Our Experts CNET’s expert staff reviews and rates dozens of new products and services each month, building on more than a quarter century of expertise. What to Consider iOS or Android If your family and friends are on Apple services like iMessage and FaceTime, stick with an iPhone. If you’ve been deep on Samsung, stay on Android.
But know that switching between the two has never been easier. Size Phones are big in general with the smallest ones having a 6.1-inch screen and large models topping out at 6.
8 inches. That makes visiting a store and trying a phone out before you buy it quite important. Cameras Phone cameras have gotten better over the past five years.
But don’t be fooled by how many cameras a phone has. More isn't necessarily better. Software support Phone makers promise varying lengths of longterm software and security support ranging from just one year to as many as seven.
These updates not only ensure you get many of the latest features, but also keep your phone secure. Our Picks CNET’s expert staff reviews and rates dozens of new products and services each month, building on more than a quarter century of expertise. What to Consider iOS or Android If your family and friends are on Apple services like iMessage and FaceTime, stick with an iPhone.
If you’ve been deep on Samsung, stay on Android. But know that switching between the two has never been easier. Size Phones are big in general with the smallest ones having a 6.
1-inch screen and large models topping out at 6.8 inches. That makes visiting a store and trying a phone out before you buy it quite important.
Cameras Phone cameras have gotten better over the past five years. But don’t be fooled by how many cameras a phone has. More isn't necessarily better.
Software support Phone makers promise varying lengths of longterm software and security support ranging from just one year to as many as seven. These updates not only ensure you get many of the latest features, but also keep your phone secure. You can get some of the best smartphones available on AT&T, including the likes of Apple's iPhone 15 Pro , Samsung Galaxy 24 Ultra and Google's great all-round flagship the Pixel 8 Pro .
But it isn't just the most expensive, flashiest phones you can get, as AT&T also offers a great lineup of more affordable devices, including the Google Pixel 7A and the Samsung Galaxy A54 5G -- both of which are 5G-enabled for taking advantage of those super fast data speeds. No matter what you want or use the phone for, there's a device for you. To simplify the decision, we've rounded up our top picks.
Every phone on this list has been thoroughly reviewed and tested, and you'll find options across iPhone and Android that fit different needs and different budgets. Read on to learn more about the best AT&T phone for meeting your particular smartphone needs, and check out our tips for how to buy a new phone . What is the best AT&T phone for most people? The best phone for iPhone fans is the $799 iPhone 15 .
It has one of Apple's most recent processors, the A16 Bionic chip found in last year's iPhone 14 Pro, meaning it should support new software features for years to come. The iPhone 15 has the best balance of camera performance and features (like the Dynamic Island) that will feel new to those coming from older iPhones to satisfy most people. For more info, read our guide to help find the best phone for your needs and take a look at our tips on how to buy a new Apple iPhone or Android phone and where to snag the best phone deals .
Best AT&T phones of 2024 With the Dynamic Island, a USB-C port for more convenient charging and an upgraded camera with a higher resolution and a crisper zoom, the iPhone 15 is a significant upgrade for those with older iPhones. It feels like a scaled-back version of the iPhone 14 Pro, making Apple's entry-level iPhone 15 feel like a bigger leap forward than last year's. The iPhone 15 is available in two size options: the 6.
1-inch iPhone 15 and the 6.7-inch iPhone 15 Plus. They run on the same chip as the iPhone 14 Pro, the A16 Bionic, which should bring notable performance upgrades to those with an iPhone that's several years old.
These phones also have Apple's second-generation ultra wideband chip, enabling a new feature that makes it easier to find friends or family members in a crowd. Last year's iPhone 14 Pro may be a better choice if you can still find it through third-party retailers at a discount, particularly because it has a dedicated telephoto lens. The iPhone 15 is the most exciting upgrade Apple's standard iPhone has seen in years.
Read our iPhone 15 and 15 Plus review . What impresses me the most about the Samsung Galaxy S24 isn't the new Galaxy AI features, brighter screens or solid cameras. It's the battery life.
After testing, I can say the larger battery in the Galaxy S24 has no trouble plowing through a long day of use on a single charge. The S24 is a wonderful, well-built phone that is excellent right out of the box just as the nearly identical S22 and S23 were before it. This similarity to the S22 and S23 can be viewed as either a strength because the design reflects three years of refinements, or a weakness because features like the camera hardware are essentially identical to what came out in 2022.
All of this is overshadowed by the great battery life. You'll never hear anyone complain about getting too much battery life. Read our Samsung Galaxy S24 review .
Apple gave its Pro models a glow-up with a refreshed lighter build, a new shortcut button and the world's smallest processor. And it did all this while managing to keep that tried-and-true iPhone aesthetic front and center. They also made more of a differentiation between the Pro and Pro Max models.
