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Nothing Phone 1 vs Samsung Galaxy S22: Flashy newcomer takes on the established old guard
The Nothing Phone 1 is the newest Android phone to hit the market, how does it compare against Samsung's Galaxy S22 flagship?
The newest Android phone on the block is here after a flashy debut, and while we at XDA have had good impressions of the Nothing Phone 1 so far -- it's polished for a first attempt -- it's worth comparing it against the Android top dog, the Galaxy S22 series. It wouldn't make sense to compare against the Galaxy S22 Ultra considering the significant price difference, so we are matching the new Nothing Phone 1 with the most affordable Galaxy S22 version. There's still a bit of a price gap, but with regular deals and sales, the Galaxy S22 can often be had for a bit less than the official MSRP.
Samsung, please make a Galaxy Z Fold Ultra with a real flagship camera system
Samsung has been focusing on making the Z Fold series lighter, thinner, and cheaper, but skimping out on the best possible foldable tech.
Samsung is the pioneer of foldable phones, and its inner folding design language laid the path on which all other Chinese foldables have followed. But a good case can be made that, in the last couple of years, foldables from brands like Huawei, Oppo, and Vivo have surpassed the Galaxy Z Fold series in pure hardware prowess. For example, the most prominent design improvement Samsung gave to the Galaxy Z Fold 4 this year is an improved hinge that no longer protrudes from the side as much in folded form. This drastically improves the in-hand feel, as the folded Fold 4 now feels more symmetrical in the hand, without a clear bulkier left side like in years past.
Samsung's Galaxy S and Fold series may still pack superior tech, but the Z Flip series has lowkey become the breakout star of the South Korean tech giant's mobile family. The Galaxy Z Flip 3 was the first foldable phone to achieve mainstream sales status, and the Galaxy Z Flip 4 looks to continue the momentum. A major reason the Flip is winning over customers is that it is essentially a very good flagship phone that can fold in half to fit easier into pockets and purses. And while it's not fair to compare the Z Flip 4 against the top dog Galaxy S22 Ultra, the Z Flip 4 does hold up very well against Samsung's base model flagships.
Google Pixel 6a vs Motorola Moto G 5G (2022): A one-sided beatdown
The Google Pixel 6a takes on the Moto G 5G (2022) in a one-sided mid-range battle, to see which phone customers in the US should choose!
Motorola's mid-tier phones have been doing quite well in the limited North American mobile scene, and its $350 Moto G 5G is another offering with an appealing price point. But Google's A series brings perhaps the biggest challenge yet. While Google's A series has been around for years, the Google Pixel 6a is arguably the search giant's most polished, and "flagship-like" A series phone ever.
Does the OnePlus 10T have a 3.5mm headphone jack?
The OnePlus 10T is a new Android flagship phone with lots of features, but does it offer a headphone jack for conventional wired headphones?
The OnePlus 10T is the newest Android phone on the block, and it brings a lot of awesome 2022 top mobile features, such as a 120Hz OLED display, the newest Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chip from Qualcomm, a fast and responsive version of Android 12, and a 50MP main camera with a respectable 1/1.57-inch image sensor. It even comes at an attractive price with plenty of purchase deals that make it a good option for those looking to pick one up.
Sharp Aquos R7 Review: Another phone with the 1-inch Sony IMX989 sensor and Leica optics!
Xiaomi 12S Ultra isn't the only phone in town with a 1-inch sensor and Leica optics -- Sharp's new Aquos R7 can make the same claim
Japan's Sharp Corporation is a century-old brand known worldwide for many electronic products, particularly televisions. And while the firm also makes smartphones, it would not be an overstatement to say they are niche products, catering to collectors and enthusiasts rather than the mainstream. After all, Sharp smartphones are sold only in Japan, and even in its home country, they account for 1.77% market share as recently as May 2022 according to results from multiple research firms.
Google Pixel 6a vs Samsung Galaxy A53: The two most notable mid-rangers in North American market and beyond
The Google Pixel 6a and the Samsung Galaxy A53 5G are two of the most prominent options available in North America. We compare both of them!
