The Best Smartphone Quality/Price

Updated on 22 March 2023

This comparison is certified 100% impartial and follows our selection process.

With its 5000 mAh battery, this smartphone has exceptional battery life and charges very quickly with its powerful USB-C charger (67 W). Its 6.67″ AMOLED screen has a resolution of 2400 x 1080 px, and with a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz, it is responsive but will require some adjustments in terms of colour and light. For its price, its performance is impressive thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 which provides good power and fluidity. Its memory is not very large, so it has a microSD slot to extend it. Its connectivity is also state-of-the-art (5G, NFC, etc.). In terms of photography, it has three rear sensors, and its 108MP main sensor does well with support for 4K video recording. However, the stabilisation isn´t perfect, and the ultra-wide-angle sensor is not the best.

Each smartphone has its strengths and weaknesses leading to specific uses (gaming, standard use, for work...).

A high-performance smartphone will be very responsive.

Gamers should choose a specific device or one of the higher price ranges.

Screen size determines portability, but also the comfort of use.

The handling is influenced by the choice of materials and the position of the different controls.

The picture quality is very different between an entry-level solution and the higher price ranges.

Battery life is the weak point of smartphones. A value of 2 to 3 days is considered to be respectable.

With this waterproof and resistant smartphone, Google keeps its excellence in terms of photography since it integrates again 2 high quality back sensors (50MP + 12MP for the ultra wide-angle + 10.8MP for the front sensor). These make it versatile as it does well under any conditions. Pictures are detailed and well calibrated in terms of light and colour. But what makes it stand out is its ability to handle blur and sharpness with the new Super Res mode. However, there is no optical telephoto lens or autofocus for the ultra wide-angle mode. But thanks to the Photo Unblur function, it is possible to retouch. As for video recording, it shoots in 4K and up to 60 FPS, and the cinematic mode offers a stable image. Apart from that, the interface is intuitive and it includes the powerful Google Tensor G2 chip, which shows the device’s good performance. The 6.3″ OLED display (2400 x 1080 px, 90 Hz) shows excellent image quality with good light. Despite all these good aspects, the battery does not last long and the slow charging does not help to overcome this shortcoming.

With its 3 back sensors (including the main 48MP one), front sensor and optical zoom telephoto lens, this smartphone promises great photos, even in lower light environments. It performs particularly well with its effective portrait mode (with controlled blur and depth). AI processing allows for image editing and enhancement, but a macro mode and the option to shoot in RAW are lacking. As for video, its Action mode stabilises images perfectly for quality recording with the option to zoom in, and the cinematic mode offers 4K definition at 60 FPS with auto-focusing. On top of that, the ultra-wide camera offers great light and the smartphone supports Dolby Vision. In addition, there are several software features to enhance the light and colour of the images. In addition, its screen quality (6.1″) is clearly superior with a high resolution offering nice colours while its processor is powerful. With approximately 10 hours of use, its battery life is correct, but we regret its slow charge (only 20 W).

After focusing on the user feedback with its Pixel 5, Google has decided to go for consistency when designing the Pixel 6. The latter is based for the first time on its own processor, called Tensor, which is optimised to the maximum. It allows for more than generous power, even for heavy tasks such as video games. It is also one of the best in terms of photography. However, its battery life remains its weakest point, as well as its tendency to heat up. Fortunately, the Pro version improves its performance, although the latter two problems remain.

With the integration of Expert RAW, a 200MP main sensor, a 10x telephoto lens, a digital zoom up to 100x, 4 main sensors (3 back and 1 front) and an efficient chip for graphics, this smartphone offers detailed photos and quality zooms (despite a perfectible auto-focus). It is equally suited to night photography, selfies, close-ups and long-distance photos. The new feature is the astrophotography mode, which aims to capture certain elements of the sky. In addition, software processing corrects any imperfections. The video mode is also exceptional and can shoot up to 8K at 30 FPS or 50MP RAW. Other features include an attractive design and a large (6.8″) curved AMOLED screen with S Pen for more precise manipulation or on-screen note taking. With 13 hours of use on average, the battery life is excellent and in addition, it has fast charging. It also features a latest generation processor for flawless performance (including mobile gaming).

