Smart phones are now part of our daily life. Did you ever think how life was before these smart phones were invented? Well if you are still wondering that, it is true that there still was life. Things were much simpler and even the mobile phones were much simpler. They were still smart but not smart enough when compared to the current days. These phones were all with a key pad. The keypad resembled the dial pad on any phone that had numbers to punch in.
In this article we will talk about these keypad phones some of which are partially smart enough to complete the tasks that a current smart phones can. We will also talk about some advantages of having a keypad version of a phone. We will also try and help you guide you to choose the best keypad version of the phone available in India today.
Advantages of Using Keypad Phones over Smart Phones
Keypad versions of phones are handy and can be as small as the size of your palm. Carry it is really easy and you would not feel the presence of it, nor do you feel the burden of carry an expensive phone. The main feature of them is the keypad that very easy to use. The current smart phones have them embedded within the software and you need to activate the screen or app to start using them. The keypads are also multi-functional, hence making them more efficient.
The smart phones’ touchscreens are delicate when compared to the keypad phones. If the screen is broken and the touch is not working then there is no way you can operate the phone. In case of the keypad phones you can still manage to dial the number and place a call without any issues.
The usage of the keypad can be faster when compared to the touchscreen phone. The compact size of the keypad phone also makes it easy to carry. It is far way sturdier than a touchscreen phone. Small bump, or a fall from considerable height does not make any impact on the phone. The voice clarity is always good on the keypad phones as their major purpose is voice call and texting facility. Some of the keypad phones in recent days come with VGA camera to have it as the basic necessity.
The next feature is the battery of the keypad phones. The battery is easy to be removed by the user itself. No pain in getting the battery replaced if in case a replacement required. The current day’s smart phones need the mobile set to be taken to at least the local service person to get the battery replaced. Also the life of the battery of a keypad phone is also long that lasts at least for couple of days to almost a week. The screen of the smart phone is the main reason for the battery discharge.
Keypad phones are still in the market as they serve as an alternate phone maybe just for calling purposes. Smart phones eat up a lot of batteries power and these keypad phones beat them is keeping the charge for a long time.
Now let us go through set of few of these phones which we think are the best one within the rice range of Rs 2000 in India.
1: Samsung Guru Music 2 Keypad Phone
Samsung has made its name in the world of mobile phones since a long time now. They have very good mobile phones in the smart phone area. Before they got into the smart phone (or the touch screen ones) they were also a very good with the keypad version of them. The one we are talking about is the second version of the Guru Music phone, called the Guru Music 2. This phone comes with a 5.1 centimeters 128×160 pixels resolution screen. This has a colored display QQVGA.
This phone comes in 4 colors Blue, White, Black and Gold. All these colors have highlighting yellow color lines on the sides and the main function button in the middle of the keypad also is highlighted with a thin yellow colored border. The handset also comes with 800 mAh lithium ion battery that has a talk time of around 11 hours. In this segment of mobiles this mobile has a large screen. The mobile can be expanded with 16 GB of storage which can be used to store songs which is the selling point. It also houses a loudspeaker which can be used to attend calls and also listen to the songs. Samsung provides 1 year manufacturer warranty for the handset and 6 months warranty for the in the pack accessories.
- Expandable memory
- Large colored screen in its segment
- Available in 4 various colors
- FM radio available
2: Nokia 105 Keypad Phone
Nokia 105 resembles its ancestor 3310 which was quite a charm in its days. This is a sturdy looking elegant phone that comes in 3 colors Black, Blue and White. The screen is around 4.572 centimeters with 240 x 320 pixels of resolution. With this small screen it can give very good clarity. The operating system it runs on s the 30+ series and the hardware it houses is 4mb RAM and 4 MB of internal memory. It is not a dual sim handset and can fit in a mini-SIM. The network support is only until 2G. 3G or 4G is not available on this handset.
To power this handset it has an 800mAh lithium ion battery that provides a talk time of around 15 hours. The standby is around 1 month as per the company’s claim. Nokia’s batteries have always met the expectations in these keypad kinds of handsets. It does have its infamous snake game on it which was an attractive feature in the olden days. The memory in the phone allows storing around 2000 contacts. It also has an FM radio for your entertainment. It charges through a micro USB connector. The handset has 1 year of warranty for the handset and the accessories including the battery has 6 months.
