Best Camera Phone Under 30000 Rupees in India 2026: Real World Camera Comparison
Quick Answer: After extensive real-world testing of seven smartphones, the Motorola Edge 60 Pro emerges as the best camera phone under 30000 rupees in 2026. It delivers the most natural-looking photos with excellent color accuracy, superior telephoto performance, consistent portrait mode, and impressive zoom quality up to 50x. The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE comes in a close second with better selfie cameras and video capabilities, making it ideal for content creators. The Nothing Phone 3A Pro offers good hardware but struggles with aggressive brightening and inconsistent skin tones. If you prioritize natural photography with minimal editing, go for the Edge 60 Pro. If selfies and video recording matter more, choose the S24 FE. For aesthetic software with decent cameras that need post-processing, the Nothing Phone 3A Pro is your pick.
Why Finding the Best Camera Phone Under 30000 is Confusing in 2026
Let me get this straight. In 2026, under 30,000 rupees, there are no bad camera phones anymore. And that's exactly why people are more confused than ever. The problem isn't camera quality. The problem is every phone is good at something and not so good at something else. Most phones click good photos in daylight, but nighttime photos aren't impressive. Some nail portraits, but zoom photos come out like oil paintings. You get the point.
So I'm not doing ratings here. No averages either. Instead, I compared the top phones under 30000 in real-life scenarios to find you the absolute best smartphone camera. This comparison took me through hundreds of shots across different lighting conditions, and honestly, the results surprised me.
How I Tested to Find the Best Camera Phone Under 30000 Rupees
Before diving into camera samples, let me explain the testing methodology. I divided this comparison into two elimination rounds to keep things scientific and fair.
Round One: I took identical photos from all phones including zoom shots, low light photos, portraits, and daylight images. Based on the phone that produced the worst results in each category, I knocked it out. This led me to the top three smartphones.
Round Two: I compared everything in detail including main camera performance, telephoto quality, low light shots, selfie cameras, selfie videos, and 4K video recording at 30fps. Everything was tested to give you the best camera phone under 30000.
Round One Eliminations: Narrowing Down the Best Camera Phones
Zoom Performance Test at 20x Magnification
A lot of phones under 30,000 struggle with zoom because the sensor of the telephoto or even the main camera isn't that great. One thing to note here is not all phones support the same zoom level. For example, the Nothing Phone 3A Pro can go all the way up to 60x zoom while most other phones max out at 20x or 30x.
To keep things fair and consistent, I shot at 20x on all phones except the Pixel 9a because it only supports up to 8x zoom. And as expected, the Pixel had the weakest results here. The images lacked sharpness and detail at higher zoom levels.
Eliminated: Google Pixel 9a gets knocked out in round one due to poor zoom performance.
Low Light Photography Test
The next area where phones struggle a bit is low light photography. In this situation, the Xiaomi 14 looked a bit off compared to the rest. The color science wasn't matching up with what I saw in real life.
Here's a small fact about the Xiaomi 14. The photos from the Leica camera are polarizing. You either love it or hate it. There's no in between. The Leica color profile gives a very distinct look that some photographers appreciate, but in most cases, it felt inconsistent for everyday shooting.
Eliminated: Xiaomi 14 gets knocked out due to inconsistent low light performance.
Portrait Mode Consistency Test
Coming to the feature I believe most of us use quite a lot, portrait photos. Out of all the phones, I found the Realme 16 Pro coming out inconsistent. The 1x portrait shot looked slightly overprocessed. But the 3x shot looked so natural. Fun fact, the Realme 16 Pro doesn't even have a telephoto lens. Yet there's so much difference in portrait mode itself between different zoom levels.
Eliminated: Realme 16 Pro gets knocked out due to inconsistent portrait processing.
Daylight Photography Test
Coming to the most used camera scenario, daylight shots. The photos were pretty decent from all remaining phones, but the Note 5 kind of brightened up the photo unnaturally. Also, the darker areas in photos felt very dark and the overall images looked quite yellowish. The HDR processing was not that great.
Eliminated: Note 5 gets knocked out, which leaves us with the top three finalists: Motorola Edge 60 Pro, Samsung Galaxy S24 FE, and Nothing Phone 3A Pro.
Round Two: Detailed Camera Comparison of Top 3 Phones Under 30000
For round two, we're going ahead with the Motorola Edge 60 Pro, Samsung S24 FE, and the Nothing Phone 3A Pro. This is where things get really interesting because all three phones have distinct camera personalities.
Main Camera Performance in Different Lighting Conditions
Starting off with daylight shots, the photo from the Edge 60 Pro would immediately grab your attention. The color reproduction, skin tone accuracy, even the light control – it captures everything very close to natural. The S24 FE followed closely behind with balanced processing.
