The Independent's journalism is supported by our readers. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn commission. Why trust us?

Best phones for 2024: Impressive Android and iPhone mobiles reviewed

Looking for an upgrade? These are the models to choose, according to a technology critic

David Phelan
Monday 12 February 2024 12:57 GMT
<p>We’ve assessed the key specs and performance of mobiles from Samsung, Google, Apple and more  </p>

We’ve assessed the key specs and performance of mobiles from Samsung, Google, Apple and more

Over the years, smartphones have changed in lots of ways – getting bigger, offering full-screen design, building in wireless charging, electronic payments, high-quality photography, big storage and access to music and video streaming services. Two things haven’t changed, though: smartphones remain one of the most essential gadgets you can own, and the battery never lasts long enough.

The latest models shoot video good enough for budding movie directors; host almost all your banking apps; offer meaningful additions for people with greater accessibility needs; and can share content between all your devices.

What are your priorities? A display big enough and high-resolution enough to stream movies in pristine quality, good enough that you don’t need a separate tablet? A phone with a processor fast enough that it can optimise your photos instantly, taking great shots even in low light? Or a phone that’s most compatible with what your friends have? Whatever the case may be, we’ve rounded up plenty of great choices, to help you find the best phone for you.

How we tested the best phones

A selection of the best phones that we tested for this review

Ease of setup, simplicity of use, and performance with everyday apps has been tested to the full. The smartphone cameras have been checked out in different lighting situations, putting their flagship features to the test for stills and video. We studied how the screen performs: is it effective when you’re watching video, fast enough for playing games or smooth when you’re scrolling through menus? Is the phone solid and reliable, or would the slightest knock banjax it? Above all, we tested how long the battery would last: at least enough for a full day was deemed necessary.

The best phones for 2024 are:

  • Best phone overall – Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max: £1,149, Amazon.co.uk
  • Best budget phone – Google Pixel 7a: £449, Google.com
  • Best folding phone – OnePlus Open: £1,599, Oneplus.com
  • Best mid-range Apple phone – Apple iPhone 15: £699, Amazon.co.uk

Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max

best phones review 2024 indybest  Apple iPhone 15 pro max
  • Best: Phone overall
  • Screen size and resolution: 6.7in, 1,290 x 2,796px, 460px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 256/512GB/1TBb
  • Expandable storage: No
  • Camera (rear): 48MP wide, 12MP ultrawide, 12MP telephoto
  • Camera (front): 12MP
  • Dimensions: 159.9mm x 76.7mm x 8.3mm
  • Weight: 221g
  • Headphone jack: No
  • Wireless-chargeable: Yes
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Brilliant cameras
    • Gorgeous design
    • Slick interface

The iPhone 15 pro max is a big change from the previous iPhone. The new model is lighter, thanks to a titanium chassis, and comes in four understated shades – the best of which is called natural titanium. The phone now has a gentle curve to its edges, making it more comfortable to grip, and there’s a new action button, which replaces the familiar mute/ring slider switch found on previous iPhones. The new button can be easily configured for one-touch access to the camera, torch, magnifier or even Translate.

The cameras have also been improved, with what Apple calls a “tetraprism” lens on the telephoto camera, which now has a 5x zoom equivalent, compared with the main camera. The smaller iPhone 15 pro, identical in almost all other regards, only has a 3x telephoto. The main camera has 48MP resolution, while the others are 12MP each, and new software has improved photos taken with the phone. The latest pro phone looks glorious, works wonderfully and has great battery life.

  • Apple iPhone 15 pro max: from £41.62 per month, Apple.com
  • Apple iPhone 15 pro max: from £64.99 per month, O2.co.uk

Read the full iPhone 15 Pro Max review

Back to top

Google Pixel 7a

best phones review 2024 indybest  Google Pixel 7a
  • Best: Budget phone
  • Screen size and resolution: 6.1in, 1,080 x 2,400px, 429px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 128GB
  • Expandable storage: No
  • Camera (rear): 64MP wide, 13MP ultrawide
  • Camera (front): 13MP
  • Dimensions: 152mm x 72.9mm x 9mm
  • Weight: 193.5g
  • Headphone jack: No
  • Wireless-chargeable: Yes
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Great value
    • Good build quality
  • Take note
    • Camera is outdone by the Pixel 8 Pro

The Pixel 7a has the same industrial design as the Pixel 8 pro. When Google makes a phone with an ‘a’ in its name, it’s a value-driven version of the previous flagship. It looks very much like the Pixel 7, though a little smaller, and it has a fast, powerful processor.