Our selection

Our choice, Best budget	Best mid-range	Best high-end	Budget alternative	High-end alternative
Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro	Google Pixel 7	iPhone 14 Pro	Google Pixel 6	Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Although not as innovative in terms of photography as other versions, the Redmi Note 11 Pro stands out for its impressive battery, fast charging and excellent connectivity.	With a beautiful screen and a powerful chip, it offers impressive versatility with Google-quality photo processing. Apart from its limited battery life, it outperforms its competitors in its price range.	With a developed and improved photographic sector, good battery life, a nice screen, a powerful processor and new security features, it is an ideal choice if you are willing to pay the price.	Designed to dominate the smartphone market, this new version combines high efficiency, optimised photography and maximum performance.	It certainly has the most versatile camera on the market (with dedicated astrophotography and night modes), one of the most beautiful screens and performance to match, but it comes at a high price.
£ 279.00 on Amazon	£ 599.00 on Amazon	See the price on Amazon	£ 599.00 on Amazon	£ 1 399.00 on Amazon

How to choose your smartphone?

Nowadays, a large number of smartphones are fighting for the top spot in the market and each manufacturer tries to attract our attention with attractive prices and features that we are not always sure what they are for.

To help you understand all this better, here are some of the most important criteria to consider:

• Performance: the processor is connected to the graphics card and together they represent the brain of your device. Thus, they determine how fast the phone runs. The more powerful the processor, the more flexible photo editing will be, the faster applications will open and, of course, the smoother the game will run with correctly rendered graphics. Today, the most powerful is the Snapdragon 855.

• The phone display: modern smartphones use IPS-LCD technology or OLED technology for the display. IPS technology is perfect for people who want to do a lot of video editing on their smartphone, but if you want vibrant colours, HDR video and better battery life, a model with OLED technology is the better choice.
• Photo quality: the best performance is achieved by resolutions of about 12 Mpx (i.e., sensors of about 48 Mpx). To take good photos, you need to check brightness, contrast, and colourimetry, as well as the context in which you take them. Good images during the day are often not good at night and vice versa.

• Ergonomics: this concept is determined (above all) by the materials and weight of the device. A glass case is more aesthetically pleasing but slides around more; a metal case is sturdier, but heavier; and a plastic case will be cheaper, but less elegant. It also affects the position of the various buttons, the camera, the fingerprint sensor, and the speakers.

• Battery life: expressed in Ah, it is only relevant if the sum of the consumption of all components of the phone is considered. While some smartphones offer 6000mAh, for example, which is twice as much as normal, they do not necessarily last much longer. If you have the opportunity, it is best to look for a professional test or rely on the experience of other users.

PS: the question of value for money is difficult to answer, as it depends on your specific needs and, above all, on the budget you are willing to allocate to the purchase, as a high-end model can sometimes represent better value for money than a low-cost smartphone.

Other models we recommend

Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 (£167.99 upon publication): a very cheap alternative. Xiaomi is showing its competitors that it is still a brand that can be counted on. Between its convincing performance, very high battery life and the quality of its screen (after a small pass through the benchmarks), the “entry-level” Note 11 has all the assets it needs to shine. In short, it is one of the best offers in its price range.

OnePlus 11 (£952.70 upon publication): powerful, but not great at photography. This smartphone has a superb 6.7″ AMOLED display that offers great responsiveness (with a refresh rate of up to 120 Hz), brightness and colour thanks to its 3216 x 1440 px resolution. Another advantage is the outstanding performance of the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor (clearly one of the most powerful, even for gaming). It runs Android 13. In addition, with a battery life of around 13 hours, the endurance is convincing, and its 100W charger enables ultra-fast charging. On the photographic front, thanks to the collaboration with Hasselblad, it excels in portraits and landscapes and has a 2x telephoto lens. However, it lacks versatility due to less powerful zoom. In addition, it does not support wireless charging technology.

Oppo Find X5 Pro (£899.00 upon publication): a commitment to versatility. In addition to its attractive design, its perfectly calibrated 6.7″ OLED screen is one of the most beautiful and responsive with its 3216 x 1440 px resolution and 120 Hz refresh rate. It is also very powerful thanks to its Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor. Its battery life is decent (though not excellent), but in any case, it charges quickly. Photographically, its partnership with Hasselblad is paying off, as it performs well in both photo and video. Shots are detailed, true to colour and bright in most environments. It also has stabilisation and 4K video recording. Downsides? The x2 zoom can be improved and the memory is not expandable.

Translated by Selectos