The most effective Android telephones to purchase in 2024

The Android ecosystem is all about selection. Whereas iPhone house owners have a smaller pool of recent units to choose from when it’s time to improve, there’s a a lot wider vary of decisions on Android. You need unbelievable digital camera zoom? A built-in stylus? A cellphone that runs an entire desktop setting whenever you plug it right into a monitor? You’ll find it on Android. Heck, you’ll find all of that in a single machine.

On the flip facet, all that selection could make for some arduous choices. Right here’s the place I’d like to assist; I’ve examined an entire boatload of current Android telephones, and I believe there are some actual winners within the present batch. It’s all a matter of what you’re on the lookout for, what you’re comfy spending, and what your definition of a “moderately sized cellphone” is. (I’ve my very own, personally.)

If Samsung’s S24-series launch occasion is something to go by, then it’s a protected wager that this 12 months’s cell tech buzzword will probably be AI. Usually talking, AI has but to actually impress me on a cellphone. Google’s Pixel telephones have some neat AI picture modifying methods, and Galaxy units can translate a cellphone name for you in actual time. These items are nothing to sneeze at! However simply understand that you’re all the time only a few faucets away from AI-gone-wrong atrocities like Pillow Arm. Finest to not put an excessive amount of inventory in any firm’s AI claims simply but.

In case you dwell within the US, I’ve some unhealthy information in regards to the Android market, although. For sophisticated causes having to do with “capitalism” and “geopolitics,” we don’t get almost as lots of the choices as you’ll discover in Asia and Europe — manufacturers like Huawei, Xiaomi, Honor, and Oppo simply aren’t accessible right here. I’ve restricted this information to the units I’ve personally examined in depth; thus, it’s a pretty US-centric set of suggestions. 

With that in thoughts, it’s additionally price acknowledging that most individuals within the US get their telephones “free of charge” from their wi-fi provider. In case you can handle it, shopping for a cellphone unlocked offers you essentially the most flexibility and freedom if you find yourself wanting to alter carriers within the close to future. Cellphone producers additionally provide financing and trade-in offers to make cost extra manageable. However in the event you’re completely happy along with your provider and the free cellphone on provide is the one you really need, by all means, take the free cellphone. Simply ensure you perceive the phrases, particularly if you must change plans to money in on the deal. 

Nonetheless you go about it, you’ve got some implausible choices to your subsequent Android cellphone.

Display: 6.7-inch 1440p 120Hz OLED / Processor: Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 / Cameras: 50-megapixel F1.8 foremost with OIS, 10-megapixel 3x telephoto with OIS, 12-megapixel ultrawide, 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: 4,900mAh / Charging: 45W wired, 15W wi-fi / Climate resistance: IP68

Samsung’s larger flagship — however not the huge huge flagship — is as soon as once more the perfect Android cellphone for most individuals. The Galaxy S24 Plus is a crowd-pleaser if the crowds desire a huge display screen, spectacular cameras, and good battery life (I believe they do).

Samsung makes an enormous deal about its AI options, that are like all AI options on telephones proper now: hit-and-miss. You possibly can have the cellphone act as a real-time language translator on cellphone calls. It really works properly sufficient and will actually turn out to be useful in a pinch. However the generative AI picture edits? Nonetheless very a lot a piece in progress.

Exterior of software program updates, you received’t discover a lot new {hardware} right here — and that’s positive. The up to date Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset is highly effective sufficient for nearly anybody, the battery is a little bit larger, and the display screen will get a decision bump this 12 months for a crisper picture. If these sound like minor updates, it’s as a result of they’re. However that’s okay whenever you’re already giving the folks what they need.

Learn my full overview of the Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus.

Display: 6.8-inch 1440p 120Hz OLED / Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 / Cameras: 200-megapixel foremost with OIS, 50-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS, 10-megapixel 3x telephoto with OIS, 12-megapixel ultrawide, 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: 5,000mAh / Charging: 45W wired, 15W wi-fi / Climate resistance: IP68

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Extremely says all of it within the title: Extremely. It has every little thing you can ask for in a cellphone — properly, at the very least one which doesn’t fold in half. There’s a stylus, two telephoto cameras, an enormous battery, and the most effective ding dang screens on any cellphone, wherever.

