Top 10 smartphones under Rs 12,000

New Delhi: The global smartphone market is racing ahead at a record pace if the current survey results are to go by. According to International Data Corporation, global smartphone shipments topped 1 billion units for first time in 2013, climbing 38.4 per cent from the previous year to 1.004 billion units. Overall, smartphones made up 55.1 percent of all mobile phone shipments last year from just over two-fifths in 2012, IDC said.Clearly, 2013 was an eventful year in terms of sheer variety of smartphones launched in the country. The usual trend by smartphone makers was to launch a large number of devices with upgraded hardware specs and latest technology. For consumers it meant more options in a wide variety of price points. Read on to find out some of the best “value-for-money” deals in terms of price, specs, hardware and software features: XOLO Q900It is a dual SIM (GSM+GSM) handset running Android 4.2. It features a 4.7-inch HD (720x1280 pixel) TFT display that offers a pixel density of 312ppi. It comes with an 8-megapixel rear autofocus camera with BSI sensor and also houses a 2-megapixel front-facing camera. The device is powered by a 1.2GHz quad-core MediaTek 6589 processor with a 286MHz PowerVR SGX544 GPU. It offers 1GB of RAM, and includes 4GB of inbuilt storage that is further expandable up to 32GB via microSD card. The device gets its juice from a 1800mAh battery which the company claims delivers up to 13 hours of talktime and up to 384 hours of standby time. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS/ AGPS and 3G.Why it is a good optionA decent 1.2GHz processor, HD screen, 8 MP camera, and a sizeable 1800mAh battery, makes it a good choice at Rs 10820 (On Flipkart.com). Karbonn Titanium S5+The Karbonn Titanium S5+ is a dual-SIM device (GSM+GSM) that comes with a 5-inch IPS display with a 540x960 pixel resolution. The device is powered by a 1.3GHz quad-core processor (unspecified chipset) along with 1GB of RAM. It runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean which is usually the case with most of the handsets in this price point category. It sports an 8-megapixel rear autofocus camera with LED flash, apart from a VGA front-facing camera. It comes with 4GB of inbuilt storage which is further expandable up to 32GB via microSD card. The smartphone gets its juice from a 1800mAh battery and includes Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS/ AGPS, and 3G as connectivity options.Why it is a good optionThough it offers a lower resolution, it still comes with a decent 1.2GHz processor. It offers 8 MP camera, runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and offers a 1800mAh battery.HTC Desire T329W X Dual SIMHTC Desire XDS T329w is a dual-SIM smartphone with 4 inch LCD touchscreen display (WVGA) with a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels. It has 1GHz processor and 768MB RAM for smooth performance. It comes with a 5MP rear camera that captures images and records videos with clarity. For connectivity, the device has features like EDGE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth v4.0 and micro USB. The phone comes loaded HTC Sense user interface for a whole new experience. Other features include 25GB Dropbox, music player, and 32GB expandable memory. The device, however, comes with a 1650mAH battery.Why it is a good optionA well-built handset by HTC that offers a super LCD screen. Android Jelly Bean operating system with HTC sense, 5MP rear camera and loads of features by HTC makes it a sensible choice. Micromax Canvas 2 Plus A11QOn paper, the A110Q Canvas 2 Plus looks a lot like an older phone from Micromax – the A116 Canvas HD. It comes with a 5-inch IPS panel, which offers a resolution of 854 x 480, giving a pixel density of 195.93 ppi. The A110Q Canvas 2 Plus features MediaTek's MT6589 SoC, which contains a quad-core ARM Cortex-A7 CPU and PowerVR Series5XT GPU. Though the CPU uses the slightly older architecture from ARM, the SoC is built using the newer 28nm fabrication process, which means it will be good in terms of power efficiency. The A110Q Canvas 2 Plus will run on Android 4.2 Jelly Bean right out of the box. The phone comes with dual-SIM functionality and supports GSM and 3G networks. You should be able to use both SIMs simultaneously as well. Connectivity options include 3G, 2G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 4.0 and GPS. The A110Q offers 4GB of on-board memory, and there is a microSD slot where you can stick in a 32GB microSD card. It offers an 8 megapixel shooter, with no BSI sensor, and has a 2 megapixel camera. The phone is equipped with a beefy 2000 mAh battery.Why it is a good optionA good processor, dual-SIM functionality, 8MP camera opotion, and a beefy 2000 mAh battery. It is let down, however, by low resolution display.Sony Xperia MThe phone has a 4-inch TFT display with a resolution of 854x480 pixels. It is powered by a 1GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 processor with 1GB RAM. It runs Android v4.1 Jelly Bean out of the box. It has a 5MP primary camera with a dedicated camera key. Additional features include fast-capture, HD video recording, 4x digital zoom, panorama and face detection. There is also a VGA front camera if you wish to make video calls. It offers 4GB of internal storage, which is further expandable up to 32GB via microSD card. Besides usual connectivity options, the Xperia M also has