Have A Look At The Best Smartphones And Accessories Of 2022: In terms of smartphones, this year was a strong one. We’ve chosen our top smartphones and accessories from this year’s releases since 2022 is coming to an end and 2023 is just around the corner.
We’ve got a little bit of everything here, from fantastic flagship devices like the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra to the utterly insane Xiaomi 12S Ultra. We at XDA have examined nearly every smartphone introduced this year, so we paused to think and asked each of our writers to name their top picks for the upcoming year, 2022.
Best Overall Smartphone: Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra is our choice for the smartphone of the year, provided that it is the Snapdragon model. It’s difficult to award that phone the phone of the year title because we encountered various issues with our Exynos unit that continue to bother us today.
The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, on the other hand, is free of these issues thanks to its Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor.
A very extravagant camera system with a mind-blowing 108MP sensor, together with 3x and 10x zoom telephoto sensors, is included in the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra.
This is not only the finest smartphone of the year but also the best business smartphone of the year because you also get a top-of-the-line display and an S Pen for taking notes. If you have an unlocked variation, you’ll also receive updates rapidly.
It was simple to choose the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra as our top option because it’s really challenging to criticize this device in general.
Best Affordable Smartphone: Poco F4
The $400 Poco F4 from Xiaomi has a Snapdragon 870 SoC, a 120Hz OLED screen covered with Gorilla Glass 5, outstanding haptics, fantastic stereo speakers, and a reliable camera setup.
It would be difficult for the ordinary consumer to identify that this is a “cheap phone” save from the absence of a dedicated zoom lens and the plastic back. The main drawback is that this phone doesn’t sell in the United States, making it difficult for American shoppers to obtain this bargain king.
Best Smartphone Camera: Xiaomi 12S Ultra
The importance of camera software has been overemphasized in recent years, but while software image processing will undoubtedly determine how good a mobile camera is in 2022, hardware will still play a significant role. And the Xiaomi 12S Ultra currently undoubtedly has the best camera hardware available.
Sony’s “1-inch” IMX989 sensor was originally introduced in the 12S Ultra, and unlike Sharp’s implementation a few months later, Xiaomi did not at all crop its sensor.
The Xiaomi main camera sensor is enormous compared to the sensors in other smartphones, and since it can catch more light information, this results in stunning, virtually DSLR-level quality photographs, even though the 1-inch sensor doesn’t actually measure 1 inch broad. Other lenses for the 12S Ultra aren’t as spectacular, but they’re still good pieces of equipment.
All of this, of course, would be irrelevant if Xiaomi’s software imaging was subpar, which is luckily not the case. Xiaomi’s computational photography prowess is sufficient to defeat both the Pixel 7 Pro, which has superior hardware but inferior software, and the Vivo X80 Pro, which also combines superb hardware and software, while not being quite as frighteningly intelligent as Google’s software.
The Xiaomi 12S Ultra is the year’s greatest camera phone, albeit it was close.
Best Gaming Smartphone: Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro
The Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro ought to be your first choice if you enjoy playing games on your smartphone. It’s ideal in a lot of different ways. It is quick, has outstanding battery life, and offers a large selection of peripherals. There is even a headphone jack, and performance is unmatched.
Of course, the Asus ROG Phone 6 Pro excels at all of that if you want to use your smartphone for, well, smartphone-related activities. Even though it’s the poorest component of the whole package, the camera isn’t all that horrible. You can’t go wrong with this incredible phone if you want the finest phone for gaming (and one of the best phones overall).
Best True Wireless Earbuds: AirPods Pro 2
Even if you don’t use an iPhone, the AirPods Pro 2 are the best wireless earbuds for the majority of people. The AirPods Pro 2 are some of the best-sounding earbuds we’ve ever heard at XDA thanks to four silicon ear tips (most other earbuds only offer three), a new H2 chip that can handle active noise cancelation, and updated audio drivers.
In terms of active noise cancellation, it is second only to the uncanny Bose QuietComfort EarBuds 2, which didn’t make the list since the AirPods Pro 2 has a superior transparency mode and other capabilities like Spatial Audio.
These characteristics are what set Apple’s earphones apart. Even if you don’t use an iPhone, you can still get a pair. According to our tests, the AirPods Pro 2 connects to Windows or Android smartphones without a problem. While you do not receive some specific features, such as Spatial Audio, you do get the best transparency mode, as well as excellent ANC and audio quality.
Best Smartwatch: Apple Watch Ultra
Since several years ago, the Apple Watch has been the greatest smartwatch, largely because of the hardware/software integration and the app ecosystem.
We would still have to choose the Apple Watch again this year, even though Samsung and Google introduced excellent competitors. This is especially true considering that Apple essentially dumped the kitchen sink on the Apple Watch Ultra.
For mountaineers, deep sea divers, endurance athletes, and others who don’t spend their days in front of a laptop screen, this new watch has functions that are intended to make life easier. Even those of us at XDA who are not any of these things may appreciate the appeal.
The screen is larger and brighter, making it simpler to read even at a distance or in the brightest sunlight. Because of its tank-like construction, you won’t worry if you unintentionally bang your wrist against a table edge. Finally, battery life has been improved.
The Apple Watch Ultra is unquestionably the greatest wristwatch available, especially when you take into account the superior Apple Watch app ecosystem and security features like the capacity to detect auto accidents. Of course, at $799, it is pretty pricey.
Conclusion
2022 was a successful year for mobile in general. Even while neither Samsung nor Apple really reinvented the smartphone, they both improved their top models.
Xiaomi brought significant features that the industry can’t ignore, and the wristwatch market advanced with the introduction of a Google watch in addition to high-end models from Apple and Samsung.
We believe 2023 will be more interesting as more companies introduce foldably, some even worldwide, and as more Android flagships incorporate the 1-inch sensor. It’s possible that Samsung will use a 200MP camera on its Ultra flagship as well, which would mark yet another advancement in mobile camera technology.
In the meantime, Apple and Google will keep enhancing their silicon for better performance and hardware/software integration.
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