We will not convince you that the best smartphone in 2020, up to 15,000 rubles, will be as good in its capabilities as the more expensive mobile phones up to 30,000 rubles.
However, if you need a gadget with a bright screen, a battery that does not need to be recharged during the day, and with a good camera to post photos on social networks, then you can’t find a better option than a smartphone up to 15,000 rubles.
10. OPPO A5 (2020)
- Android 9.0
- 6.5 ″ screen, resolution 1600 × 720
- four cameras 12 MP / 8 MP / 2 MP / 2 MP, autofocus
- memory 64 GB, RAM 3 GB
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 5000 mAh battery
Top smartphones in 2020 to 15,000 rubles opens a new product from a Chinese manufacturer, which has recently been actively exploring the Russian mobile market.
In order to compete with giants such as Huawei and Xiaomi, OPPO products must have good technical characteristics. So the A5 model has a capacious battery, an NFC chip and four sensors of the main camera at once. Two of them are for portrait mode. The dynamic range and detailing of the photos is not bad, you won’t immediately say that it was shot on a state employee. But if shooting is carried out in the dark or indoors under dim light, then digital noise appears immediately and in large numbers on the pictures.
The budget OPPO A5 is evidenced by the small amount of RAM for the modern device, as well as a small number of pixels per inch - 270 ppi. Because of this, the graininess is visible on the screen, but over time you stop noticing it.
pros: capacious battery, beautiful design, mid-range Snapdragon 665 processor, 3.5 mm audio jack, separate memory card slot.
Minuses: no indicator of events, low resolution and graininess of the screen.
9. ZTE Blade V10
- Android 9.0
- 6.3 ″ screen, resolution 2280 × 1080
- dual camera 16 MP / 5 MP, autofocus
- memory 64 GB, RAM 4 GB
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 3200 mAh battery
Among the best smartphones up to 15,000 rubles in 2020, this model stands out for its balance between cost and performance.
It has a large screen with 400 ppi, good resolution and high brightness, a mid-range MediaTek Helio P70 processor that pulls games at medium and low settings, as well as a good main camera with HDR mode and AI technology. She can recognize up to 300 scenes, and even in the preview mode. It is also possible to process photos manually.
But what makes the ZTE Blade V10 special is the front camera with a resolution of 32 MP and a mode of beauty. The pictures taken will emphasize all the advantages and features of your face, so this smartphone will become a real treasure for those who love to take selfies.
pros: there is a 3.5 mm audio jack, there is an event indicator, nice design, good performance (if you are not going to play games demanding hardware).
Minuses: low battery capacity.
8. Honor 20 Lite
- Android 9.0
- 6.15 ″ screen, resolution 2312 × 1080
- three cameras 48 MP / 8 MP / 2 MP, autofocus
- 128 GB memory, 4 GB RAM
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 3340 mAh battery
And once again, Honor challenges the smartphone market. This time the goal is the budget price segment. For a reasonable price, you get a triple rear camera, a 32 MP front camera and a voluminous memory storage.
The appearance of the device is very decent - the screen / case ratio is more than 90%.
The HiSilicon Kirin 710 processor with 4 GB of RAM for a budget smartphone looks ordinary. Alas, this smartphone cannot play the latest games at maximum settings. Maximum - on average.
pros: Great front camera, quick charge available.
Minuses: There is no 3.5mm headphone jack, the main camera takes pictures that are oversaturated with colors and look artificially.
7. Realme 6i
- Android 10
- 6.5 ″ screen, resolution 1600 × 720
- four cameras 48 MP / 8 MP / 2 MP / 2 MP, autofocus
- 128 GB memory, 4 GB RAM
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 5000 mAh battery
Japanese industrial designer Naoto Fukasawa, probably best known for his huge contribution to Muji products, had a hand in the design of this smartphone.
However, appearance is not the only advantage of Realme 6i. It is equipped with a separate SIM card slot, it will provide about 2 days of listening to music or a whole day of watching videos, and when you get bored with this, you can recharge the battery with quick charge.
The shooting quality of the main camera is not bad, but not close to such camera phones as Google Pixel 4 and Samsung Galaxy S10 +. The standard auto mode in sufficient light provides a large number of details, which can be improved even more if you enable the 48 MP mode in the settings.
And thanks to a special depth sensor, portrait shots have a good separation of subject and background.
