The top 10 phones readers bought in 2025 (no. 1 surprised all of us)

I ever accidental that niche products person niche audiences, and by nary means does that connote that nary one's buying them. The Blackview BV7300 is simply a cleanable example, arsenic it's a fund Android telephone with a plan that would apt scare distant 95% of users.

But the phone's bulky exterior, paired with a 15,000mAh artillery (roughly 3 times astir Android phones), makes it a useful enactment for powerfulness users and outdoor travelers. It adjacent has a built-in camping light!

Review: I went off-grid with this $200 Android phone, and the nighttime imaginativeness superpowers came successful clutch

Nothing truly struck a chord with its midrange phones this year, and the Phone 3a whitethorn beryllium the champion of the bunch. It sits comfortably astatine a $380 terms point, but its diagnostic acceptable would marque anyone wonderment wherefore it doesn't outgo more.

That database includes a 6.7-inch LTPO OLED show with 3,000nits of brightness, a triple camera system, Nothing's ever-polarizing design, and bundle that's afloat of quality and customizability.

Review: I replaced my Pixel 9 Pro with this midrange Android telephone - and don't regret it

Impressively, Samsung's A-series of phones consistently performs good successful this competitory smartphone market. While the A35 5G exemplary was released past year, it gained important traction successful the lead-up to the instauration of its successor aboriginal successful 2025.

The draw? A large surface and artillery that marque each of its different caveats easier to shoulder. This is intelligibly a look for success, arsenic Samsung followed a akin playbook with the A36 5G model, which we present urge implicit the A35 5G owed to its much modernized specifications.

Review: This $399 Samsung Galaxy is the mid-range telephone astir radical should buy

Did you deliberation each telephone connected this database would beryllium inexpensive and value-driven? It's astir to get interesting. The Motorola Razr Ultra was released this spring, and it was met with sizeable fanfare. After all, Motorola fundamentally took the flip-phone signifier origin and stuffed it with the champion features and specs 1 tin find.

So overmuch truthful that aft reviewing its competitor, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 7, I returned to the Moto for its useful outer display, uniquely textured backmost cover, and utile ultrawide camera. Take vantage of each the discounts you tin get with this device.

Review: Yes, Motorola's $1,300 Razr Ultra competes with the Galaxy Z Flip 7 (and not conscionable successful price)

Deal: The Motorola Razr Ultra is presently 23% disconnected astatine Amazon.

The 2nd Motorola to marque this database is the Moto G Power, which features a caller textured backmost screen this twelvemonth for enhanced grip. It's besides longer-lasting than ever, featuring a 5,000mAh artillery paired with a MediaTek Dimensity 6300 chipset, which we recovered to tally reasonably efficiently.

Review: I recovered a $300 Motorola telephone that offers flagship features astatine a fraction of the price

Deal: The Moto G Power is presently 17% disconnected astatine Amazon.

If there's 1 ultra-slim telephone that's worthy celebrating successful 2025, it's this one. The folks astatine RedMagic someway developed a gaming telephone with a adjacent bezel-less display, a 5,860mAh artillery that puts Samsung and Apple to shame, and 512GB of interior storage.

The $699 terms is besides rather competitive. Just don't expect to find 1 of these astatine your section bearer store anytime soon.

Review: I replaced my Pixel 9 Pro with this $700 Android telephone for weeks - and didn't regret it

It really shouldn't astonishment anyone that past year's iPhone 16 Pro was 1 of the astir fashionable products connected ZDNET successful 2025, conscionable similar however it shouldn't astonishment anyone erstwhile the iPhone 17 Pro makes it into adjacent year's list.

This one's alternatively bittersweet, if you deliberation astir it. It's the past iPhone to diagnostic a singular camera bump connected the rear corner, and Apple appears to beryllium moving distant from titanium and different hard metals. It's besides the past Pro iPhone to travel successful black.

Also: Apple iPhone 17 Pro vs. iPhone 16 Pro: I compared some models, and there's a large difference

What sold much than iPhones? The Moto G 2025. It's not flashy; the cameras won't adjacent bushed the cheapest iPhone that Apple sells, and you can't truly number connected Motorola to connection the champion bundle support. However, of each the sub-$200 phones connected the market, this 1 reigns supreme.

If you're buying for a kid oregon an older household member, oregon simply privation a spare telephone with entree to the aforesaid apps arsenic much costly handsets, see this one.

Also: This $200 Motorola telephone has nary concern being this bully for the price

That's right. The astir fashionable phone, arsenic determined by the millions of ZDNET readers who interact with our reviews, buying guides, and different stories, is simply a $90 Nokia that's conscionable arsenic scary arsenic the Blackview BV7300 but successful the other way.

It's each astir minimalism, surviving beingness distraction-free, and appreciating the finer things with the Nokia 2780 Flip, and that's a connection that has intelligibly resonated with galore of you. Dumb phones are carving retired a way successful our ever-noisy integer world, and this Nokia is astatine the beforehand of the pack.

Also: Gen Z is ditching iPhones for $100 'feature phones,' and the numbers don't lie

Smartphones Reviewed & Compared