Haven’t you heard? Phones are boring now. And that’s simply tremendous! Most individuals shopping for a brand new cellphone simply need one thing acquainted that works higher than the machine they’re changing. If that’s your MO, then you definately’re certain to seek out one thing dependable in my suggestions under.
However even should you’re searching for one thing just a little extra further, you’ve obtained some nice choices. They’re going to be fairly iterative in comparison with no matter you’re utilizing now — we’re in additional of a software program period than a {hardware} innovation cycle lately — however you’ll find a pleasant new machine. We lastly have a folding cellphone that feels like the right size and shape, flip telephones supply a lot more than just nostalgia, and you may nonetheless purchase a cellphone with no fewer than four cameras on the back. Not dangerous for a boring season of cellphone {hardware}.
Lots of people within the US get their telephones by service offers, and no judgment right here if that’s the route you’re taking — it’s how I bought mine. Simply make sure what you’re moving into and what number of years you’ll want to remain on that Tremendous 5G Every little thing Limitless Plus plan to maintain the month-to-month machine reimbursements coming.
What I’m searching for
There’s no shortcut to correctly testing a cellphone; I put my private SIM card (bodily or in any other case) in every cellphone I assessment and reside with it for no less than one full week. I arrange every cellphone from scratch, load it up with my apps, and go about dwelling my life — stress testing the battery, utilizing GPS navigation on my bike whereas streaming radio, taking rapid-fire portrait mode photographs of my child — every thing I can throw at it. Beginning over with a brand new cellphone each week both appears like a dream or your private hell, relying on how Into Telephones you’re. For me, switching has turn out to be so routine that it’s mostly painless.
The telephones listed right here have highly effective processors and sufficient RAM to maintain up for years, so it’s truthful to count on greater than a handful of OS updates all through the lifetime of your cellphone. 4 years of latest OS variations and 5 years of safety updates is a wholesome benchmark for this class, and lots of the telephones right here meet or exceed that normal.
Most cellphone cameras can carry out nicely in good lighting situations, from the flagship class right down to $300 funds telephones. The gadgets listed right here supply just a little one thing further, like a helpful telephoto lens, an important portrait mode, or spectacular low-light capturing — and lots of embrace all three. Stabilization for the principle digital camera unit to assist in low gentle is a should on this class.
The easiest gadgets include sturdy IP68 rankings, sturdy glass on the back and front, and durable aluminum exterior frames.
Along with the easiest gadgets at any worth, I search for telephones that supply the perfect mixture of must-have options for good costs. Which may result in a suggestion of a lower-tier mannequin if it’s significantly feature-rich for its worth or final yr’s mannequin if it’s nonetheless offered new and this yr’s machine doesn’t supply many upgrades.
Should you’re trying to spend rather less and nonetheless get the perfect smartphone on a funds, you’ll find one thing actually good for below $600. For these suggestions, check out our guide to budget smartphones.
The perfect iPhone for most individuals
$799
The Good
- Dependable digital camera with versatile photographic types
- Useful new Motion Button
- Extra RAM and a current-gen chipset
The Unhealthy
- Commonplace refresh fee display screen
- Digital camera Management is a combined bag
Display screen: 6.1-inch, 2556 x 1179 OLED, 60Hz refresh fee / Processor: A18 Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.6 fundamental with sensor-shift IS; 12-megapixel ultrawide; 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not marketed / Charging: 27W wired, 25W wi-fi MagSafe, 15W Qi2, 7.5W Qi / Climate-resistance ranking: IP68
From a {hardware} perspective, the iPhone 16 (or the 16 Plus) is a straightforward improve selection. Should you’re switching from an iPhone 13, 12, and even older, these 4 or 5 years of incremental efficiency enhancements add up. However there’s one thing fully new this time round — nicely, two issues: the Motion Button and the Digital camera Management button.
