Samsung Galaxy Note 9 to OnePlus 6: Top Apple iPhone XR alternatives

This year, Apple launched three phones - iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max and iPhone XR. The least expensive of the lot is iPhone XR which starts at ₹76,900 in India. The smartphone will be available in India on October 26.

iPhone XR is Apple's 'cheaper' offering for buyers. It comes in three storage variants of 64GB, 128GB ( ₹81,900), and 256GB ( ₹81,900). iPhone XR has a 6.1-inch LCD display which Apple portrays as 'Liquid Retina HD display'. It is powered by Apple's new A12 Bionic chip based on 7nm process making it the most powerful smartphone processor right now.

For photography, iPhone XR has a 12-megapixel wide-angle camera with f/1.8 aperture. Up front, there's a 7-megapixel selfie camera with f/2.2 aperture. The cameras offer portrait mode, depth control and portrait lighting effects. iPhone XR also comes with Animoji, memoji and Face ID.

It runs the latest iOS 12, and has a battery that lasts 1.5 hours longer than iPhone 8 Plus. iPhone XR also supports wireless charging, and comes with IP67 rating for water and dust resistance. It supports 4G VoLTE, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC and dual SIM.

iPhone XR is impressive in many ways but its hefty price tag pulls it down, especially when buyers in India are spoilt with many choices. Let's take a look at top iPhone XR alternatives that offer premium experience and have more or less specifications.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9

The latest flagship from Samsung, Galaxy Note 9 comes at a cheaper price of ₹67,900 for the base model with 6GB RAM and 128GB storage. Galaxy Note 9 offers a better Quad HD+ Super AMOLED display on its 6.4-inch screen. It runs on 9810 Exynos processor which is Samsung's flagship SoC at the moment.

The smartphone has dual 12-megapixel cameras with dual OIS, and an 8-megapixel front camera for selfies. It is fuelled by a massive 4,000mAh battery which can also be wirelessly charged. Samsung too has its own iPhone-inspired rendition of Animojis called 'AR emojis'.

OnePlus 6

OnePlus 6 has been a fan favourite in the under- ₹30,000 category, and has proved so in terms of performance as well. It is powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 845 processor paired with a 3,300mAh battery. OnePlus 6 also offers a Optic AMOLED display on its full HD+ 6.28-inch screen.

In terms of optics, you get a 16-megapixel Sony IMX 519 sensor and 20-megapixel Sony IMX 376 sensor at the rear. For selfies, there's a 16-megapixel Sony IMX 371 sensor with f/2.0 aperture.

OnePlus 6 has many variants starting at ₹34,999 going up to ₹44,999 which is still way cheaper than iPhone XR. The smartphone's updated with the highest connectivity options like Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, and 4G VoLTE. And it also has a 3.5mm audio jack.

Vivo Nex

Vivo Nex comes with features you won't find in any of the listed smartphones. Vivo Nex offers a true full-screen experience without even the notch. It also has an in-display fingerprint which lets users unlock the phone by just tapping on the screen.

Another interesting feature of Vivo Nex is its 8-megapixel selfie camera which pops up from the top panel of the phone. In terms of specs, Vivo Nex comes with Snapdragon 845 SoC, 4,000mAh battery, 8GB RAM and 128GB storage. The smartphone carries a price tag of ₹44,990.

Apple iPhone 7 Plus

If Android isn't your thing, then you can go for the older iPhone 7 Plus. Minus a few newer features, iPhone 7 Plus is still a viable option. iPhone 7 Plus (64GB) is available at ₹49,900, and ₹59,900 for the 128GB model.

On the iPhone 7 Plus, you get the same Retina HD display on a 5.5-inch screen but without the notch. The camera configurations remain the same as well with portrait mode on the rear camera. It however lacks features like portrait lighting, animoji and Face ID. iPhone 7 Plus instead houses the physical home button with Touch ID.

Like the iPhone XR, iPhone 7 Plus is also water and dust resistant with IP67 rating. Performance would be a little low as iPhone 7 Plus runs on the older A10 Fusion chip.