Best Phone 2018: The best smartphones reviewed and tested

This is why you should trust our list of the best phones:

We’ve reviewed a load of phones since we launched back in 2003, so it’s safe to say we’re one of the few outlets you can trust to recommend a new product. We aren’t paid by companies for coverage and all of our reviews are honest and unbiased. 

We should note, however, that Trusted Reviews does earn some money when you click on a link to purchase a product, which helps us fund more impartial reviews. That also means we want you to be super-happy with your purchase so that you come back to us the next time you need buying advice.

best overall smartphone

Samsung Galaxy S9

Both the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus are excellent smartphones. The variable aperture is the biggest feature that separates it from rivals, enabling the S9 to capture fantastic shots even in low-light conditions.

£739.00

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Picking a new smartphone can often be a daunting task, and that’s because there are simply far too many to choose from. But to help make the process a little more bearable, we’ve rounded up ten of the best smartphones on the market – including the Galaxy S9, Huawei P20 Pro, iPhone X and the new LG G7.

How we select the best smartphones

Every handset we review is tested using the same combination of real-world use cases and repeatable benchmark tests. This means that we test everything from battery life and processor performance during the full range of everyday tasks, right up to call quality and screen calibration.

Related: WWDC 2018 – everything you need to know

Phones are also now our go-to devices for taking photos, so the cameras are put through their paces in every situation possible. You want to know whether a phone’s camera will impress not just in bright sunshine at an exotic location, but also when taking shots of moving people at drunken parties, or just in the dull, flat light of a British winter.

Similarly, you might want to know how your phone will cope with a Netflix binge or video call, so our battery-discharge tests take that into account.

Most of all, we take these phones out and use them as our own over an extended period, living with them to learn their quirks and discover their hidden treasures.

So now you know how we select the best smartphones, let’s take a look at our highlights.

OnePlus 6

Pros:

• Lovely design
• Great version of Android
• Very affordable

Cons:

• Average battery life
• Camera still needs work

With a price of £469, the OnePlus 6 is easily the best value smartphone you can buy right now. It looks fantastic, has a slick version of Android and is arguably the fastest phone you can get at any price.

The 6.3-inch OLED might have a notch, but it remains gorgeously bright and colourful. There’s a Snapdragon 845 inside, 6/8GB RAM and storage versions that top out at 256GB. Our only real complaint is the camera, which still lacks the quality of pricier phones.

The 3300 mAh battery features the excellent Dash Charge tech and takes only 90 minutes to full charge. We would like slightly better endurance though, as we often had to charge the phone by about 9pm.

Samsung Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus

Pros:

• Fantastic screen
• Feels great
• Improved speakers

Cons:

• Average battery life
• Dual-sensor only on Plus model
• Some lag with Samsung’s software

You can’t go wrong with either the Galaxy S9 or Galaxy S9 Plus, though if we had to recommend one we’d go with the latter – and that’s because it comes with a dual-camera. The extra lens, in this instance, is used for zooming, making the camera far more versatile.

Both the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus sport an identical build and similar internals, with the main differences being that the Plus model is equipped with an additional 2GB of RAM, a slightly bigger battery and the aforementioned dual-camera configuration – luxuries most customers should be able to live without.

The biggest update Samsung treated the Galaxy S9 and Galaxy S9 Plus to is a new variable aperture setting within the camera, letting customers switch between an f/2.4 and f/1,5 aperture whenever they see fit, which should ensure images come out bright and full of detail in almost all low-light environments.

Buy now: Samsung Galaxy S9 SIM Free for £739 / $719 from Amazon

The Top Samsung Galaxy S9 Deals Right Now

Samsung Galaxy S9 – 16GB, £43pm, no upfront from Vodafone

A great way to pay no upfront cost with lots of data.

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Samsung Galaxy S9 – 100GB, £68pm, £49.99 upfront from O2

If you need more data than you can even shake a stick at, this is the deal for you. For this money, you normally only get 50GB of data a month, but O2 is currently DOUBLING that amount.

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Apple iPhone X

Pros: 

• Stunning screen
• Much-improved telephoto camera
• The best-looking iPhone ever
• Face ID is much better than Touch ID

Cons: 

• Software needs more optimisation for the taller screen and notch
• No fast-charging plug included
• Very expensive

The iPhone X is not only the best smartphone Apple has released to date; it’s also the most expensive, setting customers back £999 for the 64GB base model. But it’s well worth it. Performance is fantastic, as are the images produced by the dual-camera setup, and Face ID is (honestly) the best thing since sliced bread.

Now let’s talk about its design. The iPhone X was designed to show the market that Apple hasn’t lost its touch when it comes to innovation, introducing an edge-to-edge OLED screen, complete with a notch, as well as Face ID. That, for those unaware, is the face-recognition feature that was introduced to replace Touch ID.

Buy Now: iPhone X SIM free for £899 / $1,269 from Amazon

Top iPhone X deals right now

iPhone X 64GB – 25GB of data, £38pm, £300 upfront on O2 (Use code TRUSTED10 to save £10)

If you need a massive amount of data, this is the deal for you. While it requires a reasonably high upfront cost, you're saving £60 off the usual price. Take another £10 off with our code.

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Google Pixel 2 XL

Pros: 

• Stunning camera
• The best version of Android
• Minimal bezel
• Feels great to hold

Cons:

• Lifeless screen
• No wireless charging

Those looking for the most vanilla Android experience will love the Google Pixel 2 XL. It’s one of the best smartphones we’ve put through its paces to date, earning a covered nine out of ten rating in our comprehensive review, with Max Parker, our resident Mobile and Tablets Editor, praising its build, camera and performance.