The customizable Action Button, which replaces the mute change on the left fringe of the cellphone, is a hand-me-down from the 15 Professional sequence. You possibly can set it to open a specific app, activate the flashlight, or virtually the rest you may want on the press of a button. On the opposite facet of the cellphone is the Digital camera Management, which you should utilize to launch the digital camera app. With the digital camera open, it acts as a shutter button with a full press, and a light-weight press brings up different publicity choices you possibly can modify. Even should you solely ever use it to launch the digital camera, it’s fairly helpful, and it frees up the Motion Button.
The iPhone 16 and its bigger 16 Plus sibling use Apple’s A18 chipset, which is in the identical household because the 16 Professional’s processor. That bodes nicely for the telephones staying on the identical software program improve cycle. They each acquired Apple Intelligence final fall, which included AI-powered writing instruments and notification summaries in its earliest iteration, and eventually grew to support ChatGPT and a brand new Visual Intelligence function. However regardless of the similarities, the common 16 fashions lag behind the Execs in two vital departments: the display screen and the digital camera.
The Execs include devoted 5x lenses and up to date fundamental cameras that perform a little higher in low gentle. And also you’ll solely get a ProMotion show on the Professional fashions; the common 16 includes a slower 60Hz display screen. Principally each different high-end cellphone available on the market affords a 120Hz show, in order that’s a disappointment given the value. If these two drawbacks don’t hassle you — and most of the people in all probability gained’t thoughts them — then the iPhone 16 makes for an important improve.
The perfect Android cellphone for most individuals
$799
The Good
- Up to date design feels safer in hand
- Quick fingerprint sensor
- Seven years of software program and OS updates
The Unhealthy
- No telephoto digital camera
- AI options are inconsistent
- What is a photograph?
Display screen: 6.3-inch, 1080p 120Hz OLED / Processor: Tensor G4 / Cameras: 50-megapixel f/1.7 fundamental 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
The Android ecosystem has been searching for a cellphone just like the Pixel 9 for some time now. It’s easy and unfussy, takes reliably good photographs, and comes with the polished {hardware} you’d count on from a high-end cellphone. It doesn’t have a devoted telephoto lens, which the equally priced Galaxy S25 does, however the software program is much less quirky than Samsung’s, making for a greater total expertise.
Exterior of zoom capabilities, Google’s Pixel digital camera is simply as dependable as ever. The cellphone comes with a Tensor G4 chipset that powers AI options aplenty, each inside and out of doors of the digital camera app. Some are promising and some are worrying, however there’s nothing right here that appears like a real game-changer. Which is okay.
The vital factor is that the Pixel 9 has the correct stuff the place it counts. It’s straightforward to make use of, and a number of the Pixel sequence’ persistent issues like poor thermals and buggy software program appear to be below management on this era. The 9 Professional is a worthwhile improve if you would like that telephoto lens and a barely nicer display screen, however in any case, the Pixel 9 appears like a top-notch machine, in and out.
The perfect high-end Android cellphone
$1100
The Good
- Glorious display screen
- Improved ultrawide digital camera
- Rounded corners are comfier
The Unhealthy
- Costly
- Cumbersome
- AI is (nonetheless) hit and miss
Display screen: 6.9-inch, 1440p, 120Hz OLED / Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite / Cameras: 200-megapixel fundamental with OIS; 50-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS; 10-megapixel 3x telephoto with OIS; 50-megapixel ultrawide; 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: 5,000mAh / Charging: 45W wired, 15W wi-fi, Qi2 prepared / Climate resistance: IP68
Samsung’s “Extremely” S-series cellphone remains to be your greatest wager for a maximalist Android cellphone, even when extremely doesn’t fairly imply what it as soon as did. You continue to get 4 rear cameras — together with a 3x and 5x telephoto — a large display screen, and a built-in S Pen stylus. The battery goes all day, the processor is top-notch, and there are AI options aplenty should you’re into that kind of factor. There’s simply no different cellphone fairly prefer it.
