Smartphones are amazing and as a result a lot of people have jumped on board. So, when the annual financials came out, it was a minor surprise to see that the smartphone market was in significant decline. There are many reasons for this, but the main one has to be that older devices are holding up great compared to newer devices. This makes consumers less apt to make the substantial investment to get the latest and greatest device.
That said, this hasn’t stopped manufacturers from developing new offerings that take previous models and significantly innovate on them. With the majority of the western smartphone market dominated by Apple and Samsung, we thought that we would look at their new flagship devices, as well as three devices we’ve found to be comparable. Without further adieu we present this year’s top flagship smartphones:
Huawei Mate 20 Pro
What if we told you that what could be the best phone on the market this holiday season may not be available on your carrier? The Chinese electronics giant currently isn’t available through carrier-sponsored deals in the U.S., but that doesn’t stop the Mate 20 Pro from being one of the best smartphones ever developed.
The Mate 20 Pro is built on an aluminum chassis and features a 6.4-inch AMOLED display with a Kirin 980 processor. It has four cameras:
- 40 MP fixed wide-angle lens
- 20 MP ultra-wide-angle lens
- 8 MP telephoto lens with 5x optical zoom
- 8 MP front-facing lens
Other options include a first-in-class in-display fingerprint reader and Qi-enabled device charging from the device. It is available in Emerald Green, Midnight Blue, Twilight, Pink Gold, and Black and can be found for $1,100 on the Internet.
Specifications
Build - Aluminum frame with Glass Front/Back
Display - 6.4” AMOLED with ~538 ppi
Chipset - HiSilicon Kirin 980
Memory - 6/8GB RAM
Storage - 128/256GB with Nano Memory slot up to 256GB
Software - Android 9.0 Pie, Huawei UI
Cameras - 40 MP (27mm); 20 MP (16mm); 8 MP (80mm) with 5x optical zoom and optical image stabilization. Front facing 24 MP.
Battery - 4,200 mAh (85 hours)
Additional Features - Face ID, In-display fingerprint scanner, Qi wireless charging broadcasting, 40-Watt fast charging
Samsung Galaxy Note 9
Samsung has done it again. Two years after its biggest debacle, the newest iteration of the Galaxy Note, the Note 9, is probably Samsung’s best phone to date. With an octa-core Snapdragon 845, six or eight GB of RAM and 128 or 512 GB of onboard storage, the Note 9 matches up with about any handset available on the market. The device is shipped with Android Oreo 8.1.
Onboard the Note 9 has two lenses, a 12 MP wide angle lens, and a 12 MP telephoto lens with optical zoom. The battery checks in at 4,000 mAh and produces an industry-best 97 hours endurance rating. It has an onboard “S Pen” that provides a lot of additional functionality including remote control over many of the phone’s applications. It is available in Metallic Copper, Lavender Purple, Midnight Black, Ocean Blue, and Pure White, and carries a $1,100 price tag.
Specifications
Build - Aluminum with Glass Front/Back
Display - 6.4” Super AMOLED with ~516 ppi
Chipset - Qualcomm Snapdragon 845
Memory - 6 or 8 GB of RAM
Storage - 128 or 512 GB of onboard storage and microSD up to 512 GB
Software - Android 8.1 Oreo
Cameras - 12 MP (26mm); 12 MP (52mm) with 2x optical zoom; optical image stabilization; 8 MP front-facing
Battery - 4,000 mAh (97 hours)
Additional Features - Samsung S Pen, rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, iris scanner.
Apple iPhone XS Max
Once again Apple has the most popular device in the U.S. market. This year’s iPhone, the iPhone XS Max is the first to feature Apple’s new A12 Bionic processor with enhanced neural capabilities. Built on a stainless-steel chassis and covered with premium glass, the phone measures in at 6.5-inches.
The device features three lenses: one 12 MP wide-angle lens, one 12 MP telephoto lens, and one 7 MP front-facing lens. With the enhancements made to iOS and the battery, the iPhone XS Max is a serious contender for best smartphone on the market. It is available in Space Gray, Silver, and Gold, and can be had for $1,099.99 on any of the major carriers.
Specifications
Build - Stainless Steel with Glass Front/Back
Display - 6.5” Super AMOLED with ~458 ppi
Chipset - Apple A12 Bionic
Memory - 4GB RAM
Storage - 64/256/512 GB
Software - iOS 12/iOS 12.1
Cameras - 12 MP (26mm); 12 MP (52mm) with 2x optical zoom and optical image stabilization; 7 MP front-facing
Battery - 3,174 mAh (78 hours)
Additional Features - Face ID
Google Pixel 3 XL
For the past two cycles, Google has released their Pixel line of smartphones, and after two years of nothing but great things said about the camera experience on the phone, 2018’s version of the Pixel approaches top-of-the-line status. The new Pixel 3 XL features a premium build with glass front and back and a slew of other features that make it comparable to the best phones on the market.
The Pixel 3 XL has a 6.3-inch OLED display and comes with what is widely regarded the best available camera on the market. The camera is 12.2 MP and excels in low light situations. If you couple the premium build with the fact that as soon as a new version of Android is developed or released, the Pixel 3 XL gets priority over competing smartphones, Google looks to be building on their foray back into the smartphone market. It is available in White, Black, and Not Pink. With a few neat features that aren’t found on many other phones, and a price tag that is at least $100 less than both the Samsung and Apple flagships the Pixel 3 XL is sure to be popular.
Specifications
Build - Aluminum with Glass Front/Back
Display - 6.3” P-OLED with ~523 ppi
Chipset - Qualcomm Snapdragon 845
Memory - 4GB RAM
Storage - 64/128GB
Software - Android 9.0 Pie
Cameras - 12.2 MP (28mm) with optical image stabilization
Battery - 3,430 mAh (69 hours)
Additional Features - Rear-mounted fingerprint scanner, squeeze to call Google Assistant, Call screen feature, Flip to quiet notifications
LG V40 ThinQ
The V20 and V30 have both impressed in their own right, and LG is back with the V40 ThinQ. It features a bezel-less 6.4-inch, OLED display. It is the best display any LG phone has ever had by a wide margin. With a display that comes in at 537 pixels per inch and five lenses, The V40 ThinQ is looking to be a content creator’s daily driver.
It comes with two 12-megapixel lenses (one wide angle and one telephoto), and a 16-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens on the back, which means the phone is capable of doing quite a bit. The camera app features a “triple-preview” that allows users to see which camera will work best for the shot they are framing. Another feature, called “triple shot” allows users to take one picture and have a small video created that incorporates still photos from all three cameras. The LG ThinQ is available in New Platinum Gray, Carmine Red, New Aurora Black, and New Moroccan Blue and can be had for around $900.
Specifications
Build - Aluminum with Glass Front/Back
Display - 6.4” P-OLED with ~537 ppi
Chipset - Qualcomm Snapdragon 845
Memory - 6 GB RAM
Storage - 64/128GB, microSD up to 512GB
Software - Android 8.1 Oreo
Cameras - 12 MP (27mm) optical image stabilization; 12 MP (52mm) with 2x optical zoom and optical image stabilization; 16 MP (16mm); 8 MP (26mm) and 5 MP (21mm) front-facing.
Battery - 3,300 mAh (64 hours)
Additional Features - Rear-mounted fingerprint scanner
If you are in the market for a new smartphone this holiday season, consider these to be the cream of the crop. What smartphone do you have? Do you like it better than these wildly expensive handsets? Leave your thoughts in the comments below.
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