Flagship phones, with their cool features and powerful hardware, are great but expensive. For the vast majority of people, the sweet spot is the mid-range bracket (10,000-20,000) where you get nifty features and decent specs. We take a look at two new handsets that provide a good balance between price and user experience.
Nokia G42 5G
Nokia designs good looking, tough, long-lasting devices that have managed to strike a chord with the value-conscious consumer. Their latest device, Nokia G42 5G, is no different – it is designed to withstand the rigours of everyday use. The handset’s 6.56-inch HD+ 90Hz Corning Gorilla Glass 3 screen comes encased in a two-piece Unibody and back cover that is made from 65% recycled plastic.
Nokia G42 starts at `12,599 and comes in two colours, So Grey and So Purple, along with a 20W charger out of the box. It is powered by the Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G chipset, offering fast 5G connectivity. The phone also boasts impressive specs such as 50MP AF main camera plus 2MP Macro and 2MP Depth auxiliary cameras with LED flash. An 8MP camera caters to selfie enthusiasts.
The Nokia handset features an 11/128GB storage (6GB+5GB) and sports a three-day battery life. First of all, its strongest aspect – three years of security updates and two years of Android OS upgrades. Its 50MP triple rear AI camera offers the same level of performance and image quality seen in pricier handsets. Additionally, there is a strong processor and enough RAM to enjoy browsing, shopping and sharing photos seamlessly.
Lava Blaze 2 5G
Lava’s Blaze series is quite popular among the mid-range audience; the devices have a nice and clean design styling, and the performance is satisfactory. The fresh Blaze 2 5G is no exception to this rule, and it is also one of the finest phones from the homegrown firm in recent months. It has a 6.56-inch HD+ IPS punch hole display with 90Hz refresh rate. It has a ring light and glass back design, and is available in three colours, namely Glass Black, Glass Blue and Glass Lavender.
Performance-wise, this phone doesn’t disappoint, with its lightning-fast MediaTek Dimensity 6020 processor, 4/6GB RAM and 64/128GB storage, expandable upto 1 TB. It provides a clean Android 13 experience and also offers anonymous and auto-call recording and features a side fingerprint sensor.
Blaze 2 5G is equipped with 50MP rear camera and 8MP front camera with screen flash for perfect selfies. The phone’s inbuilt camera features include various modes like Film, Slow Motion, Timelapse, UHD, Gif, Beauty, HDR, Night, Portrait, AI, Pro, Panorama, Filters and Intelligent Scanning. Its 5000mAh battery with 18W fast charging (Type-C) will easily get you through the day. All in all, this is a no-brainer choice if you are coming for a decent performing mid-range device.
SPECIFICATIONS
Nokia G42 5G
Display: 6.56-inch HD+ display
Processor: Snapdragon 480 Plus 5G processor
Operating system: Android 13
Memory & storage: 6/8GB RAM, 128/256GB storage
Camera: 50MP triple rear AI camera, 8MP front camera
Battery: 5000mAh battery
Estimated street price: 12,999 (6/128GB), 16,999 (8/256GB)
Lava Blaze 2 5G
Display: 6.56-inch HD+ IPS punch hole display
Processor: MediaTek Dimensity 6020 processor
Operating system: Android 13
Memory & storage: 4/6GB RAM, 64/128GB storage
Cameras: 50MP rear camera and 8MP front camera
Battery: 5000mAh, 18W fast charging
Estimated street price: 9,999 (4/64GB), 10,999 (6/128GB)