So why am I a little bit underwhelmed? For starters, Samsung swapped final 12 months’s 10x telephoto digital camera for a higher-resolution 5x digital camera that makes use of in-sensor crop to zoom to 10x. This can be a wise transfer, and images at 10x look positive, if not as crisp as they did on the final mannequin. It’s additionally pricier this time round, and it was already an costly cellphone. It’s fairly darn heavy, too, and Samsung’s change to titanium for the body hasn’t made it any lighter.

Private emotions in regards to the zoom lens apart, the S24 Extremely continues to be principally peerless. Its much-touted AI options are positive, but when there’s one factor that makes it well worth the improve, it’s the display screen. Its anti-glare coating and boosted most brightness make it so comfy to make use of outdoors it’s virtually magic. That’s hardly a flowery new tech characteristic, however the Galaxy S24 Extremely is hardly any outdated cellphone.

Learn my full overview of the Samsung Galaxy S24 Extremely.

Display: 6.82-inch 1440p 120Hz LTPO OLED / Processor: Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Cameras: 50-megapixel f/1.6 foremost with OIS, 64-megapixel 3x telephoto with OIS, 48-megapixel f/2.2 ultrawide / Battery: 5400mAh / Charging: 80W wired, 50W wi-fi / Climate-resistance score: IP65

After a couple of years and a little bit soul-searching, OnePlus is again to its roots. The OnePlus 12 is a wonderful machine with high-end efficiency with a aggressive worth: $799 for the bottom mannequin with a hefty 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.

For that worth, you get a crisp 1440p 6.8-inch show, a top-tier Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, and a succesful digital camera. It helps wi-fi charging, one thing that earlier OnePlus flagships have skipped. Battery efficiency is implausible, too — energy customers can get by way of a full day, and light-weight customers can stretch it to 2.

What stands out in regards to the OnePlus 12, although, may simply be what’s not right here: a bunch of AI options. Actually? That’s sort of refreshing. Among the AI options Google and Samsung are busy transport proper now are good, however none of them really feel important. If you wish to sit out this AI hype cycle however you continue to need an important cellphone, the OnePlus 12 is perhaps the one.

Learn my full overview of the OnePlus 12.

Display: 6.7-inch 1344p 120Hz LTPO OLED / Processor: Tensor G3 Cameras: 50-megapixel f/1.7 foremost with OIS, 48-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS, 48-megapixel ultrawide / Battery: 5050mAh / Charging: 30W wired, 23W wi-fi with Pixel Stand 2 / Climate-resistance score: IP68

Anybody who’s ever tried to {photograph} a younger baby understands what a cellphone digital camera is up towards: an unpredictable (however cute!) topic that received’t. Ever. Sit. Nonetheless. The Google Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Professional sort out this age-old drawback with some new tech: AI. And in contrast to most up-to-date AI options on smartphones, these instruments actually do turn out to be useful.

Each telephones embrace an AI modifying instrument that can allow you to select the perfect expression for every individual in your picture whenever you take a burst of pictures — particularly helpful if you wish to get one with everybody trying on the digital camera. There’s AI to enhance the audio in your movies, too, permitting you to reduce distracting background noises.

The Pixel 8 and eight Professional have extremely succesful cameras usually, although solely the pricier 8 Professional has a telephoto lens. It’s well worth the improve in the event you’re a eager photographer. The 8 Professional additionally comes with a much bigger display screen and battery, which lots of people will recognize. The sunshine and svelte Pixel 8, with its 6.2-inch display screen, is an efficient selection for small-ish cellphone followers. Each telephones use Google’s Tensor G3 chipset, although solely the 8 Professional is ready to run giant language fashions on-device — that’ll be essential sooner or later as AI instruments (probably?) change into extra helpful.

In any other case, the 8 and eight Professional are good all-around units — simply know that Pixels are sadly prone to an uncommon bug right here and there. Not one of the overview items I’ve examined have suffered from them, however they’re on the market.

Learn my full overview of the Google Pixel 8 and eight Professional.

Display: 7.6-inch 2176p 120Hz OLED inside display screen, 6.2-inch 2316p 120Hz OLED cowl display screen / Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 / Cameras: 50-megapixel F/1.8 foremost with OIS, 10-megapixel 3x telephoto with OIS, 12-megapixel ultrawide, 10-megapixel selfie (cowl display screen), four-megapixel under-display selfie (inside display screen) / Battery: 4,400mAh / Charging: 25W wired, 15W wi-fi / Climate resistance: IPX8

Samsung’s flagship foldable is due for alternative quickly, so maintain that in thoughts in the event you’re contemplating the Z Fold 5. However its multitasking capabilities stay second to none, and it’s lighter and simpler to wield than Google’s Pixel Fold. The slender dimensions of the duvet show make it a little bit awkward to make use of for normal cellphone stuff, however that’s an affordable tradeoff contemplating every little thing that the Fold 5 can do.

