If you like larger phones, the Galaxy S21 Plus and its 6.7-inch screen will suit nicely. At 6.1-inches, the screen and overall size of the Galaxy S21 is best suited for those who like mid-sized phones, as on-screen items are still reachable with your thumbs if you prefer smaller phones that can be used one-handed.
It's a 120Hz refresh rate screen at 1080p resolution, which makes for an ultra-smooth and premium experience while navigating around Android and swiping around apps. The Galaxy S21 also has Samsung's signature best-in-class display with vibrant colors, dynamic contrast, and incredible brightness. Combined with 8GB of memory (RAM), the Galaxy S21 can easily handle workloads from users who often use and switch between lots of different apps without reloading.
Indeed, inside the Galaxy S21 is the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor that delivers fast performance.
Pros: Premium design, latest specs and highest performance on Android, triple-lens camera system, reduced pricing compared to last year's generationĬons: Photos can have an overly processed look, doesn't support Samsung's full 45W charging, 25W charger not included It has the best balance of design, performance, features, camera versatility and quality, and price than any other Android smartphone. Samsung's Galaxy S21 proves to be the best Android phone you can buy so far in 2021. It's still a great phone to buy today, but you may want to hold off on buying a new iPhone until reviews for the iPhone 13 come out.
Those are great, but aren't necessary for the complete iPhone experience that the iPhone 12 delivers, especially for the Pro series' $200 premium.Īnd, for those who prefer smaller phones for one-handed usability, the $700 iPhone 12 Mini with a 5.4-inch screen is an ideal alternative.Īpple still sells the iPhone 12 for $100 less than its $800 launch price after the company announced the iPhone 13.
The extra features you get in the iPhone 12 Pro series mostly focus on enhanced camera hardware and software, like an extra camera lens for zoom, a LiDar scanner for better portrait mode shots in low light, and the Pro RAW mode for finer editing capabilities. Most importantly, both phones share the same A14 processor, so they have similar performance, if not identical, for running apps and iOS. More unique to Apple is the company's physical presence with its stores that gives users a clear place to go for support.Īnother major reason for recommending the iPhone 12 series over Android alternatives is the timely iOS operating system updates that Apple delivers, and iPhones are supported for longer than any Android rival.įor most people, we recommend the standard $800 iPhone 12 for its value and core feature set rather than the Pro series that start at $1,000. The reasons why the iPhone 12 series in general places above Android alternatives as the top overall smartphone is mostly due to the magnificent Apple ecosystem, including AirPods, Apple Watch, iPad, and Mac computers that connect with each other seamlessly to offer useful features. On its own, the iPhone 12 isn't much more special than Android alternatives that also come with top specs and features. USB-C for charging, 60Hz iPhone screen is not as smooth and fluid as Android rivals' 90Hz or 120Hz screens Pros: Premium design, excellent performance, fantastic camera quality, Apple's ecosystemĬons: Charger not included, still uses Lightning instead of
But it will likely be replaced by the iPhone 13 as the top phone soon. It has the best overall combination of price, design, screen quality, performance, features, battery life, longevity, and camera quality out of any smartphone. The easiest smartphone to recommend to almost anyone is Apple's iPhone 12. Best phone for battery life: Motorola Moto G Power (2021).Best phone for photography: Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra.With that said, we're confident that it will comfortably replace the iPhone 12 as the best overall phone you can buy, based on experience. We can't officially say that the new iPhone 13 is the best overall phone you can buy at the moment, as we haven't tested it yet. Worthy of note, Apple recently announced its new iPhone 13 series. We're also recommending the best phones for Android users, photography, battery life, gaming, kids, and the best phone for less. In this guide, we've selected the absolute best phones we'd recommend to the vast majority of people. You can even get excellent phones for under $500 or less these days. You can't go wrong with any of the major flagship smartphones that have been released in 20 so far. By clicking ‘Sign up’, you agree to receive marketing emails from InsiderĪs well as other partner offers and accept our