I believe that one shouldn’t give too much importance to hardware specs when buying a new phone. Rather than paying heed to the processing power and RAM capacity, the end-user should be concerned about the usability and experience. Unfortunately, for most smartphone buyers today, processor is the decisive factor. After starting the series of Top Smartphone Recommendation articles, we’ve been getting a lot of requests to publish a list of quad-core handsets under Rs 10,000. So finally, we are doing just that. Oh and please don’t expect these handsets to run Android Kitkat. If you want the latest version of Android, stretch you budget by 4k and go for the Moto G.
HTC Desire 310
Street Price: 10,000
If you're in for a quad-core phone that looks good, HTC's Desire 310 is perfect for you. The phone sports a 4.5-inch screen with 480x854 pixels. It's powered by Mediatek MT6582M chipset clocked at 1.3 GHz. The Indian version of the handset comes with 512 MB RAM (that’s bit of a downer). The internal storage is 4 GB. Plus, you get a microSD card slot. Other features include a 5 megapixel camera, VGA front-facing snapper, dual-SIM functionality, and 2000 mAh battery.
XOLO Q700s
Street Price: Rs 9500
The Q700i is another 4.5-incher in this list. This dual-SIM phone from the domestic manufacturer is powered by a 1.3 GHz MediaTek MT6582M chipset. The screen is IPS type supporting 854x480 pixels. The Q700s packs in an 8 megapixel rear camera with LED Flash, 0.3 megapixel front-facing snapper, 1 GB RAM, 4 GB internal memory, microSD card slot, and 1800 mAh battery. The phone ships with Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean).
Street Price: 10,000
If you're in for a quad-core phone that looks good, HTC's Desire 310 is perfect for you. The phone sports a 4.5-inch screen with 480x854 pixels. It's powered by Mediatek MT6582M chipset clocked at 1.3 GHz. The Indian version of the handset comes with 512 MB RAM (that’s bit of a downer). The internal storage is 4 GB. Plus, you get a microSD card slot. Other features include a 5 megapixel camera, VGA front-facing snapper, dual-SIM functionality, and 2000 mAh battery.
XOLO Q700s
Street Price: Rs 9500
The Q700i is another 4.5-incher in this list. This dual-SIM phone from the domestic manufacturer is powered by a 1.3 GHz MediaTek MT6582M chipset. The screen is IPS type supporting 854x480 pixels. The Q700s packs in an 8 megapixel rear camera with LED Flash, 0.3 megapixel front-facing snapper, 1 GB RAM, 4 GB internal memory, microSD card slot, and 1800 mAh battery. The phone ships with Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean).
Lenovo Ideaphone A706
Street Price: Rs 9,500
The Ideaphone A706 offers a 4.5" IPS display with 854×480 pixels. The screen’s colour reproduction is very good. Like most Lenovo smartphones, the Ideaphone A706 is well built. It is powered by a 1 GHz Snapdragon 200 chispet clocked at 1 GHz. As usual, you get 1 GB RAM, 5 megapixel camera, VGA front-facing snapper, microSD card slot, dual-SIM support, and 2000 mAh battery. On the software front, you get Android 4.1 JellyBean.
Street Price: Rs 9,500
The Ideaphone A706 offers a 4.5" IPS display with 854×480 pixels. The screen’s colour reproduction is very good. Like most Lenovo smartphones, the Ideaphone A706 is well built. It is powered by a 1 GHz Snapdragon 200 chispet clocked at 1 GHz. As usual, you get 1 GB RAM, 5 megapixel camera, VGA front-facing snapper, microSD card slot, dual-SIM support, and 2000 mAh battery. On the software front, you get Android 4.1 JellyBean.
Panasonic P31
Street Price: Rs 10,000
If you're fan of phablets, the P31 is a good option. This 5-inch smartphone comes with dual-SIM functionality. It's fuelled by a 1.3 GHz quad-core processor, coupled with 1 GB RAM. It's one of the few phones under 10k that offer an 8 megapixel camera and 8 GB internal storage. In terms of connectivity, it covers the essentials. The phone runs Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) with Lenovo’s custom skinning. There’s a possibility that you may like all those gesture controls this phone has to offer.
Street Price: Rs 10,000
If you're fan of phablets, the P31 is a good option. This 5-inch smartphone comes with dual-SIM functionality. It's fuelled by a 1.3 GHz quad-core processor, coupled with 1 GB RAM. It's one of the few phones under 10k that offer an 8 megapixel camera and 8 GB internal storage. In terms of connectivity, it covers the essentials. The phone runs Android 4.2 (Jelly Bean) with Lenovo’s custom skinning. There’s a possibility that you may like all those gesture controls this phone has to offer.
