Breaking News

Wednesday 23 March 2016

Best phone 2016: the best smartphones we recomend



Update: The Samsung Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 Edge reviews are here - see where they land in our updated best smartphones list!

MWC is over, and we've had the big hitters appear. The LG G5, with its modular design, was one of the darlings of MWC 2016 (alongside the Samsung duo, of course) and with the HTC One M10 looking like it's still going be a month away - and likely to be called the HTC 10 - there's a lot coming down the line.

If none of those take your fancy and you want the best phone right now, well, this is the place to be (although we would recommend waiting for the new phones to emerge to see if you can save some cash on 2015's models).
Luckily for you, at TechRadar we check out every phone under the sun, putting the ones that matter through our rigorously vigorous testing process to create our indepth mobile phone reviews.

With so many to choose from, we've spent hours whittling them down to a top ten, taking into account the power, specs, design and most importantly: value for money, although we'll always point you in the direction of the latest handsets to help you find the best smartphone.

After all, nobody wants to be carting around a phone that won't be getting any updates in a year's time, right?

So whether it's one of the many slick Android handsets, the latest iPhone or one from a range of other cool operating systems, we've extensively tested the top smartphones so you don't have to.

Here are our rankings for the best smartphones around, currently available in


Sony Xperia Z5 Compact


A compact beast with a splendid price

OS: Android 5.1 | Screen size: 4.6-inch | Resolution: 720x1280 | RAM: 3GB | Storage: 32GB | Battery: 2,700mAh | Rear camera: 23MP | Front camera: 5.1MP

The Sony Xperia Z5 Compact is another in the line of smaller handsets from the Japanese brand, packing in all the power into a smaller, more manageable phone.

It's got all the same power credentials as the Xperia Z5 and Sony Xperia Z5 Premium, but has the added bonus of being a lot more pocketable.

The main reason you'd go for this phone is that it's a dinkier device, with a 4.6-inch screen combined with the strong camera, waterproofed chassis and allows you to hear all your audio in beautiful upscaled sound quality.

Battery life could be better, but it's no worse than a lot on this list - and Sony certainly has a unique design that plenty like to fondle.




  HTC One M9

A great phone with a phenomenal build quality

OS: Android 5.1 | Screen size: 5-inch | Resolution: 1920x1080 | RAM: 3GB | Storage: 32GB |Battery: 2840mAh | Rear camera: 20.7MP | Front camera: 4MP

The key thing about the HTC One M9 is the design: it's beautiful, and the 'jewellery-grade' finish and attention to detail does hit you the second you pick this phone up for the first time.

HTC has also worked hard to make sure it's suite of impressive features aren't missing, so the front-facing Boomsound speakers really offer some impressive audio, and the internal sound enhancement is strong too. The Sense overlay - the user interface that sits on top of the 'normal' Android operating system - is one of our favourite too, with a great array of features that we found genuinely useful.

The camera has been boosted to 20.7MP, although it doesn't have the impressive snapping power of some of the other phones on the market. It still offers good pictures though, and this is a lovely package to consider.




 iPhone 6S Plus


The best phablet you can buy

OS: iOS 9 | Screen size: 5.5-inch | Resolution: 1920 x 1080 | RAM: 2GB | Storage:16GB/64GB/128GB | Battery: around 2750mAh | Rear camera: 12MP | Front camera: 5MP

If you're OK with a larger iPhone, then you're in for a treat with the iPhone 6S Plus. It packs all the same upgrades as the smaller 6S - namely the innovative 3D Touch screen and upgraded camera - and fixes some of the flaws we all hate.

The battery is larger, and while the screen is Full HD (with a really great ability to show colours) this is easily the longer-lasting of the two iPhones, meaning you won't have to reach for the charger as often.

The camera is actually better than on the iPhone 6S, with optical image stabilisation providing sharper and brighter images thanks to mechanical help.

If you're an Apple fan looking for a 'bigger' experience, this is the phone for you.

Full review: iPhone 6S Plus

Also consider: You'll obviously want to look at the iPhone 6S as the smaller option here - the reason to go smaller would be if you're not a fan of the phablet and want the lower cost. In the interest of fairness the Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ has to be mentioned here as another brilliant phablet, but Apple fans will consider that sacrilege.



 Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+


A beautiful phablet that will win many admirers

OS: Android 5.1 | Screen size: 5.7-inch | Resolution: 1440x2560 | RAM: 4GB | Storage: 32GB/64GB | Battery: 3000mAh | Rear camera: 16MP | Front camera: 5MP

The Samsung Galaxy S6 Edge+ is still one of our favourite phones around - despite the S7 and S7 Edge arriving, a supersized version of the S6 Edge with gorgeous lines and a larger battery, more features to the curved edge and generally improvements all round.

This means it has one of the best cameras around, more RAM (enabling higher-power applications and slicker day to day use) and a really swift fingerprint sensor.

The Super AMOLED display is large and wonderful for both web browsing and movie watching - but really, the main reason you'd buy this phone is to have the most powerful Samsung phone out, and also one of the best-looking - and now it's dropping in price, it's shooting up our list.



LG G4


A brilliant, great value smartphone

OS: Android 5.1 | Screen size: 5.5-inch | Resolution: 2560 x 1440 | RAM: 3GB | Storage: 32GB |Battery: removable 3,000mAh | Rear camera: 16MP | Front camera: 8MP

LG is always one of the best value manufacturers, and with the LG G4 it's -again - got one of the top smartphones around while not charging a huge amount for it.

The leather back is a unique feature, and will make your phone stand out among the swath of glass and metal offerings.

Its large, expansive screen is one of the best on the market, the 16MP laser auto-focus camera takes some cracking shots and while the volume and power buttons are on the back, they're very easy to hit on a phone this size.

It's got all the power and performance of the phones around it in this list, but for a much lower price - but the successor, the LG G5, has been launched and with its modular design looks like a big upgrade, so perhaps it's worth waiting until that lands before you make a decision.

 

 Samsung Galaxy S7


One of two five star phones from Samsung

OS: Android 6 | Screen size: 5.1-inch | Resolution: 1440 x 2560 | RAM: 4GB |Storage:32GB | Battery: 3000mAh | Rear camera: 12MP | Front camera: 5MP

The Samsung Galaxy S7 is a phone that initially looks just like the S6 from last year - but pick it up and you'll see there's a world of difference.

Firstly, the rear of the phone feels much nicer thanks to a curved back (through a process called 3D Thermo Forming), it's now water resistant and a microSD slot is a welcome feature to return, after it was dropped last year.

The camera is just brilliant - it's lower in megapixels but improved in quality. You'll get brilliant pictures time and again, and you'll want to keep trying it in different scenarios. It's a great phone that you'll be happy to pull out of your pocket.

0 comments:

Post a Comment