2017 recap: Five smartphones that are easy on your wallet

With smartphones becoming the next big thing, many manufacturers have set their priorities to offer maximum ease of access and convenience, level specifications and pocket friendly prices.

The last decade has seen a significant improvement in terms of advancements in specifications. With the advent of technology, features like voice and facial recognition, fingerprint technology, and improved camera quality.

While features are important, users are often seen making their final decision based on pricing. With this in mind, smartphone majors have developed advanced versions of their flagship devices at lower price ranges, in a bid to cater to the masses.

As 2018 sets in, here are some smartphones from 2017 that are budget-friendly:

Moto C, Plus

Motorola Mobility's two budget-friendly devices, Moto C and C Plus, are priced competitively at Rs. 5,999 and Rs. 6,999 respectively.

Moto C is enabled with AndroidTM 7.0 (Nougat) and a quad-core processor that can handle multiple apps at once along with 4G speed. It features a 2350 mAh battery and comes with a five inch display with a premium design, micro-textured back cover and vivid display. It also boasts of a 5MP rear camera with auto-focus, digital zoom and LED flash, along with a 2MP front camera with fixed-focus and selfie light.

Moto C Plus, on the other hand, is powered by a 4000mAh battery and comes with an 8MP rear camera with dual-LED flash f/2.2 aperture, 1.12 micron pixels, autofocus, 71-degree field of view and an LED flash. It also has a 2MP front-facing camera. The device comes with a 5-inch HD (720x1280 pixels) display and operates on Android 7.0 Nougat.

Samsung Galaxy A3

Powered by a 1.6GHz octa-core processor, the Samsung Galaxy A3 comes with 2GB of RAM and a 4.70-inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 720 pixels by 1280 pixels. It comprises a 13MP primary camera on the rear and an 8MP front shooter for selfies. The Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) runs Android 6.0 and is powered by a 2350mAh battery. The starting price of this is Rs. 8,189.

Lenovo K8, Plus

Lenovo's two devices, K8 and K8 Plus are priced at Rs. 9,835 and Rs. 8,981 respectively, and both comprise of a 5.20-inch touch screen display.

Lenovo K8 is powered by 2.3GHz octa-core MediaTek Helio P20 processor and comes with 3GB of RAM. It also comes with a 13MP primary camera on the rear and an 8MP front camera. The Lenovo K8 runs Android 7.1.1 and is powered by a 4000mAh battery.

The K8 Plus is powered by 2.5GHz octa-core MediaTek Helio P25 processor and also comes with 3GB of RAM. The camera, battery and software are similar to that of the Lenovo K8.

Xiaomi Redmi 5A

Competitively priced from Rs. 4,999 onwards, the Xiaomi Redmi 5A comes with a 5.00-inch touch screen display with a resolution of 720 pixels by 1280 pixels at a PPI of 294 pixels per inch. It is powered by 1.4GHz quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 425 processor and comes with 2GB of RAM. The device runs on Android 7.1.2 and is powered by a 3000mAh battery. It comprises of a 13MP rear camera and 5MP front camera.

Panasonic P 85

The dual-SIM Panasonic P85 runs Android 6.0 Marshmallow, and comes with 5-inch HD (720x1280 pixels) display. It is powered by a 1GHz quad-core processor coupled with 2GB of RAM. Moreover, the Panasonic P 85 comprises an 8MP rear camera and 2MP front camera. The phone has 16GB of inbuilt storage that can be expanded via microSD card (up to 64GB), and is priced at Rs. 6,499.