Top phone deals from Black Friday week in Europe

The day you had marked on your calendars is here – it’s Black Friday (for real this time). We already shared our picks for the best smartphone deals in the US, so check that out in case you missed it. Now we’re moving over to Europe. We focused on Amazon Germany and Amazon UK and tried to list both for each phone (not always possible, so there are a few gaps). There are some offers from other stores too.

Some phones are cheaper in Germany, others in the UK. Unfortunately, it is not as easy to ship a phone from one place to the other anymore. Amazon Germany delivers to the rest of the EU, however.

Since we picked out quite a few phones, we tried to organize them into categories. The links below will help you jump straight to the category you need. There are flagships, mid-rangers, as well as a few more specialized categories like gaming phones and battery life champs.

• Affordable 5G phones
• Flagships
• Flagship killers
• Older flagships
• Premium all-rounders
• Mid-range all-rounders
• Gaming phones
• Compact phones
• Battery champs

Affordable 5G phones

5G networks in Europe are pretty well established at this point, so here are a few cheap options to join the high bandwidth, low latency era. The Samsung Galaxy A23 5G has a Snapdragon 695 chipset and a relatively big 6.6” LCD (120Hz FHD+), plus a large 5,000mAh battery for endurance during long streaming sessions.

The OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G is a direct competitor with a 6.59” LCD (120Hz FHD+) and the same Snapdragon 695. It’s cheaper than the A23, but it loses the OIS feature on the main cam and has no ultra-wide (the A23 has a 5MP UW cam).

The Redmi Note 10 5G has a 6.5” LCD (90Hz FHD+) and a Dimensity 700 instead. It still has a large 5,000mAh battery, though. The Nord is probably the better pick unless you are a fan of MIUI.

Flagships

Flagships get the biggest discounts in absolute values, so this might be the most interesting category. Instead of saving €50-100, you can save several hundred euro.

The Sony Xperia 1 IV is lovely, its price is not so much. But with a hefty Black Friday discount, this multimedia-focused flagship may be within reach. It has a 6.5” 4K-class OLED display (120Hz, 10-bit), plus the triple 12MP camera features a continuous zoom lens (3.5x-5.2x).

Another camera-forward flagship is the OnePlus 10 Pro with second-generation Hasselblad tech. This one stands out with its super wide 150° lens, as well as a 48MP main cam and 8MP periscope (3.3x). Also, a 5,000mAh battery with 80W wired and 50W wireless charging.

Next up, more awesome cameras. The Honor Magic4 Pro lacks a famous camera maker logo on its back but has a 50MP main, 50MP ultra-wide and 64MP periscope (3.5x) cameras, all three of which impressed in our review. The charging support is one of the best around - whether you use the 100W wired or 100W wireless option, you will be done in under half an hour.

Flagship killers

The Realme GT2 Pro is a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 powered phone. This one stands out with a QHD+ 120Hz LTPO2 display and a 50MP 150° ultra-wide camera. This phone really lives up to the name “flagship killer” as it undercuts the OnePlus 10 Pro price while offering most of the same features (well, except the periscope and wireless charging).

Some might not care about the Hasselblad cameras, so something like the OnePlus 10T might be a better pick. It’s cheaper than the 10 Pro, and it is faster to boot, thanks to the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset. The charging system is faster, too, going up to 150W (no wireless, though). Also note that you will be missing out on the QHD+ LTPO2 display of the 10 Pro.

The Motorola Edge 30 Pro uses the original 8 Gen 1 chipset but pairs it with a 6.7” 144Hz OLED display. It’s not as camera-focused as the Edge 30 Ultra, though at least it has a 50MP ultra-wide camera (unlike the 10T above, which only has an 8MP UW cam). Wired charging is slower at 68W, on the plus side, there is 15W wireless charging support. Speaking of charging, Amazon is throwing in a free car charger and a protective case.

