20 Most Popular Smartphones of 2021 According to You, Our Readers

Here are the top 20 smartphones of 2021 in terms of Gadgets 360 reader interest.

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20 Most Popular Smartphones of 2021 According to You, Our Readers

OnePlus Nord CE 5G proved to be a popular, budget-friendly choice among its competitors

Highlights
  • Oppo, Xiaomi dominate the list of the popular smartphones
  • Smartphones from Motorola and Samsung also feature in the top 20
  • OnePlus Nord CE 5G topped the list this year
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The curtain is falling on 2021 and here is a look at the most popular phones of the year according to you, our readers. Our team at Gadgets 360 went through some data and have come up with a list of the top 20 smartphones that you loved the most in 2021. Similar to last year, Chinese brands such as Oppo, Xiaomi, OnePlus, and Realme occupy the majority of the list. Smartphones by Motorola and Samsung also feature in the top 20 handsets. Indian buyers have shown an evident interest in budget-friendly offerings from these companies.

We have already published our editorial picks of the best smartphones of 2021. The iPhone 13 series topped the list while smartphones from brands such as Xiaomi, Samsung, Vivo, OnePlus, and Realme also featured on the list.

We have also compiled a list of some of the most promising smartphones which didn't launch in India in 2021, contrary to popular expectation. The list included premium flagship phones from brands such as Google, Microsoft, Xiaomi, and Asus, among others.

OnePlus Nord CE 5G topped the list of the most popular phones in 2021. The phone hit the Indian markets June and proved to be a popular, budget-friendly choice among its competitors. Without further ado, here's the list of 20 most popular smartphones of 2020, in reverse order (from least popular to most popular):

20) Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Excellent telephoto cameras
  • Superb display
  • Solid battery life
  • Very good performance
  • Bad
  • Ads in some first-party apps
  • Expensive
  • Heats up under stress
  • Heavy and bulky

19) Realme 8 (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Slim and light
  • Excellent battery life
  • Vivid AMOLED display
  • Smooth performance
  • Bad
  • Bloatware still present
  • Strictly average camera performance
  • Plastic back scratches easily; fingerprint magnet
  • Questionable value for money

18) Redmi 10 Prime (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • 90Hz refresh rate display
  • Good battery life
  • Decent performance
  • Bad
  • Average cameras
  • Preinstalled apps

17)Realme Narzo 30 5G (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Looks attractive
  • Bright and responsive display
  • Good battery life
  • Bad
  • Relatively slow charging
  • No ultra-wide camera
  • Lots of preinstalled apps

16) Motorola Moto G60 (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • 120Hz display refresh rate
  • Clean software
  • Decent performance
  • Bad
  • Average camera quality
  • Bulky and unwieldy
  • Relatively slow charging

15)Oppo A54 (2021)

14) Realme Narzo 30A (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Excellent battery life
  • Good selfie camera
  • Decent overall performance
  • Bad
  • Average rear camera performance
  • Bulky and heavy
  • Weak sunlight legibility

13) Realme 8 Pro (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Good battery life
  • Fast charging
  • Crisp Super AMOLED display
  • Good selfie camera
  • Bad
  • Average camera performance
  • Preinstalled bloatware
  • Spammy notifications
  • Feature omissions compared to Realme 7 Pro

12)Realme Narzo 30 (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Good display
  • Attractive design
  • Powerful processor
  • Good battery life and fast charging
  • Smooth software experience
  • Bad
  • Lacks an ultra-wide-angle camera
  • Average camera performance
  • Lots of preinstalled apps
  • Only passable video quality

11)Poco X3 Pro (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Excellent performance in benchmarks
  • IP53 rating
  • Good battery life
  • 120Hz display
  • Bad
  • Average camera quality
  • Bulky and heavy
  • Promotional content in MIUI 12

10) Xiaomi Mi 10i (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Good value for money
  • Very good battery life
  • Strong overall performance
  • 3.5mm audio socket, notification LED
  • Bad
  • Camera quality needs improvement
  • Bulky and heavy

9) Redmi Note 10S (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Crisp display, stereo speakers
  • Slim and light
  • Good battery life
  • Capable processor
  • Bad
  • Spammy notifications
  • Average camera performance

8)Redmi Note 10 Pro Max (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Excellent display
  • Great macro camera
  • Attractive design, IP53 rating
  • Good overall performance
  • Fast charging
  • Bad
  • Average low-light camera performance
  • Spammy software at launch time
  • Redmi Note 10 Pro is nearly identical and priced lower

7) Samsung Galaxy M12 (2021)

  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
Display 6.50-inch
Processor octa-core
Front Camera 8-megapixel
Rear Camera 48-megapixel + 5-megapixel + 2-megapixel + 2-megapixel
RAM 3GB, 4GB, 6GB
Storage 32GB, 64GB, 128GB
Battery Capacity 6000mAh
OS Android
Resolution 720x1600 pixels

6) OnePlus 9R (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Looks good
  • Vivid 120Hz display
  • 65W fast charging
  • Good overall performance
  • Bad
  • No IP rating
  • Low-light camera performance could be better
  • Gets a bit warm when stressed

5) Redmi Note 10 Pro (2021)

4) Realme 8 5G (2021)

3)Redmi Note 10 (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Relatively slim and light
  • Good battery life
  • Good display and speakers
  • Decent daytime camera performance
  • Bad
  • Spammy software at launch time
  • Average overall camera performance

2)OnePlus Nord 2 (2021)

 

1)OnePlus Nord CE 5G (2021)

  • REVIEW
  • KEY SPECS
  • NEWS
  • Design
  • Display
  • Software
  • Performance
  • Battery Life
  • Camera
  • Value for Money
  • Good
  • Solid build quality
  • Good battery life, fast charging
  • 5G-ready, powerful SoC
  • Good daylight photo quality
  • 90Hz AMOLED display
  • Promised software updates
  • Bad
  • Low-light camera performance needs improvement
  • No alert slider

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What are the best phones of 2021? We discuss this on Orbital, the Gadgets 360 podcast. Orbital is available on Spotify, Gaana, JioSaavn, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.
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