An interesting trend is being witnessed in the handset market in India, where just within a month or two of launch, the price of handsets sees a minimum drop of Rs 500. Here is a list of such popular smartphones that saw a drop in their price in the month of November.
Samsung Omnia M
Old price: Rs15, 900
New price: Rs 12,000
Samsung Omnia M is a direct competitor to the low cost Nokia Lumia 610. It comes with a 1 GHz processor, 384 MB RAM and a bigger 4 inch AMOLED Display with a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels. The Omnia M is a true 3G device complete with a front camera for video calling as well.
The phone comes with 5 Megapixel rear camera that is assisted with a LED flash for low light photography. The Omnia M however can only record videos in VGA resolution at 30 frames per second. For better backup and runtime, the Omnia M has a bigger 1500 mAh.
The Omnia M comes preloaded with Samsung’s chat and message service Chat ON for communication over internet.
Samsung Galaxy Note II N7100
Old price: Rs 37,900
New price: Rs 36,900
Samsung Galaxy Note II features a 5.5-inch HD Super Amoled display and packs a quad-core mobile processor inside. By default, this smartphone-tablet hybrid runs Android 4.1 Jelly Bean.
The Galaxy Note II has an 8 megapixel camera at the back with auto-focus and LED Flash. This camera is easily capable of recording full 1080p HD video at 30 frames per second and the same video can be editing on the device itself. In the front, the Galaxy Note II features 1.9 megapixel camera for video calling.
Samsung offer GPS along with A-GPS and GLONASS support in the Galaxy Note II. The wireless connectivity options include Bluetooth 4.0, Dual-Band WiFi along with WiFi Direct support, WiFi Hotspot, DLNA support, Stereo FM with RDS, accelerometer, gyroscopic sensor, proximity sensor, compass and barometer.
The Galaxy Note II comes with a massive 3100 mAh battery and is available in Marble White and Titanium Grey colours.
Nokia 808 PureView
Old price: Rs 31,500
New price: Rs 25,000
Nokia’s famed PureView 808, which features a whopping 41 megapixel camera and was launched in India in June for Rs 32,000, features a single-core 1.3 GHz mobile processor and 512 MB RAM.
The 41 megapixel camera in Nokia 808 incorporates a technology called PureView which is jointly developed by Nokia and Carl Zeiss. Bearing the f/2.8 aperture, the 41 megapixel camera comes with Xenon flash and promises 7728×5354 resolution images in 16:9 formats.
PureView Pro imaging technology uses a technique of over-sampling for crystal-clear and noise-less 5 megapixel images. The imaging capability of Nokia 808 is further enhanced by its Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) which uses a special algorithm which combines seven different pixels in to a one better pixel.
The camera of Nokia 808 PureView also supports up to 4x Digital Zoom without compromising on the quality. It also allows capturing full 1080p HD videos at 30 frames per second with up to 3X zoom while for the 720p HD resolution, one can go up to 6x zoom.
Nokia has packed a 1400 mAh battery which promises 11 hours of battery life on EDGE and 6.5 hours of battery life on 3G networks.
Sony Xperia S
Old price: Rs 28,200
New price: Rs 25,990
Sony Xperia S is the first Android smartphone to carry the independent Sony logo and the second officially certified PlayStation device after Sony Ericsson Xperia Play. The Xperia S has thus access to the Sony PlayStation store and all the gaming and multimedia content that is available on it.
Xperia S is powered by a 1.5 GHz dual core Snapdragon MSM 8206 processor along with 1 GB of RAM for faster performance. Its 4.3 inch HD display comes with 1280 x 720 pixel resolution and runs Android 4.0 operating system.
There is also a 12 megapixel camera capable of recoding full HD videos which utilises Sony’s Exmor sensor technology that helps in taking quality images in low light conditions. Sony Xperia S features 3G, WiFi, Bluetooth and NFC capability.
Sony Xperia Sola
Old price: Rs 19,500
New price: Rs 17,990
Sony Xperia Sola is the first ever Android smartphone from Sony’s stable to feature a floating touch display. The floating touch display technology allows users to scroll through web pages on the device without having the need to actually touch the display. Users can simply hover their fingers close to the display and the device would recognise the gestures and translates it into action.
The Sony Xperia Sola features a dual core 1 GHz processor and has a 3.7 inch display with a resolution of 480 x 854 pixels powered by Sony’s Bravia Engine technology. The Xperia device feature 3G, WiFi, Bluetooth and NFC connectivity options and is DLNA certified as well. There is a 5 megapixel camera at the back of the smartphone that comes with 720p HD video recording capability but it misses out on a front camera so video calling is not possible on this device. It was launched in India in May for Rs 22,999.
Sony Xperia Neo L
Old price: Rs 18,100
New price: Rs 16,490
Xperia Neo L was the first ICS based smartphone of Sony. Armed with a Sony PlayStation certification, this device offers superior gaming and entertainment. The phone comes with a 4.0 inch FWVGA TFT capacitive touchscreen display with 854 x 480 pixel resolution and a scratch resistant surface.
Sony Xperia Neo L features a 1 GHz Scorpion Qualcomm Snapdragon processor, along with 512 MB of RAM. It has Internal Memory of 1 GB, which is expandable up to 32 GB through a micro SD memory card.
The device features a 5 megapixel Autofocus main camera with LED flash, and is capable of recording up to 720p HD videos at 30 frames per second. There is also a front-facing camera for video conferencing.
