Best phones under Rs 40,000 (Feb 2024): OnePlus 12R, Nothing Phone (2) to Samsung Galaxy S22 5G

Looking to buy a new smartphone under Rs 40,000? Drop everything you are doing and check this out right now! Never before do we remember seeing such a fine collection of phones at one time in this budget. And it’s not even a festive season, unless you consider Valentine’s Day as one. We have some great smartphones under 40K this month, ranging from recent launches to current and previous flagships, most of which need no introduction. Check them out.

Best phones to buy under Rs 40,000 in India

Nothing Phone (2)
Nothing’s gonna change my love for you… if that’s your song this Valentine’s day, the current Nothing flagship phone might help. Sorry, I promise no more V-day references in this article. The Nothing Phone (2) sports the company’s trademark design with a transparent back and LEDs and offers a lot more. The Glyph lights at the back are not just cosmetic but provide a ton of functionality and customisation. The processing power is right up there with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip accompanied by 12GB RAM lending it ample muscle.

You generally get the 128GB variant of this phone under 40K, but at the moment, a choice of 256GB or 512GB internal storage is also available in this budget. The Nothing Phone (2) has a 6.7-inch Full HD+ 10-bit LTPO OLED display with a peak brightness of 1600 nits, HDR10+ compliance and a variable refresh rate ranging from 1 Hz to 120Hz. Photography department here consists of a 50MP primary camera with OIS and a 50MP ultra-wide shooter with auto-focus. The camera performance is impressive across modes, especially in good light.

A 32MP front camera will have the selfie enthusiasts interested. A 4700 mAh battery keeps the phone powered for well over a day of moderate use. It supports 45W fast charging as well as 15W wireless charging. However, no charger has been provided with the phone and needs to be purchased separately. A good 45W USB-PD/PPS charger can juice it up fully in under an hour. The phone runs Android 13 with Nothing OS 2.0, and the company promises 4 years of software updates.

Nothing Phone (2) price in India: Rs 36,999 for 12GB RAM/256GB storage; Rs 38,999 for 12GB RAM/512GB storage

Samsung Galaxy S22 5G
Here’s the second surprise of the day. Samsung’s previous flagship phone is currently selling under 40K; don’t remember seeing that before either. The Samsung Galaxy S22 5G has a compact design along with an IP68 rated ingress protection. This phone sports an aluminium frame and glass back with Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+ protection at the front and back. It has a 6.1-inch Full HD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with a peak brightness of 1300 nits, HDR10+ compliance and 120Hz refresh rate.

Photography department on the Samsung Galaxy S22 5G is mighty impressive as we expect from the company’s S series phones. You get a 50MP primary camera with dual-pixel PDAF and OIS, a 12MP ultra-wide camera with Super Steady video support and a 10MP telephoto camera with OIS that provides 3X optical zoom. A 10MP front camera handles selfies and video calls well. The camera performance is flagship grade, and it can record videos in 8K resolution too.

This Samsung smartphone is powered by Qualcomm’s former flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip, and you get its 8GB RAM and 128GB storage variant in this budget at the moment. A 3700 mAh battery keeps the phone powered for a day of moderate use and supports 25W fast charging as well as 15W wireless charging. The S22 launched with Android 12 and Samsung’s One UI 4.1, and an Android 13 update with One UI 5.x is available with more updates to follow.

Samsung Galaxy S22 5G price in India: Rs 39,999 for 8GB RAM/128GB storage

Google Pixel 7a
Speaking of compact phones, you also get the Google Pixel 7a in this budget if you are looking for a superior camera and pure Android experience. Like other phones in the Pixel 7 series, the Pixel 7a is powered by Google’s previous flagship Tensor G2 processor and offers 8GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. It sports a 6.1-inch Full HD+ OLED display with 90Hz refresh rate and Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection. The phone has an IP67 rating for dust and water resistance.

As is the case with all Pixel phones, you get the purest version of Android 13 (with more updates to follow) with the Material You design language. Other than speedy OS updates, Pixel phones are known for their camera capabilities, and the Google Pixel 7a delivers strongly in that department courtesy of two cameras at the back. You get a 64MP primary camera with OIS and a 13MP ultra-wide camera with 120-degrees FOV that do a great job in different lighting and modes. Software tricks like the Magic Eraser and Camouflage are useful additions.

Google Pixel 7a price in India: Rs 38,999 for 8GB RAM/128GB storage

OnePlus 12R
The newly launched OnePlus 12R just walks into this list replacing its predecessor, 11R 5G. The R series phones may not have all the bells and whistles of their more premium siblings, but they are powerful devices that borrow a lot of goodness and style from the company’s flagship products at a lot more affordable price point. This phone is powered by Qualcomm’s last generation flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, and you get its 8GB RAM and 128GB UFS 3.1 storage variant in this budget.

The OnePlus 12R has a mighty impressive 6.78-inch curved LTPO4 AMOLED display with a higher than Full HD resolution of 2780×1264 pixels. The HDR10+ and Dolby Vision compliant screen supports 10-bit colour depth, 120 Hz refresh rate and can get up to 4500 nits bright. It is protected against scratches by a layer of Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2. The phone runs the latest OxygenOS 14 based on Android 14 and OnePlus promises multiple OS and security updates going ahead.

Camera department hasn’t seen a significant change, nor is it as equipped as on the OnePlus 12 with Hasselblad tricks. However, its 50MP primary camera with OIS does a very good job in varied lighting including low light. The support cast is modest with an 8MP ultrawide camera and a 2MP macro camera. There’s a 16MP front camera for selfies and video calls. Battery capacity has been bumped up by 10 per cent to 5500 mAh and it lasts over a day and a half of moderate use, with the bundled 100W charger juicing it up fully in under half an hour.

OnePlus 12R price in India: Rs 39,999 for 8GB RAM/128GB storage

iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G
The iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G is another powerful phone with a solid camera, ample storage and offers excellent value for money. It is powered by Qualcomm’s former flagship Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip, and you can get its 12GB RAM and 256GB UFS 3.1 internal storage variant under 35K. Its 6.78-inch HDR10+ compliant Full HD+ AMOLED display has 120 Hz refresh rate, 1300 nits peak brightness and can display a billion colour shades. The phone runs Android 13 with FunTouch OS 13.

The rear camera department on this phone is similar to that of the OnePlus 12R with a 50MP primary camera with OIS, accompanied by an 8MP ultra-wide shooter and a 2MP macro camera. The 16MP front camera is more than decent for selfies and video calls. The iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G has a 5000 mAh battery that can last close to a day and a half of moderate use, and the bundled 120W fast charger claims to charge half of it in just 8 minutes and fully in 25.

iQOO Neo 7 Pro 5G price in India: Rs 33,999 for 12GB RAM/256GB storage