The best part of the Smartphone market in India going berserk is that customers have been at the receiving end of all the benefits. Features, versions of operating systems and performance statistics are being notched up by the day, bringing prices to a competitive war. While some smartphones are clearly made for showing off, others are still worth their price. Let’s get a snapshot of 10 smartphones that remained quite popular with Indians in 2011
Samsung Galaxy S2
The next best thing to the iPhone 4 is the entire line of Samsung S series that has been a hit worldwide. Available in 2 storage capacities of 8 and 16 GB, the Galaxy S2 series comes with features like Android 2.3 Gingerbread, a 4.3 inch AMOLED display, 1.2GHz dual core processor and an 8 megapixel camera amongst many other standard features. A power packed phone for a power packed price.
Price: Rs. 30,200/-
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Apple iPhone 4S
A close successor to the iPhone 4, the 4s was launched in India in November 2011. Made for tech freaks who want those extra megapixels on the camera, high performance speed and that little bit more battery life than the iPhone 4, the 4S is worth sinking teeth into. The iPhone 4S comes with an 8 megapixels camera, 3.5-inch retina display, dual core A5 chip processor and iOS 5 operating system amongst other features. Siri, the voice activated PA that can manage all your tasks is an interesting feature of the iPhone 4S.
Price: Rs. 41, 850 (16 GB) & Rs.58,650 (64 GB) approx.
Buy from Airtel or Aircel
LG Optimus 2X
If you want to overlook the big smartphone players Samsung and Apple to beat the price, you can go for the LG Optimus 2X which comes with Android 2.2 Froyo, a 4 inch display, an 8 megapixel camera with HD video and an 8 GB internal memory amongst other features. Although the LG Optimus still uses Android 2.2 as default, the dual core is a feature which makes it worth the price – great for simultaneously running multiple apps.
Price: Rs. 19,000/-
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HTC Sensation
Launched in India in June 2011, the Sensation was designed to be supposedly pitted against smartphone kings Galaxy S2 and the iPhone 4. From the price perspective, this smartphone had many takers in 2011. This flagship dual core Android phone from HTC has a 4.3 inch qHD screen, 1.2 Ghz dual core processor, an 8 megapixel camera and runs on Android 2.3 gingerbread OS.
Price: Rs. 29,600/-
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Sony Ericsson Xperia Arc
The best part about the Xperia is that it is super slim and light as a feather. Although tech critics have said that the TimeScape UI slows the Experia’s optimal performance, it has been a fairly high selling phone. It is packed with the Qualcomm 1GHz processor, Android 2.3, 4.2 inch screen and 8.1 megapixel camera with HD video amongst other features. If you have a lower budget, the Sony Xperia Mini ST151 with Android Gingerbread is also at steal at 13 k approximately.
Price: Rs 28,000/-
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Samsung Google Nexus S
Launched in India in April 2011, this flagship phone has a USP of getting the quickest Android OS updates with features like the Android 2.3 Gingerbread, 4 inch LCD screen, a 5 megapixel camera, 16 GB built in memory and the ARM Cortex A8 1GHz processor amongst other features. However, Google newer version of Nexus is even more awesome and is already in US market.
Price: Rs 19,900/-
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Blackberry Torch 9860
September 2011 saw the launch of the high end Blackberry Torch 9860 which comes with the new BlackBerry 7 operating system, 1GHz processor and a 3.7 inch display. The Torch’s next generation browser aims to deliver 40 percent better results than its earlier models. You can enjoy voice searches, a wide variety of apps and organized personal and professional content with the Torch.
Price: Rs 28,790/-
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Nokia N8
A little rugged than its sleek and chic counterparts, this smartphone runs on the Symbian 3 OS, has a 12 megapixel camera with a Xenon flash, 3.5 inch AMOLED display, an HDMI video output and a USB host. Although tech critics have pointed out its limitations because of restriction in widget size and slow performance, this hasn’t dampened its popularity since it was released.
Price: Rs. 22,131/-
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Dell Venue Pro
Launched in early 2011 at an event not less stylish than the Bangalore Fashion Week, the Pro runs on a 1 GHz Snapdragon processor, has a 4.1 inch Gorilla Glass AMOLED display, a 5 megapixel camera and Dell’s first Windows Phone 7 OS. What’s more, this smartphone comes loaded with XBOX Live and a few useful applications. A big take-away for a smartphone user who can’t part with their QWERTY.
Price: 24,000
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Motorola Defy
Launched in India in January 2011, this Java enabled smartphone runs on Android v2.1, has a 3.7 inch gorilla glass touch screen display, an internal storage of 2 GB, an 800 MHz processor and a 5 megapixel camera amongst other features. The USP of its large display is that it is dust and water resistant.
Price: Rs. 14,550 
