All in all, it raises the bar on what we should expect from an ultra-budget handset. But with an unlocked price starting at $179.99, £179.99 and AU$369, it's one of the best and most affordable smartphones of the year.

It might not look like a radical overhaul, but the iPhone 6S Plus has maintained its position as one of the best big phones money can buy.Īs a mid-tier device, the most recent Moto G may not be the fastest or most powerful handset available. The camera can take some astonishingly good shots, the processor simply tears through games and the new 3D Touch display is already being put to creative use by app and game developers.

Sure, the larger-screen iPhone 6S Plus doesn't look much different to the previous model, but it's what's inside that counts, and Apple has boosted every main feature of what was already a superb mobile. It's the only 'mini' version of a flagship that doesn't force you to accept middling specs, just because you want something smaller to slip into your pocket. This guy squashes some of the best tech around into a body that's much more comfortable to handle. Using most flagship Android phones means also training your thumbs to stretch out across increasingly gargantuan screens. A few software additions, and better-than-normal audio speakers help the 5.5- and (slightly different) 4.7-inch versions exceed expectations. It continues to be one of the best value phones of the year, with a camera, design and operating speeds that swing well above its price point.

You certainly don't need the Edge's curved screen or mostly-gimmicky software extras, but among the year's hypnotically same-same phones, this one felt truly different - in a way that actually worked.įrom the first moment we saw it, the Alcatel OneTouch Idol 3 intrigued us. The fact that nobody else has made anything like it proves that Samsung has something to offer besides routinely checking features off a list.

It manages to be far more elegant-looking and more immersive than any other phone out there, a realization that comes when you hold the Edge in your hands. Ok, so it's the more expensive, curvy-sided version of Samsung's first all-metal-and-glass flagship phone, but what Samsung did with the Galaxy S6 Edge goes beyond taking an S6 and bending its sides.

Cell phone with best camera 2015