However, the Nothing Phone 3A Pro kind of makes photos brighter than they should be. This obsession with making things white is so pronounced that if you see black color on pants, the 3A Pro tries to brighten even that, whereas the Edge 60 Pro keeps it as it is. Not just that, it even adds some kind of gloomy effect around faces. It could be an HDR artifact.
In low light conditions, the S24 FE adds some sharpness and tries to make the photo look crisper to your eye. The Edge 60 Pro again captures a pretty natural-looking photo with good color retention. The 3A Pro once again tries to brighten the photo more and makes the skin tone yellowish, which isn't ideal.
I also took a shot in a very dark environment using the telephoto lens. Here both the S24 FE and Edge 60 Pro tried to brighten the scene and both applied a slight green tint. Whereas the 3A Pro kept the shot darker, which was closer to reality but lost some detail.
Coming to indoor shots, the S24 FE clicked slightly cooler photos, but the details were the best. The Edge 60 Pro captured very natural photos. If you zoom into an orange in the photo, it looks the same as it did in real life. The 3A Pro forces the photo to look brighter following its pattern, and again makes skin tones look yellow.
Scoring for Main Camera: Edge 60 Pro and S24 FE get full points, while the 3A Pro gets half a point.
Telephoto Camera Quality and Sharpness
The story with the telephoto camera is similar to the main camera. The Edge 60 Pro clicks the most natural shots with good colors and excellent detail retention. The S24 FE gives balanced results but tries to brighten up areas where there's low light, which sometimes looks artificial.
The 3A Pro tries to brighten up the entire photo. But one good thing about its telephoto is it applies natural depth because the sensor is bigger than the other ones. This gives portraits a nice bokeh effect.
Talking about sharpness, the Edge 60 Pro was clearly the best. If you zoom into a watch face showing the number 22, it looks pretty sharp on the Motorola. Whereas with the 3A Pro and S24 FE, it's not that sharp when you pixel peep.
Scoring for Telephoto Camera: Edge 60 Pro gets one full point, while the S24 FE and 3A Pro get half a point each.
Portrait Mode Depth and Edge Detection
In portrait mode, again, Motorola was taking very natural, good-looking portraits with accurate edge detection. The portraits from the 3A Pro and S24 FE were also fine, but they were inconsistent in different scenarios.
For example, in one shot with a tree in the background, both S24 FE and 3A Pro didn't blur the tree properly. But the Edge 60 Pro blurred the tree correctly, understanding that it was in the depth of field. This makes shots look more consistent because it understands depth very well.
For detail retention, if you zoom in, the S24 FE was clearly lacking details in portrait mode. At one point when the subject was pretty far, the S24 didn't even apply blur even though it was using the telephoto lens, while both 3A Pro and Edge 60 Pro got the background blur correct.
Scoring for Portrait Camera: Edge 60 Pro gets one full point, while the S24 FE and 3A Pro get half a point each.
Zoom Capabilities: 30x to 60x Performance
Moving on to zoom shots, the 3A Pro supports up to 60x zoom, while the Edge 60 Pro goes up to 50x, and the S24 FE has the lowest zoom capability at only 30x. If you shoot up to 6x, the photos come out pretty sharp on all three phones. However, if you zoom in at 30x, the photos start looking like oil paintings on some phones.
If you take a zoom shot that has text in it, the text is sharper on the Edge 60 Pro and 3A Pro. The S24 FE's photos look kind of like an oil painting with heavy processing that destroys fine details.
Scoring for Zoom Test: Edge 60 Pro gets one full point for consistency and natural colors. The 3A Pro gets half a point for sharper results. Zero points to S24 FE.
Ultra Wide Angle Lens Comparison
The ultra wide shots were decent from all phones. Again, the Edge 60 Pro kept its natural look. I really love how Motorola's color processing maintains consistency across all lenses. The 3A Pro, showing its usual pattern, brightened the entire shot, while the S24 FE kept things balanced.
Although if you zoom in on S24 FE shots, you'll see the details are not that great. Still, the shots were pretty usable for social media. Also, the shots on the S24 FE were the widest in terms of field of view. However, there's a slight color shift between the main and ultra wide cameras, which can be noticeable when switching lenses.
Scoring for Ultra Wide: Edge 60 Pro gets one full point, while the 3A Pro and S24 FE get half a point each.
Selfie Camera Performance and Skin Tones
Talking about the selfie camera, here the story gets slightly interesting. Out of the three, the S24 FE grabs your attention because the colors, light control, and skin tone are very close to natural. The Edge 60 Pro doesn't get the skin tone right in selfies, which is surprising given how good its rear cameras are.
The 3A Pro again tries to brighten the photo and sometimes makes skin tones look off. From my experience testing phones, selfie cameras often have different processing than rear cameras, and that's clearly visible here.