The cameras are also on par with the Pixel 7. They are able to shoot in varying light levels, but there’s no telephoto lens. Light and good-looking, this is not far off flagship phone quality for a much lower price.

  • Google Pixel 7a: £18.71 per month, Google.com
  • Google Pixel 7a: from £29.33 per month, EE.co.uk

Read the full Pixel 7a review

  1. £449 from Google.com
Prices may vary
Back to top

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

Samsung s24-indybest
  • Best: Phone for features
  • Screen size and resolution: 6.8in, 1,440 x 3,120px, 505px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 256, 512GB, 1TB
  • Expandable storage: No
  • Camera (rear): 200MP wide, 12MP ultrawide, 50MP periscope telephoto, 10MP telephoto
  • Camera (front): 12MP
  • Dimensions: 162.3mm x 79mm x 8.6mm
  • Weight: 232g
  • Headphone jack: No
  • Wireless-chargeable: Yes
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Great AI features
    • Strong cameras
  • Take note
    • Too big for some hands

The latest Galaxy is tremendous. The design is similar to the S23 Ultra but the new phone has a titanium chassis, which looks great in a satin finish, while more rounded edges make it a more comfortable fit in the hand.

One of the two telephoto cameras has been upgraded: although the zoom equivalent has dropped from 10x the main camera to a frankly more useful 5x, but the resolution of the sensor has leapt to 50MP.

For all that, the big news on this phone is the implementation of artificial intelligence. It claims to improve photography, especially in lower light, for a start. And it adds features such as a smart Transcription Assist capability to make it easy to capture the minutes of a meeting, for instance. Best of all, a live translation option means you can make a phone call to someone in a language you don’t speak, as you’ll hear a spoken translation almost in real-time. A real all-round success.

  • Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra: from £52.05 per month, Samsung.com
  • Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra: from £62.67 per month, EE.co.uk
  • Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra: from £43.80 per month, Vodafone.co.uk

Read the full Samsung Galaxy S24 review

Back to top

Sony Xperia 1 V

best phones review 2024 indybest Sony xperia 1 V
  • Best: Display
  • Screen size and resolution: 6.5in, 1,644 x 3,840px, 643px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 256GB/512GB
  • Expandable storage: Yes
  • Camera (rear): 48MP wide, 12MP ultrawide, 12MP telephoto
  • Camera (front): 12MP
  • Dimensions: 165mm x 71mm x 8.3mm
  • Weight: 187g
  • Headphone jack: Yes
  • Wireless-chargeable: Yes
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Amazing display
    • Advanced cameras

Sony’s flagship smartphone includes a dazzling, high-resolution display – uniquely for smartphones, the resolution is 4K, matching that of a UHD TV. Sony also chooses a strikingly different look, thanks to a 21:9 aspect ratio, making it longer and narrower than other phones.

Sony has always featured long-lasting batteries, and you’ll easily find enough for a full day here. There’s also a 3.5mm headphone jack, which is rare on smartphones these days.

Sony makes camera sensors for many manufacturers, and the 52MP main sensor here is tremendous, delivering superbly faithful colours in photography and video. Making the most of the camera takes some expertise but it repays the work you put in.

  • Sony Xperia 1 V: from £54.13 per month, Sony.co.uk
  • Sony Xperia 1 V: from £56.25 per month, O2.co.uk
  • Sony Xperia 1 V: from £50.17, EE.co.uk
Back to top

Honor Magic 5 Pro

best phones review 2024 indybest  Honor magic 5 pro
  • Best: Value flagship phone
  • Screen size and resolution: 6.81in, 1,312 x 2,848px, 460px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 512GB
  • Expandable storage: Yes
  • Camera (rear): 50MP wide, 50MP ultrawide, 50MP telephoto
  • Camera (front): 12MP
  • Dimensions: 162.9mm x 76.7mm x 8.77mm
  • Weight: 219g
  • Headphone jack: No
  • Wireless-chargeable: Yes
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Strong cameras
    • Good battery life

Honor’s Magic 5 Pro has a dazzlingly good display that curves off every edge and looks gorgeous. The design of the phone is equally eye-catching, especially in the meadow green finish.