The phone features 3G, Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity along with a WiFi hotspot, Micro USB v2.0, native USB tethering, GPS etc.
Sony Xperia Ion
Old price: Rs 32,490
New price: Rs 29,990
Sony Mobile had launched the Xperia Ion smartphone in India for Rs 36,999 in August this year.
This 10.6 mm thick Xperia Ion is a power-packed device with a large 4.6 inch touchscreen with 1280 x 720 pixel native resolution. This touchscreen is a Reality Display with a scratch-resistant, shatter proof sheet on its mineral glass.
Under the hood, the Xperia Ion houses a dual core 1.5 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 MSM8260 mobile processor with 1 GB memory. This processor is coupled with Adreno 220 graphics that is good enough to run the most of the mobile games. This smartphone is PlayStation certified and can therefore run the legacy games with on-screen control buttons.
At the back, the Xperia Ion has a 12.1 megapixel camera to click high quality images and record 1080p HD videos at 30 frames per second. In the front, there is a 1.3 megapixel camera capable of recording 720p videos.
Packing 16 GB on-board storage, the smartphone offers a Memory card slot with support for a memory card of up to 32 GB. Besides, the phone also features Near Field Communication support and will be compatible with Sony SmartTags.
Sony Xperia Miro
Old price: Rs 14,500
New price: Rs 12,990
Sony Xperia Miro comes with a 3.5 inch display, 800 MHz Qualcomm MSM7225A processor, 512 MB RAM, and 3 GB internal memory that is expandable up to 32 GB via a micro SD card.
The phone runs on Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich operating system. Along with that there is a 5 megapixel rear camera that can record VGA resolution videos at 30 frames per second. Along with that the Miro will also feature a VGA front camera for video calling.
Sony Xperia SL
Old price: Rs 30,700
New price: Rs 27,990
Sony Xperia SL comes with a 4.3 inch HD screen and runs on a 1.7 GHz Qualcomm MSM8260 Dual Core processor, and has Android 4.0 operating system. Sony has also put Walkman application on the phone that provides enhanced music capability like manual equaliser and surround sound effect. And there is also a 12.1 megapixel camera at the back besides a front facing camera.
It also comes with PSP certification that makes sure that will allow you to play PlayStation games on the phone with virtual keys.
HTC One X
Old price: Rs 35,000
New price: Rs 32,000
HTC One X comes with a 4.7-inch Super-LCD 2 touchscreen with Corning Gorilla Glass display and is just 8.9mm in thickness. It houses a quad-core 1.2 GHz Nvidia Tegra 3 mobile processor and has 1 GB RAM. Running the Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich by default, this smartphone features HTC Sense 4.0 User Interface.
HTC Desire V
Old price: Rs 17,000
New price: Rs 16,200
The HTC Desire V is a dual SIM (GSM+GSM) mode based Android smartphone. The Desire V supports dual-band HSPA+ on the primary SIM slot, while the secondary one supports EDGE and GPRS connectivity. In terms of hardware, the HTC Desire V sports a 4 inch WVGA resolution based display running on Qualcomm MSM7227A chipsets, with a 1 GHz Cortex-A5 processor coupled with Adreno 200 graphics and a 512 MB of RAM to keep things smooth.
The smartphone feature a 5 megapixel, primary autofocus camera with LED flash and VGA recording, WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, GPS, FM radio, 4 GB storage and a 32 GB expandable memory through a micro SD expansion slot.
HTC Desire X
Old price: Rs 19,799
New price: Rs 18,555
HTC Desire X has a 4-inch Super LCD display with 480×800 pixel resolution and 223 ppi pixel density. Under the 9.3 mm thick profile, the Desire X packs a dual-core 1 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon S4 Play MSM8225 mobile processor with Adreno 203 graphics chip. HTC has packed a 768 MB RAM to run the HTC Sense 4.0 user interface layered at the Android 4.0.4 Ice Cream Sandwich update.
The Desire X supports 3G network and offers up to 7.2 Mbps HSDPA speeds while the HSUPA transfer speeds at up to 5.76 Mbps. It also supports WiFi and offers WiFi hotspot. At the rear, it has a modest 5 megapixel camera with autofocus and LED flash. This camera is not capable enough to record 720p HD videos which might be a bit of disappointment for imaging enthusiasts.
Desire X has Beats Audio technology sound enhancements for better output. By default, the phone has mere 4 GB on-board storage but it offers to support up to 32 GB microSD slot.
HTC Desire X has a 1650 mAh battery which promises about 10 hours of Talk time even over 3G networks.
LG Optimus Vu
Old price: Rs 34,500
New price: Rs 30,000
LG Optimus Vu was launched in India for Rs 34,500. The 5 inch display based Optimus Vu smartphone offers a display aspect ratio of 4:3 which will be much more beneficial for users in terms of entertainment and taking notes.
The LG Optimus Vu has In Plane Switching (IPS) technology based display that sports a resolution of 1024×768. The Optimus Vu features a 1.5 GHz Nvidia Tegra 3, 4 plus 1 processor, 1 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal storage as well.
It has an 8 megapixel rear camera, a 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera and an HDMI port as well for easy connectivity with bigger screen devices.
The device also has a 2080 mAh battery and runs on Google’s Android Ice Cream Sandwich operating system which might also get an upgrade to the Android Jelly Bean operating system later on.