Best flagship killers 2025 - buyer’s guide

The Poco X7 Pro turned out to be an excellent bang for the buck offer as it offers unmatched flagship performance for its price class. It also has a cool and stylish design, a great AMOLED screen and an attractive design with a solid build. The battery life and the charging are quite alright, and so are the speakers.

We were also impressed by the smoothness of the HyperOS 2 and its AI options. And let's not forget the promised three major Android updates and 4 years of security patches.

Admittedly, the camera is mostly mediocre, except for the 2x zoom quality and the video stabilization. The rear cameras get the job done, but there is nothing impressive about the quality. The selfie shooter is one of the worst we've experienced lately, though.

If not for the so-so cameras, we would have given an excellent mark for this Poco X7 Pro. But even with these imperfections, the Poco X7 Pro is the most powerful smartphone around the €400 mark with a premium display, cooling, and top-notch battery and charging technologies. Given the all-round premium experience on a low-tier midrange price, the Poco X7 Pro easily becomes our top pick for the flagship killer category – it is the literal definition of this term.

The Xiaomi 14T Pro is still among the best phones you can get for about €600. It delivers on every single promise and has plenty of flagship-grade, class-leading features. It's among the fastest charging phones in the industry and it's got a 144Hz display, and that's in addition to a high-end chipset and a camera system that only falls short in one or two niche areas.

The Leica cooperation is paying off, as all rear cameras deliver outstanding photo and video quality day and night.

Admittedly, if selfies are of utmost importance, one of the niche areas becomes more of a pressing issue. Similarly, if you're into closeups, you'll probably need to look elsewhere (or try to work with the main camera, because the ultrawide and the telephoto won't be of much use).

Long story short - the Xiaomi 14T Pro is a very competent offering with a compelling set of flagship-grade capabilities. Something like a flagship-killer, if you will.

The Pixel 8 might have gotten a successor, but at €500 it is one of the best phones you can get right now. It has a great little OLED, excellent camera experience, fast charging, 7 years of software support, and timely major OS updates. And, it is one of the most compact smartphones on the market, one of the most powerful, and one with a remarkable photo quality from its cameras.

But the Pixel 8 isn't without its flaws. For instance, a 3x telephoto unit would have been greatly appreciated as well wider availability for its smart features. After all, many of Pixel’s clever software features can't be utilized to its fullest in many markets. Charging and battery life aren't particularly impressive either, although somewhat okay in Pixel terms. We also wonder why Google decided to skip the autofocus feature on the selfie camera and the support for Pro camera mode on the smaller Pixel.

Bottom line, the Pixel 8 is an easy recommendation because, despite its issues, as it manages to pack competent hardware into a compact body, offers top-notch power, and has a mid-range price.

The €500 OnePlus Nord 4 remains competitive in its price range by offering a unique design approach, excellent battery life, speedy charging and great performance thanks to its Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 chip. The camera experience is a mixed bag, but we tend to like the photos taken with the main camera in 1x Photo mode. The absence of stabilized 4K video recording is the bigger con in our books, though.

The camera has been improved since the Nord 2, there is no doubt. The main camera saves great photos and videos, day and night, and so does the ultrawide shooter. Over-processed a bit, sure, but still better than what Nord 2 had to offer.

Having 256GB storage by default would have made the Nord 4 a tad more competitive as at least half of the phones in the same price bracket start from 128GB. The promised 4 years of software support will likely draw some users who are already on the fence.

We do recommend the Nord 4 for its design, screen, performance, battery life, and fast charging. Just don’t expect a flagship grade camera quality.

The OnePlus 13R has expanded availability compared to the 12R and is an excellent offer priced around €700 as it can does most things €1200+ flagships can do. It is a capable all-rounder with excellent performance, long battery life, dependable camera hardware, fast enough charging and exceptionally loud speakers. The 13R easily covers all bases without necessarily breaking the bank.

Having said that, the ultrawide and selfie cameras keep us from giving the 13R an excellent score in this department and alternatives seem to be better at taking stills and videos. Also, even if the maximum brightness is sufficient, most other displays in this price bracket are brighter.

At the end of the day, if you are willing to make a small compromise in the camera department, you probably won't find a more powerful handset for the asking price while delivering excellent battery life and a solid display and camera experience. Some carriers might give it a deal on this one you just cannot refuse.

The €300 Motorola Edge 50 Neo is undoubtedly a gorgeous device through and through, one that deserves a special spot on this list. The small-screen options are few and far between, so the Edge 50 Neo doesn't face too fierce competition. Despite its size, it's also well-equipped. You don't see many compact midrangers with a telephoto camera and wireless charging. The handset is also equipped with a higher-end LTPO OLED panel, decently fast charging capabilities and long battery life. The design is ergonomically-sound and the finish is soft and grippy.

However, if the Motorola Edge 50 Neo didn't draw you with its compact size and you are just looking for a similarly priced handset in general, you will likely find more powerful options for the price. The Edge 50 Neo failed to impress with performance and we expected somewhat better camera image quality.

Ultimately, we would say that if the Moto Edge 50 Neo speaks to you, particularly with its looks and camera system, it won't disappoint in any particular way, and you should go for one. You will not regret it, on the contrary, we can see you recommending it to a friend or two.

The iQOO 13 is a very competent all-rounder. It features an extremely powerful chipset, a good display, nice-sounding and loud stereo speakers, and a full set of cameras. All of this is wrapped in a premium and good-looking chassis. We are particularly impressed by the sustained performance. The handset handles high loads for long periods of time, suggesting it will do great in long gaming sessions too.

Fast charging and excellent battery life are also standout features. And although a fairly potent camera system, which performs well during the day, it leaves much to be desired from the 2x zoom and ultrawide cameras at night. This is where the competition delivers.

But if you are in the market for a phone in this ‘like a flagship’, then the iQOO 13 is an outright recommendation for its premium all-round feature set. It is currently limited to India, but if you like it, you can easily buy it elsewhere.