2023 is here and the past 12 months have seen some superb smartphones go on sale. Whether you’re looking for performance, camera smarts or value, our definitive list of the best phones has it all.
The top phone on this rundown won’t be the ideal phone for everybody so make sure to check out our other picks. The best phone for you is out there, depending on what you value most. Trust us, these phones all deliver -just all a little differently, and that’s a great thing. Good competition means better phones for everyone.
WHAT TO LOOK FOR
When choosing a phone you should consider these things: build quality and design, ease of use, features, performance and value.
Generally speaking, a flagship phone will start at around £700 but can cost over £1,000 in some cases. On contract, you’re looking at between £30 and £50-per-month on average, but you can spend a lot more if you want an expensive phone and lots of mobile data.
Buying a phone outright will usually give you the best value, but we appreciate finances in the real world don’t always accommodate such big one-off purchases. If you can, you’ll obviously need a SIM card and plan, as well as the phone.
Why should you buy an unlocked phone?
An unlocked phone is one that is not tied to any particular mobile operator, such as Vodafone, O2 or EE. Buying ‘unlocked’ usually means buying the phone outright without a SIM card or contract attached.
The most important point is that an unlocked phone is almost always a better deal than buying a phone on contract – if you can afford it.
Generally speaking, if you can afford the upfront cost of the handset, you will pay less over the life of your phone by buying unlocked.
More importantly, you are not locked into a lengthy contract. If you want a new handset at any time, you can buy one without having to up-purchase your way out of said contract or commit to another two years.
Just be sure to make certain the phone you’re getting is not locked to a certain network.
Which SIM or mobile plan should you get?
One other thing to consider is the size and shape of the SIM required for your phone. Make sure you get a nano-SIM if a nano-SIM is what your phone requires.
For the record, every phone in this list takes a nano-SIM.
If you get that wrong it is easily solvable; every network will gladly send over a different-sized SIM. SIM cards tend to come in all three sizes, you simply pop out the one you need.
But that’s assuming you are getting a new SIM, and if you’re looking for a SIM-free phone or unlocked phone you probably already have one.
More important is to make sure that if you want 5G you get a 5G-enabled phone and SIM.
1. BEST OVERALL PHONE
Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
Price: £1,149 from fave.co/3AFchSR
When Samsung revealed the new Galaxy S22 range, it was largely business as usual – for the Galaxy S22 and S22+, anyway. The Galaxy S22 Ultra, on the other hand, offers a much more radical change that brings it closer than ever to the Galaxy Note range, with a redesigned chassis and a built-in S Pen.
The question is, does the spiritual successor to the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra offer enough to tempt users, especially at such a high price point? While it's not the perfect smartphone, there's a lot to love about Samsung's top-end Galaxy S22 Ultra in 2022.
We now also know exactly how the Snapdragon and Exynos variants of the top-end Galaxy S22 compare. Read on to find out more.
Design
Compared to Galaxy smartphones before it, some might say the Galaxy S22 Ultra looks a bit simplistic – but I think simplicity looks great on a smartphone. We don’t all need in-your-face designs, refractive glass patterns, or big, bright flashy logos, especially on such a premium bit of kit.
When it comes to the S22 Ultra, less is certainly more, with a slick blend of metal and glass that does most of the talking.
The most notable difference compared to the rest of the S22 line is the lack of a camera ‘island’ surrounding the rear-facing cameras. While it does alienate the S22 Ultra from the rest of the range, it ties in with the minimalist design, with small details like polished metal housing around the cameras contributing to the high-end look.
The sharp, squared-off corners are reminiscent of the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra design (I wonder why…) and help make the S22 Ultra stand out from the sea of rounded smartphones, but unlike the flat-sided iPhone 13, it features ever-so-gently curved edges to help it sit comfortably in the palm.
The curved edges of the 6.8in display aren’t anywhere near as extreme as waterfall displays like that of the Motorola Edge a few years ago, with no real problem with accidental screen presses or text disappearing off the edge of the display. It’s just enough to see a bit of curvature on the edge, which also makes for a smooth side-swipe experience.
That 6.8in display – larger than the iPhone 14 Pro Max – does mean that the S22 Ultra can be a bit unwieldy at times, measuring in at 8.9mm thick and 229g. It’s not a problem for me with fairly large hands, but showing the S22 Ultra to friends really demonstrated how it’s not really designed for smaller mitts – especially when it comes to one-handed use.
Otherwise, the S22 Ultra looks and feels like a premium bit of kit with a solid feel in the hand. It’s protected by Gorilla Glass Victus+ on the rear to help protect it from damage, and there’s IP68 dust and water resistance. I’ve seen a number of other reviews get scratches on the back seemingly too easily, but possibly from having a second phone in their pocket which isn’t typical usage. My sample did take a tumble across a tiled floor and survived the incident unscathed.
The Galaxy S22 Ultra is available in a range of colours including Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green and Burgundy.
Display
The 6.8in AMOLED display of the S22 Ultra is undoubtedly one of the highlights of the smartphone and a key reason to buy it over other phones. It offers a bright, vivid, detailed experience with a smooth refresh rate.
The display sports a 3,088×1,440 (WQHD+) resolution that equates to a pixel density of 500ppi – a stark contrast to Apple’s top-end iPhone and its 2,796×1,290 (460ppi) LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED display.
Before you get too excited, it’s worth noting that the S22 Ultra comes running a lower 2,316×1,080 (FHD+) resolution out of the box and you’ll have to manually change the setting yourself. That’s because that high resolution can really drain the battery, especially when gaming. The good news is that, even at the FHD+ resolution, the display looks nice and crisp.
One saving factor is the adaptive refresh rate, which not only makes apps and games look and feel smooth, but the ability to shift from 1 – to 120Hz means it’ll draw less battery power than a standard 120Hz display without any real noticeable difference in performance.
The S22 Ultra is easy to use outside, even in direct sunlight, with one of the brightest smartphone displays on the market right now. Samsung claims at standard levels it can reach up to 1250nits, while a boosted brightness mode (ideal for outdoor use) cranks it up to an even higher 1,750 nits.
Even if it didn’t hit quite such lofty heights in benchmarking, scoring 711 nits via a Spyder X, it’s comfortably brighter than most other flagships right now. That’s thanks in part to Samsung’s Vision Booster tech that’ll automatically adjust the brightness, colours and more depending on ambient lighting conditions for an optimal viewing experience.
Hidden beneath the display is an ultrasonic fingerprint reader, and while they’ve had a bad rap in the past, I found it to work near-perfectly on the S22 Ultra. It’s located roughly a third of the way up from the bottom edge, which is where my thumb naturally lands, and the unlock process is near-instantaneous.
You do also have facial unlock, but it’s not as secure as PIN or fingerprint it’s no Face ID, after all.
There’s also a small 40Mp holepunch camera, centrally placed at the top of the display, but the large dimensions of the display meant it was barely noticeable in general use.
S Pen
While 2021’s Galaxy S21 Ultra offered compatibility with the S Pen stylus, the S22 Ultra goes full-Note by adding support for an integrated S Pen, thus completing its transition to Note-but-not-Note. If you love the experience on offer from the Note 20, the Galaxy S22 Ultra is its successor in all
