The very best 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 select from when it’s time to improve, there’s a a lot wider vary of selections on Android. You need unimaginable digicam zoom? A built-in stylus? A cellphone that runs a whole desktop atmosphere while you plug it right into a monitor? You could find it on Android. Heck, you could find all of that in a single system.

On the flip facet, all that selection could make for some laborious choices. Right here’s the place I’d like to assist; I’ve examined an entire boatload of latest Android telephones, and I feel 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 snug spending, and what your definition of a “fairly sized cellphone” is. (I’ve my very own, personally.)

As you sift by way of the choices, you’ll nearly definitely come throughout tech’s favourite buzzphrase of the 12 months: AI. Typically talking, AI has but to actually impress me on a cellphone. The Pixel 9 collection has some doubtlessly helpful options, like a brand new Screenshots app that makes use of AI to tag related information in metadata, and Galaxy units can translate a cellphone name for you in actual time. This stuff are nothing to sneeze at! However none of it feels just like the platform shift that the massive tech firms hold promising. Finest to not put an excessive amount of inventory in any firm’s AI claims simply but.

In the event you reside within the US, I’ve some dangerous 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 obtainable 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 value acknowledging that most individuals within the US get their telephones “free of charge” from their wi-fi service. In the event 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. Telephone producers additionally supply financing and trade-in offers to make cost extra manageable. However when you’re comfortable along with your service and the free cellphone on supply is the one you actually need, by all means, take the free cellphone. Simply ensure you perceive the phrases, particularly if it’s essential to change plans to money in on the deal. 

Nonetheless you go about it, you may have some unbelievable choices to your subsequent Android cellphone.

Display screen: 6.3-inch 1080p 120Hz OLED / Processor: Tensor G4 / Cameras: 50-megapixel f/1.7 major with OIS, 48-megapixel ultrawide, 10.5-megapixel selfie / Battery: 4,700mAh / Charging: 27W wired, 15W wi-fi (with Pixel Stand 2) / Climate resistance: IP68

Google’s {hardware} is best than ever, and the entire Pixel 9 lineup feels simply as polished as something you’d get from Samsung or Apple. However at $799, the essential Pixel 9 is in a very interesting place, and when you don’t want a telephoto digicam or the most important display, then that is the Android cellphone to get.

The Pixel 9 comes with some vital quality-of-life enhancements like a sooner fingerprint scanner for unlocking the cellphone. The digicam is as dependable as ever, and when you’re into AI photograph enhancing tips, boy does this cellphone have ‘em. There’s a brand new Screenshots app that acts as a spot to retailer all the info that may in any other case be misplaced at sea in your digicam roll, and it makes use of AI to parse info out and make it searchable. Kinda helpful.

Even with out AI, this is a superb cellphone. It’s additionally designed to go the space, with seven years of promised OS updates, which very possible means you’ll outgrow the cellphone earlier than Google stops supporting it. Its potential for long-term worth and the standard of the {hardware} make it a straightforward suggestion for anybody who simply needs a pleasant Android cellphone that works.

Learn my Google Pixel 9 evaluate.

Display screen: 6.8-inch 1440p 120Hz OLED / Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 / Cameras: 200-megapixel major 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 least one which doesn’t fold in half. There’s a stylus, two telephoto cameras, a large battery, and top-of-the-line ding dang screens on any cellphone, anyplace.

So why am I slightly underwhelmed? For starters, Samsung swapped final 12 months’s 10x telephoto digicam for a higher-resolution 5x digicam that makes use of in-sensor crop to zoom to 10x. It is a smart transfer, and photographs at 10x look advantageous, 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 remains to be principally peerless. Its much-touted AI options are advantageous, but when there’s one factor that makes it definitely worth the improve, it’s the display. Its anti-glare coating and boosted most brightness make it so snug to make use of exterior it’s nearly magic. That’s hardly a flowery new tech function, however the Galaxy S24 Extremely is hardly any previous cellphone.

Learn my Samsung Galaxy S24 Extremely evaluate.

Display screen: 6.82-inch 1440p 120Hz LTPO OLED / Processor: Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Cameras: 50-megapixel f/1.6 major 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 slightly soul-searching, OnePlus is again to its roots. The OnePlus 12 is a superb system 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 digicam. It helps wi-fi charging, one thing that earlier OnePlus flagships have skipped. Battery efficiency is unbelievable, too — energy customers can get by way of a full day, and lightweight customers can stretch it to 2.