Scoring for Selfies: S24 FE gets a full point, Edge 60 Pro gets half a point, and 3A Pro doesn't get any point.
Selfie Video Quality and Stabilization
Not just in selfie photos, even in selfie videos, the story is similar. The S24 FE was capturing really natural colors and was quite stable as well. On the Edge 60 Pro, the videos turned out better than the photos. The skin tone and colors were closer to natural compared to selfies.
On the other hand, on the 3A Pro, selfie video was not at all coming out good. It applied a sort of pinkish tone to the skin, and the colors were not looking good in the video. In terms of stability, the S24 FE and 3A Pro did a good job with image stabilization. The Edge 60 Pro had a slightly jittery video.
Scoring for Selfie Video: S24 FE gets full point. The Edge 60 Pro and 3A Pro get half a point each.
4K Video Recording at 30fps
Coming to the last round of the comparison, I recorded 4K at 30fps from all three phones. Here, when there's less light in the background, both Edge 60 Pro and 3A Pro keep the face visible, whereas S24 FE keeps it darker initially.
But when the light situation changes in the background, the S24 FE keeps the background and the subject evenly bright with excellent dynamic range. The 3A Pro also did a pretty good job here with exposure balancing.
On the Edge 60 Pro, when the light changes in the background, if you look at the sky portion, the light control is not so good. There's some clipping in highlights. Also, Samsung is the one that supports portrait videos, and the result came out pretty good. Even if you move your hands anywhere in the frame, even close to the subject, the background blur is not glitchy, which is really helpful for someone who records short-form content for Instagram or YouTube Shorts.
Scoring for Video: S24 FE gets one full point. The Edge 60 Pro and 3A Pro get half a point each.
Final Scoring: Best Camera Phone Under 30000 Winner
| Camera Test Category | Motorola Edge 60 Pro | Samsung S24 FE | Nothing Phone 3A Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Camera | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.5 |
| Telephoto Camera | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Portrait Mode | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Zoom Quality | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
| Ultra Wide | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Selfie Camera | 0.5 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
| Selfie Video | 0.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 |
| 4K Video Recording | 0.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 |
| Total Score | 6.5 | 5.5 | 3.5 |
That brings us to the end of the comparison, and the Motorola Edge 60 Pro is the winner here. Marginally, but still a winner with the highest overall score.
Quick Comparison Table: Best Camera Phones Under 30000
| Feature | Motorola Edge 60 Pro | Samsung S24 FE | Nothing Phone 3A Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price Range | Under 30000 | Under 30000 | Under 30000 |
| Maximum Zoom | 50x | 30x | 60x |
| Color Science | Natural, Accurate | Balanced, Slightly Cool | Over-Brightened |
| Best For | Natural Photography | Selfies & Video | Aesthetic Software |
| Portrait Mode | Excellent Depth | Inconsistent | Good Hardware, Inconsistent |
| Low Light | Natural Colors | Added Sharpness | Yellowish Skin Tones |
| Video Features | Good 4K | Portrait Video Mode | Decent Stabilization |
| Software Updates | Poor Track Record | Excellent (Samsung) | Good (Nothing OS) |
Pros and Cons: Best Camera Phone Under 30000 Comparison
Motorola Edge 60 Pro
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Most natural color reproduction across all lenses | Weak selfie camera performance |
| Excellent telephoto sharpness and detail | Poor software update track record |
| Consistent portrait mode with accurate depth | Contains ads in system UI |
| Best zoom quality up to 50x | Slightly jittery selfie videos |
| Superior ultra wide consistency | Not ideal for front camera users |
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Best selfie camera and video quality | Weakest zoom performance (only 30x) |
| Portrait video mode for content creators | Zoom shots look like oil paintings |
| Excellent software update support | Color shift between main and ultra wide |
| Great 4K video with dynamic range | Inconsistent portrait edge detection |
| Widest field of view on ultra wide | Sometimes over-brightens low light areas |
Nothing Phone 3A Pro
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Highest zoom capability (60x) | Aggressive brightening in all modes |
| Bigger telephoto sensor for natural depth | Yellowish and pinkish skin tones |
| Aesthetic Nothing OS interface | Photos need editing out of camera |
| Unique funky design | Inconsistent HDR processing |
| Good video stabilization | Weakest overall camera performance |
Which Camera Phone Under 30000 Should You Buy in 2026
So what's the conclusion of this entire comparison? Well, in very simple words, if you're someone who wants a phone that can take good photos and decent videos with minimal editing, then get the Motorola Edge 60 Pro. The natural color science and consistent performance across most camera modes make it the best all-rounder.
But Motorola doesn't have a good track record with software updates, and it also now has ads in the system UI. So if software support is also your priority along with camera quality, the Samsung S24 FE is a good option. It clicks good photos plus takes excellent videos for short-form content creation. The portrait video mode is genuinely useful for Instagram and YouTube creators.