Older flagships

The Google Pixel 7 Pro is better than the Pixel 6 Pro, hands down, but it’s new and costs more. It’s not like the Tensor G2 is much faster or like the cameras are much different. If money is no object, the newer model is better, otherwise, this one is worth a look. Especially with Google’s longer-than-average software support (3 OS updates, 5 years of patches).

The OnePlus 9 Pro is in the same boat – the OnePlus 10 Pro is better, but its iterative improvements might not be worth the extra cost in your eyes. This one is in the same price bracket as the flagship killers above; however, it is a true flagship (even if an old one).

Premium all-rounders

Like its Pro sibling, the OnePlus 9 has aged into the “last year’s model” category. However, with a Snapdragon 888 and a 6.55” 120Hz AMOLED display, plus a pair of Hasselblad cameras (48MP main, 50MP ultra-wide), it is still worth a look. Unlike previous models in the vanilla series, this one also has wireless charging.

The Motorola Edge 30 Fusion packs the slightly faster Snapdragon 888+ chipset and has a faster 144Hz 6.55” display. It lacks the camera prowess of the OnePlus, however, and a few other tidbits, making it harder to justify the extra cost.

The Honor 70 goes the other way – it focuses on the cameras (with a 54MP main and 50MP ultra-wide) rather than the chipset, which is a Snapdragon 778G+. It’s not as fast as the 888, but it does help get better battery life (100h endurance rating).

Mid-range all-rounders

We know the Pixel a series has some dedicated fans, and the Pixel 6a is probably the best one yet – it has the same Tensor chip as the Pixel 6 Pro, and while the dual 12MP cameras are not too exciting in terms of hardware, Google’s excellent processing keeps them competitive.

The Nothing Phone (1) has the eye-catching Glyph system and has bragging rights as the only Snapdragon 778G phone with wireless charging (the chipset is actually 778G+). If you subscribe to the Nothing aesthetic, you can also pick up the Nothing ear (1) TWS buds for €80 (Amazon Germany has the phone and buds as a bundle, but it is not cheaper than getting them separately).

The Redmi Note 11 Pro stands out with a 108MP main camera (which also handles zooming in). The 8MP ultra-wide module and the limit to 1080p video recording are less impressive. On the plus side, the 6.67” 120Hz AMOLED display is pretty good, even if it only has an Helio G96 chipset to drive it (i.e. don’t expect 120fps gaming).

The OnePlus Nord 2T has a Dimensity 1300 with a much more powerful GPU, but it is connected to a smaller 6.43” 90Hz AMOLED. Also, the main camera goes for bigger pixels (50MP, 1.0µm), and it has OIS, which the Redmi lacks. It is kind of pricey in Germany, however.

The OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G isn’t as nice as the 2T. It has the same 6.43” 90Hz AMOLED display but uses the older Dimensity 900 chip, and the main camera drops to a basic 64MP sensor (no OIS). We only include it as a cheap option for Germany.

The Poco X4 GT is more expensive than the Redmi Note 11 Pro but packs the Dimensity 8100, which offers a lot of performance in this price range. And it is connected to a 6.6” 144Hz LCD for a much smoother experience. The camera section is less impressive, so this could serve as a mid-range gaming phone, less so as a camera phone.

The Poco X4 Pro 5G is cheaper than the Redmi but has a similar display (6.67” 120Hz AMOLED) and a similar camera setup with a 108MP main and 8MP ultra-wide. The Snapdragon 695 still limits video to 1080p, though.

Gaming phones

Amazon Germany has a Free Fire Limited edition version of the Realme 9 Pro+. With a Dimensity 920 and a 6.4” 90Hz AMOLED, this one is more of a mid-range gaming phone, but it is a cool pick for fans of the game.

Moving on to something more powerful, the Asus ROG Phone 6 packs a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 and a 6.78” 165Hz AMOLED display – now, this is a proper gaming phone. And it has the beefy 6,000mAh battery to prove it, plus a second USB-C port on the side for convenient charging during play.

