Technology evolves at a very fast pace and if you bought your phone around a year ago, there are good chances that it might already be feeling outdated. Consumers trends change every 6 months, but you can still estimate what’s ahead of the curve and decide what you need and what you are willing to let go.
If you are looking to buy a new smartphone and don’t want to miss out on the latest smartphone trends, we have compiled a list of features that should be on your priority list. The ranking, of course, will depend on what’s important to your individual needs and the way you primarily use your phone.
Let’s begin.
Dual Cameras
Dual cameras are trending these days, and that’s because they are an excellent way of counterbalancing smartphone photography constraints (particularly the limited space that inhibits use of bigger sensors).
Now there are three prevalent dual camera configurations out there and each has its merits. The dual cameras on the front also count as meaningful enhancements as you can use them to shoot wide angle selfies, something you will find yourself doing very often.
Also Read: Best dual camera phones under 20,000 INR
18:9 Displays
18:9 or full vision or Infinity displays are rapidly gaining popularity across all price segments and for good reason.
These displays help manufacturers use bigger screens without making the phones unwieldy. Most of these phones with full vision display have very narrow bezels surrounding the screen and the choice of aspect ratio also helps restrict the phone’s width. You can fit more on your screen for all tasks except, at times, for watching videos (that requires 18:9 content or cropping the display to full screen).
Most of these phones with full vision display have very narrow bezels surrounding the screen and the choice of aspect ratio also helps restrict the phone’s width. You can fit more on your screen for all tasks except, at times, for watching videos (that requires 18:9 content or cropping the display to full screen).
Also Read: Best Phones With 18:9 Displays That You Can Buy
Powerful Chipset with 64GB storage
Yes, the number of first-time smartphone users in India is staggeringly high, but at the same time, we can no longer label these new smartphone users as ‘basic users’.
The basic apps that all of us need have increased with time. With most of us using our phones for banking, shopping, fitness, and other general purposes, almost all tech-savvy users need to keep at least 20 apps on their phones. 16GB storage simply won’t cut it anymore.
Moreover, as your smartphone storage fills to the brim, the performance will suffer. So, we can’t wholeheartedly recommend 16GB storage phones to anyone these days (not even basic users) and 32GB is the bare minimum which you’d need. And yes, for a decent experience, you should strive for 4GB RAM and 64GB storage options as far as possible. Luckily, this configuration is now available in several recommendable phones priced for as low as 10,000 INR.
Also Read: Best Phones With Snapdragon 625 Processor
Dedicated Micro SD card slot
Hybrid SIM slot was a crafty way for OEMs to add expandable storage to the spec-list without adding an extra slot, but the fad was short lived. At least in India.
Post the Reliance Jio intrusion, dual SIM support is more of a mandatory need for many people, which essentially means that compromising dual SIM privilege for secondary storage is just not an option anymore, at least not on phones with 16GB and 32GB internal storage.
Also Read: Best Dual SIM Phones with Dedicated card slot
Fast charging
2017 has seen a major improvement as far as battery life in general goes (compared to the last year), but at the same time, slim design and other limitations still restrict manufacturers from using massive batteries, especially in premium phones. Fast charging has emerged as an alternate solution that helps noticeably.
Plugging in your phone for 30 minutes while you shower and dress up and getting enough power to comfortably last your commute (or even your day) is surely an unmatched convenience.
Scratch Resistant Glass
Yes, most of you would use display protectors or tempered glass on your screens, but thanks to the 2.5D glass world that we live in, we are sure most of you would end up with display protectors that don’t cover the entire screen and thus a scratch-resistant glass is important.
What you must also know is that corning has been working on making its scratch resistant glass drop resistant for the last few generations. This means that a Gorilla Glass 5 is less likely to shatter when you drop it than a Gorilla Glass 3, but that doesn’t mean that Gorilla Glass 5 will resist scratches better. In fact, Gorilla Glass 3 is a tad better at resisting scratches than Gorilla Glass 5.
Android Oreo update
This is that particular time of the year when Google has already announced Android O, has started working on Android P, but almost all upcoming phones will run Android Nougat for a few more months.
The point being, if you want to be able to taste the new changes Google has integrated into Android 8.0 Oreo, it’s better to go for a phone that’s likely to be updated. This isn’t very difficult as of today as we have seen a significant increase in a number of budget phones running stock Android or those that promise upgrade to the next version.
Also Read: Complete List of Phones Getting Android Oreo Update In India
Design
Up until last year, many consumers were willing to compromise on design in exchange for better hardware and more battery, especially in affordable phones. However, we have noticed a big shift in consumer trend in the last few months.
People are no longer satisfied with just getting the design labels (read: metal, 2.5D glass, etc) but are genuinely giving precedence to unique, good looking, slim and easily manageable phones. Your next phone just has to look good even when it’s resting in a protective case.
4G VoLTE and ViLTE
4G VoLTE is a mandatory in any smartphone today. Almost all phones that have launched in the last few months haven’t missed out on this new staple feature, but not all of the new entrants support native video calling via Jio SIM. The video calling trend is on the rise and if you are buying a new phone, you might want to give it some weight while considering your next phone.
Latest Android Phone features to consider Before you buy a new Phone
These are the 10 features which, in our opinion, should be on your checklist. Of course, it will be a tough task finding a single phone that checks all of these boxes, especially in the affordable price segment, but all that matters is that you weigh your priorities and make an informed choice.
