OnePlus has launched a new Nord CE 2 phone in India. This is the company’s latest smartphone under Rs 25,000 price range. It is a minor upgrade over the OnePlus Nord CE but there is enough in it, combined with a fairly good starting price of Rs 23,999, to make it attractive to Indian buyers. The Nord CE 2 comes with a faster 65W charger in the box and a more power-efficient 6nm MediaTek Dimensity 900 chip under the hood. One will also be able to expand the storage using a dedicated microSD card. The headphone jack is still there.

The display, camera setup and battery are similar to its predecessor. But, the good thing is the new version brings support for eight 5G bands in India rather than just one band that you get with the OnePlus Nord CE.

So, all-in-all the Nord CE 2 is a fairly good option. But what if you want choices. What are the other phones in this price segment? Well, here is a quick list.

Realme 9 Pro+

The Realme 9 Pro+ is a good option in this price segment. You can expect a good daylight photography experience — thanks to its flagship-grade 50-megapixel Sony IMX766 rear sensor with OIS support. Though, the low light performance is not that great. You can check out our detailed review for more details. The Realme 9 Pro+ features a MediaTek Dimensity 920 chipset, which is pretty reliable and will not disappoint in terms of gaming (on medium graphics) as well. It has an AMOLED display, so you will get deeper blacks and a vibrant screen, similar to OnePlus Nord CE 2. The panel is 6.4-inches, which has support for a 90Hz refresh rate. The Realme 9 Pro+ is selling in India for Rs 24,999.

Xiaomi 11i

The Xiaomi 11i 5G is yet another smartphone under the Rs 30,000 price range in India. It comes with a large 5,160mAh battery with support for 67W fast charging. If you want a faster-charging speed, then you can check out the Xiaomi 11i Hypercharge, which offers 120W fast charging. Xiaomi phones in this price range offer a fairly good photography experience and that is true of the Xiaomi 11i as well. It has a 108-megapixel triple rear camera setup. You get the same MediaTek Dimensity 920 chipset that you get with the Realme 9 Pro+, but the Xiaomi phone offers a 120Hz AMOLED display, so you will get a smoother gaming and scrolling experience with this one. It has Stereo speakers with support for Dolby Atmos. The Xiaomi 11i 5G is priced at Rs 24,999 in India.

Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G

Samsung fans can consider buying the Galaxy A52s. This is a more expensive phone but with some discounts, you can get it for around Rs 30,000. On Amazon India, for example, it is listed for Rs 35,999, but if you apply the coupon discount of Rs 5,000, then it will bring down the price to Rs 30,999. There is also an exchange offer of up to Rs 14,950. So, you can get this device for less than Rs 30,000, if you opt for the exchange offer as well.

As far as its value is concerned, the Samsung Galaxy A52s is for those who want a good performing phone with an IP67 rating. This is something that you don’t get with affordable phones. The phone also sports a crisp 120Hz Super AMOLED display, a mid-range Snapdragon 778G SoC, stereo speakers, a 4,500mAh battery, and a solid set of 64-megapixel quad-camera setup. However, the biggest downside of the phone is that it comes with only a 15W charger. It has support for 25W fast charging, but you will have to buy the charger separately.

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