One of the best things you can do to celebrate the spirit of fatherhood this Father’s Day is to stay in touch with him. Whether you stay thousands of kilometres away from him or share a daily commute to your office, the man of the family loves to stay connected with you, share his feelings, work up your dreams and nurture you like a child. Hence, a smartphone might be exactly the tool he needs to make it happen.
Considering how how fathers don’t want anything fancy, the best balance of features and affordability comes in smartphones that cost less than Rs 30,000. In this budget, there are some notable phone brands to choose from. You have the trendy OnePlus Nord 4 for a fashion conscious father, a Nothing Phone 3a Pro for a geeky father, a Samsung Galaxy A36 for a not-so-geeky father and many others that fit the bill perfectly for your dad.
Hence, join us as we try to find what’s the best smartphone under Rs 30,000 you can get for your father.
Nothing phone 3a Pro:
The Nothing Phone 3a Pro marks the company’s first ‘Pro’ entry in its mid-range segment, offering a premium experience without flagship pricing. It features a 6.77-inch full HD+ flexible AMOLED display with a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate for smooth visuals. Under the hood, it runs on the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chipset, paired with up to 12GB of LPDDR4x RAM and 256GB of UFS 2.2 internal storage.
In terms of photography, the device sports a triple rear camera setup consisting of a 50MP Samsung primary sensor (1/1.56-inch), a 50MP Sony periscope telephoto lens (1/1.95-inch), and an 8MP ultra-wide camera. A 50MP front-facing shooter handles selfies and video calls.
Powering the device is a 5,000mAh battery that supports 50W fast wired charging. The phone runs on Android 15-based Nothing OS 3.1 and includes connectivity options such as 5G, dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC, GPS, and a USB Type-C port.
OnePlus Nord CE 4 LITE:
The OnePlus Nord CE 4 Lite 5G features a 6.67-inch full-HD+ AMOLED display with a resolution of 1,080 x 2,400 pixels, offering a smooth 120Hz refresh rate, peak brightness of up to 2,100 nits, and a 20:9 aspect ratio for immersive viewing. Under the hood, it is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 chipset coupled with an Adreno 619 GPU. The device comes with 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and up to 256GB of UFS 2.2 internal storage. It runs on OxygenOS 14, which is based on Android 14.
For photography, the Nord CE 4 Lite 5G is equipped with a dual rear camera setup comprising a 50MP Sony LYT-600 primary sensor (1/1.95-inch) with OIS and a 2MP depth sensor. On the front, there’s a 16MP selfie camera with EIS support. The phone packs a large 5,500mAh battery that supports 80W SuperVOOC wired charging and 5W reverse charging. Connectivity options include 5G, Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS, and a USB Type-C port.
iQOO Neo 10R:
The iQOO Neo 10R is a dual-SIM (Nano) smartphone running Funtouch OS 15 based on Android 15. It features a 6.78-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 1,260 x 2,800 pixels, offering a smooth 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+ certification, and an impressive peak brightness of 4,500 nits. Designed with gamers in mind, the display supports a 300Hz touch sampling rate and is protected by Schott Xensation Up glass.
Under the hood, the device is powered by the octa-core Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 processor paired with an Adreno 735 GPU. It comes with up to 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM and up to 256GB of UFS 3.1 internal storage for fast and efficient performance. On the rear, the phone features a dual-camera system that includes a 50MP Sony IMX882 main sensor and an 8MP ultra-wide lens. For selfies and video calls, there’s a 32MP front-facing CMOS sensor.
The iQOO Neo 10R is backed by a robust 6,400mAh battery with support for 80W fast wired charging. The phone measures 163.72 x 75.88 x 7.98mm and weighs approximately 196 grams, offering a sleek yet substantial feel in hand.
Samsung Galaxy A36 5G:
The Galaxy A36 5G comes equipped with a 6.7-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED display, offering a smooth 120Hz refresh rate and protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+. Samsung has packed the phone with a suite of AI-driven tools—Auto Trim, Best Face, AI Select, and Read Aloud—designed to elevate the user experience.
At its core, the device runs on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 chipset, paired with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage. It operates on One UI 7 based on Android 15. Samsung has committed to providing six generations of OS upgrades and six years of security updates.
On the camera front, the Galaxy A36 5G features a rear camera setup that includes an 8MP ultra-wide sensor, replacing the 12MP found in previous models, while the 12MP front camera handles selfies and video calls. A robust 5,000mAh battery powers the phone, supporting 45W fast wired charging.