- High resolution screen
- 15 hours of talk time
- FM radio available
- 1 year manufacturer warranty
3: Samsung GURU 1200
Samsung has another GURU, GURU 1200 which is yet another sturdy phone. The phone is handy that fits within you palm making it easy to carry. It can also easily fit into your pocket making it a phone to own. This phone has a feature of Poly Ringtone which lights up your mood when you listen to it. The screen is 1.52 inches in size and is a TFT screen with 128 x 128 pixels resolution. It can fit in a mini SIM card and has slot for just one. No 3G or 4G available on it. It runs on the Samsung’s proprietary operating system and it a a good one for this handset. This phone comes in 4 colors White, Black, Blue and Gold. The back of the body of the handset also has designed dented stripes that enable grip making sure you do not drop it while carrying.
It is powered with an 800mAh lithium ion battery that enables talk time of around 7 hours and standby time of 720 hours. It has a led torch light that helps you in time of emergencies. Mp3 ringtones are good additions to its features. It comes with 1 year brand warranty for the handset and for the accessories 6 months.
- Poly Ringtones available
- 720 hours of standby backup – no need to about charging the handset frequently
- 4 colors to choose from
4: Nokia 150 (Dual SIM)
This Nokia 150 is a small beast that comes up with a camera installed. This is classy and elegant looking handset that would grab your attention for sure. The screen is 2.4 inches display a 230 x320 pixels resolution. The screen can be seen with crystal clear images. This mobile handset comes in 2 colors white and black. Both these models look elegant in their way. This has been installed with a 0.3 MP primary camera. It is also has a Bluetooth 3.0 enabled.
The storage is 16 MB Ram and storage expandable up to 32 GB. It has a dual SIM slot both that supports only 2G of network connectivity. It has 1020 mAh battery that powers this small beast. This battery provides 22 hours of talk time or around 31 days of standby time. You can listen to music on it by connecting headphones through the 3.5 mm jack. You can also connect to a Bluetooth speaker through the Bluetooth enabled on the handset. The brand warranty for the handset is a year since the date of purchase and for the box accessories with the battery it is 6 months of warranty.
- Large screen
- 3 MP camera
- Bluetooth availability
5: Samsung Metro 313
This is another keypad version of Samsung mobiles which comes in Gold and Black colors. Both of them are good o look at and made of good sturdy body that also feels good when you hold it. This model is known as the candy bar model as it is designed like a candy bar. This Metro 313 comes with 0.3 MP primary camera with recording facility. This recording has a quality of 15 frames per second. The screen is a TFT display with 1280 x 720 pixel resolution. This resolution gives a good output of the images captured and the wallpapers displayed are of high quality.
The storage is 16MB of RAM and internal memory can be expended to 16 GB. This also is a Daul SIM handset. Both the SIMs support only 2G of network accessibility. To power all this batteries are of 1000 mAh made of lithium ion composure. The keypad of this mobile is of metal finish and gives a good grip when tying on the keypad. The keypad response is very good and does not delay with the functions. The mobile handset comes with 1 year brand warranty and 6 month for the box accessories.
- Camera with recording facility
- High resolution TFT display
- Music player, Video player and FM included
6: Samsung Guru FM Plus
This small cute looking Samsung Guru FM plus mobile phone is a keypad version. This cutie comes in 4 colors White, Black, Blue and Gold. Blue one is my favorite. The model is a candy bar version as it forms the shape of a candy bar. The mobile is compact and simple is design. Just exactly serves the purpose it was built for. It has Dual SIM capability both which is 2G network enabled. You can use 2 mobile numbers within the same phone which avoids the hassle of carrying 2 handsets. The UI of this handset is enhanced to have a better viewing experience within this small screen.