The 15 Pro also still has the same familiar 3x telephoto camera found on previous models, while the Pro Max takes that zoom further with a 5x lens. The brain behind the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max is the A17 Pro chip, which has the performance chops to handle console-tier video games like Resident Evil Village. If the A17 Pro chip is the brains, then iOS 17 is the 15 Pro and Pro Max's soul.
The new OS is filled with lots of quality-of-life improvements throughout like StandBy mode, Check-In, Stickers in Messages and better autocorrect for the keyboard. The iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max are some of the best phones released by Apple or any phone maker this year. Read our Apple iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max review .
We had some early issues with the Google Pixel 8 Pro -- mostly with its cameras shooting Raw files -- but further testing and software updates from Google meant we eventually came away thinking quite highly of the Pixel 8 Pro. It's got a lot going for it, from its slick design and easy-to-use Android 14 software to its rear camera setup, which can take some genuinely beautiful images. Google has sprinkled a variety of new AI features throughout the phone too, including a tool that uses generative AI to create wallpapers for the phone, and a camera feature that allows you to combine different faces from a series of burst images of a group of friends to make sure that everyone looks their best.
One of the best updates is Google's commitment to providing seven years of security updates to the Pixel 8 series, meaning this phone will still be safe to use in at least 2030. We haven't been as impressed with this year's 8 Pro as we were with the 7 Pro, but it's still a great phone to consider, especially if you're keen to hold on to your phone for longer. Read our Google Pixel 8 Pro review .
With a sharper 5x optical zoom, a faster new processor and that familiar giant display and 100x digital zoom, the Samsung’s “Ultra” phone remains a top choice for mobile photographers who want plenty of screen space. The Galaxy S24 Ultra is also one of the first phones with Samsung’s new Galaxy AI features, which include tools for translating text messages and phone calls instantly and Circle to Search, a new gesture that lets you launch a Google search for almost anything simply by drawing a circle around it. Like the previous two generations, the Galaxy S24 Ultra comes with an embedded S Pen for those who like jotting down notes or doodling.
Perhaps best of all, Samsung has committed to updating these devices with new versions of Android for seven years, meaning it shouldn’t feel out of date anytime soon. Still, there are some important downsides to consider. At $1,300, this phone is expensive , so be sure to look for trade-in discounts if you plan to upgrade.
For that high price, I had hoped Samsung would’ve added extra Galaxy AI features that are specific to the Ultra -- perhaps some that take advantage of the S Pen. Galaxy AI is the same on all Galaxy S24 devices, and it’ll be coming to the Galaxy S23 lineup soon too, so you don’t have to splurge on Samsung’s top-of-the-line phone if you just care about those features. Read our Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra review .
The Pixel 8 has many of the features of the more expensive Pixel 8 Pro but comes in a slightly smaller package and with a smaller price tag to match. You'll find the Tensor G3 processor on board, along with Android 14 software that includes AI tools like the generative image wallpaper creator. It also comes with the same guarantee of at least seven years of security updates so this phone will still be going strong in 2030, as long as you look after it.
The rear cameras are more cut back here though, as the base Pixel 8 lacks the 5x optical zoom camera seen on its bigger brother. I personally love that zoom lens, but then I'm a professional photographer. If photography isn't a priority for you, you can save yourself a bundle and opt for the cheaper of Google's new range.
The Pixel 8's higher price $699 seems worth it and makes you realize just how incredibly affordable the $599 Pixel 6 and 7 were and still are. Read our Google Pixel 8 review . The Pixel 8A is so good it makes the regular Pixel 8 almost feel irrelevant.
It shares so much in common with its pricier sibling, from its selection of AI-powered features like Circle to Search to its cool aesthetic and powerful Tensor G3 processor, that it’s hard to see why anyone would buy the Pixel 8 instead. The Pixel 8 does offer a marginally better camera system, a slightly larger screen and the ability to charge other phones and accessories wirelessly on the back of the device. Those features don’t feel significant enough to impact the buying decision for most people.
As I wrote in my review , the Pixel 8A raises the bar for what a $500 phone should be. That also means I’ll be expecting more from the Pixel 9 this fall. If you're looking for a good budget phone that comes with a basic stylus and support for 5G, then the Moto G Stylus 5G 2023 is a great pick.
The cell phone features a stylus that you can store inside the phone along with a built-in Notes app to help with productivity. This phone also offers a triple-rear camera, 128GB of internal storage and a robust 4,000-mAh battery. CNET's Lisa Eadicicco called the Google Pixel 6A the "best Android phone under $500" in her review, calling out its solid performance, its 5G connectivity and its excellent camera for its price.