If you look at the 16-megapixel front camera, then by default there is a rather aggressive mode of beautification, which you might prefer to turn off. However, selfies have the right amount of detail, and skin tones look quite natural.
The MediaTek Helio G80 chipset in combination with 4 GB of RAM makes it easy to run demanding applications and use multitasking. The performance of the GPU is moderate, but you can play almost any modern game with a good frame rate (at medium settings).
pros: a good main camera, a comfortable shell Realme UI without ads, a high level of screen brightness.
Minuses: no LED notification of a missed event, low screen resolution, not too loud speaker sound.
6. Samsung Galaxy A31
- Android 10
- 6.4 ″ screen, resolution 2400 × 1080
- four cameras 48 MP / 5 MP / 8 MP / 5 MP, autofocus
- memory 64 GB, RAM 4 GB
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 5000 mAh battery
Samsung seems unstoppable when it comes to new smartphone releases. In 2020, the South Korean brand introduced several models at once, from expensive premium novelties to mid-price and budget ones, such as the Galaxy A31.
You will find one of the main advantages of this model in camera optics. Now it has a module of four sensors placed in a rectangular ledge, very similar to other more expensive Samsung smartphones.
Its rear cameras include a 48-megapixel main sensor, an 8-megapixel super-wide 123 ° lens, a 5-megapixel depth sensor and a 5-megapixel macro camera. On the other hand, it has an improved 20 megapixel selfie camera.
It is also worth mentioning the Full HD + Super AMOLED display, while most new smartphones in 2020 up to 15,000 rubles are satisfied with the IPS matrix.
In terms of performance, the MediaTek Helio P65 chipset is clearly not a gaming solution. He will easily pull several applications open at the same time, but you will have to forget about games at maximum and even medium settings.
pros: 3.5 mm audio jack, massive 5000 mAh battery with support for 15 W fast charging, Dolby Atmos, Always on Display.
Minuses: not too fast fingerprint scanner and face recognition also slows down.
5. TCL Plex
- Android 9.0
- 6.53 ″ screen, resolution 2340 × 1080
- three cameras 48 MP / 16 MP / 2 MP, autofocus
- 128 GB memory, 6 GB RAM
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 3820 mAh battery
Opens the top 5 smartphones up to 15,000 rubles in 2020, a new product - a smartphone from the TCL concern, which before that was mainly known to the Russian consumer on TVs.
TCL Plex is a strong middling that even though there aren’t enough stars from the sky, is suitable for any task, be it calls, social networks, games that are not too demanding on hardware or watching videos. It is based on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 chipset with the Adreno 612 GPU.
Plex looks solid, the back wall is made of glass, and thanks to the special spraying, the light on it plays beautifully in many colors. The front camera is a modest round hole on the front panel, which does not burden the appearance of the smartphone. And in general, the housing / screen ratio is above 90%, which is already not bad.
But what really sets this gadget apart from the likes of it is a special dedicated processor for the screen, which in theory should increase the brightness and level of detail of the picture.
The battery of the TCL Plex is not too big - 3820 mAh, but competitors' smartphones are able to work longer on batteries of the same volume. The reason - TCL Plex heats up under load, which reduces the battery life of the device. So you can play games for no more than 4 hours in a row.
pros: one of the best IPS screens, good quality shooting in day and night modes, 3.5 mm audio jack.
Minuses: Heats up, which leads to a reduction in battery life.
4. Honor 9X
- Android 9.0
- 6.59 ″ screen, resolution 2340 × 1080
- dual camera 48 MP / 2 MP, autofocus
- 128 GB memory, 4 GB RAM
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 4000 mAh battery
The large 6.59-inch FHD + display with a resolution of 2340 x 1080 is made without any incisions or holes, thanks to the pop-up camera. Streaming movies and videos on this smartphone is an incredibly exciting sight, as it has a screen-to-body ratio of 91%.
In the settings, Honor provides its users with the ability to enable the “smart resolution” feature, automatically lowering the screen resolution to save energy.
The 16-megapixel front-facing pop-up camera takes very detailed selfies, although the photo has a tendency to overexposure.
While the 9X has a 48-megapixel main camera, the default photo mode is 12 MP by default. 48 MP shooting is available in Pro mode.
If in low light the detail starts to limp and the picture looks blurry, you can enable a special night mode.
