The best Android phones for 2023

In contrast to the iOS ecosystem, the place Apple’s iPhone is the one recreation on the town, probably the greatest issues in regards to the Android cellphone market is the wide selection of various units and producers to select from. That mentioned, when it truly comes time to improve, that wealth of choices could make it a bit tougher to decide on the suitable handset for you. If you happen to’re in search of a brand new cellphone and don’t know the place to start out, we’ve bought you coated with a number of one of the best Android telephones for each finances.

What to search for in a brand new Android cellphone

Efficiency

On the subject of choosing our favourite Android telephones, the principle issues we search for are fairly simple: good efficiency (each compute and AI), a pleasant show, stable design, sharp cameras, lengthy battery life and a big dedication to ongoing software program assist. For efficiency, not solely will we take a look at benchmarks and different metrics, however we additionally consider telephones based mostly on responsiveness. No matter whether or not you’re studying, textual content messaging, scrolling via social media or taking part in a recreation, nobody desires a tool that feels sluggish.

Show

While the specs haven't changed much from last year, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra's 6.8-inch 120Hz AMOLED display is still easily one of the best smartphone screens on the market.

Sam Rutherford/Engadget

On the subject of shows, we typically desire OLED panels that may produce wealthy, saturated colours with a minimum of 600 nits of brightness, although lots of our prime mid-range and high-end telephones can hit 1,000 nits or extra. And extra lately, most of our favourite units additionally assist screens with quick refresh charges of 90Hz or 120Hz, which provides an additional stage of smoothness and fluidity.

Design

Now we are going to admit there’s a little bit of subjectivity when deciding which telephones look one of the best, however there are different design points like mud and water resistance or display sturdiness that may make a giant distinction to long-term survival. It’s additionally necessary to contemplate issues like assist for wi-fi charging, energy sharing (aka reverse wi-fi charging) and UWB connectivity, which may have an effect on how your cellphone interacts along with your different units.

Cameras

Clearly, for photographs we’re in search of sharp, colourful photographs in each shiny and low-light circumstances. And we wish video clips with excessive dynamic vary, wealthy audio and easy picture stabilization. Further cameras for ultra-wide and telephoto lenses are a plus. It’s additionally necessary to contemplate options like devoted night time modes, assist for numerous video recording resolutions, and extra picture modes like timelapse, sluggish movement and extra.

Battery and software program

Lastly, by way of battery life, we’re in search of all-day longevity on units that additionally delivered nice outcomes on our native video rundown take a look at (a minimum of 16 hours on a cost, however extra is clearly higher). Wi-fi charging capabilities have develop into virtually ubiquitous over the previous few years, and most of our prime picks have this further perk. Lastly, with folks holding onto their telephones longer than ever, we wish to see corporations decide to a minimum of three years of software program assist, upgrades and common safety updates.

One of the best Android Telephones to purchase proper now

Greatest Android cellphone total: Google Pixel 8 Professional

Picture by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

Google made some important updates to its Pixel smartphone lineup that push it to the highest of our record, together with including a brand new Tensor G3 chip, brighter shows, higher cameras and longer battery life.

$999 at Amazon$999 at Greatest Purchase

Due to the Tensor G3 chip, up to date sensors and a bunch of recent AI-powered options, the Google Pixel 8 and eight Professional have much more to supply for each images and on a regular basis use. The brand new Magic Editor makes it astonishingly simple to take away distracting objects out of your pics, whereas the Audio Magic Eraser cuts down on annoying ambient sound in movies. And for all these group photographs, Greatest Take ensures that everybody seems to be their finest, even when they weren’t smiling through the first shot. On prime of that, Google’s Name Display screen has gotten smarter whereas Assistant options, like with the ability to summarize or actual articles aloud make it simple to remain on prime of reports nevertheless you need. Add to {that a} extra refined design, brighter shows, higher battery life and improved efficiency, and Google’s newest flagship telephones could be probably the most well-rounded Android telephones in the marketplace.

  • Processor: Google Tensor G3

  • Show: 6.7-inch Tremendous Actua, as much as 120Hz

  • Cameras: Rear array (50MP vast, 12MP ultrawide, 48MP telephoto), 10.5MP entrance digital camera

  • Battery: 5,050mAh

Learn our full assessment of the Google Pixel 8 Professional

Greatest mid-range Android cellphone: OnePlus 11

Picture by Mat Smith / Engadget

For many who desire a cellphone with a giant display, wonderful cameras and nice efficiency, however for lower than a standard flagship, the OnePlus 11 strikes an excellent stability between finances telephones and extra premium units. In loads of methods, the OnePlus 11 is sort of a extra reasonably priced Galaxy S23+. Not solely do you get the same 6.7-inch 120Hz show, it additionally includes a speedy Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip and a giant 5,000 mAh battery. In the meantime, because of OnePlus’ blazing 100-watt wired charging, it juices up quicker than any cellphone from Google or Samsung. And on the digital camera aspect, the corporate’s ongoing partnership with Hasselblad has resulted in notable enhancements in picture high quality.

