Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra review: Refined to near perfection
The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is a more refined Galaxy S22 Ultra, and while it might have features you don't need, it's one of the best.
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Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra performance evaluation: The near-perfect balance of power and potential
The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is the most powerful phone on the market because it strikes the perfect balance between power and capabilities.
When it comes to smartphones, "power" is hard to define. Is it pure computational ability? One may say so, but a smartphone with the best raw computational power but a borderline unusable user experience wouldn't be considered powerful. Is it the capabilities? Maybe, but there are mid-range Samsung phones that support DeX alongside all the other use cases of a normal smartphone. As a result, "power" is likely defined as a mix of the two, and that's why the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is, to me, the most powerful Android phone on the market.
Oppo Find N2 Flip review: A worthy challenger to the Z Flip 4
Oppo's clamshell foldable phone is finally reaching a wider international audience after its China launch, but is it enough against the competition?
If you wanted a foldable phone over the past several years, chances are your only options were a Samsung Z Fold or Z Flip. Foldables from other brands (all Chinese), for whatever reason, have stuck to selling only inside China. This made for an odd situation where the foldable phone scene was highly competitive in one country. Everywhere else, there's a monopoly operated by Samsung.
OnePlus 11 display evaluation: Back to the drawing board
With its new pricing model, does the company have any remnant left of a "flagship killer?"
Once upon a time, OnePlus thrived from a business model that delivered premium hardware specs at conventionally lower prices. Over time, the Chinese company departed further from this pattern year after year, eventually succumbing to competing dollar-for-dollar with other flagship smartphones.
OnePlus 11 performance evaluation: The fast, smooth, and power-efficient phone you expect
The OnePlus 11 is OnePlus' most powerful smartphone yet, though that isn't the full picture.
There are few brands as synonymous with speed as OnePlus, and the OnePlus 11, with its Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, aims to maintain that reputation. It's the company's most powerful smartphone to date, and with its release outside of China, we put it to the test to see just what it's capable of and how well it performs. Not only does it pack the fastest Android SoC on the market (well, technically, that crown goes to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy), but it packs UFS 4.0 storage, too, the fastest storage you can get currently.
OnePlus 11 review: A polished 'almost flagship' at non-flagship price
The OnePlus 11, at $699, is a good value proposition against Samsung's Galaxy S23 series, but the existence of the Google Pixel 7 makes things tricky
When the OnePlus 11 hit the market almost two months ago, it was one of the first new Android phones of the year, and while we liked the phone a lot, we didn't have other devices against which to compare. Now that the spring release flood of Android brands (outside North America) has just about wrapped, and we have a better overview of the entire Android smartphone scene in 2023, we can say that the OnePlus 11 has held up very well against higher priced competition, and many of us at XDA think it's the most underrated phone on the market right now.
RedMagic 8 Pro review: The most powerful gaming phone held back by software
The RedMagic 8 Pro is a fantastic smartphone with amazing hardware, but there's one huge problem.
There are very few smartphone brands that are known solely for gaming phones. The first is probably Asus with its stellar ROG Phone series (though it has an equally great Zenfone series), and the second is probably RedMagic. Gaming on a smartphone isn't exactly a new concept, and with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, Qualcomm has been doubling down on some of what makes a gaming phone great.
Moto G Play (2023) review: A former budget king struggles to remain relevant
The new Moto G Play is here to battle it out in the budget Android category, but there may have been too many compromises to stand a chance.
Admittedly it has been quite a while since I have spent a significant amount of time with a budget smartphone, and the last time I used a Motorola device was the Moto Z Play from 2016. Going into my review of the new Moto G Play (2023), I knew I'd have to temper my expectations for how the device would perform as my daily driver after using high-end flagships like the Pixel 7 Pro and Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4. So, how did the budget-minded Moto G Play (2023) fare? About as expected.
Gabb Phone Plus software review: Almost too simple
Not all smartphones are safe for kids, mainly because of software and internet access. The Gabb Phone Plus aims to resolve those issues.
Kids and teens want smartphones. While teens might have a better idea of why they want a phone and what they would use it for, the dangers are still there regardless of age. That's why it's important to use a smartphone designed for kids from a trustworthy source. Gabb Wireless is a U.S.-based brand that provides both devices and custom software to help parents feel more confident handing over smartphones to their kids.
Vivo X90 Pro Plus review: This kitchen sink phone sets a high bar for 2023 flagships
The Vivo X90 Pro+ packs some of the newest and best mobile tech in one big, slightly garish package.
The Vivo X90 Pro+ is an overkill phone in every sense of the word. From the unnecessarily long name to the tacky over-branding on its backside; the gigantic camera bump to the cutting-edge components used, it's the so-called "kitchen sink" phone because Vivo seemingly threw every mobile tech possible at it. In all my years of reviewing smartphones, only a few devices have hit the scene with this much "new" hardware: the Huawei Mate 20 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. The Vivo X90 Pro+ joins the list.
Huawei Mate 50 Pro review: Doing everything right, but is that enough?
The Huawei Mate 50 Pro is the best phone that Huawei has ever made, but that might not matter to a lot of people.
One of my favorite Android OEMs of all time is Huawei. It's always been a hardware king, packing incredible specifications into devices that were ahead of their time and giving us a window into what Android could be.