But if you're someone who wants that aesthetic monochrome Nothing OS software with a funky design that clicks good pictures and videos, the Nothing Phone 3A Pro is for you. Just a small note here – after clicking photos, you might have to edit them a bit to adjust the skin tone and colors. The 3A Pro definitely has good hardware, but the photos straight from the camera app are not that refined.
Real User Perspective on Best Camera Phone Under 30000
From my experience testing these phones over several weeks, I noticed that most people prioritize different things. If you're a photography enthusiast who wants accurate colors and plans to do minimal editing, the Edge 60 Pro is your best bet. The Leica-like natural rendering is something professionals will appreciate.
However, if you're a content creator focused on selfies, vlogs, and short-form content, the S24 FE makes more sense despite its weaker zoom. The portrait video mode alone is a game-changer for Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts creators. In most cases, front camera quality matters more than telephoto for this audience.
The Nothing Phone 3A Pro is for those who value aesthetics and are willing to spend time in post-processing. The Nothing OS experience is unique, and if you're into that ecosystem, the camera can be made to work with some editing skills.
Software and Long-term Considerations for Camera Phones
One thing I learned over 10 years of reviewing tech is that camera hardware is only half the story. Software updates matter because they often bring camera improvements, new features, and bug fixes. Samsung has the best track record here with the S24 FE likely getting 4-5 years of updates.
Motorola's track record is honestly disappointing. The Edge 60 Pro might get 2-3 major Android updates at best. Nothing is somewhere in between, being a relatively newer company. They've been decent with updates so far, but we'll have to see how they perform long-term.
Also worth mentioning – Motorola now includes ads in their system UI, which can be annoying. Samsung's One UI also has some bloatware, but it's generally more refined. Nothing OS is the cleanest of the three, offering a near-stock Android experience with unique customizations.
Frequently Asked Questions About Best Camera Phone Under 30000
Which phone has the best camera under 30000 rupees in 2026?
The Motorola Edge 60 Pro has the best overall camera under 30000 rupees in 2026. It offers the most natural color reproduction, excellent telephoto performance, consistent portrait mode, and superior zoom quality up to 50x. It scored 6.5 out of 8 in comprehensive testing across all camera scenarios.
Is Samsung S24 FE good for selfies and video recording under 30000?
Yes, the Samsung S24 FE has the best selfie camera and video recording capabilities among phones under 30000. It features natural skin tones, excellent stabilization, portrait video mode, and superior 4K video quality with great dynamic range, making it ideal for content creators and vloggers.
Does Nothing Phone 3A Pro take good photos under 30000 price range?
The Nothing Phone 3A Pro has good camera hardware including 60x zoom and a bigger telephoto sensor, but the software processing is inconsistent. Photos tend to be over-brightened with yellowish skin tones. You'll need to edit photos after capturing to get the best results from this phone.
Which phone under 30000 has the best zoom camera in India?
The Motorola Edge 60 Pro has the best zoom quality under 30000 with consistent results up to 50x magnification. While the Nothing Phone 3A Pro offers higher 60x zoom, the Edge 60 Pro produces sharper, more color-accurate zoom shots with better detail retention and less processing artifacts.
Should I buy Motorola Edge 60 Pro or Samsung S24 FE for photography?
Buy the Motorola Edge 60 Pro if you prioritize natural photos with accurate colors and strong rear camera performance. Choose the Samsung S24 FE if you need better selfies, video recording, portrait video mode, and longer software support. The S24 FE is better for content creators, while Edge 60 Pro suits photography enthusiasts.
What are the camera weaknesses of phones under 30000 in 2026?
Common camera weaknesses include inconsistent low light performance, over-processing in certain modes, color shifts between lenses, weak zoom on some models, and inconsistent portrait edge detection. The Motorola Edge 60 Pro struggles with selfies, S24 FE has poor zoom, and Nothing 3A Pro over-brightens photos significantly.
Which budget phone takes the most natural looking photos under 30000?
The Motorola Edge 60 Pro takes the most natural-looking photos under 30000 rupees. Its color science closely matches real-life scenarios without aggressive processing. It maintains consistency across daylight, indoor, and low-light conditions, producing photos that require minimal editing compared to competitors.
Is Nothing Phone 3A Pro worth buying for camera in 2026?
The Nothing Phone 3A Pro is worth buying only if you value the unique Nothing OS aesthetic and design, and you're comfortable editing photos. While it has good hardware specs, the camera software applies aggressive brightening and inconsistent skin tones, requiring post-processing to achieve good results.