You can connect the phone via a AUX cable to play your favorite music and also through the micro USB cable to do data transfer. This has inbuilt FM radio which you can use to listen to your favorite station and your favorite program in it. There are inbuilt nature inspired wallpapers in it. The battery is of 800mAh which gives 10 hours of talk time. This handset is backed by 1 year of brand warranty and 6 months for it accessories.
- 10 hours of talk time
- FM enabled
- Ringtones
- Enhanced viewing
7: Nokia 106
Nokia 106 is built with polycarbonate material that makes it a strong mobile handset. This handset is inspired by candy bar shape hence you can see it is quite attractive. This handset comes only in one color that is Grey. The display screen is made of TFT which is 4.572 centimeters with 160 x 128 pixels resolution. It has Dual SIM slots which are 2G enabled. It can store 2000 contacts and 500 of text messages. This handset is specially designed for pre-loaded games like Snakes, Tetris, Danger Dash and many more.
The battery is of 800 mAh capacity made of lithium-ion. It provides a talk time of around 15 hours. The screen also is small but has good clarity for a good view. The special feature is the ability to hold Dual SIMs. This comes with 1 year of brand warranty and 6 moths of warranty for the box accessories.
- Compact and sturdy
- 15 hours of talk time available
- Built-in games
8: Karbonn K9
Karbonn K9 has come up with some good phones and K9 is one such model. The display of the phone is around 2.4 inches in size with 320 x 240 pixels resolution. This resolution gives some clear images on the display. This has 256MB of RAM which can be expanded to 32 GB. This is also Dual SIM mobile which you can use to carry two mobile numbers on the same mobile handset.
This mobile handset is powered by an 1800 Lithium ion battery that allows a talk time of around 10 hours. It has a standby time of 300 hours. It has a camera of 1.3MP that takes some descent quality of pictures. Just besides the camera is the speaker that is attached. It can be put on loudspeaker in case you want to listen to some songs or you are attending a call hands free. This handset runs on the proprietary OS by Karbonn. This handset is only in one color combination – Black and red. This also has a warranty of 1 year which is brand warranty. 6 months warranty is provided for the box accessories.
- Proprietary OS from Karbonn
- 3 MP camera
- 1800 mAh battery with 10 hours of talk time
9: Lava Gem
Lava Gem is actually Gem of a mobile when you look at it. The looks of the mobile phone is very appealing. This mobile comes in Black, Blue Gold and Gradient colors. These are all attractive colors and it suits the shape and built of this mobile. This mobile is paired with the 1.3 MP camera which lets you take descent pictures. You can view these pictures on the 7.112 centimeters of display which is of 240 x 320 pixels of resolution. It has 32 MB RAM and its internal storage can be expanded up to 32 GB.
This is also house with 2 Dual SIM slots so that you can use one local ISM and other one to make international calls. The body of the mobile handset is also very sleek and gives a good feeling to hold it. It has the camera on the back of the mobile and also has a speaker where you can listen to your favorite songs from. You can also use this speaker as a loud speaker to attend calls hands free. All these features are powered by 1750mAh battery made of lithium ion composure. It provides around 10 hours of talk time in a single charge. Like most of the phone it is backed by 1 year brand warranty and 6 months for all other accessories in the box
- 3 MP camera
- Large screen with vivid colors
- Very attractive colors to choose from
- 1 Year Brand warranty
10: Micromax X1i Power
Micromax is well known brand and has released many good products and phones. X1iPower being one of them. This is a keypad phone that is available only in Black color and you know how elegant black is. This phone runs on ThreadX 5.0 OS and seems to run pretty well. It has a camera of 0.08 MP primary camera. The screen is quite big, around 2.4 inches which is also supported with 240 x 320 pixels resolutions giving out a very good display of images.
This phone can be expanded with the memory up to 8 GB of storage using a micro sd card. You can also use two SIM cards as it is Dual SIM enabled. This is a pretty basic phone when compared to other phones available but it does have some good features. The battery is 1750mAh power made of lithium ion and can have a talk time of 10 hours or more. This product looks is inspired by the Nokia phone. It has 1 year of Brand warranty and also 6 months for the in the box accessories.