Oppo Find N2 hands-on: The lightest foldable deserves a release outside China
The Oppo Find N2 is an excellent smaller-sized alternative to the Galaxy Z Fold 4. Oppo really should consider launching this outside China.
The foldable scene is so competitive inside China that it seems like each new release has to set a new foldable hardware benchmark so there can be a marketing angle. This summer's Xiaomi Mix Fold 2 was "the thinnest foldable phone ever". The recently launched Honor Magic Vs has "the largest battery in a foldable phone". And now comes the Oppo Find N2, whose 233g weight makes it the "lightest horizontal foldable" yet (clamshells are excluded).
Google Pixel 7 display review: Tempering expectations
At its price point, can the OLED of Google's base offering compete with those of other companies?
Launching at $599, the Pixel 7 is Google's base offering that's seated between the company's flagship and budget phones. It's still one of the most bang-for-your-buck phones in 2022 thanks to having the same excellent main camera sensor and processing as the Pro model. If you want a competitive point-and-shoot camera with Google's software experience, the Pixel 7 is a great choice.
OnePlus Nord N300 5G review: A basic phone you can get for free
The Nord N300 5G is an entry-level phone that does what it's supposed to do — just don't expect anything more
When OnePlus co-founder Carl Pei launched the Nord series two years ago, he said he wanted to strip away superfluous smartphone features and "get back to basics."
The Asus ROG Phone 6 Diablo Immortal Edition will send you to Sanctuary
The Asus ROG Phone 6 Diablo Immortal Edition is the ultimate smartphone for the ultimate Diablo Immortal (or just Diablo) fan.
Asus has been making some pretty incredible video game-centric phones, especially for mobile gaming. From the Asus ROG Phone 6D Ultimate that launched with the Dimensity 9000+ to the Asus ROG Phone 6 with the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1, both are stellar options for a mobile gamer.
If you remember the mayhem caused by the Google Pixel 6 Pro from last year, then you'll also recall how simply divisive it was. Many Pixel fans will attempt to rewrite history and state that it was the best thing since sliced bread, but it was anything but. It was a good smartphone with a lot of problems, and in the case of the Google Pixel 7 Pro, Google has attempted to right a lot of those wrongs by approaching the same recipe with alternative ingredients.
Google Pixel 7 review: Pixel hardware finally gets great enough to match best-in-class software
The Google Pixel 7 finishes what the Pixel 6 started. It's a refined, intelligent smartphone that shows off Google's vision. Read our review!
Ever since its birth in 2016, the Google Pixel series has offered excellent software performance but subpar hardware. The original Pixel had a hilariously thick chin bezel that served no purpose (it didn't house any buttons or sensors); the second Pixel had display quality issues; the third Pixel had that hideous notch on the XL; the fourth Pixel replaced that notch with a bulky bezel housing a 3D facial scanning system that didn't always work; and the Pixel 5 neither used a flagship processor nor premium build materials. Winds of changes arrived with the Pixel 6, the first Pixel phone to offer beautiful hardware to match the industry-best software. But even then, there were still hardware quirks, including a display that didn't get bright enough and an in-display fingerprint scanner that was frustratingly slow.
Xiaomi 12T Pro review: A mid-year upgrade to 200MP
The Xiaomi 12T Pro packs a 200MP main camera and a Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1, priced at just $750. Read our review to know what we think!
After starting 2022 with a good but unexciting flagship -- that would be the standard Xiaomi 12 Pro -- Xiaomi hit its strides in the summer, launching a pair of tremendous devices with hardware that clearly trumped rivals -- these would be the Xiaomi 12S Ultra with a 1-inch camera sensor and the Xiaomi Mix Fold 2 with an unbelievably thin design.
Google Pixel 7 Pro camera review: Top-tier camera flagship that improves upon the Pixel 6 series
The Google Pixel 7 Pro has a stellar camera system, though everyone knew that it would. Just how good is it, though? Check out our review.
Google's Pixel 7 series arrived to much fanfare. With promises of improvements in the form of Tensor G2 and more software features than ever, the company has very likely released its best flagship smartphone yet. While we haven't had a lot of time with the Google Pixel 7 Pro just yet (and so, our full review will be coming at a later date), we've prioritized using the camera to get a feel for how things may (or may not) have improved.
Motorola Razr (2022) review: Sleek hardware but broken camera software
The Motorola Razr 2022 is a China-only foldable for now, but it brings enticing hardware that improves on the clamshell form factor
The foldable smartphone scene is in such an odd place right now. Samsung has a virtual monopoly on the global foldable scene, except for one important, but somewhat insular country: China. Within China, there are a half dozen foldable alternatives to Samsung's foldables, and they all have sleeker and better-looking hardware.
iPhone 14 Pro review: More of the same with just enough change
The iPhone 14 Pro feels pretty familiar, but it packs just enough changes to the design to help it stand on its own.
Whether you're a first-time iPhone buyer or a seasoned iOS veteran, the Apple iPhone 14 Pro is a smartphone that you can count on for practically all situations. It is the best iOS smartphone you can purchase, but it isn't the one that offers the most value, so the recommendation leans on you being a power user.