Best Android phones (May 2018)

With Android thoroughly dominating the mobile industry, picking the best Android smartphones is almost synonymous with choosing the best smartphones, period. While Android phones have few real opponents on other platforms, internal competition is incredibly fierce. From sleek devices that impress with premium design, to powerhouses brimming with features, to all-around great devices, and affordable phones that punch above their weight, the Android ecosystem is populated by a staggering variety of attractive phones. But which of them are the best smartphones of 2018?.

“Greatness” is subjective, and sometimes spec sheets and feature lists are not enough to make an idea of how good a phone really is. In this roundup, we’re looking at the absolute best — the Android phones of 2018 you can’t go wrong with.

1. Google Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL

The Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL are Google’s latest and best flagship smartphones, and they’re great at just about everything. They don’t have as many bells or whistles as some of the other entries on this list, but if you’re in the market for a simple Android phone, the Pixel 2 and 2 XL are great options.

The Pixel 2 and 2 XL have 5- and 6-inch OLED displays, front-facing speakers, and top-of-the-line specs under the hood — a Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 processor, 4GB of LPDDR4x RAM, as well as 64 or 128GB of on board storage.

They also have two of the best Android smartphone cameras available. Not only have these phones been named two of the best smartphone cameras on the market according to DxOMark, we found the Pixel 2’s main camera to be incredibly impressive in most situations. There’s even a portrait mode on the front and back cameras, even though the phone doesn’t have a dual-camera setup.

Despite the handful of issues with the Pixel 2 XL’s display, we’d still happily recommend either phone to anyone looking for the best Android phones of 2018 out there.

2. Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9 Plus

he Galaxy S9 is all about refinement. Design, display, photography, and performance were all strong areas for the Galaxy S8 line, and the S9 does all of them better.

The biggest improvements in the Galaxy S9 have to do with the camera. The S9 sports a single Dual Pixel 12MP autofocus sensor with OIS, along with support for two apertures at f/1.5 and f/2.4. This mechanical iris lens is able to switch between apertures depending on the lighting conditions. If you need something even more powerful, the Galaxy S9 comes with a dual-camera setup on the back.

Samsung also included its own creepier version of Apple’s Animoji, called AR Emoji, allowing you to make GIFs and send cartoony videos to your friends.

These are new Samsung smartphone flagships, so it’s no surprise that they feature the most top-of-the-line specs currently available. They come with 5.8- and 6.2-inch Quad HD+ Super AMOLED displays, 4 and 6GB of RAM, 64GB of storage, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and both are powered by either the Exynos 9810 or Snapdragon 845 SoC depending on your region.

3. Huawei P20 Pro

Huawei’s new P20 and P20 Pro are finally here, and they’re both huge steps up from their predecessors. They are the best Android phones coming from China.

For starters, these are some of the most eye-catching devices we’ve see so far. Both models are available in a few different colors, but the P20 Pro comes in a unique twilight edition that features a glossy blue-to-purple gradient that changes tone depending on the lighting condition. That’s not the only reason the P20 Pro will be a head-turner, either. The higher-end model comes with three rear-facing cameras at 20, 8, and 40MP. The 20 and 40MP cameras do lack OIS, but Huawei says its AI-assisted stabilization will make up for users’ shaky hands.

These are Huawei’s first 2018 flagships, so both phones have some killer under-the-hood specifications, too. The P20 comes with a 5.8-inch Full HD+ LCD display, 4GB of RAM, and a 3,400mAh battery, while the P20 Pro sports a 6.1-inch Full HD+ OLED display, 6GB of RAM, and a 4,000mAh battery. Both devices are powered by Huawei’s Kirin 970 SoC, which can also be found in the Mate 10 and Mate 10 Pro.

4. Samsung Galaxy Note 8After a controversial 2016, Samsung’s Galaxy Note line is back in full force. With top-of-the-line specs, a stunning design, a dual-camera setup, and new software features, the Galaxy Note 8 is still one of the best Android phones you can buy right now.The Note 8’s near-bezel-less 6.3-inch Quad HD+ Infinity Display with an 18.5:9 aspect ratio is one of our favorite parts about this phone. DisplayMate agrees with us too. It’s big — maybe too big for some people — but at least the company puts that screen to good use. There’s a new App Pairing feature that allows you to open up two favorited apps in multi-window at the same time, and there are a few new S Pen features that will satisfy the stylus users out there.What’s more, the dual-camera setup on the back performs incredibly well. While picture quality isn’t a huge step up from what we saw on the Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus, the extra 12MP sensor with OIS allows you to take clear, concise photos and impressive bokeh shots in just about any situation.

No, it’s not perfect, but no phone is. Samsung’s fingerprint sensor placement on the Note 8 is still super annoying (luckily it’s been fixed with the S9), and this phone is expensive. If those things don’t matter to you though, the Note 8 might be the right phone for you. Check out our full review below!

5.LG V30

The V30 is the current flagship Android phone from LG, which has been struggling to compete, at least in sales, with its biggest Android rival Samsung. It is also the successor to 2016’s LG V20, which included a secondary 2.1-inch screen on top for showing  app shortcuts, media controls, and more. The V30 does away with that secondary display, and instead has one nearly bezel-free 6-inch screen, using LG’s new Plastic OLED (pOLED) panel. LG offers a slide-out menu on the phone’s display (called the Floating Bar) that floats around the screen as a substitute (sort for) for folks who might miss the secondary display.

In terms of hardware specs, the LG V30 has everything you would expect from a flagship phone in early 2018. It has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 with 4GB RAM, along with 64GB of onboard storage, a 3,300mAh battery, and a IP68 dust and water resistance rating. LG is heavily promoting the advanced camera and photography features on the V30, too. It has a dual rear camera that includes a 16MP sensor with a f/1.6 aperture, along with a 13MP sensor with a f/1.9 aperture. The rear camera has a Crystal Clear Lens instead of plastic, which should mean you should get more realistic looking photos with the V30. Video creators should have fun with software features like Cine Video, which allows users to quickly put in video effects, along with Point Zoom, which will let