The Google Pixel 6a is the newest mid-ranger on the block, and it's arguably the best one because it offers a lot of what made the Google Pixel 6 such a good flagship phone just last fall. Samsung's Galaxy A53, however, is no slouch, offering Samsung's gorgeous AMOLED display technology in a clean and understated design. Both phones are relatively compact, making them ideal not just for those who want to save money, but also for those who don't want to carry around a bulky flagship.
Nothing Phone 1 vs Apple iPhone 13: The newest Android takes on the most mainstream iPhone
We compare the newest Android phone in town, the Nothing phone 1 to the most mainstream iPhone in the iPhone 13.
The newest Android phone in town has a look that's at once unique and familiar. The Nothing Phone 1 features an attention-grabbing transparent back panel revealing some flashy light strips, but it also has an overall shape that's very similar to the iPhone 13 series. Today we compare the two.
Xiaomi 12S Ultra vs Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra: Battle of the 2022 Ultras
Take a deep dive comparison into two of the best Android phones you can buy today: the Xiaomi 12S Ultra vs the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra!
Xiaomi may not publicly confess it, but its Ultra series is clearly aimed to take on Samsung's own line with the same namesake, and it's a worthy comparison every year. I say this not just because of the "Ultra" signifier. Heck, ZTE has an Ultra phone too and I would not consider that phone a true competitor to the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra. To earn the comparison against Android's top dog, the new phone must bring the latest cutting-edge tech and back it up with polished software for an overall high-end experience. You have to walk the talk to be Ultra, and the Xiaomi 12S Ultra does so.
Asus Zenfone 9 Review: A better small phone than the iPhone 13 Mini
The Asus Zenfone 9 is a unique phone that stands out: it's small, has a gimbal camera, and is very reasonably priced. Read our review!
Asus' Zenfone series wasn't always small. Just a couple of years ago, the Zenfone 7 and Zenfone 7 Pro came with the usual 6.7-inch screen that were and still are a dime a dozen in the Android space. But starting with last year's Zenfone 8, Asus pivoted direction with one mandate: the phone must be small. The engineers and designers had hard numbers to aim for, in fact: the width of the device must be less than 70mm. The number, Asus reps say, is because it's about the furthest the average human thumb can reach across horizontally. Asus succeeded in that goal, and the Zenfone 8 was a very easy one-hand phone, and perhaps due to utter lack of competition, it was named the best small Android phone by just about every tech publication.
Xiaomi 12S Ultra vs Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max Camera Shootout and Comparison: A back and forth battle
The Xiaomi 12S Ultra is the latest phone with impressive cameras, so it goes against the iPhone 13 Pro Max to see which phone does it better!
The iPhone is the most mainstream phone, which makes it almost seen as the "default smartphone." This means anytime a major Android smartphone arrives, it should be compared against the iPhone, even if they don't appeal to the same market. That's the case here, as the Xiaomi 12S Ultra has been grabbing a lot of attention for its 1-inch camera sensor with Leica optics, even though the phone is selling only in China for now. This means this comparison is more for enthusiasts and those curious about smartphones than an actual buying guide. It's also worth mentioning that the smaller iPhone 13 Pro has the exact same camera hardware as the iPhone 13 Pro Max, so all camera results here apply to that phone as well.
Does the OnePlus 10 Pro support 5G?
OnePlus' newest Android phone is one of the better Android devices of the year, but how about its network support?
The OnePlus 10 Pro is one of the top flagships of 2022 so far, and in North America, it serves as one of the most viable alternatives to Samsung's Galaxy S22 series. To that end, the OnePlus 10 Pro offers almost all the flagship, tip-top smartphone features you'd expect in 2022, including a large 120Hz OLED display that spans virtually the entire face of the device; a high-resolution main camera with respectable sensor size, and fast aperture; plus the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, which as recently as a few weeks ago was the absolute best SoC available in Android (it has since been surpassed by the Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 but don't worry, the SoC here in the OnePlus 10 Pro is still plenty powerful enough.
Xiaomi 12S Ultra Review: Living up to the Ultra hype
The Xiaomi 12S Ultra is the company's most anticipated phone of 2022, and we find in our review that it lives up to the hype. Check it out!