Our one qualm with the Google Pixel 2 XL is the screen. It’s a bit too plain for our liking, delivering poor viewing angles. It is, however, possible to alter the colour presets using an aftermarket application – but when you’re shelling out more than £600 for a smartphone, you’d expect it to be set to the optimum out of the box.

Buy Now: Pixel 2 XL SIM free for £629 / $647 from Google

Moto G6

Pros:

• Fantastic software experience
• Lovely screen
• Well built for the price

Cons:

• Some performance frustrations, especially with the camera

Lots of the phones on this list are pricey flagship devices, but that’s not the case with the Moto G6. For a shade under £220 you get a lovely display, slick software and a surprisingly well-built phone.

Moto does a good job at ditching gimmicks here. The few apps it adds on top of Android are thoughtful, and there’s no fussy skin ruining the Android experience. There’s even basic facial unlocking, which is still a rarity at the budget end of the market.

Of course, there are some drawbacks at this price. The camera is fine, but the app is slow and you’ll often miss focus. If you can live with that then you’ll be very impressed.

LG G7

Pros:

• Beautiful screen
• Fantastic audio
• Handy Google Assistant button

Cons:

• LG’s software is still ugly
• Camera can’t match the competition

The main reason you ought to be interested in the LG G7, however, is for its fantastic display, which ridiculously bright and good looking. It’s an LCD, rather than an OLED, but it can hit 1000 nits for HDR playback. This high brightness isn’t constant, instead it peaks in bright sunlight and if you use the SuperBright mode.

On the back you’ve got two cameras, with the main being a 16-megapixel f/1.6 shooter and the secondary a wide-angle sensor. The wide sensor is great, but the regular camera is less impressive. It takes fine photos, but lacks the clever auto-HDR modes of competing devices.

Buy Now: LG G7 SIM free for £599

Samsung Galaxy Note 8

Pros:

• Stunning design and build
• Great screen
• Well-implemented stylus and software
• Superb cameras

Cons:

• Average battery life
• Wildly expensive

Samsung was in a strange position after the world-famous Galaxy Note 7 debacle, having the choice to either axe the Galaxy Note range or come back with a safe bet to win then-former customers over – it chose the latter, opting to create the Galaxy Note 8, otherwise known as the best stylus-toting smartphone on the market.

And the firm didn’t disappoint, manufacturing a high-end handset with impressive internals, an incredible dual-camera setup and a fantastic square-like build, the latter of which feels nothing short of fantastic in the hand, that was awarded nine out of ten by our former Computing Editor Michael Passingham in his review.

Buy Now: Samsung Galaxy Note 8 SIM free for £642 / $699 from Amazon

Huawei P20 Pro

Pros:

• Fantastic tri-camera
• 128GB of storage
• Huge battery
• Stunning design
• EMUI interface has come a long way

Cons:

• No 3.5mm headphone jack
• Screen needs some fine-tuning
• No wireless charging

The Huawei P20 Pro is the first smartphone on the market to feature a tri-camera – a 40MP f/1.8 sensor, a 20MP f/1.6 monochrome sensor for depth and texture, and an 8MP f/2.4 telephoto sensor. But that isn’t its only claim to fame: it’s also equipped with a top-of-the-line processor, 6GB of RAM and a 4000mAh battery.

That means that the P20 Pro is a smartphone that can tickle everyone’s fancy. Whether you’re an aspiring or seasoned photographer, a power-hungry specs maniac or quite simply someone who’s after a handset that can last for 48 hours on a single charge, Huawei’s flagship has you covered. It’s also very well priced when compared to the competition.

Buy Now: Huawei P20 Pro SIM free for £799 on Carphone Warehouse

Best Huawei P20 Pro Deals

Huawei P20 Pro – 4GB of data, £23pm, £140 upfront cost on Vodafone (use code TRUSTED10)

This deal bags you a low total cost of ownership thanks to a very manageable low monthly cost. You get a good amount of data for lighter users. Use our code to take the upfront cost down £10.

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Huawei P20 Pro – 16GB of data, £30pm, £85 upfront cost on Vodafone (use code TRUSTED10)

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OnePlus 5T

Pros:

• Good OLED screen
• Slick software experience
• Excellent value
• 3Seriously fast

Cons

• No water-resistance
• Average camera

The OnePlus 5T is a fantastic choice for those looking for a high-end handset on a budget. It sports a 6-inch FHD+ screen, a Snapdragon 835 CPU, 6/8GB of RAM, 64/128GB of internal storage, a dual-camera (16MP + 16MP) and a 3300mAh cell – an incredible amount of tech for a smartphone that retails for less than £450.

Buy now: OnePlus 5T SIM free for £449 from OnePlus

Huawei P Smart

Pros:

• Great 18:9 screen
• Heaps of value
• Slick design

Cons: 

• Frustrating EMUI software
• No fast-charging
• Some issues with build quality

Customers on a stricter budget should turn their attention to the Huawei P Smart. Sure, it doesn’t have the most interesting name, but it is  – in my opinion, at least – the best affordable handset out there, offering users access to high-end hardware, including an aluminium body, for a fraction of the cost of a flagship.

Under the hood, there’s a 5.65-inch 18:9 screen, a Kirin 659 processor, 3GB of RAM, 32GB of expandable internal storage and a 3000mAh battery. There’s also a dual-camera setup on the rear (13MP + 2MP) that’s not too bad in well-lit environments, but misses the mark at night. At £179, though, it’s an absolute steal.

Buy Now: Huawei P Smart for £179.95 / $195 from Amazon

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