Picture by Allison Johnson / The Verge
This yr, Samsung eliminated the Bluetooth options from the stylus. That stings just a little, particularly contemplating that the corporate swapped a 10x zoom for the shorter 5x digital camera the yr earlier than. It nonetheless quantities to an important cellphone, but it surely’s one of many priciest slab-style telephones you should buy, and Samsung appears to be reducing options with out including again any further worth. It’s nonetheless “extremely” alright, but it surely doesn’t really feel fairly as particular because it used to.
The perfect cellphone for round $500
$499
The Good
- Sturdy IP68 ranking
- Seven years of software program updates
- Brighter, larger display screen
The Unhealthy
- Lacking a few AI options
- AI is often helpful, normally bizarre
Display screen: 6.3-inch, 1080p OLED, 120Hz / Processor: Tensor G4 / Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.7 with OIS, 13-megapixel ultrawide, 13-megapixel selfie / Battery: 5,100mAh / Charging: 23W wired, 7.5W wi-fi / Climate-resistance ranking: IP68
Yearly, we’re pleasantly shocked by how a lot Google packs into its midrange Pixel A-series gadgets. Final yr, it was the Pixel 8A, and this yr, it’s the even higher Pixel 9A. For $500, the 9A affords Google’s fourth-gen customized Tensor G4 chipset (the exact same chip that’s within the pricier Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Professional), a brighter and bigger 6.3-inch OLED show, and an IP68 ranking for improved sturdiness. Plus, you get the good thing about seven years of software program updates and safety help. What you find yourself with is a tool that delivers implausible worth, particularly in comparison with different inexpensive devices.
Picture: Allison Johnson / The Verge
The Pixel 9A affords a handful of different options that put it above the pack, like a 120Hz refresh fee, wi-fi charging, and the most important battery throughout the Pixel line. It does fall brief in a number of areas, although — the digital camera’s low gentle efficiency and Portrait mode may very well be higher. That mentioned, the 9A’s digital camera remains to be nice for on a regular basis snaps, and for the value, the machine is a straightforward suggestion as the perfect on this class.
$999
The Good
- New tone management in digital camera helps you to dial again HDR processing
- Who doesn’t love a bodily shutter button?
- Your video director buddies will spend hours gleefully taking 4K120 video portraits of individuals at road festivals
The Unhealthy
- Digital camera Management button is just a little fiddly
- Default picture processing is extra aggressive than ever
- Essentially the most incremental of incremental upgrades over the iPhone 15 Professional
Display screen: 6.3-inch, 2622 x 1206 OLED, 120Hz refresh fee / Processor: A18 Professional Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.8 with sensor-shift IS; 12-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS; 48-megapixel ultrawide; 12-megapixel selfie / Battery: Not marketed / Charging: 27W wired, 25W MagSafe wi-fi, 15W Qi2, 7.5W Qi / Climate-resistance ranking: IP68
Like all mainline iPhone 16 fashions, the 16 Professional gained the brand new Digital camera Management button, but it surely obtained one other vital replace, too: a 5x telephoto lens. Within the 15 sequence, that longer telephoto lens was reserved for the larger Professional Max mannequin. This time round, it’s on the smaller Professional, too, making it an important possibility for somebody who needs to improve with out upsizing their cellphone.
Just like the Professional Max, the iPhone 16 Professional makes use of an A18 Professional chipset designed to help Apple Intelligence, which started rolling out in the fall of 2024. The primary replace included issues like notification summaries and the brand new glowing-border Siri UI, which Apple centered its launch occasion on. Subsequent updates introduced ChatGPT integration and Visual Intelligence. However don’t expect anything radical — not less than at first.
Exterior of AI, the 16 Professional is a reasonably iterative replace. The brand new Digital camera Management makes it simpler to launch the digital camera and get proper to taking photographs, and it additionally frees up the Motion Button should you have been utilizing it as a digital camera shortcut. The display screen is just a little larger at 6.3 inches in comparison with 6.1 inches, regardless that the cellphone is principally the identical dimension. You possibly can file 4K video at 120fps now. And the brand new Photographic Types, which can be found on all iPhone 16 fashions, allow you to take extra management over your photographs than ever.
