Smart deal: Best touchscreen phones under ₹10,000

Today we will be looking at some of these budget touchscreen phones, especially those that cost below ₹ 10,000. If you’re stuck using a phone with buttons simply because you think touchscreen phones are expensive, this should hopefully change your mind.

There was a time when touchscreens were a novelty and something only reserved for the top of the line smartphones. But as time progressed and the cost of manufacturing touchscreens went down, we slowly started seeing them on budget phones as well. Nowadays, we have phones costing as low as ₹ 3000 with touchscreens, something that was unheard of not too long ago.

Today we will be looking at some of these budget touchscreen phones, especially those that cost below ₹ 10,000. If you're stuck using a phone with buttons simply because you think touchscreen phones are expensive, this should hopefully change your mind.

MicromaxSuperfone Ninja A50

Looking beyond the convoluted name, the MicromaxSuperfone Ninja A50 has a lot to offer. It's a compact and attractive Android Gingerbread smartphone that has a 3.1-inch, QVGA, capacitive touchscreen, 650MHz processor, 512MB RAM, 2 megapixel camera, 3G, Wi-Fi, dual SIM support and expandable memory.

But that's not the best part. The MicromaxSuperfone Ninja A50 comes with a voice operated search function similar to Siri on the iPhone 4S, called AISHA (Artificial Intelligence Speech Handset Assistant). You will be able to search the web, find the time and weather of any city, send messages, make calls, update your Facebook status, find a nearby restaurant and even look for a job, all using your voice. If you thought getting a touchscreen phone for cheap was a big deal, this should definitely blow your mind.

The MicromaxSuperfone Ninja A50 is priced at ₹ 4,990 and is one of the most value for money phone you can find in its price range, touchscreen or otherwise.

Samsung Galaxy Pocket S5300

Looking for something as bit more upmarket than that? Samsung has you covered with the Galaxy Pocket S5300. This chic looking smartphone runs on an 832 MHz processor and Android 2.3 Gingerbread. Other than that it also has a 2.8-inch, QVGA, capacitive touchscreen, 3GB internal memory with microSD card slot, 2 megapixel camera, 3G, Wi-Fi and GPS.

The Samsung Galaxy Pocket S5300 costs ₹ 6,990.

HTC Explorer

The HTC Explorer was designed specifically with the Indian market in mind. It has a rugged, built-to-last body that's designed to take the rough and tumble of daily life and rubberized surface for additional grip. But underneath this tough exterior lies a solid, value-for-money smartphone.

The HTC Explorer may be inexpensive but it still comes with HTC's Sense UI. While our opinions differ about it when it comes to high-end smartphones there is no denying that it makes using budget phones much more special due to its attractive, fluid design and additional features not found in stock Android that a lot of budget phones have.

Other than that it has a 3.2-inch, HVGA resolution display, 600MHz processor, 512MB of RAM, Android 2.3 with Sense 3.5, 3 megapixel camera, expandable memory, 3G, Wi-Fi and GPS.

The HTC Explorer is priced at ₹ 8,999.

Sony Ericsson Xperia mini

A couple of months ago you would not have seen this phone in this segment but due to some drastic price drops in recent times the Xperia mini now falls under the ₹ 10,000 price bracket.

But make no mistake; this is still the same old capable smartphone that it once used to be when it was launched for nearly ₹ 5,000 more. Underneath its deceivingly compact body lies a powerful set of hardware. You have a 1GHz Snapdragon processor with 512MB of RAM, same as in phones that cost twice as much. There is also a 5 megapixel camera on the back with 720p video recording. The Xperia mini runs on Android 2.3 Gingerbread but will soon be updated to Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich. Then there are all the other bells and whistles that one expects in a modern smartphone.

For ₹ 9,990, you will be hard pressed to find a better deal than this.