The primary shortcomings of the OP11 are that its IP64 score for mud and water resistance falls wanting what you get from competing units, and the digital camera’s 2x optical zoom lens feels a bit on the quick aspect. However with OnePlus including wider provider compatibility and committing 4 years of OS upgrades and 5 years of safety patches, the OP11 is a well-equipped choice that prices considerably lower than its rivals.

  • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2

  • Show: 6.7-inch QHD+, as much as 120Hz

  • Cameras: Rear array (50MP major sensor, 48MP ultrawide, 32MP telephoto), 16MP entrance digital camera

  • Battery: 5,000mAh

Learn our full assessment of the OnePlus11

Greatest finances Android cellphone: Google Pixel 7a

Picture by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

The $500 Pixel 7a delivers all the things we search for in an excellent, reasonably priced Android cellphone (in case you have much less cash to spend, take a look at our greatest low-cost telephones information). New options embody a quicker Tensor G2 chip, a smoother 90Hz show and for the primary time on one in all Google’s A-series telephones: assist for wi-fi charging. And with a refreshed design with IP67 water resistance, it seems to be and seems like the usual Pixel 7 however for $100 much less. You additionally get nice assist thanks to 5 years of safety updates and a minimum of three years of software program updates. The Pixel 7a’s solely shortcomings are slightly small and embody a scarcity of a devoted zoom lens and no assist for mmWave 5G (except you buy a barely costlier $550 mannequin from Verizon).

  • Processor: Google Tensor G2

  • Show: 6.1-inch FHD+, as much as 90Hz

  • Cameras: Rear array (64MP vast, 13MP ultrawide), 13MP entrance digital camera

  • Battery: 4,385mAh

Learn our full assessment of the Google Pixel 7a

Greatest premium Android cellphone: Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely

Picture by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

With a beginning value of $1,200, the Galaxy S23 Extremely could be very costly, however it has wonderful efficiency, an excellent digital camera system and virtually all the things you might ever need or want in a smartphone. Its specs embody an enormous 6.8-inch OLED show with a 120Hz adaptive refresh fee, a complete of 5 cameras (major, ultra-wide, 3x zoom, 10x zoom and a selfie shooter) and a built-in S Pen stylus for drawing and note-taking. It additionally options an enormous 5,000 mAh battery that delivers among the longest runtime we’ve seen on any cellphone. And with Samsung’s renewed dedication to software program assist, you possibly can count on a minimal of 4 main OS upgrades and 5 years of standard safety patches.

  • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2

  • Show: 6.8-inch QHD+, as much as 120Hz

  • Cameras: Rear array (200MP vast, 12MP ultrawide, 10MP telephoto), 12MP entrance digital camera

  • Battery: 5,000mAh

Learn our full assessment of the Samsung Galaxy S23 Extremely

Greatest foldable Android cellphone: Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5

Picture by Sam Rutherford / Engadget

Regardless of elevated competitors from the Pixel Fold, for individuals who wish to maximize their cell productiveness, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 remains to be one of the best huge foldable in the marketplace.

$1,619 at Amazon$1,800 at Samsung

Regardless of elevated competitors from the Pixel Fold, for individuals who wish to maximize their cell productiveness, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 remains to be one of the best huge foldable cellphone in the marketplace. On the most recent mannequin, not solely has Samsung added two new gestures for launching into side-by-side multitasking or switching from a full display to a windowed app, it has additionally elevated the variety of current apps you possibly can see on the taskbar from two to 4. The Z Fold 5’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset additionally delivers quicker efficiency than on the Pixel Fold, and despite the fact that this Samsung cellphone has a smaller energy cell (4,400 mAh vs 4,800 mAh), it has higher battery life, too. However the greatest change for this technology is Samsung’s new Flex Hinge, which permits the cellphone to shut utterly flat and makes it thinner besides. Sadly, its digital camera system is essentially unchanged from final 12 months, and with costs beginning at $1,800, the Z Fold 5 isn’t even remotely near being reasonably priced.

  • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2

  • Show: 6.2-inch HD+ entrance show (as much as 120Hz), 7.6-inch QXGA+ major show (as much as 120Hz)

  • Cameras: Rear array (50MP vast, 12MP ultrawide, 10MP telephoto), 10MP (Cowl) + 4MP UDC (Fundamental) entrance digital camera

  • Battery: 4,400mAh

Learn our full assessment of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5

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