--- **SEO Title:** Best Camera Phone Under 30000 in India 2026 Real Testing **SEO Meta Description:** Tested 7 phones to find the best camera phone under 30000 rupees. Motorola Edge 60 Pro wins with natural colors. Full comparison inside.Best Camera Phone Under 30000 Rupees in India 2026: Real World Camera Comparison
Quick Answer: After extensive real-world testing of seven smartphones, the Motorola Edge 60 Pro emerges as the best camera phone under 30000 rupees in 2026. It delivers the most natural-looking photos with excellent color accuracy, superior telephoto performance, consistent portrait mode, and impressive zoom quality up to 50x. The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE comes in a close second with better selfie cameras and video capabilities, making it ideal for content creators. The Nothing Phone 3A Pro offers good hardware but struggles with aggressive brightening and inconsistent skin tones. If you prioritize natural photography with minimal editing, go for the Edge 60 Pro. If selfies and video recording matter more, choose the S24 FE. For aesthetic software with decent cameras that need post-processing, the Nothing Phone 3A Pro is your pick.
Why Finding the Best Camera Phone Under 30000 is Confusing in 2026
Let me get this straight. In 2026, under 30,000 rupees, there are no bad camera phones anymore. And that's exactly why people are more confused than ever. The problem isn't camera quality. The problem is every phone is good at something and not so good at something else. Most phones click good photos in daylight, but nighttime photos aren't impressive. Some nail portraits, but zoom photos come out like oil paintings. You get the point.
So I'm not doing ratings here. No averages either. Instead, I compared the top phones under 30000 in real-life scenarios to find you the absolute best smartphone camera. This comparison took me through hundreds of shots across different lighting conditions, and honestly, the results surprised me.
How I Tested to Find the Best Camera Phone Under 30000 Rupees
Before diving into camera samples, let me explain the testing methodology. I divided this comparison into two elimination rounds to keep things scientific and fair.
Round One: I took identical photos from all phones including zoom shots, low light photos, portraits, and daylight images. Based on the phone that produced the worst results in each category, I knocked it out. This led me to the top three smartphones.
Round Two: I compared everything in detail including main camera performance, telephoto quality, low light shots, selfie cameras, selfie videos, and 4K video recording at 30fps. Everything was tested to give you the best camera phone under 30000.
Round One Eliminations: Narrowing Down the Best Camera Phones
Zoom Performance Test at 20x Magnification
A lot of phones under 30,000 struggle with zoom because the sensor of the telephoto or even the main camera isn't that great. One thing to note here is not all phones support the same zoom level. For example, the Nothing Phone 3A Pro can go all the way up to 60x zoom while most other phones max out at 20x or 30x.
To keep things fair and consistent, I shot at 20x on all phones except the Pixel 9a because it only supports up to 8x zoom. And as expected, the Pixel had the weakest results here. The images lacked sharpness and detail at higher zoom levels.
Eliminated: Google Pixel 9a gets knocked out in round one due to poor zoom performance.
Low Light Photography Test
The next area where phones struggle a bit is low light photography. In this situation, the Xiaomi 14 looked a bit off compared to the rest. The color science wasn't matching up with what I saw in real life.
Here's a small fact about the Xiaomi 14. The photos from the Leica camera are polarizing. You either love it or hate it. There's no in between. The Leica color profile gives a very distinct look that some photographers appreciate, but in most cases, it felt inconsistent for everyday shooting.
Eliminated: Xiaomi 14 gets knocked out due to inconsistent low light performance.
Portrait Mode Consistency Test
Coming to the feature I believe most of us use quite a lot, portrait photos. Out of all the phones, I found the Realme 16 Pro coming out inconsistent. The 1x portrait shot looked slightly overprocessed. But the 3x shot looked so natural. Fun fact, the Realme 16 Pro doesn't even have a telephoto lens. Yet there's so much difference in portrait mode itself between different zoom levels.
Eliminated: Realme 16 Pro gets knocked out due to inconsistent portrait processing.
Daylight Photography Test
Coming to the most used camera scenario, daylight shots. The photos were pretty decent from all remaining phones, but the Note 5 kind of brightened up the photo unnaturally. Also, the darker areas in photos felt very dark and the overall images looked quite yellowish. The HDR processing was not that great.
Eliminated: Note 5 gets knocked out, which leaves us with the top three finalists: Motorola Edge 60 Pro, Samsung Galaxy S24 FE, and Nothing Phone 3A Pro.
Round Two: Detailed Camera Comparison of Top 3 Phones Under 30000
For round two, we're going ahead with the Motorola Edge 60 Pro, Samsung S24 FE, and the Nothing Phone 3A Pro. This is where things get really interesting because all three phones have distinct camera personalities.
Main Camera Performance in Different Lighting Conditions
Starting off with daylight shots, the photo from the Edge 60 Pro would immediately grab your attention. The color reproduction, skin tone accuracy, even the light control – it captures everything very close to natural. The S24 FE followed closely behind with balanced processing.
