Finding a new Android phone can be a tricky task in 2023, with so many tempting options available at a variety of price points.That’s where we at Trusted Reviews come in; our team of experts have meticulously reviewed a huge range of Android phones, from budget blowers to top-end temptations. That includes a comprehensive testing process both thorough involving real-world testing and benchmark testing covering performance , Android phones battery life, camera performance and much more, with testing lasting at least a week but often longer.
Based on what we find, we assign each phone a rating out of five, with the highest-scoring devices being considered for inclusion in our esteemed list. Only the very best Android phones on the market in 2023 make it into this list, so you know whatever you decide on will deliver a great experience.
Of course, there’s no one-size-fits-all when it comes to Android smartphones. Some are better at capturing those Instagram-worthy snaps, while others deliver blisteringly fast performance for top-end mobile gaming. There’s also form factor to consider, from compact smartphones to big-screen foldables.
That’s why we’ve assigned each product with a specific award, helping you find which is best for your needs.If you have a more specific craving for your smartphone, then it’s worth checking out our best camera phone, best gaming phone and best mid-range phone guides which offer more tailored recommendations. And if you want to see how the very best Android
phones compare to Apple’s iPhones, then have a look at our best phone roundup.
Google Pixel 7 Proif you’re shopping for an Android phone right now, the Pixel 7 Pro is our current favorite pick. It’s not better in all respects than the
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, however it does come in at a more affordable price and packs a load of clever software features our reviewer actually used.
As with any Pixel phone, the 7 Pro is mostly about two things – the Google software and the camera. The cameras remain fairly similar to what we saw on the Pixel 6 Pro, but the ultrawide is a little wider and the telephoto a little more zoomed. There are software tweaks too, including a bunch of updated modes – including a clever Unblur option that does exactly what it suggests – you’ll actually want to use.
Photos from the phone are great. They are richer and more immersive than those from the Galaxy S23 series and often better in darker situations too. The zoom might not match up to Samsung’s Ultra efforts, but if you keep to around 5x the results are great.
Powering the phone is Google’s Tensor G2 chipset. It’s not the quickest around – many phones on this list will post better benchmark scores – with the focus being AI intelligence. There are many software additions here that are made better by this chip, including voice transcription, and everything works very well.The phone impresses elsewhere too.
The screen is on par with the Oppo Find X5 Pro and Galaxy S23 Ultra while the smartphone battery life matches up mostly too. The charging could be faster, but that’s a minor issue.Samsung Galaxy S23 UltraThe very best Samsung Android phone we’ve reviewed is the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra. It’s the option to choose if you want a really high-end, luxury experience – and are happy to pay for the privilege.The S23 Ultra may not be a completely different beast from last year’s excellent S22 Ultra, but small but meaningful upgrades to performance and camera allow it to stand apart from most other flagships in 2023.
Let’s start with performance. The S23 Ultra ditches the Exynos/Snapdragon split for the past few years and worked with Qualcomm on an exclusive version of its latest top-end chipset dubbed the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy, allowing the S23 Ultra to remain slightly faster and more powerful than other 2023 flagships like the OnePlus 11.The biggest upgrade of all has to be the inclusion of a new 200MP rear camera.
The upgraded camera offers an all-around improvement on the already-capable 108MP camera of the S22 Ultra, particularly in low light, with this year’s model able to capture more light, more detail and more color via 16-in-1 pixel binning tech. It also allows you to take photos of the stars in the phone’s astrophoto mode, and it benefits low-light video too.The other cameras, including a 12MP ultrawide and two 10MP telephoto lenses at 3x and 10x, remain largely unchanged, but the latter still offers some of the best quality 10x images around. There’s also Samsung’s 100x Space Zoom that’ll let you take photos of the moon but not much else.Cameras aside, the other big reason to get the Galaxy S23 Ultra is the impressive 6.8-inch dynamic AMOLED 2X display with its WQHD+ resolution, dynamic 120Hz refresh rate and support for HDR10+ and Dolby Vision delivering a stunning experience viewing whether you’re scrolling through TikTok or watching the latest Hollywood blockbuster on Netflix.
It’s plenty bright, and boasts support for the S23 Ultra’s built-in S Pen that allows you to doodle on-screen with an impressively low latency of 2.3ms.Throw in all-day smartphone battery life with a 5,000mAh battery and you’ve got a capable premium smartphone. It’s not perfect, with relatively slow 45W charging, a large, bulky design that makes it hard to use one-handed and an extremely high -end price tag, but it’s certainly the most capable