With so many telephones available on the market, how will you realize which one is finest for you? After all, it’s essential know who to show to. That is why at Android Central, we have now tried and true methods to check Android telephones to make sure high quality opinions that let you know the data it’s essential know to make an knowledgeable determination.
Whether or not which means testing the battery utilizing the telephone Regular methods – and which means we do not depend on customary software program simply to make claims for battery life – or see how good this nice new digital camera is in opposition to the competitors, our purpose is to make use of the most recent Android telephones to actually Methods that can assist you perceive why the telephone is working (or not working) in your life-style. Labs are nice, however we expect actual life is best.
High quality design and construct
Lately, most telephones look just about the identical. Most of them are the identical tall and rectangular form with an identical facet ratio – normally between 18:9 and 21:9 – so what to do? actually Differentiate between any of those gadgets? Principally the sorts of supplies used. Is that this a “metallic and glass sandwich”, or is it a polycarbonate design?
Does the telephone have good rounded corners that really feel snug to carry, or are these corners like packing containers and uncomfortable to carry? How concerning the hump of the digital camera within the again? Some gadgets have an enormous digital camera hump aligned to the facet that makes the telephone sway on the desk, whereas others attempt to keep away from this annoying drawback.
After all, you even have to think about who the telephone is designed for. Telephones designed particularly for gaming might have drivers constructed into the facet or a bodily fan on the system to assist present a extra reasonable gaming expertise. Different telephones might have a built-in stylus, whereas different telephones might have foldable screens or different distinctive options. We perceive that these telephones aren’t one thing everybody buys, and ensure you perceive that too!
Present
Show expertise has superior considerably prior to now three years, and we’re at some extent the place even price range telephones have 90Hz or 120Hz panels. So once we take a look at telephones, we all the time set the display to the best refresh fee and determination. Our testing consists of three metrics: shade vibrancy, common brightness, and dynamic refresh. We do not focus an excessive amount of on Delta E hues or sRGB shade gamut, however as a substitute depend on how the display feels in real-world use.
So, we put telephones right into a collection of on a regular basis eventualities that embrace informal and demanding gaming, social media scrolling, and video streaming to gauge their multimedia tolerance. We additionally take a look at DRM safety and see if the telephones have the Widevine degree wanted to play HD content material on the likes of Netflix, YouTube, Prime Video and different streaming companies.
efficiency
Innovation within the cell semiconductor sector continues at a fast tempo, annually making vital positive factors in efficiency and effectivity. Though we don’t stress the outcomes of artificial standards, we use some exams to measure qualitative efficiency throughout completely different segments and generations. These exams embrace Geekbench, 3DMark, and CrossMark.
Nearly all of our efficiency exams contain actual use, and we flip to intense video games to see if the chipset can keep visible constancy whereas delivering a clean, lag-free expertise. Thermal administration is the most important problem affecting cell SoC efficiency, so we take a look at to see if the telephone heats up throughout extended gaming periods.
Our testing consists of connectivity, so we measure Wi-Fi and 5G throughput to see if the telephone delivers speeds as marketed. We additionally take a look at Bluetooth reliability by connecting telephones to a lot of wi-fi earbuds, and measuring connectivity and stability.
battery
With extra environment friendly cell chips and bigger batteries, most telephones lately simply final a full day. Though there are take a look at suites designed to show off the battery and supply utilization figures, we imagine the easiest way to check battery life is to make use of the telephone as you do.
That is why our battery take a look at consists of utilizing the telephone as a every day driver and measuring how a lot display time you give. We break down what that on a regular basis use entails – whether or not it is gaming, streaming movies, or scrolling by way of social media – to offer you a complete overview of the battery life you’ll be able to anticipate from the system.
We’ve an identical methodology for testing transport requirements. If the telephone has a charger included, we use that to measure how lengthy it takes the system to totally cost when plugged right into a wall outlet. For telephones with no charger, we use the choice really helpful by the producer. So if the telephone can cost as much as 45W by way of USB PD, we take a look at it with a PD charger that may ship that a lot energy.
We drain the battery to zero earlier than beginning and use a USB energy meter to make sure the telephone will get the voltage as indicated by the producer. Then we measure two metrics: how lengthy it takes to succeed in 50% and the way lengthy it takes to totally cost.
cameras
Telephones lately have an array of cameras and rely closely on machine studying algorithms to ship beautiful pictures in difficult conditions. We take a look at cameras in a wide range of environments to gauge how effectively they’ll stand up to difficult eventualities, and evaluate these outcomes to different telephones in the identical class.
We don’t set up GCam or third occasion options to check the digital camera. As a substitute, we use the producer’s digital camera app – so the pictures and movies we take are indicative of what the telephone might be as much as you.
We take a look at all obtainable taking pictures modes and auxiliary cameras to offer qualitative outcomes to the overall imaging system and share detailed suggestions on our outcomes. We’re not simply saying that the newer flagship is best than its predecessor; We present you the way a lot the generational enchancment is.
On the finish of the day, total digital camera high quality is usually the deciding issue when upgrading to a brand new telephone, so we take a look at cameras extensively that can assist you make an knowledgeable determination.
set diploma
The tip result’s the sum of all metrics, together with show, efficiency, battery life, cameras, and software program updates. Worth can be a key issue, so we take pricing under consideration and measure whether or not the telephone provides you good worth for what you pay or whether or not it is too costly.
Telephones that rating a 4 out of 5 have a high-quality display, top-notch efficiency, all-day battery life, cameras that take nice footage in any scenario, and not less than two assured Android model updates. Units that rating 4.5 out of 5 are normally finest in school, providing distinctive options and long-term software program updates.
For extra info on Assessment Awards and our crew of reviewers, ensure to check out our broader information on How we take a look at and evaluation on Android Central.