- 1750 mAh battery giving 10 hours of talk time
- Large screen for good viewing
- Inspired by Nokia phone
11: Nokia 130 D
This Nokia 130 Ds has a unique look, although the shape of the handset itself is not too different from most of the mobile phones discussed above. This mobile runs on the S30+ operating system with 4MB Ram and 8 MB internal memory. This can be expanded up to 32 GB. The network connectivity can be done from the Dual SIMs which are both mini ISM compatibility. The display is a bit smaller, 1.8 inches and 160 x 128 pixels of resolution. However for the size of the screen the clarity is good and shows vivid colors.
This has a charging point of micro USB and has Bluetooth of version 3.0. This mobile phone also has pre-loaded games in it like Snake, Tetris and other try and buys games by Gameloft. It has a 3.5 mm jack for audio output. This is backed by the 1 year brand warranty in case of any manufacturer defects and 6 months of warranty for the in box accessories.
- 3 MP camera available
- Bluetooth also enhances the connectivity
- Pre-loaded games adds to the fun of using this mobile
12: Micromax X741
Micromax was one of the most well-known mobile phone brands when the Smartphone revolution began. They had those budget smartphones with good features. But today, the brand concentrates more on keypad mobile phones and other devices. If you need a budget mobile phone with good features, then Micromax is still a viable choice.
The Micromax X741 is a keypad color phone that has comparatively good features for the price at which it is marketed. The number talk back feature inbuilt in this phone makes it a good option for blind and senior citizens. Apart from this, it has a bright torch incorporated into it. Unlike other keypad phones at this price range, X741 could play video on its 6.1 cm display. The dedicated music keys are yet another attractive feature in this phone. The phone boasts dual SIM, auto call recording, FM radio, and a primary camera. Micromax X741 is 1-year warrantied and the seller provides a 7-day return policy on it.
- Display of 6.1 CM
- FM radio, dedicated music player keys
- Video player inbuilt
- Auto call recording and primary camera
- Dual SIM and power-saving mode inbuilt
- Powerful torchlight and loudspeaker inbuilt
13: I Kall K444
Most people assume I Kall to be a cheap brand with no reputation. But, as far as we know, their keypad mobile phones are good. Most of them come with good features and the overall quality is comparatively better than generic Chinese mobile phones and local poor devices. Check I Kall K444 keypad color phone, you might like the features incorporated.
This keypad color phone has a 2.4-inch display, which is said to be made in India and is designed to last long. The device has a 2500mAh battery and 3.5mm audio jack incorporated into it. This device has a dual SIM standby and also numerous multimedia player installed. Unlike most other keypad phones, this one has an expandable memory up to 16Gb. It has a primary camera of 0.3 MP and a strong torch light inbuilt. The manufacturer markets this product with a 1-year warranty on the phone and a 6-months warranty on the accessories. For the price at which this mobile phone comes, the features offered are reasonable.
- Music player, video player, FM radio, call recording features inbuilt
- Expandable memory up to 16 Gb
- 1-year warranty
- 5 mm audio jack and 2500mAh battery
- A 2.4-inch display and dual SIM standby
How To Choose The Best Keypad Phone In India
Now let me take you some of the criteria that you might want to look into before buying a keypad phone. Although the basic requirement is still the availability of clear sound quality on the calls there are still some other features that can impact your buying decision.
Brand
As these phones are usually priced within the range of 2k to 3k, it becomes important that you go for a branded phone. The brand goodwill is always available and the possibility of the phone malfunctioning would really be less. There is also other technical expertise of these brands have that increases the quality of these products. Brands like Samsung and Nokia have already made their presence and quality felt among the users. There are some regulatory requirements which these brands follow making them most reliable to use.
FM availability
FM availability is always a plus point. Not all phones have this feature. Users tend to forget looking for this feature when buying one; especially in the keypad phone hence it becomes important to keep in mind when buying these phones. Some of these FM enabled phones have the FM feature only with the headphones attached to the audio output cable. This is due to FM receiver installed in the headphones.
Dual SIM
Dual sim phones are actually boon to the users. Instead of carrying 2 phones for 2 different numbers, you carry just one with a Dual sim capability. Nothing looks any different on this phone, just an additional sim2 button on the keypad differentiates the tasks.