There’s nothing right here that somebody with an iPhone 15 Professional ought to improve for, but it surely’s an all-around stable machine that may please Apple devotees, particularly those that choose a cellphone that isn’t too huge.
$950
The Good
- All-day battery
- Helpful cowl display screen
- Seven years of software program updates
The Unhealthy
- Cowl display screen decision may very well be higher
- Exhausting to run apps on the outer display screen
- Lengthy-term sturdiness nonetheless unsure
Display screen: 6.7-inch, 1080p, 120Hz OLED inside display screen; 3.4-inch, 720p, OLED cowl display screen / Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 / Cameras: 50-megapixel f/1.8 fundamental with OIS; 12-megapixel ultrawide; 10-megapixel selfie (inside display screen) / Battery: 4,000mAh / Charging: 25W wired, 15W wi-fi / Climate resistance: IP48
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 isn’t probably the most enjoyable flip cellphone you should buy proper now; that may be the 2025 Motorola Razr Ultra. However enjoyable solely goes to this point, and the Z Flip 6 is the extra dependable of the 2. In relation to the machine you utilize day in and day trip, reliability counts for lots.
Motorola’s tackle the trendy flip cellphone embraces nostalgia with cute animations and a mode that sends the entire machine again to the early 2000s. The Z Flip 6 lacks this type of appeal, however you do get an up to date cowl display screen UI that’s extra customizable than the Z Flip 5’s. The Flip 6 additionally comes with seven years of software program updates, which matches the perfect software program insurance policies available on the market. The {hardware} will in all probability give out lengthy earlier than the software program, truthfully.
That’s the opposite facet of the flip cellphone coin: long-term sturdiness is iffy. Certain, the Flip 6 is constructed to resist full water immersion, but it surely nonetheless doesn’t have any formal mud resistance. For that purpose, it isn’t a cellphone I’d suggest to only anybody.
That mentioned, the Z Flip 6’s outer display screen does turn out to be useful. You are able to do quite a bit with the prebaked widget choices out there to make use of, and should you’re just a bit adventurous, you possibly can run any app you need on the little display screen. Beginning a Strava exercise or sending a fast textual content is a cinch, which is an enormous a part of the enchantment of a flip cellphone. Simply, , preserve this cellphone away from the seashore.
$1799
The Good
- Glorious outer display screen format
- Inside display screen is gorgeous to make use of
- Seven years of OS updates
The Unhealthy
- Costly
- Important digital camera isn’t pretty much as good as slab telephones
- Lengthy-term sturdiness?
Display screen: 8.0-inch, 2076p, 120Hz OLED inside display screen; 6.3-inch, 1080p, 120Hz OLED cowl display screen / Processor: Tensor G4 / Cameras: 48-megapixel f/1.7 fundamental with OIS; 10.8-megapixel 5x telephoto with OIS; 10.5-megapixel ultrawide; 10-megapixel selfie (cowl display screen); 10-megapixel inside selfie digital camera / Battery: 4,650mAh / Charging: 21W wired, 7.5W wi-fi / Climate resistance: IPX8
It’s laborious to convey simply how good the Pixel 9 Professional Fold is to make use of. It’s the primary book-style folding cellphone that absolutely delivers on the promise of a foldable: it’s a pill if you want it and an everyday cellphone if you don’t.
Samsung’s Z Fold series feels a little too narrow and cramped in its closed configuration, and the unique Pixel Fold was too cumbersome and heavy to make use of comfortably. The 9 Professional Fold is lighter, and utilizing its 6.3-inch outer display screen feels principally like utilizing a standard cellphone, which is an enormous win.
That’s actually the theme of the Pixel 9 Professional Fold: it simply feels regular. However there are a few decidedly not-normal issues to contemplate: worth and sturdiness. The 9 Professional Fold prices $1,799, which is principally the going fee for a book-style foldable however stays some huge cash for a cellphone.
And long-term sturdiness is unclear, particularly on condition that that is solely Google’s second folding cellphone. It’s rated to resist full water immersion, however as with all foldable, mud is a priority, so that you’ll need to take just a little further care with this machine. All that mentioned, somebody with the abdomen (and pockets) for the 9 Professional Fold will discover it a really rewarding machine.
