My top 4 phones of 2023 - Ro

27 December 2023
It was a slow year for smartphones.

Sort by:

  • ?
  • Anonymous
  • nEP
  • 27 Dec 2023

Anonymous, 27 Dec 2023Maybe because not everybody lives in mainland China? As ... moreZ10 is kind of like plastic S23 at a glance - yeh.

Battery life is signnificantly better for the Zenfone 10 though. Zenfone also has a headphone jack which a lot of people still appreciate. The near stock-android on Z10 is also a big plus for many people, without all the Samsung Bixby crap and galaxy bloat. Also the cameras on Z10 are just as good if not better than the S23. Higher pixel density and more RAM options makes Z10 more suitable for games than S23 as well, alongside the 3.5mm jack, plus Z10 beats S23 in bench marks even though they have basically same chip, because it has better thermals.

Overall I really don't think you can say Z10 is just "a worse S23" just because it has a plastic back - if all you care about is glass back then yeh, get a galaxy or an iphone I guess.

    Marco M, 27 Dec 2023Availability outside of Asia makes it difficult to make it ... moreNot a good excuse imo since you can import it through many different places without paying import taxes.

      Vale, 27 Dec 2023How can someone who reviews phones for a living say that th... moreNo reviewing phones, but I do think it is boring. Because I want compact phone with decent zoom camera. Seems like only Xiaomi offers some improvements in recent years.

        Limerain, 27 Dec 2023No Find X6 Pro? It's literally better than any other phone.Availability outside of Asia makes it difficult to make it a top phone.

          I'm still using my OnePlus 7t Pro Mclaren -- a 4 yr old 12gb ram no notch triple camera (including a macro lens and motorised popup selfie camera) phone that is still rapid and feels innovative by design...even today. Phones feel stale to me....iterative updates only - the same slabs. Gaining a notch or camera hole in the screen feels like a downgrade for me, I just cant do it, particularly while what i have works so well. So I'm hanging on for something that stands out and isnt silly expensive.....

            • ?
            • Anonymous
            • 0p}
            • 27 Dec 2023

            MakeMotoBetterAgain, 27 Dec 2023My top 4 phones of 2023- Moto edge 40 pro moto edge 40 ne... moreI am not surprised here edge 40 neo costs more than 40.
            Except SoC, it is better .

              • ?
              • Anonymous
              • NIg
              • 27 Dec 2023

              Vale, 27 Dec 2023How can someone who reviews phones for a living say that th... moreMaybe because not everybody lives in mainland China?

              As for Zenphone isn't that just a vanilla S23 with worse cameras, screen and plastic back?

                • m
                • mihayash
                • 0U2
                • 27 Dec 2023

                what top phone,they all come with full bloatware from every seller ,no option to unninstall ,you have to root it,every single model after a few months has more bloatware !

                  • ?
                  • Anonymous
                  • I@H
                  • 27 Dec 2023

                  ultimatetroller500, 27 Dec 2023depends on the aspect ratio too. for 16:9, 6.36" would... morehaving both z ultra (6.4, 16:9) and 1 ii (6.5, 21:9), i agree...
                  my handling experience on 1 ii is even close to a 5.2 inch xperia z2 and 5 inch xperia z (og)...
                  besides, because we can do more on smartphones, esp media consumption, display sizes will naturally grow (alongside trimming of bezels, which i think already became ridiculous as if it affects viewing experience)...

                    • ?
                    • Anonymous
                    • I@H
                    • 27 Dec 2023

                    chinese goodess here...
                    i can only pick oneplus 11 here...
                    x fold 2 has cut some corners here, considering how good x fold and x fold+ were...
                    i guess, bbk somehow made some step back on their other foldables so that oneplus fold /oppo find n3 takes the limelight...

                      • S
                      • Ssg
                      • r3c
                      • 27 Dec 2023

                      Audience @(: I think there is a big mistake somewhere

                      _why not each Editor tell us his daily driver (present personal device) before jumping on giving credits to any brand.... Like, they aren't using all of these they've mentioned and probably they only handled them a week or 2 during reviews, But here is like telling a movie story just by looking at the album. It's kind of HYPOCRITE

                      ... Tell us your daily driver and then we flow along knowing the rests are credits/honored... Be sincere!

                        Azu10157, 27 Dec 2023Mfw 6.36in is considered "small"The zenfone 10 has good personality ok!?!?

                          Azu10157, 27 Dec 2023Mfw 6.36in is considered "small"depends on the aspect ratio too. for 16:9, 6.36" would be considered massive. in todays 20:9 or even 21:9, its kinda small because its narrow. i feel like these days people complain and whine about screen sizes getting bigger and bigger without accounting for the much taller aspect ratios which makes the phone much narrower for a given screen size making it much easier to handle.

                          I mean just look at a near 7 inch phone, like the S20 ultra for example, compared to a 7 inch tablet with 5:3 or 16:10 aspect ratio, the tablet still seems far bigger...

                            • H
                            • Herrick
                            • Kxh
                            • 27 Dec 2023

                            Most of GSMA team don't like iPhone 😁

                              Limerain, 27 Dec 2023No Find X6 Pro? It's literally better than any other phone."Literarry"
                              So it's Literarry, not actually.

                                Mfw 6.36in is considered "small"

                                  No Find X6 Pro? It's literally better than any other phone.

                                    Vale, 27 Dec 2023How can someone who reviews phones for a living say that th... morealso we get tons of good low end phones from Transsion.. Their flagships like the Phantom X2 are also very cool with their retractable cameras. Realme with crazy 240W charging is also worth mentioning. but unfortunately there is no global that's why people say it's boring
                                    or this site drunk with Samsung?

                                      • V
                                      • Vale
                                      • pMh
                                      • 27 Dec 2023

                                      How can someone who reviews phones for a living say that this year had boring releases? Apart from the usual Samsung and Apple who didn't bring anything new, every other brand had something at least interesting. The OnePlus Open, the Pixel Fold, phones from Huawei, the Xiaomi 13 and 14 series brought amazing cameras, Oppo with it's x6 pro and N3 fold/flip, Honor magic v2, the slimmest foldable ever, the Moto Razr 50 ultra is also amazing and different. The Asus Zenfone is also the best compact phone with no compromises. So many awesome gaming phones with new deaigns and features. Phones like the Nothing phone 2 with it's LED back, etc. Maybe some people stop appreciating how phones have evolved since for example 5 years ago when every phone was the exact same

                                        waiting for the bots to come and cry about this being a xiaomi and bbk ad