Red Magic is also in on the Black Friday bonanza. Its top Red Magic 7S Pro can be configured with a ridiculous 18GB of RAM and 512GB storage. The price isn’t ridiculous, though; it costs the same as the ROG Phone. The 6.8” 20Hz AMOLED display isn’t as impressive, but its performance is no joke. The 7S Pro uses the 8+ Gen 1 chip, of course, and boasts an active cooling fan for sustained performance.

You can save quite a bit of cash by going with the Red Magic 7 Pro, which is just a few months older. It uses the original 8 Gen 1 chipset, which does run hotter, but the fan takes care of that. The memory configuration here is a restrained 16/256GB.

If you’re not going all out with the 7S Pro, we’d recommend the vanilla Red Magic 7 over the 7 Pro. It’s a bit cheaper, but its 6.8” AMOLED display runs at 165Hz (not 120Hz as on the Pro). Also, the price below is the 18/256GB model, so there are two extra gigs of RAM. Why even list the Pro then? Well, we thought that the under-display camera might have some appeal. Though tucking it into the top bezel like the vanilla phone does is a fine option, too.

Compact phones

Compact doesn’t quite mean what it used to, but at 67mm wide, the Sony Xperia 5 IV certainly sits well in hand. It is powerful, too, with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip, plus it has a solid 6.1” 120Hz AMOLED display – only FHD+ resolution, though that is enough at this size. Also, note that the triple 12MP camera differs from the 1 IV as the tele lens is locked at 60mm.

Another petite flagship is the Asus Zenfone 9. Measuring 146.5 x 68.1 x 9.1mm (169g weight) and with a 5.9" 20:9 display, this is smaller than most Androids out there (flagship or otherwise). It is more powerful than most as well, with a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset. The 50MP main camera boasts gimbal stabilization, and there is an ultra-wide camera as well (no telephoto, however). Despite its small stature, this phone has a decently sized 4,300mAh battery (30W charging), and it makes efficient use of it as it recorded a 108h endurance ranting (falling slightly behind the Xperia, which managed 116h).

The Xiaomi 12 is much smaller than its Pro sibling, and while not tiny, it is among the smaller premium phones one can find. It also uses the 8 Gen 1 for power and has a 6.28” AMOLED display (120Hz, 12-bit!), but it lacks a tele camera (it has 50MP main and 13MP ultra-wide modules). Charging is much faster than the Sony, with 67W wired and 50MP wireless support.

The Motorola Edge 30 Neo is about the same size as the Xiaomi but is in a different price category. This means a Snapdragon 695 chipset and no wireless charging. On the plus side, we described the 6.28” 120Hz AMOLED display as “flagship-level” in our review. Not bad for half the price.

Battery life champs

These are the marathon runners of the smartphone world. The Poco M4 Pro is a cheap device, but it earned an endurance rating of 126 hours. With 33W fast charging in needs an hour and 10 minutes to go back up to 100% (by our measurements, Poco claims it’s 58 minutes to full).

The Realme 9 costs only a bit more and is even more impressive – its endurance rating is a whopping 156h. Its charging system is rated at the same 33W charging support, and battery capacity is the same (5,000mAh), so a full charge takes about the same (an hour and 16 minutes).

The Sony Xperia 10 IV grew its battery capacity to 5,000mAh and improved on the already impressive Mark 3 with an endurance rating of 163 hours. Good thing too, because charging is best described as “slow” (2 hour 30 minutes to full).

The Realme GT Neo 3 can last a long while, too and (unlike the others) is quite fast to charge back up at 80W (0-100% in 32 minutes). Amazon Germany also has the 150W model, which lasts 102 hours despite its smaller 4,500mAh battery, a battery that only needs 16 minutes for a full charge.

PS. We have extensive coverage of the Black Friday deals, including ones on tablets, headphones, wearables, laptops, peripherals and more. Check out the full list here.