Under the hood, the 9X houses the HiSilicon Kirin 710 processor. Web browsing and social networking, video streaming and other work tasks are not a problem for the 9X. The smartphone will face obstacles when it comes to new games, many of them will go only at low graphics settings.
pros: There is a 3.5 mm headphone jack, beautiful design, convenient selfie camera.
Minuses: No event LED.
3. HUAWEI P smart Z
- Android 9.0
- 6.59 ″ screen, resolution 2340 × 1080
- dual camera 16 MP / 2 MP, autofocus
- memory 64 GB, RAM 4 GB
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 4000 mAh battery
What immediately catches your eye when looking at this smartphone from HUAWEI? I would venture to suggest that the absence of a cutout under the camera. The reason for this innovation is a retractable camera module on the upper end of the device.
The camera’s selfie camera is equipped with a 16 MP lens. According to the statements of Chinese engineers, the module is able to withstand more than 100 thousand lifts, as well as more than 12 kg of weight (we don’t know who will come to expose the module to such loads).
There is also a camera on the back of the device, it has a primary lens with a resolution of 16 MP, and a second 2 MP lens is designed to create a bokeh effect.
The HUAWEI P smart Z enters the market with only one memory capacity - 64 GB, however, if desired, it can be expanded with a memory card.
The smartphone is based on the HiSilicon Kirin 710F chipset. When switching between several open applications, there will be no “brakes”, however, demanding games can be difficult.
pros: frameless, good design, good battery capacity.
Minuses: flimsy back plastic panel, the display is not very bright, it will be difficult to read in sunlight.
2. Motorola Moto G8 Plus
- Android 9.0
- 6.3 ″ screen, resolution 2280 × 1080
- three cameras 48 MP / 5 MP / 16 MP, autofocus
- memory 64 GB, RAM 4 GB
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, LTE-A, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 4000 mAh battery
In favor of the Moto G8 Plus from the company "Motorola" speaks a long battery life, a wide-angle camera and high performance for this price category. Well, of course, the small price is one of the best smartphones up to 15,000 rubles.
However, upon closer inspection, it turns out that some of the benefits are not as good as the advertising promises. For example, a wide-angle lens cannot be used for photos, but only for video. Of course, it’s great that you can hold the smartphone vertically, and at the same time take photos in landscape format (it is very convenient when controlling with the device with one hand).
However, the camera has no optical stabilization system. And although the main lens has a resolution of 48 MP, by default it takes a photo with a maximum of 12 MP. True, the pictures are very good, they have high detail, decent sharpness, and for depth of field there is a separate custom parameter.
It is a little sad that Motorola backtracked by making the slots for an additional memory card and the second SIM card interchangeable. However, there is good news: the company continues to make a 3.5 mm jack for its smartphones, which allows the use of analog headphones without the help of an adapter.
pros: capacious battery, fast fingerprint scanner, loud speaker, fast charge.
Minuses: Widescreen lens for video only, heavy.
1. Xiaomi Redmi Note 8T
- Android 9.0
- 6.3 ″ screen, resolution 2340 × 1080
- four cameras 48 MP / 8 MP / 2 MP / 2 MP, autofocus
- memory 64 GB, 4 GB
- memory card slot
- 3G, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC
- 4000 mAh battery
In the first place in the ranking of smartphones up to 15,000 rubles in 2020, the next model from Xiaomi came out. This company manages to produce excellent devices from year to year, which, in terms of capabilities, exceed their price category. The Redmi Note 8T model was no exception to this rule.
The manufacturer especially succeeded in displaying a diagonal of 6.3 inches, with rich colors and an adjustable brightness level. The chipset on the basis of which the smartphone (Qualcomm Snapdragon 665) was created is also not bad for a budget option. Applications load quickly, and as for games, most of them will go on a smartphone without problems. True, for the most demanding, you may need to lower the level of detail.
The main camera with four lenses makes decent shots, but the macro lens and bokeh here more likely give the impression of presence than they really work. However, given the price of a smartphone, it's more like nitpicking.
The front camera with a resolution of 13 MP in the settings automatically makes skin correction (that is, it blurs it to the state of plastic), but this can be corrected manually. Moreover, in the settings you can even set the width of the face and eye size.
True, there is a drop of tar in this barrel of honey. Why Xiaomi decided to use Bluetooth version 4.2 for Redmi Note 8T is a mystery. After all, the phone’s power makes it possible to use a more modern version of wireless communications.
pros: separate slot for a memory card, there is a quick charge, there is a connector for wired headphones.
Minuses: no notification indicator.