The trio of 50MP cameras on board is very good, not least because the sensor of the main snapper is big, so it can draw in light very quickly. Meanwhile, the super-fast processor inside means it can do everything it needs to at speed, never keeping you waiting. It has more storage than many phones at this price and battery life is very good. It recharges fast, too.

Back to top

Google Pixel 8 Pro

best phones review 2024 indybest  Google Pixel 8 pro
  • Best: Android phone for software
  • Screen size and resolution: 6.7in, 1,344 x 2,992px, 489px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 128GB/256GB/512GB/1TB
  • Expandable storage: No
  • Camera (rear): 50MP wide, 48MP ultrawide, 48MP telephoto
  • Camera (front): 10.5MP
  • Dimensions: 162.6mm x 76.5mm x 8.8mm
  • Weight: 213g
  • Headphone jack: No
  • Wireless-chargeable: Yes
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Long software support
    • Outstanding cameras

Google’s own-brand Pixel phones have a highly distinctive design, thanks to a camera panel that stretches across the entire width of the handset. In that wide panel, there are three cameras, and all are good (the cheaper Pixel 8 has two snappers). The panel does jut out a bit, but the main phone body is slim enough to fit in the hand comfortably.

Meanwhile, the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro are promised seven years of operating system updates, which is very impressive. The Pro phone has an improved facial recognition unlock, which works alongside the fingerprint sensor, and there’s also a temperature sensor on the back of the phone – though, this feels more like a novelty than anything else.

  1. £999 from Google.com
Prices may vary
Back to top

OnePlus Open

best phones review 2024 indybest OnePlus open
  • Best: Folding phone
  • Screen size and resolution: 7.8in, 2,268 x 2,440px, 426px per inch; cover display 6.31in, 1,116 x 2,484px, 431px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 512GB
  • Expandable storage: No
  • Camera (rear): 48MP wide, 48MP ultrawide, 64MP telephoto
  • Camera (front): 20MP
  • Dimensions: 153.4mm x 73.3mm x 5.8mm (folded)
  • Weight: 239g
  • Headphone jack: No
  • Wireless-chargeable: No
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Great size, open or closed

The fad for folding phones reaches new heights with this good-looking model from OnePlus. It looks especially great in its sultry green finish, and it works like a dream. It feels sturdy, which is not something you can say about all foldables, and it is thinner than some rivals. The OLED panels look tremendous, inside and out, with a matte screen protector helpfully minimising reflections.

Some folding phones make do with a sub-par camera but, here, the rear panel with three cameras offers great performance. The main 48MP camera is especially good, and the company’s link-up with Hasselblad helps to create great results. The other cameras are a 48MP ultrawide and a 64MP periscope zoom lens.

Back to top

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5

best phones review 2024 indybest Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5
  • Best: Pocketable phone
  • Screen size and resolution: 6.7in, 1,080 x 2,640px, 425px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 256GB/512GB
  • Expandable storage: No
  • Camera (rear): 12MP wide, 12MP ultrawide
  • Camera (front): 10MP
  • Dimensions: 165.1mm x 71.9mm x 6.9mm
  • Weight: 187g
  • Headphone jack: No
  • Wireless-chargeable: Yes
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Brilliant size
    • Good build quality

There’s another kind of folding phone, and this one’s better, to our mind. Instead of folding out from the size of a regular phone – essentially turning it into a small tablet – this kind starts out as a normal phone and folds in half, clam-shell-like, to be the best fit in a pocket.

What sets this phone apart from earlier Samsung Flips is the big, 3.4in screen that’s visible when the phone is folded. This touchscreen is easy to see and so fully functional you often don’t even need to unfold the phone. It’s especially useful when you’re taking a photo with the rear cameras. With one tap, you activate the external screen so your subject can see themselves before you shoot, allowing them to ensure they look just right. If they’re not happy, well, they only have themselves to blame, right?

