Best phones under Rs 100,000 (Dec 2024): Apple iPhone 16, Google Pixel 9 Pro to OnePlus Open

As we prepare the final smartphone buying guide of the year, we focus on phones priced up to a lakh Rupees. The price ceiling for smartphones has been going up every year but we feel Rs 100,000 is a good enough budget to get pretty much anything one needs at the moment. And one needs to get good value for money in that budget too along with great features and performance. So here are the best smartphones in India that deserve that kind of money.

Best phones to buy under Rs 100,000 in India

Apple iPhone 16/iPhone 16 Plus

Let’s start with the usual suspects. You can choose from the 256GB variants of either the Apple iPhone 16 or the iPhone 16 Plus. Both phones have the exact specifications barring the display size and battery capacity. The iPhone 16 has a bright 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with a resolution of 2556 x 1179 pixels, 2000 nits peak brightness and HDR10 and Dolby Vision compliance. The Plus variant has a larger 6.7-inch screen with a higher resolution of 2796 x 1290 pixels. Other display features remain the same.

The iPhone 16 feels better in hand due to its compact size and lower weight. As for battery capacity, the iPhone 16 Plus has a significantly larger 4674 mAh battery that lasts a lot longer than the 16’s 3561 mAh unit. Both phones have IP68-rated ingress protection and support wireless charging. These devices are powered by Apple’s new A18 SoC and have a USB-C charging port. The Apple iPhone 16 and 16 Plus run the latest iOS 18 with more OS updates to follow over the years.

The camera department hasn’t seen a major change from the iPhone 15 series on paper. You get a 48MP main camera that offers dual-pixel PDAF and optical image stabilisation (OIS). The secondary 12MP ultra-wide camera now gets auto-focus and thus macro capabilities; a welcome addition. The 12MP front camera here has been around for a few generations now. The performance in photography and videography is excellent, as one expects from an iPhone.

Apple iPhone 16 price in India: Rs 89,900 for 256GB storage
Apple iPhone 16 Plus price in India: Rs 99,900 for 256GB storage

Apple iPhone 15/iPhone 15 Plus

In the intro, I mentioned ‘value for money’, and we all know by now that buying a generation old iPhone makes a lot more sense financially than buying the latest one. The specifications and features aren’t drastically different, and you often score a higher capacity variant for a lot less money. Using that logic, you can now buy the Apple iPhone 15 or the iPhone 15 Plus with 512GB storage for almost Rs 5,000 less than their 16 series counterparts, or their 256GB storage variants for 20K to 25K lower.

The iPhone 15 too has a 6.1-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with a resolution of 2556 x 1179 pixels, 2000 nits peak brightness and HDR10 and Dolby Vision compliance; similar to the iPhone 16. It has the Dynamic Island as well along with a USB-C port for charging. The phone feels great in hand due to its compact size and low weight, and has IP68 rated ingress protection. As I mentioned earlier, the camera department is quite similar too.

If you prefer a bigger screen and a higher battery capacity, you should consider the Apple iPhone 15 Plus. The Plus sports a larger 6.7-inch display with a resolution of 2796 x 1290 pixels and a 4383 mAh battery as opposed to 3349 mAh on the 15. Both phones support wired and wireless charging and are powered by Apple’s A16 Bionic chip, which is still sufficiently powerful for most tasks. The Apple iPhone 15 series now runs iOS 18 with many more OS updates to follow.

Apple iPhone 15 price in India: Rs 84,999 for 512GB storage
Apple iPhone 15 Plus price in India: Rs 94,999 for 512GB storage

Google Pixel 9 Pro

Till the launch of the Pixel 9 series, one had to choose between the compact footprint of the non-Pro variant of the Pixel or a much larger Pro variant with extra features. The Pixel 9 Pro gives you the best of both worlds - all the Pro features in the Pixel 9 size, and we love that. With the right credit cards, you can get the Pixel 9 Pro for a Rupee under a lakh, and it is packed with great features and AI tricks.

This phone is powered by Google’s current flagship Tensor G4 processor and you get 16GB RAM and 256GB internal storage to go with it. It sports a sharp 6.3-inch LTPO OLED display with HDR10+ compliance, 2856 x 1280 pixels resolution, 120Hz refresh rate and 3000 nits peak brightness. The screen as well as its glass back are protected against scratches by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2.

This phone too sports an IP68 rating to keep it safe from dust and water. As you expect from Pixel phones, you get the purest version of Android 15 with the Material You design language. Google promises an incredible 7 years of OS and security updates for this phone, keeping it relevant and secure for long. Other than speedy OS updates, Pixel phones are known for their camera capabilities, and the Pixel 9 Pro is among the very best camera phones around.

You get a 50MP primary camera with dual-pixel PDAF and OIS and a 48MP ultra-wide camera with 123-degrees FOV and dual-pixel PDAF that lets you capture some excellent macro shots in addition to its primary functionality. And let’s not forget that excellent 48MP periscope telephoto camera with OIS that separates it from the non-Pro variants and provides you with 5X optical zoom. The cameras do a stellar job across different lightings and modes.

Google Pixel 9 Pro price in India: Rs 99,999 (effectively) for 16GB RAM/256GB storage

OnePlus Open

The biggest surprise at the end of this year is the availability of the OnePlus Open in this budget. The Open marked a very impressive debut for the company in the foldable smartphones segment and is packed to the brim with flagship features. Some smart design elements and choice of materials have helped in keeping its thickness and weight down without compromising on the build quality, and the display crease is barely conspicuous.

Speaking of displays, the inner and outer screens are brilliant for entertainment and productivity both. The outer display measures 6.31-inch with a resolution of 2484 x 1116 pixels. When opened, you get a larger 7.82-inch display with a resolution of 2440 x 2268 pixels. Both are LTPO3 Fluid AMOLED displays with support for 10-bit colour, 120Hz variable refresh rate, Dolby Vision compliance and flaunt a peak brightness of 2800 nits.

In addition, the OnePlus Open has powerful processing hardware (Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 with 16GB RAM), ample storage (512GB) and excellent cameras that cover all the key bases. You get a 48MP primary camera with a Sony LYTIA-T808 CMOS sensor and OIS, an OmniVision OV64B 64MP periscope telephoto camera with OIS that provides 3X optical zoom and 6X hybrid near-lossless zoom and a 48MP ultra-wide camera with Sony’s IMX581 sensor, 114-degrees FOV and autofocus that can double up as a macro camera.

Of course, you get Hasselblad colour tuning and their portrait photography tricks for enhanced captures. The phone runs OxygenOS 14 based on Android 14 (upgradeable to Android 15) and the software adapts perfectly to the two screens. The UI smartly adjusts to the larger display when you open the phone and makes good use of the extra screen real estate in facilitating multitasking. A perfect blend of design, hardware and software makes the OnePlus Open a well-rounded device and among the best foldable phones in the country.

OnePlus Open price in India: Rs 99,999 for 16GB RAM/512GB storage