Best Mobile Phones Under 8000: October 2019 Edition
Redmi 8 is the latest entrant in this list of best mobiles under 8000
Realme 3i offers great performance and comes with a good-looking design
Infinix S4 offers the best battery life in this list of phones under 8000
If you're looking to buy a smartphone on a tight budget, then you are in the right place as this guide talks about the best phones that you can purchase under Rs. 8,000. Thanks to some cool new phones from Realme and Infinix, we have some exciting recommendations in this price segment. Additionally, one much loved budget smartphone from Asus is also making its way to this list because of recent price cuts. So, without further ado, here are our top picks for best mobile phones under 8,000.
As always, every phone that we are recommending here has gone through our usual battery of tests. For best mobiles under Rs. 8,000 list, we are only talking about phones priced between Rs. 7,000 and Rs. 8,000. For best phones under Rs. 7,000, you can check out our updated guide. We will soon be updating rest of our smartphone buying guides, including best phones under Rs. 10,000, best mobiles under Rs. 15,000, and more.
Best phones under 8000
| Phones under Rs. 8,000 | Gadgets 360 rating (out of 10) | Price in India (as recommended) |
|---|---|---|
| Redmi 8 | 7 | Rs. 7,999 |
| Realme 3i | 7 | Rs. 7,999 |
| Infinix S4 | 7 | Rs. 7,999 |
| Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 | 8 | Rs. 7,999 |
Redmi 8
The newly launched Redmi 8 is a successor to the Redmi 7 and isn't very powerful but has lots of value-added features. The Redmi 8's performance is decent, but it is not without issues. This is a very good-looking phone and you get lots of RAM and storage, as well as USB Type-C and 18W fast charging.
The display is fine, with decent colours and viewing angles. Battery life is decent, but don't expect to play heavy games at high settings. Camera performance is acceptable, with photos taken in daylight coming out looking good, but we struggled a little at night in our Redmi 8 review.
You can currently buy the 4GB RAM, 64GB storage variant of the Redmi 8 within this budget, but it's a limited time introductory offer and won't be easy to get. After the first five million units, you will only get the 3GB RAM variant in this price segment.
Realme 3i
Even though Realme has focussed quite a bit on its mid-range offerings off late with quad cameras or 64-megapixel sensors, the company hasn't ditched its budget portfolio. Realme 3i is one affordable phone that the Chinese smartphone brand launched just over a couple months ago and it has impressed us enough to find itself a part of this list of best mobile phones under Rs. 8,000.
Realme 3i sports a good looking design with matter finish and Realme C2-like diamond pattern. The phone provides good performance for this price segment, however it is important to note here that we reviewed the 4GB RAM variant of the phone. So, the 3GB RAM variant that falls in the price segment is likely to provide slightly inferior performance given the less amount of RAM.
The rear dual camera setup takes decent photos with faster focus in good lighting situations. The landscape shots taken by the phone also pack good level of detail. The low-light photography from the phone gets benefit from the onboard NightScape mode, however there is still a lot of grain and noise.
Like most Realme phone, the Realme 3i also performed admirable in our HD video loop test and the phone lasted for 16 hours and 59 minutes.
Realme sells two variants of the Realme 3i – 3GB + 32GB and 4GB + 64GB – as mentioned, only the 3GB RAM variant can be purchased under Rs. 8,000.
Infinix S4
Infinix S4 (Review) is one of the very few phones under Rs. 10,000 to come with a triple rear camera setup. The imaging capabilities alongside the battery life are two of the phone's major highlights. The phone managed to clock 17 hours and 35 minutes in our HD video loop test and that is pretty impressive.
The triple rear camera setup take good photos in daylight with correct focus and right exposure. The low-light performance, however, leaves a lot to be desired with photos lacking sharpness and full of grain. The wide-angle lens present as a part of the triple rear camera suffers from barrel distortion in the output.
The Infinix S4's overall performance is decent and the phone provides a lag-free experience, however it does take slightly longer to open large applications. Lastly, the phone look nice, particularly the Blue version.
Infinix offers just one storage of the phone in India – 3GB + 32GB, which finds a spot in this list of best smartphones under Rs. 8,000.
Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1
Even though Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 is the oldest smartphone in this list, it remains a great option for anyone looking for buy a phone under Rs. 8,000. Asus has also updated it to be Android 9 Pie, so older software is not an issue and if everything goes well, the phone should ideally get the Android 10 update as well.
In our review, we found the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 to be a good-looking smartphone that can provide decent experience. The phone is snappy and doesn't lag whether you are watching videos or playing games. The phone ran for 13 hours and 29 minutes in our HD video loop test.
The dual rear cameras on the ZenFone Max Pro M1 take vibrant photos with nice colours. Even in low light situations, the phone manages to take decent photos, the only caveat is slightly fuzzy details and longer focus locks.
Asus ZenFone Max Pro M1 is sold in two variants – 3GB + 32GB and 4GB + 64GB. The 3GB RAM variant of the phone can be purchased under Rs. 8,000.
Bonus Pick
Redmi 7
If the three previously mentioned phones don't catch your fancy, Redmi 7 is another option that you can consider. Although the base variant of the Redmi 7A retails at Rs. 7,499, well within your Rs. 8,000 budget, but we recommend going for the 3GB RAM variant for optimal experience and it is the same variant that we have reviewed.
Redmi 7 performance is decent but not without issues. We encountered very minor lag while scrolling through the app switcher. The phone's display is a little too reflective but video and games do look good on the screen. Colours and viewing angles are also fine. Battery life really impressed us and the phone lasted for 17 hours and 9 minutes in our HD video loop test.
The camera performance is acceptable with images taken in bright sunlight having sharp focus and subtle details. The phone also handles exposure well, however we would have liked a little more vibrant colours.
Redmi 7, as we mentioned, is sold in two options – 2GB + 32GB and 3GB + 32GB. We recommend the 3GB RAM variant.