- The Samsung Galaxy S25 is an excellent machine, and it’s principally the final small-ish Android cellphone you should buy within the US. I discover the software program to be fussier and extra cluttered than the Pixel 9’s, so it’s not my total choose, but it surely’s a dependable machine — and your greatest wager for a cellphone that isn’t gigantic.
- The iPhone 16E is a superb cellphone that makes a number of fascinating trade-offs. Apple’s bollywood entry-level cellphone begins at $599 and comes with the corporate’s bollywood A18 processor, USB-C and wi-fi charging, a 60Hz OLED show, and the customizable Motion Button discovered on Apple’s extra premium handsets. The 6.1-inch cellphone doesn’t have MagSafe help or a Digital camera Management button, although, and it’s restricted to a single 48-megapixel Fusion digital camera (sorry, ultrawide stans). That makes it laborious for us to suggest over the usual iPhone 16, even when it does begin at $200 much less.
- The Motorola Razr Ultra 2025 is a superb foldable that exemplifies what makes the model’s telephones so distinctive. It’s one of many best-looking telephones you should buy, because of its gold-bronze chassis and picket again. Plus, it includes a spacious cowl display screen that’s helpful for rapidly performing duties with out opening the machine. Nonetheless, as a lot as we benefit from the Razr Extremely, Motorola’s promise of three OS upgrades and 4 years of safety updates is on the shorter facet.
- The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge is an ultra-thin various to the large, chunky flagships we’ve seen over the previous yr. At simply 5.8mm thick, it packs a 6.7-inch 1440p OLED show with a refresh fee of as much as 120Hz, a 3,900mAh battery, and a Snapdragon 8 Elite processor. Regardless of its thinner body, battery life is surprisingly acceptable, although it gained’t final so long as different flagship gadgets. The S25 Edge additionally lacks a telephoto digital camera, so it’s not the perfect cellphone for portrait photographs.
- The OnePlus 13R stands out in two key methods: battery life and display screen. The 6.78-inch OLED show has a variable refresh fee of as much as 120Hz and a decision of 1264 x 2780, each of that are nice specs for a midrange cellphone. In the meantime, its 6,000mAh battery can final for a very long time — most individuals are prone to squeeze out two days earlier than the machine must be recharged. That mentioned, the 13R lacks options like wi-fi charging and extra sturdy water resistance, and OnePlus is barely promising 4 main OS upgrades and 6 years of safety updates, which is fewer than the seven years of OS upgrades on the Google Pixel 9A.
- Samsung is holding an Unpacked event on Wednesday, July ninth, at 10AM ET, the place we’re anticipating the corporate to unveil a trio of latest foldables. How do we all know? The corporate lately teased the “subsequent chapter of Extremely,” suggesting its rumored foldable Galaxy Ultra is coming. It’s additionally attainable we’ll see thinner, lighter, and extra sturdy Galaxy Z gadgets.
- The Nothing Phone 3 is the model’s “first true flagship cellphone,” and it’ll be out there to preorder on July 4th, with basic gross sales beginning on July fifteenth on Nothing’s on-line retailer and Amazon within the US. Beginning at $799, the machine includes a 6.67-inch OLED display screen, a Snapdragon 8S Gen 4 chip, and a 5,150mAh battery. It additionally options 4 cameras — three on the again and one on the entrance — all of that are 50 megapixels. Moreover, the Cellphone 3 ditches Nothing’s signature light strips for a small dot-matrix LED show on the again, which may show photos or emoji tied to particular apps and contacts.
Replace, July third: Adjusted pricing / availability and added a point out of a number of new telephones we’ve examined, together with the Motorola Razr Extremely 2025, Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge, and OnePlus 13R. We additionally added mentions of Samsung’s upcoming Unpacked and the lately introduced Nothing Cellphone 3. The Nothing Cellphone 2 has been faraway from this put up. Brandon Widder and Brandon Russell additionally contributed to this put up.