Best iPhone
Apple iPhone 6
The one to beat last year, Apple’s iPhone 6 is still one of the most popular handsets you can find, and there are great reasons as to why that’s the case.
For starters, it is very thin, offering a 6.9mm thickness with a 4.7 inch display, metal body, and a feeling that suggests it is a very, very well made device.
There’s also a fair amount of speed underneath, Apple’s typical attention to detail on the camera, and an operating system that offers one of the biggest selection of apps and games out there.
While the battery could do with a bit of a boost, its one day of life is pretty standard across mobiles.
We still like the iPhone 6 a lot, for what it’s worth, and while the 6 Plus is a nice model also, the regular 6 — the smaller of the two — is our favourite of the iPhone 6 duo.
Best iPhone clone
Samsung Galaxy S6
If you show the Samsung Galaxy S6 to anyone who has seen the iPhone 6, the first thing they’ll think of, and the first thing they’ll say is “iPhone”, and that’s because this year, the flat edition of the Galaxy S6 looks so much like an iPhone, you’d think they came from the same factory.
They don’t, and they run on completely different operating systems, but they do look very similar.
As to performance, the S6 is a very well made and exceptionally fast little phone, with a speed 4G connection, top screen, and a camera that rates as one of the best.
And yes, it does happen to look like an iPhone, but if you’re not into Apple and still admit that the design of the iPhone is lovely, this is the phone to check out.
Best iPhone clone when you’re cheap (and willing to admit it)
ZTE Blade S6
Everyone knows the iPhone isn’t cheap, and the flat edition of the Galaxy S6 may look pretty much exactly like an iPhone 6, but it’s a top tier phone, so it’s not going to be easy on the wallet either.
ZTE’s oddly named Blade S6, however, now that’s cheap, and it kind of looks like the iPhone as well.
Unfortunately, this one also feels as cheap as it looks and even occasionally crashes, but it’s worth checking out simply because it performs well most of the time and only carries a $299 price tag for a surprisingly well spec’d 5 inch mobile handset.
Best Windows Phone until Windows 10 arrives
Nokia Lumia 830
Microsoft may own the “Lumia” name, but the best devices to come out in the past six months featuring that branding have still come from Nokia, as Microsoft has only pushed out budget-minded handsets.
They’re not bad, mind you, but if you’re after a Windows Phone that looks good and offers upgradeability, we’d be looking at the Lumia 830, at least until Microsoft gets its act together and shows us how Windows 10 is going to look on a new flagship product.
We haven’t seen a flagship Windows Phone for quite some time, so we’re all just sitting and waiting for Microsoft to reveal all, but if you have to have Windows Phone now, the 830 is the one to consider, especially since you can get the beta of Windows 10 running on this handset quite easily.
Best phone that none of your friends will have
Motorola X (2014)
One of the choices from last year that definitely gets our attention, the Moto X packs in a lovely 5.2 inch screen, metal casing, and the choice of plastic, leather, or wood for a backing material.
Motorola also gets points for some of the nifty bonus features only Moto delivers on, such as a fairly pure edition of Android complete with Google Now launcher, some of the quickest update rollouts you’ll find from any manufacturer, and the super cool animated 360 degree immersive adventures known as “Spotlight Stories”.
We wish Motorola would have included upgradeable memory with this phone, because it so desperately needs it, but if you’re one wish is to have a phone that makes you stand out from your group of friends, the Moto X is one we can’t imagine many Australians will have. Get it in wood or leather, and the available numbers drop even more.
Best phone of last year
Sony Xperia Z3
Sony’s last phone for 2014 might be over six months old, but it’s still a solid entry, boasting a build that makes it durable and resistant to water, which is something few other phones can compete with.
There’s so much to like about this handset, too, from the upgradeable storage to the fantastic 20 megapixel camera, the battery capable of getting two days of life, and even the ability to control a PlayStation 4 with it.
Yeah, we still like this phone, and six months on, it was still working like a treat, upgraded to support the latest version of Android, too.
It might even have dropped its price since the release last year, and that can only be a good thing.
