TECH

Here Are The Top 5 Smartphones Of 2024 To Ring In A New Year

2025 is calling and if you need a new smartphone to ring in a brand new year, we have good news—there are lot of good options out there. Granted, there will be new models coming out next year too, but there is always something newer, faster, and shinier on the horizon, no matter when you're ready to pull the trigger That's just how it goes with technology. Don't despair, though, because if your current smartphone is ready to be put out to pasture, there are several capable handsets that you can buy right now. Here are our top five picks, in no particular order.

Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold...Pictured above, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is, as we stated in our review, "a winner." The build quality is every bit a premium design, with its thin and light construction and gorgeous displays (8-inch and 6.3-inch OLED screens) . In our hands, it also feels more durable than the previous iteration.

It's not a perfect handset, nor is Google's Tensor G4 the quickest SoC on the market. But it's still fast, the cameras are very good, and the software is outstanding. To cite our review once more, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold is "the best book-style folding phone available in the US currently, and among our top five favorite handsets of 2024." We're comfortable doubling down on that statement. You can buy Google's Pixel 9 Pro Fold for $1,779 at Amazon, or check with your wireless carrier of choice for whatever offers might be available.

Google Pixel 9 Pro XL...What, another Google handset on our list? Yes, and it's not because of some love-fest we have with Google. The Pixel 9 Pro XL is an excellent smartphone that hits a lot of the right notes. That's why it earned an Editor's Choice award in our Pixel 9 Pro XL review. We also evaluated the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9, both of which are fine handsets as well, but the XL model is the one we'd pick.

It's obviously the biggest of the bunch with a 6.8-inch OLED display (2992x1344, 120Hz refresh rate, 3,000 nits brightness). And while it's another phone powered by Google's own Tensor G4 processor, it's plenty fast, just not the fastest compared to chipsets like Qualcomm's latest Snapdragon silicon.

Google stepped up the build quality and design with the Pixel 9 series, which in our opinion, puts it on par with what we've seen from Samsung in that regard. The design is simple and elegant, the camera performance is excellent, battery life is solid, and once again, the software side is top-notch. Likewise, you get seven years of updates. You can buy Google's Pixel 9 Pro XL on Amazon for $1,199. The regular (non-XL) Pixel 9 Pro is available for $999.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra...Some would argue that the cream of the crop in our top five selections is Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra, or at least that's the case if you're wanting the best performance within the Android ecosystem and crave a physically big smartphone. Like the Pixel 9 Pro XL, the Galaxy S24 Ultra rocks a 6.8-inch OLED display. However, it's powered by Qualcomm's stout Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor...

We love the titanium frame on Samsung's flagship phone, as well as the fact that this comes with Samsung's S-Pen to help put the large display to use. It has a powerful assortment of cameras, some nifty AI capabilities, and seven years of software updates to ensure it stays relevant for a very long time.

The downside? Simply put, it's pricey. But if it's within your budget, this is every bit a flagship smartphone. It is, however, marked down right now, which makes sense given that we'll see the Galaxy S25 series before too long. You can find Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra (256GB) on sale for $1,049.99 at Amazon (currently 19% off).

OnePlus 12...Not all capable smartphones have to cost a fortune. OnePlus has proven that time and again, and when we reviewed the OnePlus 12, we called it the "return of the flagship killer." We also called it a "no compromise Android flagship" with a whole heck of a lot going for it. Like what, you ask?

We dig the large and beautiful 6.82-inch OLED display (3168x1440, 120Hz refresh rate), and like Samsung's flagship above, it's powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor. In some cases, it beat out the Galaxy S24 Ultra in our benchmarks, but even when it didn't, it remained competitive.

Like other top-tier smartphones, the camera performance is great on the OnePlus 12. It also features fast wired and wireless charging (and comes with a charger in the box!), it has outstanding battery life, and a killer price that's even more tantalizing than when it first launched earlier this year. You can find the OnePlus 12 (256GB / 12GB) on sale for $549.99 at OnePlus(https://onepluscom.pxf.io/jrA5Yn?_ir=U122%7Cbd75ed68-c6e4-11ef-96e0-af77a5c583af%7C1735587118941&stat=1). Folks, that is a KILLER DEAL. Likewise, the 512GB / 16GB model is on sale for $649.99 at OnePlus (use the same link).

Apple iPhone 16 Pro / Pro Max...What if you're invested in Apple's ecosystem and don't want to make the switch the Android? As fortunate timing would have it, one of the newest handsets on this list is the iPhone 16 Pro / Pro Max. It's a great smartphone, and it's better now than when it first released thanks to Apple finally pushing out iOS 18.2, which delivers more on the promise of Apple Intelligence.

The OLED display on both of these handsets is outstanding, as is the hardware inside. There's not much that separates the Pro and Pro Max, either—the latter is a little larger and offers a bit more battery life, but otherwise, either one gets you a strong A18 Pro processor (2P + 4E CPU cores, 6-core GPU, 16-core neural processor) and the same camera arrangement (12MP front shooter along with a 48MP Fusion lens, 48MP ultra-wide lens, and 12MP telephoto lens on the rear).

For those of us who have gone hands-on with the iPhone 16 Pro / Pro Max, we're split on the dedicated camera button. Ben found it to be "far too stiff" while this author found it to be fine for what it's intended for. If you're able to, however, it'd be worth heading into a Best Buy or a wireless carrier store and trying it for yourself.

That said, you can find the iPhone 16 Pro Max starting at around $30/month with various carrier deals at Best Buy, or $1,199+ outright at Apple. The regular iPhone 16 Pro starts at around $26/month at Best Buy and $999+ at Apple(https://howl.link/bcxp5zt4pv8jk). Yes, it's expensive. As is also the case with most Android phones, however, there are carrier deals that are worth looking into.

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