What stands out in regards to the OnePlus 12, although, would possibly simply be what’s not right here: a bunch of AI options. Truthfully? That’s type of refreshing. Among the AI options Google and Samsung are busy delivery 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 amazing cellphone, the OnePlus 12 may be the one.

Learn my OnePlus 12 evaluate.

Display screen: 8.0-inch 2076p 120Hz OLED internal display, 6.3-inch 1080p 120Hz OLED cowl display / Processor: Tensor G4 / Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.7 major with OIS, 10.8-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS, 10.5-megapixel ultrawide, 10-megapixel selfie (cowl display), 10-megapixel internal selfie digicam / Battery: 4,650mAh / Charging: 21W wired, 7.5W wi-fi / Climate resistance: IPX8

Does anybody actually want a folding cellphone? Most likely not. However utilizing one is terribly good, and the Pixel 9 Professional Fold is the nicest book-style foldable I’ve used so far. It’s dear, it’s nonetheless bulkier than a slab-style cellphone, and its cameras aren’t fairly as good as the opposite Pixel 9 Professional telephones. But it surely’s a pleasure to make use of, each as a daily cellphone with the quilt display and while you unfold the massive internal display.

The 9 Professional Fold is Google’s second folding cellphone, following up the passport-shaped Pixel Fold with a format that feels way more acquainted. The outer display measures 6.3 inches on the diagonal, however extra importantly, the ratio is similar as Google’s slab telephones. By comparability, Samsung’s Z Fold 6 makes use of a taller, narrower format that feels cramped. Having used them each, I a lot want the 9 Professional Fold’s method.

That mentioned, the 9 Professional Fold isn’t with out compromises. The digicam system isn’t fairly nearly as good as what you get within the different 9 Professional telephones. The outer display isn’t as sharp or vivid because the Pixel 9 Professional’s, both. And it’s not as sturdy as its slab-style counterparts — there’s no mud resistance, and you’ll’t get it repaired simply anyplace. For $1,800, that’s an terrible lot to swallow. For the adventurous early adopter, although, the 9 Professional Fold shall be very rewarding.

Learn my Google Pixel 9 Professional Fold evaluate.

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

The Nothing Telephone 2 doesn’t supply the easiest worth proposition in its upper-midrange class. But when it’s fashion you’re after and one thing slightly flashy (properly, lots flashy), then the Telephone 2 is a straightforward decide.

It provides a very good 6.7-inch display, nice each day efficiency and battery life, and a succesful digicam system. However that’s the standard stuff — what’s uncommon in regards to the Telephone 2 is its set of LED mild strips on the again panel. They illuminate in combos 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 Telephone 2 is just splash-resistant fairly than absolutely proof against water submersion like nearly 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 Telephone 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 Nothing Telephone 2 evaluate.

There are lots of extra nice Android units that weren’t coated right here, and some are value calling out that didn’t fairly make the lower for a suggestion.

• First off, there’s the Galaxy Z Flip 6, Samsung’s wonderful clamshell-style foldable. It’s not as a lot enjoyable to make use of because the 2024 Motorola Razr Plus — which facilitates utilizing apps on the quilt display extra simply — however Motorola’s observe document for software program updates isn’t nice, so the Z Flip 6 is a safer guess for a flip cellphone. Learn our evaluate.
• The OnePlus Open can be one other good book-style foldable choice. It’s skinny and lightweight, and the software program contains some considerate approaches to multitasking — a vital a part of the folding cellphone expertise. But it surely gained’t be supported with software program updates for so long as the Pixel 9 Professional Fold or the Galaxy Z Fold 6. Learn our evaluate.
• Final however not least, there’s the Google Pixel 8A. In the event you actually wish to maximize the return in your funding, it’s laborious to beat Google’s newest midrange cellphone. It covers all of the fundamentals for $499 whereas providing seven years of software program help. Learn our evaluate.

Replace, September thirteenth: Changed the Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus with the Google Pixel 9 and the Galaxy Z Fold 6 with the Pixel 9 Professional.