It's since been replaced by the Pixel 7A which offers better processor and camera performance, but you can still pick the 6A up for an even lower price. The phone has a 6.1-inch OLED display with a refresh rate of 60Hz along with a 12.
2-megapixel main camera and a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera. The Tensor chip allows for photo technology including the Real Tone skin tone feature, Face Unblur, Night Sight for darker photography and the Magic Eraser, which can remove unwanted elements from a photo. Factors to consider when buying an AT&T phone Shop the sales: Look for discounts and deals around holidays, especially Amazon's Prime Day and Black Friday.
Ponder what you want most: Do you want a phone with a long battery life? Is camera quality the most important feature? Do you need a big screen? This will help narrow down your choices. Phones like the iPhone 15 Pro or Galaxy S24 Ultra, for example, pack incredible cameras. If you're a photographer, then spending money here is a good idea.
If not, you can save yourself a bundle. Look at cheaper phones: You can get a great phone that does almost everything a more expensive phone can do for a fraction of the price. Consider last year's phones: Carriers and phone makers often keep phones from the previous year around at a discount.
Buy a case and screen protector: You'll protect your phone from costly damage and will increase the phone's resale or trade-in value for when you're ready to move on. How we test phones We test every phone in real-world scenarios, focusing on its features, design, performance, cameras, battery life and overall value. We document our findings in an initial review that is periodically updated when there are new software updates, or to compare it against new phones from competitors such as Apple, Samsung, Google and OnePlus.
The Galaxy Z Flip 5 largely has the same camera hardware as the Z Flip 4. But the new chip brings some image processing improvements. Photography is a major focus for most phones these days, so we take pictures and videos of various subjects in a variety of settings and lighting scenarios.
We try out any new camera modes, such as ProRes log video which debuted with the iPhone 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max, or the Magic Editor photo tool that launched with the Google Pixel 8 series. Battery testing is conducted in a variety of ways. We assess how long a phone lasts during a typical day of use and note how it performs during more focused sessions of video calls, media streaming and gaming.
We also conduct a video playback test, as a simple, replicable measure of pure battery life, which isn't always included in the initial review but sometimes added later in an update. We use benchmarking apps to measure each phone's performance, alongside our own anecdotal experiences using the phone for our review. Of note are how graphics and animations look.
Are they smooth? Or do they lag or stutter? We also look at how quickly the phone switches between horizontal and vertical orientations, and how fast the camera app opens and is ready to take a photo. Emergency SOS might be one of the most important features to come out on any phone this year. We perform processor-heavy tasks like editing photos, exporting videos and playing games.
We evaluate whether a newer version of a particular phone includes enough features to make it worth upgrading from older models. Read more: How We Test Phones Other phones we tested On the outside, the $699 iPhone 14 inherits the iPhone 13's tried and true flat-sided aluminum design. On the inside, Apple essentially repackaged the iPhone 13 Pro , sans the telephoto camera and high-refresh-rate screen.
The result is lovely and the iPhone 14 is a good upgrade for most people. It has a number of safety tools including Crash Detection and satellite connectivity for sending emergency messages when you're out of range of a cell tower. The iPhone 14 also got an internal redesign that helps dissipate heat better and allows its glass back to be repaired more easily and for less money.
Phone FAQs All of today's phones pack some kind of camera setup on the back, with most packing multiple ones like ultrawides or telephoto zooms. More expensive phones, like the iPhone 15 Pro, use larger image sensors, better-quality lenses and image stabilization that let in more light, capturing detailed images with beautiful colors -- in daylight and at night. Typically, the more you pay, the better quality you'll get, with the most advanced features being reserved for the most expensive flagships.
There's a vast array of case options for almost every phone on the market, so which one is best really comes down to what you need it for. Many cases are simply there for the style. And while these cases will certainly help keep light scratches and scuffs off your phone, you should look toward more specialized rugged cases if you want to take your smartphone on a rough-and-tumble adventure into the outdoors.
Most smartphones -- even those at the top end -- should be able to deliver a full day of mixed use out of a single charge. That means you should have a bit of juice left at the end of your day, but you should expect to give it a full charge when you plug it in next to your bed at night. Most phones tend to come with a minimum of 128GB of storage, which is a good amount for apps, games and locally stored music.
But it's important to think about what you'll be doing with your phone. If you want to download and play a lot of games, then consider opting for a higher-capacity version. Smartphones let you do more than just make calls; they connect to the internet for web browsing, you can download apps and games, and they typically have cameras capable of taking -- and displaying -- photos and videos.
In short, they're just what we know of today as a "phone," and everything on this list qualifies as a smartphone. More phone recommendations.