NFC. It is available in a dual-SIM configuration as well. Colour options include black, white, yellow and purple. It also includes a 1,750mAh battery that can deliver 10 hours of talk time and 504 hours of standby time, according to Sony.Why it is a good optionSony Xperia M is a solid budget phone in Sony's Xperia range of Android smartphones. It offers a sleek design and comes in a variety of colours. It features 4-inch TFT LCD with a resolution of 480x854 pixels and boasts a scratch-resistant display. It runs on Android 4.1 Jelly Bean with Sony's Timescape UI on top.Lenovo P770The smartphone features a 4.5-inch HD IPS display with a 540x960 resolution. It is powered by a 1.2 GHz dual-core Cortex A9 processor with 1GB RAM. The device runs Android v4.1 Jelly Bean. It offers 4GB of storage, which can be further expanded up to 32GB via Micro SD card. The smartphone has a 5MP rear-camera with auto-focus and LED flash. There is a 0.3MP VGA front camera for video calls. It comes with a beefy 3,500 mAh battery which the company claims offer 29 hours of talk time. Why it is a good optionA stylish phone with a decent display. It offers good processing speed and has a 5MP rear-camera. A 3,500 mAh battery is one of the best in this price category. Samsung Galaxy S Duos 2The Samsung Galaxy S Duos 2 is the successor to the Galaxy S Duos, which was launched in September 2012. The Galaxy S Duos 2 comes with a 4-inch WVGA (480x800) TFT display and is powered by a 1.2GHz dual-core processor (unspecified chipset). It is a dual-SIM (GSM+GSM) smartphone and runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean with TouchWiz UI on top. The Galaxy S Duos 2 sports a 5-megapixel rear camera with LED flash and also includes a VGA front-facing camera. The smartphone comes with 768MB of RAM and 4GB of inbuilt storage, which is further expandable up to 64GB via microSD card. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, EDGE, GPRS and 3G. There is a 1500mAh battery backing the device which the company claims can deliver up to 8 hours of talktime and up to 280 hours of standby time.Why it is a good optionS Duos 2 comes with better hardware as compared to S Duos. Lava Xolo Q1000The device sports a premium look and comes with a 5-inch IPS panel with a resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels, which translates to a pixel density of 294 ppi. The device is powered by a quad-core 1.2GHz processor and PowerVR SGX544 GPU, along with 1GB RAM. The camera featured on the rear is 8MP with a BSI sensor and coupled with an LED flash. The front camera is a 1.2MP also with a BSI sensor. The internal storage is 4GB —the same as most budget smartphones offer these days. Out of this, you'll get 1.8GB usable space and the rest is used by the ROM and apps. Connectivity options include Wi-Fi b/g/n, 3G and A-GPS, while sensors available are only for accelerometer, proximity and ambient light. It comes with a 2100 mAh battery, which should last you around 10 to 14 hours depending on the usage.Why it is a good optionThe high-definition IPS display gives crisp display and great viewing angles. Xolo claims that the display is scratch resistant because of the Dragon Trail glass used for screen protection. Spice Smart Flo Mettle 5XThe Spice Smart Flo Mettle 5X comes with a 5-inch display that has a resolution of 480x854 pixels (FWVGA), offering a pixel density of 233ppi, which is not too bad for an affordable device. The Spice Smart Flo Mettle 5X is powered by a dual-core 1.3GHz processor (unspecified chipset) along with 512MB of RAM. The multi-tasking experience suffers and we experiences lags as a result of lower RAM. It includes 4GB of inbuilt storage out of which roughly 2GB is user-available, although it supports expandable storage up to 32GB via microSD card. The Spice Smart Flo Mettle 5X sports an 8-megapixel rear autofocus camera and also includes a 1.3-megapixel front-facing camera. The Spice Smart Flo Mettle 5X runs Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean out-of-the-box. The phone comes with pre-installed apps like Facebook, Hungama, Numbuzz, Super power saver, OLX and WhatsApp. Also on board is the popular instant chat service, BBM. It packs an 1800mAh battery that according to the company, can deliver up to 4 hours of talktime and up to 150 hours standby time.Why it is a good optionAn affordable phablet that is capable of handling most routine tasks. Decent hardware specs and loads of software features make it a good choice. Micromax A77 Canvas JuiceIt is a dual-SIM phablet that features a 5-inch FWVGA display with 480x854 pixels resolution. The phablet is powered by a dual-core 1.3GHz MediaTek 6572 processor along with 1GB of RAM. It runs Android 4.2 Jelly Bean operating system. It sports a 5-megapixel autofocus rear camera accompanied by an LED flash and also includes a VGA front-facing camera. It comes with 4GB of inbuilt storage, which can be expanded up to 32GB with the help of a microSD card. The Micromax A77 Canvas Juice packs a 3000mAh battery, which as per the online retailer's listing, can deliver up to 10 hours of talktime and up to 282 hours of standby time. Connectivity options include Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPRS, EDGE, GPS/ AGPS and 3G. The phone comes pre-loaded with Game Hub, Spuul, Opera Mini, Hike, M!Live, Dancing Bubbles, Bubble X Slice and Kingsoft Office.Why it is a good optionA pretty solid phablet falling under Rs 10,000 range.