For far too long, Xiaomi has been seen as a brand that made some pretty good, but not great, phones. The draw was that Xiaomi always priced its devices lower than what Huawei or Samsung charged, thus making them appealing for their value-for-money quotient. Xiaomi has done a remarkable job shedding that reputation in the last two years, as it is now seen as a brand that, while still offering great value mid-rangers such as the Xiaomi 12 Lite, is also capable of making absolutely premium flagship phones that can trade blows with, and even beat, the Apples and Samsungs of the world. Anybody who's used last year's Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra won't argue this, and the Xiaomi 12S Ultra continues this hot streak. In a year of mostly iterative smartphone updates so far, the Xiaomi 12S Ultra is a noticeable step up in some very important smartphone areas.
Nothing Phone 1 Review: Good phone, better marketing
Does Nothing's first ever phone live up to the hype? It's a bit complicated. Read our Nothing Phone 1 review to learn more about this device!
I am not sure if this is the case all around the world, but in American sports culture, fans love to argue not just which athlete is better, but also which has been properly rated. The gist is that being good isn't enough, the athlete has to be at least as good or better as the hype bestowed on them (usually by media or apparel companies like Nike). Not living up to the hype results in the dreaded "overrated" moniker, and the athlete usually receives criticism or mockery.
Samsung Galaxy A53 5G vs Google Pixel 6: Battle of the affordable Android phones
The Samsung Galaxy A53 is a quite good 2022 mid-tier phone, how does it fare against a 2021 base model flagship in the Google Pixel 6 Pro?
We here at XDA usually compare smartphones that are in the same tier -- flagship vs flagship, budget vs budget -- but it's worth exploring the idea of an older base model flagship vs a new mid-tier phone, because both are more affordable than the standard top flagship fare, and it's a good gauge to see whether flagship phones hold their status a year on. Today we're taking look at the Samsung Galaxy A53, a mid-tier 2022 phone, against Google's base model 2021 flagship, the Pixel 6.
On the market for a new phone but on a tight budget? Today is a good day to do so as it's Amazon Prime Day! One of the better deals now is the OnePlus N200 on sale for just $179. The OnePlus Nord N200 is a capable entry level phone with 5G support, a 90Hz display and responsive software. For less than $200, you can surely do a lot worse than this phone.
The OnePlus 10 Pro is one of the best Android phones of the year so far, and on this Amazon Prime Day, you can get it for $100 off. After discount, the phone can be had for $799, which puts it quite a bit lower than what Apple and Samsung asks for their top phones, and the OnePlus 10 Pro can honestly keep up with those phones in most categories.
There have been other challengers, but Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 3 is still the best and most polished large screen foldable phone around. If you are someone who use your phone for productivity tasks, the Z Fold 3 is just the most capable device, because it can transform from a 6.2-inch skinny smartphone to a 7.6-inch mini tablet at the blink of an eye.
Xiaomi 12 Lite Review: Good looking compact mid-ranger that gets the job done
The Xiaomi 12 Lite is yet another excellent mid-ranger from a company putting out a lot of phones. Check out our review to know more!
Earlier this week, Xiaomi introduced the Xiaomi 12S series, which as the "S" signifier suggests, is an iterative update to the Xiaomi 12 series that launched back in March. Usually in smartphone land, once a company updates a phone series, the previous line is either discontinued entirely or fades into the background. For example, when Apple released the iPhone 5S, it stopped promoting the iPhone 5. When Huawei launched the Mate XS, it stopped selling the Mate X.
OnePlus 10 Pro vs OnePlus 9 Pro: Do you need to upgrade?
The OnePlus 10 Pro and the OnePlus 9 Pro are really capable flagships that have fairly similar specifications. Do you need to upgrade?
The OnePlus 10 Pro is a very fast and powerful smartphone with a gorgeous 120Hz OLED panel and a polished camera system fine-tuned by Swedish camera maker Hasselblad. You can also say the same about the OnePlus 9 Pro. This year's Android flagships have been about iterative updates and refinements more than significant hardware leaps. Other than the processor -- the OnePlus 10 Pro as expected runs on a newer 2022 Qualcomm chip -- it wouldn't be inaccurate to say most of the hardware has remained the same. So if you are on the market for a new OnePlus flagship, should you get the 2022 OnePlus 10 Pro, or save a bit and go for the 2021 OnePlus 9 Pro?