However, the Nothing Phone 3A Pro kind of makes photos brighter than they should be. This obsession with making things white is so pronounced that if you see black color on pants, the 3A Pro tries to brighten even that, whereas the Edge 60 Pro keeps it as it is. Not just that, it even adds some kind of gloomy effect around faces. It could be an HDR artifact.
In low light conditions, the S24 FE adds some sharpness and tries to make the photo look crisper to your eye. The Edge 60 Pro again captures a pretty natural-looking photo with good color retention. The 3A Pro once again tries to brighten the photo more and makes the skin tone yellowish, which isn't ideal.
I also took a shot in a very dark environment using the telephoto lens. Here both the S24 FE and Edge 60 Pro tried to brighten the scene and both applied a slight green tint. Whereas the 3A Pro kept the shot darker, which was closer to reality but lost some detail.
Coming to indoor shots, the S24 FE clicked slightly cooler photos, but the details were the best. The Edge 60 Pro captured very natural photos. If you zoom into an orange in the photo, it looks the same as it did in real life. The 3A Pro forces the photo to look brighter following its pattern, and again makes skin tones look yellow.
Scoring for Main Camera: Edge 60 Pro and S24 FE get full points, while the 3A Pro gets half a point.
Telephoto Camera Quality and Sharpness
The story with the telephoto camera is similar to the main camera. The Edge 60 Pro clicks the most natural shots with good colors and excellent detail retention. The S24 FE gives balanced results but tries to brighten up areas where there's low light, which sometimes looks artificial.
The 3A Pro tries to brighten up the entire photo. But one good thing about its telephoto is it applies natural depth because the sensor is bigger than the other ones. This gives portraits a nice bokeh effect.
Talking about sharpness, the Edge 60 Pro was clearly the best. If you zoom into a watch face showing the number 22, it looks pretty sharp on the Motorola. Whereas with the 3A Pro and S24 FE, it's not that sharp when you pixel peep.
Scoring for Telephoto Camera: Edge 60 Pro gets one full point, while the S24 FE and 3A Pro get half a point each.
Portrait Mode Depth and Edge Detection
In portrait mode, again, Motorola was taking very natural, good-looking portraits with accurate edge detection. The portraits from the 3A Pro and S24 FE were also fine, but they were inconsistent in different scenarios.
For example, in one shot with a tree in the background, both S24 FE and 3A Pro didn't blur the tree properly. But the Edge 60 Pro blurred the tree correctly, understanding that it was in the depth of field. This makes shots look more consistent because it understands depth very well.
For detail retention, if you zoom in, the S24 FE was clearly lacking details in portrait mode. At one point when the subject was pretty far, the S24 didn't even apply blur even though it was using the telephoto lens, while both 3A Pro and Edge 60 Pro got the background blur correct.
Scoring for Portrait Camera: Edge 60 Pro gets one full point, while the S24 FE and 3A Pro get half a point each.
Zoom Capabilities: 30x to 60x Performance
Moving on to zoom shots, the 3A Pro supports up to 60x zoom, while the Edge 60 Pro goes up to 50x, and the S24 FE has the lowest zoom capability at only 30x. If you shoot up to 6x, the photos come out pretty sharp on all three phones. However, if you zoom in at 30x, the photos start looking like oil paintings on some phones.
If you take a zoom shot that has text in it, the text is sharper on the Edge 60 Pro and 3A Pro. The S24 FE's photos look kind of like an oil painting with heavy processing that destroys fine details.
Scoring for Zoom Test: Edge 60 Pro gets one full point for consistency and natural colors. The 3A Pro gets half a point for sharper results. Zero points to S24 FE.
Ultra Wide Angle Lens Comparison
The ultra wide shots were decent from all phones. Again, the Edge 60 Pro kept its natural look. I really love how Motorola's color processing maintains consistency across all lenses. The 3A Pro, showing its usual pattern, brightened the entire shot, while the S24 FE kept things balanced.
Although if you zoom in on S24 FE shots, you'll see the details are not that great. Still, the shots were pretty usable for social media. Also, the shots on the S24 FE were the widest in terms of field of view. However, there's a slight color shift between the main and ultra wide cameras, which can be noticeable when switching lenses.
Scoring for Ultra Wide: Edge 60 Pro gets one full point, while the 3A Pro and S24 FE get half a point each.
Selfie Camera Performance and Skin Tones
Talking about the selfie camera, here the story gets slightly interesting. Out of the three, the S24 FE grabs your attention because the colors, light control, and skin tone are very close to natural. The Edge 60 Pro doesn't get the skin tone right in selfies, which is surprising given how good its rear cameras are.
The 3A Pro again tries to brighten the photo and sometimes makes skin tones look off. From my experience testing phones, selfie cameras often have different processing than rear cameras, and that's clearly visible here.