Storage Facility
Storage facility need not be a big deal in these phones as there is not much media that you would want to store on these devices. However, if you want to listen to some good music of your choice you can always store them here and listen to it. The sound output is always good on these phones when a microphone is used. As the battery life is usually high these phones can be used as a mini music player. Hence in these cases you can always look for phones with good storage or the ones where you have option to increase it storage by adding an SD card.
Camera
Cameras on these phones are usually VGA hence their quality is not very great. This feature cannot be taken as a reason to buy these phones. You can totally ignore the camera quality. However, if you find any phone that matches your requirements and have a camera go ahead and buy it as at least there are ways to click few snaps pics along.
Battery Life
Batteries are very important feature of a phone. You would not want to keep charging your mobile repeatedly. Hence keep the best eye out to make sure you s=choose the best phone with e good battery backup. The keypad phone batteries would usually last look at least 3 to 4 days. Batteries from Nokia or Samsung are easily available to be used as a spare one or when the one in your phone wears out.
How Strong is it?
Sturdiness also matters a lot. As these are small ones they easily tend to slip off the hands. Good brand mobiles have a good built which can withstand a good fall also. Using it without any fear of dropping it is a boon.
Keypad
As we are talking about the keypad phones and not taking it into consideration as buying criteria is not just right. Keypads are important feature. The keypads should be made of a durable material do that do not wear it easily. The digits mentioned on the keypad usually fades off due to regular usage, hence choose a mobile with good quality of keypad. There also phones with QWERTY keypads which are easier for typing purposes. However, users have now got used to the usual keypads. Choose the best one that suits your convenience.
Frequently Asked Questions for Keypad Phone:
1. Who needs a Keypad Phone?
This is more of a personal choice. Most of the time, it is easy for elder people to use keypad phones. Even the visually impaired people may use this phone as they will find it easy to dial in a number because of the keypad. Apart from this, you will also notice that a lot of people who are prohibited to use camera phones in the office may find it easy to find a keypad phone without a camera.
2. Are they durable? How much will it last?
These phones are certainly very durable. There are less number of components in these phones and hence there are few points of failures. These things make them very durable and apart from this, they can last for years without any issue. They usually have a large battery and low power consumption which gives you a long backup time.
3. What features should I look for when I buy Keypad Phone?
To begin with, you can check if the phones have an LCD screen. You can also check if you can play music or FM using the phone. These are the basic features. Apart from this, you can check the features as per your requirements. May be a camera or a big battery. This is again a very subjective choice.
4. Are these phones loaded with Games?
It depends on the phone but almost every keypad phone has some of the basic games. If you are buying a keypad phone that supports 4G then you will also be able to download the games from the internet as well. Some phones come with some basic games where you might not be able to download extra games.
5. What is the expected battery life?
This can largely vary from one phone to another. As per a general assessment, you will easily find the phones that can last 24 hours without any issues. There are phones which may last longer. This is dependent on the size of the phone and the size of the battery. Another thing that impacts battery usage is the features that are included in the phone.
6. Can I get dual SIM phones as well?
Yes, there are models available which supports dual SIM. You can choose to invest in those phones and they will make it easy for you to make calls. You must check this while you are purchasing the phone. This is a part of the specifications. Also check if the mobile supports 2 GSM SIM, 1 CDMA + 1 GSM SIM or 2 GSM SIM.
7. Can a keypad phone support 4G?
Yes, you will find phones that will support 4G and 3G. There are such models available. You may also find Keypad phones that also have a touch screen. For some, these phones offer higher accessibility to the users. If you think that you would need to stay connected to the internet then you can buy a keypad phone that supports mobile internet services.
Conclusion:
With so many keypad version mobile phone available we have made an honest efforts to put together some of the best ones that are available within price range of around 2k. These phones serve as the best alternate phones that can mostly be used just for calling purposes and also some of it can be used as a music player. These are still handy to use and you would not have a burden of carry them as they fit in even without you noticing it. There are more of such phones in many brands you can also try and explore them.
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