Stuff Gadget Awards 2012 – Smartphone of the Year shortlist
This year has been a strong one for smartphones, as evidenced by this incredible collection – one of which will bag Stuff's 2013 Smartphone of the Year award!
Apple iPhone 5
£530 apple.com/uk
Its mapping issues are well publicised, but there’s no doubting that Apple has once again delivered a stupendous piece of hardware. It’s an evolution rather than a revolution, but the iPhone 5’s camera, screen, build quality and processing power are something to behold. And finally, it’s 4G!
Read our review
HTC One X
£480 htc.com/uk
The best high end Android phone? It’s debatable, but there are certainly areas where the One X blows away its rivals: the screen quality is stunning, the minimalist design alluring and the camera delightfully quick off the mark.
Read our review
Samsung Galaxy SIII
£520 samsung.com/uk
Combining great form with near-perfect function, Samsung’s flagship handset is truly special – it packs in bags of power, innovative software, easily expandable storage and marathon battery life.
Read our review
Sony Xperia S
£450 sony.co.uk
Although it predates the current crop of super-phones, Sony’s first smartphone since its split with Ericsson is a worthy contender in its own right – it’s powerful, compact and well-equipped (packing in NFC smarts and that 12MP camera).
Read our review
LG Optimus 4X HD
£400 lg.com/uk
LG may not be the first name that springs to mind when you think of top class smartphones, but if it keeps turning out handsets like this, that’ll change. The 4X HD’s quad-core power and razor-sharp 720p screen make it yet another high-end Android phone worthy of your wallet’s contents.
Read our review
HTC One V
£250 htc.com/uk
It’s not always about ultra-pricey flagship phones – sometimes what’s needed is something a little easier on the bank balance. And when it comes to budget models, the One V is right up there, thanks to its classy build, screen and camera.
Read our review
Nokia Lumia 800
£440 nokia.com
Nokia came back in a big way with its Lumia Windows 7 phones, and while the 900 was more powerful, it was the 800 which grabbed our attention: compact and with a beautiful yet tough polycarbonate body, it shows what Microsoft can do when partnered with great hardware.
Read our review
Motorola RAZR i
£350 motorola.com
A tough cookie crafted from kevlar and aluminium, the Android-powered RAZR i is nicely pocketable despite its large screen – and benefits from being significantly more affordable than most of its rivals.
Read our review
Check out the Stuff Gadget Awards 2012 – and don't forget to come back on November 1st, when we'll be announcing the winners!
Comments
sy2pie
29 weeks ago
Thats a tough one.
sy2pie
29 weeks ago
Id says its pretty unfair to put the xperia s in there considering its a previous generation. Especially since its been put at £450 which is ludicrous. Its much cheaper than that. Id recommend putting the xperia t in there instead as its got the new processor innards, its this generation and its dual core processor keeps up with the quad cores. Since you probably wont change it on my wording ill put my 2 cent in for the poor ol xperia s.
The xperia s is the best value for money. It has access to the new playstation store which has lots of possibilities (especially when its synced up wireless to a ps3 pad and connected to a hd tv via hdmi cable). Its also got nfc which is pretty much the future...even though the I phone lacks this.
Its got a cracking camera too. I know its not all about megapixels but the xperia s has exmor sensor which is really useful in low light conditions. Especially since the mobile phone industry has abandoned xenon flash for led. So it ticks the box for best camera in snooker halls, night clubs and pubs with low lighting. It also takes a picture in 1.5 seconds which is handy if your trying to catch a photo of your kids running about like crazy or your mate doing something drunken and embarrassing lol.
The s3 is a good bet but its very expensive (especially when you add insurance too) and has no access to the playstation store (which is probably a big deal considering this is a lads site). Its got pretty much everything you could want in a phone otherwise. Though its Super Amoled screen gives quite unnatural colours and suffers from screen burn. Its also got the worst camera out the lot but tbh its not really a difference youd notice in day to day practise.
Also the s3 seems to get the latest android update the quickest if your that bothered about bragging lol