Scoring for Selfies: S24 FE gets a full point, Edge 60 Pro gets half a point, and 3A Pro doesn't get any point.
Selfie Video Quality and Stabilization
Not just in selfie photos, even in selfie videos, the story is similar. The S24 FE was capturing really natural colors and was quite stable as well. On the Edge 60 Pro, the videos turned out better than the photos. The skin tone and colors were closer to natural compared to selfies.
On the other hand, on the 3A Pro, selfie video was not at all coming out good. It applied a sort of pinkish tone to the skin, and the colors were not looking good in the video. In terms of stability, the S24 FE and 3A Pro did a good job with image stabilization. The Edge 60 Pro had a slightly jittery video.
Scoring for Selfie Video: S24 FE gets full point. The Edge 60 Pro and 3A Pro get half a point each.
4K Video Recording at 30fps
Coming to the last round of the comparison, I recorded 4K at 30fps from all three phones. Here, when there's less light in the background, both Edge 60 Pro and 3A Pro keep the face visible, whereas S24 FE keeps it darker initially.
But when the light situation changes in the background, the S24 FE keeps the background and the subject evenly bright with excellent dynamic range. The 3A Pro also did a pretty good job here with exposure balancing.
On the Edge 60 Pro, when the light changes in the background, if you look at the sky portion, the light control is not so good. There's some clipping in highlights. Also, Samsung is the one that supports portrait videos, and the result came out pretty good. Even if you move your hands anywhere in the frame, even close to the subject, the background blur is not glitchy, which is really helpful for someone who records short-form content for Instagram or YouTube Shorts.
Scoring for Video: S24 FE gets one full point. The Edge 60 Pro and 3A Pro get half a point each.
Final Scoring: Best Camera Phone Under 30000 Winner
| Camera Test Category | Motorola Edge 60 Pro | Samsung S24 FE | Nothing Phone 3A Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Camera | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.5 |
| Telephoto Camera | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Portrait Mode | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Zoom Quality | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
| Ultra Wide | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 |
| Selfie Camera | 0.5 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
| Selfie Video | 0.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 |
| 4K Video Recording | 0.5 | 1.0 | 0.5 |
| Total Score | 6.5 | 5.5 | 3.5 |
That brings us to the end of the comparison, and the Motorola Edge 60 Pro is the winner here. Marginally, but still a winner with the highest overall score.
Quick Comparison Table: Best Camera Phones Under 30000
| Feature | Motorola Edge 60 Pro | Samsung S24 FE | Nothing Phone 3A Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price Range | Under 30000 | Under 30000 | Under 30000 |
| Maximum Zoom | 50x | 30x | 60x |
| Color Science | Natural, Accurate | Balanced, Slightly Cool | Over-Brightened |
| Best For | Natural Photography | Selfies & Video | Aesthetic Software |
| Portrait Mode | Excellent Depth | Inconsistent | Good Hardware, Inconsistent |
| Low Light | Natural Colors | Added Sharpness | Yellowish Skin Tones |
| Video Features | Good 4K | Portrait Video Mode | Decent Stabilization |
| Software Updates | Poor Track Record | Excellent (Samsung) | Good (Nothing OS) |
Pros and Cons: Best Camera Phone Under 30000 Comparison
Motorola Edge 60 Pro
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Most natural color reproduction across all lenses | Weak selfie camera performance |
| Excellent telephoto sharpness and detail | Poor software update track record |
| Consistent portrait mode with accurate depth | Contains ads in system UI |
| Best zoom quality up to 50x | Slightly jittery selfie videos |
| Superior ultra wide consistency | Not ideal for front camera users |
Samsung Galaxy S24 FE
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Best selfie camera and video quality | Weakest zoom performance (only 30x) |
| Portrait video mode for content creators | Zoom shots look like oil paintings |
| Excellent software update support | Color shift between main and ultra wide |
| Great 4K video with dynamic range | Inconsistent portrait edge detection |
| Widest field of view on ultra wide | Sometimes over-brightens low light areas |
Nothing Phone 3A Pro
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Highest zoom capability (60x) | Aggressive brightening in all modes |
| Bigger telephoto sensor for natural depth | Yellowish and pinkish skin tones |
| Aesthetic Nothing OS interface | Photos need editing out of camera |
| Unique funky design | Inconsistent HDR processing |
| Good video stabilization | Weakest overall camera performance |
Which Camera Phone Under 30000 Should You Buy in 2026
So what's the conclusion of this entire comparison? Well, in very simple words, if you're someone who wants a phone that can take good photos and decent videos with minimal editing, then get the Motorola Edge 60 Pro. The natural color science and consistent performance across most camera modes make it the best all-rounder.
