Best Smartphones Under Rs. 15,000: August 2014

A lot can change in just a month, especially in the hyper-competitive Indian smartphone market. Thanks to bold new launches and aggressive price cuts, not a single model on our list of recommended phones from last month has made it to this month's edition. This is fantastic news for buyers, since you can now get a whole lot more for your money.

Best overall: Xiaomi Mi 3 - Rs. 13,999
There's no doubt about it, a Chinese invasion is on in full swing and Xiaomi has a weapon that can bring us all to our knees - killer pricing. The Xiaomi Mi 3 (Review | Pics) brings the features and performance of a Rs. 30,000 device to the sub-Rs. 15,000 price bracket. It isn't perfect by any means, but it has no deal-breaking faults. The only problem you might have is getting your hands on one - Flipkart replenishes its stocks weekly but the Mi 3 is sold out in a matter of seconds each time

Best value: Asus ZenFone 5 (8GB) - Rs. 9,999
The Moto G was our long-running favourite in this price bracket, but in the last one month, aside from Xiaomi, Asus has also launched some great, and reasonably priced phones. Asus's ZenFone 5  has taken the best value slot thanks to its lower price tag, better hardware and superior performance all around. There's also the matter of a microSD card slot - the Moto G's Achilles' heel is an extra advantage for the ZenFone 5. The 8GB model is available for under Rs. 10,000, making it a no-brainer as our new Best Value pick.

Best camera: Asus ZenFone 5 (16GB) - Rs. 12,999

The ZenFone 5 has a really good camera - and not just for the price bracket. We were very happy with the quality of images taken with this smartphone's camera, which managed to beat some pretty stiff competition. Since we aren't pushing for value here, we can spend a little bit more to step up to the 16GB model and still stay within our budget - after all, who could say no to more space for photos and videos?
Best battery life - Nokia Lumia 630 Dual SIM - Rs. 9,490 (MOP)
 might not be the newest kid on the block but it still has one killer advantage that none of our upstarts can match - its excellent battery life. This phone lasted for just over 11 hours in our battery loop test and nothing else has even come close. The Lumia 630 really doesn't match our top picks this month in any other category, but to be fair it is priced well below our target budget limit. This is the phone to buy only if you need amazing battery life and don't care about apps, games, or camera performance.