Back to top

Apple iPhone 15

best phones review 2024 indybest Apple iPhone 15
  • Best: Mid-range Apple phone
  • Screen size and resolution: 6.1in, 1,179 x 2,556px, 461px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 128GB/256GB/512GB
  • Expandable storage: No
  • Camera (rear): 48MP wide, 12MP ultrawide, 12MP telephoto
  • Camera (front): 12MP
  • Dimensions: 147.6mm x 71.6mm x 7.8mm
  • Weight: 171g
  • Headphone jack: No
  • Wireless-chargeable: Yes
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Great new cameras
    • Matte finish rear design
  • Take note
    • Display outdone by other models

Apple’s Pro series delivers the brand’s most powerful phones but, arguably, 2023’s regular iPhones had the biggest update. The iPhone 15 and its larger sibling, the iPhone 15 Plus, now have the clever Dynamic Island previously exclusive to Pro models. The name given to the area around the front camera, the Dynamic Island expands and reshapes to deliver extra information in an attractive, useful way.

Where the iPhone 14’s main camera had a 12MP sensor, the latest model has a 48MP snapper that takes outstanding photos. Battery life is strong, easily enough for a full day, though, for even longer battery life, the iPhone 15 Plus is outstanding. Both the iPhone 15 and the Pro models now charge using USB-C instead of Apple’s proprietary lightning system, which is much more convenient if your household already has these cables for your laptop, camera or iPad, for instance.

  • Apple iPhone 15: from £33.29 per month, Apple.com
  • Apple iPhone 15: from £55.74 per month, EE.co.uk

Read the full iPhone 15 review

Back to top

Nothing Phone (2)

best phones review 2024 indybest Nothing phone (2)
  • Best: Phone for innovation
  • Screen size and resolution: 6.7in, 1,080 x 2,412px, 394px per inch
  • Screen technology: OLED
  • Storage capacity: 128GB/256GB/512GB
  • Expandable storage: No
  • Camera (rear): 50MP wide, 50MP ultrawide
  • Camera (front): 32MP
  • Dimensions: 162.1mm x 76.4mm x 8.6mm
  • Weight: 201.2g
  • Headphone jack: No
  • Wireless-chargeable: Yes
  • 5G: Yes
  • Why we love it
    • Quirky interface
    • Slick design with rear lights
    • Good cameras
  • Take note
    • Processor isn’t the latest

Nothing is the brainchild of Carl Pei, co-founder of OnePlus. He brings to the new brand a determination to create technology that’s different and fun. And it really is, thanks to the transparent back that enables you to see where components such as the wireless charging coil sit.

The back is also filled with LEDs that light up in different patterns – so you can see who’s calling without turning over the phone. You can even use this system to show how far away your Uber is, as the LED lights count down. It’s an Android phone but Nothing’s clever overlay looks funky and enticing. Much of it is monochrome, which looks splendid and is designed so as not to draw you in to using your phone endlessly. The two rear cameras have 50MP resolution and are good, if not quite a match for some other phones in our list.

Read the full Nothing Phone (2) review

Back to top

The verdict: Phones

The latest phones offer power, photographic excellence and great batteries. The Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max is the best iPhone yet, with really outstanding cameras and a slick new design. However, the Google Pixel 8 Pro gives the iPhone a run for its money, with tremendous performance, while the Sony Xperia 1 V has a display that is eye-poppingly good.

Protect your new smartphone with the best iPhone 15 phone cases

Voucher Codes

TUI Discount Code
£100 off all bookings over £1000 - TUI discount code
ASOS Discount Code
20% off everything with this ASOS app discount code
Travelodge Discount Code
5% off all bookings with this Travelodge discount code
The Body Shop Discount Code
20% off everything with The Body Shop discount code
The Perfume Shop Discount Code
15% of all orders with The Perfume Shop birthday discount
Cult Beauty Discount Code
Up to 20% off all orders over £40 - Cult Beauty discount code

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in