But Motorola doesn't have a good track record with software updates, and it also now has ads in the system UI. So if software support is also your priority along with camera quality, the Samsung S24 FE is a good option. It clicks good photos plus takes excellent videos for short-form content creation. The portrait video mode is genuinely useful for Instagram and YouTube creators.
But if you're someone who wants that aesthetic monochrome Nothing OS software with a funky design that clicks good pictures and videos, the Nothing Phone 3A Pro is for you. Just a small note here – after clicking photos, you might have to edit them a bit to adjust the skin tone and colors. The 3A Pro definitely has good hardware, but the photos straight from the camera app are not that refined.
Real User Perspective on Best Camera Phone Under 30000
From my experience testing these phones over several weeks, I noticed that most people prioritize different things. If you're a photography enthusiast who wants accurate colors and plans to do minimal editing, the Edge 60 Pro is your best bet. The Leica-like natural rendering is something professionals will appreciate.
However, if you're a content creator focused on selfies, vlogs, and short-form content, the S24 FE makes more sense despite its weaker zoom. The portrait video mode alone is a game-changer for Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts creators. In most cases, front camera quality matters more than telephoto for this audience.
The Nothing Phone 3A Pro is for those who value aesthetics and are willing to spend time in post-processing. The Nothing OS experience is unique, and if you're into that ecosystem, the camera can be made to work with some editing skills.
Software and Long-term Considerations for Camera Phones
One thing I learned over 10 years of reviewing tech is that camera hardware is only half the story. Software updates matter because they often bring camera improvements, new features, and bug fixes. Samsung has the best track record here with the S24 FE likely getting 4-5 years of updates.
Motorola's track record is honestly disappointing. The Edge 60 Pro might get 2-3 major Android updates at best. Nothing is somewhere in between, being a relatively newer company. They've been decent with updates so far, but we'll have to see how they perform long-term.
Also worth mentioning – Motorola now includes ads in their system UI, which can be annoying. Samsung's One UI also has some bloatware, but it's generally more refined. Nothing OS is the cleanest of the three, offering a near-stock Android experience with unique customizations.
Frequently Asked Questions About Best Camera Phone Under 30000
Which phone has the best camera under 30000 rupees in 2026?
The Motorola Edge 60 Pro has the best overall camera under 30000 rupees in 2026. It offers the most natural color reproduction, excellent telephoto performance, consistent portrait mode, and superior zoom quality up to 50x. It scored 6.5 out of 8 in comprehensive testing across all camera scenarios.
Is Samsung S24 FE good for selfies and video recording under 30000?
Yes, the Samsung S24 FE has the best selfie camera and video recording capabilities among phones under 30000. It features natural skin tones, excellent stabilization, portrait video mode, and superior 4K video quality with great dynamic range, making it ideal for content creators and vloggers.
Does Nothing Phone 3A Pro take good photos under 30000 price range?
The Nothing Phone 3A Pro has good camera hardware including 60x zoom and a bigger telephoto sensor, but the software processing is inconsistent. Photos tend to be over-brightened with yellowish skin tones. You'll need to edit photos after capturing to get the best results from this phone.
Which phone under 30000 has the best zoom camera in India?
The Motorola Edge 60 Pro has the best zoom quality under 30000 with consistent results up to 50x magnification. While the Nothing Phone 3A Pro offers higher 60x zoom, the Edge 60 Pro produces sharper, more color-accurate zoom shots with better detail retention and less processing artifacts.
Should I buy Motorola Edge 60 Pro or Samsung S24 FE for photography?
Buy the Motorola Edge 60 Pro if you prioritize natural photos with accurate colors and strong rear camera performance. Choose the Samsung S24 FE if you need better selfies, video recording, portrait video mode, and longer software support. The S24 FE is better for content creators, while Edge 60 Pro suits photography enthusiasts.
What are the camera weaknesses of phones under 30000 in 2026?
Common camera weaknesses include inconsistent low light performance, over-processing in certain modes, color shifts between lenses, weak zoom on some models, and inconsistent portrait edge detection. The Motorola Edge 60 Pro struggles with selfies, S24 FE has poor zoom, and Nothing 3A Pro over-brightens photos significantly.
Which budget phone takes the most natural looking photos under 30000?
The Motorola Edge 60 Pro takes the most natural-looking photos under 30000 rupees. Its color science closely matches real-life scenarios without aggressive processing. It maintains consistency across daylight, indoor, and low-light conditions, producing photos that require minimal editing compared to competitors.
Is Nothing Phone 3A Pro worth buying for camera in 2026?
The Nothing Phone 3A Pro is worth buying only if you value the unique Nothing OS aesthetic and design, and you're comfortable editing photos. While it has good hardware specs, the camera software applies aggressive brightening and inconsistent skin tones, requiring post-processing to achieve good results.
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