photos – Very Rare
7. Video – Very Rare
8. Games – Never

For me battery is very important, so I should go for the smartphone which have 4000 MAH as minimum capacity. As I don’t take a lot of photos or videos which consume more storage 32 GB or 64 GB is enough for me. 32 GB might be tricky because these days apps are consuming a lot of space and I try many apps.

Coming to speed or performance, 3 GB RAM can handle all my activities but keeping long run of the phone in mind I have opted for 4 GB RAM. If you like to play games which are small then 4 GB RAM will work for you. Go for 6 GB RAM for high graphic intensive games.

If you make a list into these 3 categories then you can save a lot of money. You will get a better idea on what you need from your next smartphone.

Special Mentions

Camera

Now a days smartphones are becoming camera centric. Every company is mainly focusing on camera system. They are trying to push their limits to give best camera to the users. For a normal person, you don’t need a so called high end smartphone with industry best camera system. If you are just taking photos and filling up your cloud storage or mobile storage then don’t burn your pockets. Pro Mobile photographers earn money from the photos they take. So they can spend money on high end smartphones.

Be wise while selecting a smartphone with 2-6 cameras. Do not get excited, be calm while selecting. My phone got 4 rear cameras. But it’s price starts at ₹8999. Be wise as present day less priced smartphones come with a very good camera quality.

Screen/Display Quality

High end and Mid range smartphones are coming with 90 Hz refresh rate or 120 Hz refresh rate. They definetly look pleasing to the eyes. But a normal user or a time pass gamer doesn’t need those refresh rate screens. Companies are working hard to provide better screen quality to users. LCD Displays are getting better and costs less.

If you don’t care about refresh rate or any other fancy names like fluid display, ultra smooth display then just check the photos from user reviews and company’s website.

Type C or Micro USB

Ports determine the price of the smartphone too. Because they are used for charging, data transfer and to listen audio. Type C is fast for data transfer but do you really need Type C port? Do you really transfer data from phone to laptop regularly/daily?

These days companies are using Fast Charging as a selling point. Fast Charging feature comes with a price. Do you really need a fast charging feature? Are you not getting 1-2 hours in your day to charge your phone? Are you really so busy that you get just 5 – 30 min time?

Storage

People are buying 128 GB and 256 GB storage phones just because companies are charging you 2K – 5K more than 64 GB variant. Why to pay money for storage when Google, Microsoft are giving you free cloud storage for your email ids? Is it safe to keep all your photos on phone or is it better to save in cloud? Think!.

Buying Guide Vital Points

The price of the smartphone is mainly decided by below factors.

1. Brand Value
2. Camera System
3. RAM – Performance & Size
4. Display
5. Storage

Decide what all features you WISH to be present in your next smartphone. But buy the phone which have all the features you NEED. Don’t go by WISH which burns your pockets, go buy what you actually need.

Few years back I bought a crowd funded phone from a startup company. It costed around ₹32000. I used it for 3 years. Phone looks good with no physical damage but battery got damaged. Battery only lasts for few minutes.

Now I have Realme smartphone with 4 GB RAM, 64 GB Storage & 5000 MAH Battery. I bought it for ₹9999 in 2019. It works really well and battery lasts for minimum of 40 – 48 hours.

If you want to buy an iPhone then you don’t need to think much. Just pay the high quoted price and grab it.

All the best for your next smartphone. Hope this buying guide helped you in getting the best fit smartphone for you and also saved you some money.