We check each cellphone in real-world eventualities, specializing in its options, design, efficiency, cameras, battery life and total worth. We doc our findings in an preliminary assessment that’s periodically up to date when there are new software program updates, or to match it in opposition to new telephones from rivals comparable to Apple, Samsung, Google and OnePlus.
Pictures
Pictures is a serious focus for many telephones lately, so we take footage and movies of varied topics in a wide range of settings and lighting eventualities. We check out any new digicam modes, comparable to Motion mode that debuted with the iPhone 14 line, or the Unblur photograph device that launched with the Google Pixel 7 collection.
Battery life
Battery testing is carried out in a wide range of methods. We assess how lengthy a cellphone lasts throughout a typical day of use and word the way it performs throughout extra centered classes of video calls, media streaming and gaming. We additionally conduct a video playback check, as a easy, replicable measure of pure battery life, which is not all the time included within the preliminary assessment however generally added later in an replace.
Efficiency measuring
We use benchmarking apps to measure every cellphone’s efficiency, alongside our personal anecdotal experiences utilizing the cellphone for our assessment. Of word are how graphics and animations look. Are they easy? Or do they lag or stutter? We additionally have a look at how shortly the cellphone switches between horizontal and vertical orientations, and how briskly the digicam app opens and is able to take a photograph.
We carry out processor-heavy duties like enhancing photographs, exporting movies and enjoying video games. We consider whether or not a more moderen model of a selected cellphone consists of sufficient options to make it value upgrading from older fashions.
Learn extra: How we test phones