There are some essential issues to contemplate, although, beginning with the $1800 worth. That’s what the Pixel Fold prices, too, however it doesn’t matter the way you take a look at it — that’s loads to pay for a cellphone. The Fold 5 isn’t dust-resistant, both, so that you’ll need to be considerably cautious along with your funding.

The Fold 5 isn’t precisely teeming with technological enhancements over final 12 months’s mannequin, both. There’s a brand new hinge that folds flat slightly than with a spot between the 2 halves of the cellphone, and that’s about it. A few software program updates that it provides will come to older Fold units sooner or later, so there’s not a lot cause to hurry out and commerce in your Fold 4 for a Fold 5.

In case you’re a loyal Pixel fan or averse to the Fold 5’s slender kind issue when closed, Google’s foldable is perhaps a more sensible choice. However for most individuals, the Galaxy Fold 5’s versatility and good current monitor report for sturdiness make it a greater wager.

Learn my full overview of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5.

Display: 6.7-inch 1080p 120Hz OLED / Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 / Cameras: 50-megapixel F/1.9 foremost with OIS, 50-megapixel ultrawide, 32-megapixel selfie / Battery: 4,700mAh / Charging: 45W wired, 15W wi-fi / Climate resistance: IP54

The Nothing Cellphone 2 doesn’t provide the perfect worth proposition in its upper-midrange class. But when it’s model you’re after and one thing a little bit flashy (properly, loads flashy), then the Cellphone 2 is a straightforward decide.

It provides an excellent 6.7-inch display screen, nice each day efficiency and battery life, and a succesful digital camera system. However that’s the same old stuff — what’s uncommon in regards to the Cellphone 2 is its set of LED gentle strips on the again panel. They illuminate in mixtures known as “glyphs,” and you’ll set them to warn you to sure notifications. It’s neat however finally isn’t as useful because the system’s customizable always-on show.

On the draw back, the Cellphone 2 is simply splash-resistant slightly than absolutely proof against water submersion like just about all different telephones over $500. It’s additionally not absolutely supported on Verizon’s community, which takes it out of competition for lots of the US inhabitants.

If neither of the above is a deal-breaker, and the Cellphone 2’s styling appeals to you, then it’s a superb selection. One factor’s for certain — it undoubtedly stands out from the group.

Learn my full overview of the Nothing Cellphone 2.

There are various extra nice Android units that weren’t lined right here, and some are price calling out that didn’t fairly make the reduce for a advice.

• First off, there’s the Galaxy Z Flip 5, a clamshell-style foldable that’s due for alternative quickly, very similar to the Z Fold 5. The newest Flip is much extra helpful than its predecessors, because of a much bigger 3.4-inch cowl display screen that means that you can sort out texts and emails on a full QWERTY keyboard. It’s not as versatile because the Fold 5, however it additionally prices a extra affordable $999. Motorola’s Razr and Razr Plus flip telephones are actually within the combine, too, however we’re nonetheless testing the 2024 variations.
• On the opposite facet of the foldable spectrum, the OnePlus Open is a welcome addition to the combo with the perfect display screen format on a book-style folding cellphone. It’s skinny and light-weight, and the software program contains some considerate approaches to multitasking — a vital a part of the folding cellphone expertise. At $1,700, it’s simply $100 shy of the Pixel Fold and Galaxy Z Fold 5 and misses a few key options that each of these different choices embrace: wi-fi charging and an IPX8 score. But when these omissions don’t hassle you and the shape issue appeals, it’s a stunning machine to make use of.
• Final however not least, there’s the Google Pixel 8A. In case you actually need to maximize the return in your funding, it’s arduous to beat Google’s newest midrange cellphone. It covers all of the fundamentals for $499 whereas providing seven years of software program help.

Replace, June twenty ninth: Added a point out of the Google Pixel 8A, flagged Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy Unpacked occasion, and famous Motorola’s 2024 Razr flip telephones.