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The segment of premium smartphones has been dominated by Samsung and Apple for nearly half a century. A few years ago, however, we saw a slight change, with Vivo bringing more premium products to India and the Google Pixel series returning to the country after a three-year hiatus with the Pixel 7 and Pixel 7 Pro. This year's Sack-a-Block of premium smartphone brands offers consumers a variety of devices and design elements. In addition to premium offers from OnePlus and Vivo, Oppo has also returned to the premium segment with the Find X8 and Find X8 Pro smartphones. Google has also decided to bring all its smartphones to India this year, including its most expensive device, the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. Whether it's folding book-shaped models, folding clamshell smartphones or traditional stick-shaped smartphones, in 2024 there will be enough choice in the premium segment to fit a long list of station wagons. But just because they are expensive, we don't necessarily recommend them to everyone. That's why we offer our readers a short list (not in order) of the best smartphones of 2024. Every phone has something special that makes it stand out from the rest. So if you want to ring in the New Year by buying a new smartphone, read this guide before you take the plunge.

Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max:

The Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max claims to be Apple's first iPhone range designed from the ground up for Apple's smarts, and features some interesting upgrades. Not only is it physically larger than previous models, but it also features a larger screen with ultra-thin bezels, all-new camera control buttons, improved battery life, and some new camera and video tricks. We don't know if Apple will standardize the new camera control button on all iPhones in the future. But Apple certainly isn't afraid to add more buttons to the iPhone if it offers additional functionality. In our test, Apple's iPhone 16 Pro Max impressed us with its excellent performance, first-class display, image processing performance and battery life, even though it looked and felt very similar to last year's model. Although it's still relatively slow to load, Apple Intelligence is expected to finally be available to everyone next year, hopefully keeping pace with Google's AI advances.

Apple iPhone 16:

Despite some hardware shortcomings, such as slow charging and a fixed 60Hz display, the Apple iPhone 16 is a good choice for those looking to upgrade from an older, non-Pro iPhone model. The display and software might not be as smooth compared to the iPhone 15, but Apple has taken a big step and added a new processor (the Apple A18, which replaces the high-end A18 Pro). Just as good as the new Pro models. Apple has been using the processor of last year's Pro model in its new non-Pro iPhones for several years. This year, it's not limited to its chipset, but also gets a new camera control button, as well as various Apple smart functions and image editing functions (some of which will be available next year). We received an iPhone 16 Plus model for testing and were impressed with its native performance, camera performance and battery life. The camera quality is better than the previous model.

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra:

The Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra doesn't differ much from last year's model, but there are some quality improvements under the hood. The bright screen reduces reflections and is suitable for viewing content outdoors. The camera has been improved, but we don't really like the change from the 10x telephoto camera (on the Galaxy S23 Ultra) to the 5x camera. Like other Galaxy devices, this device also comes with artificial intelligence features under Samsung's Galaxy AI brand. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset ensures this experience. Samsung's optimizations aside, this chip is a better choice than the Exynos chips the brand uses in its Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24 Plus models. In our test we found the loading speed to be rather slow, but it offers seven years of software and security updates. Overall, it's a big phone, but it offers the essentials and has great battery life.

Motorola Razr 50 Ultra:

Motorola Razr 50 Ultra has the best folding design. It takes design to the extreme and offers premium features such as IP protection and wireless charging. We continue to love floating cameras built into displays with large, narrow bezels. The phone is also slimmer and thinner than the previous model. During testing, we found that there were no performance issues and the phone handled the heat well during video recording. The cover design and software are excellent. All of Motorola's improved camera (compared to the previous model), faster wired charging, and finally, a battery that lasts all day without a problem.

Vivo X Fold 3 Pro:

Vivo's X Fold 3 Pro is one of the best book-style folding designs we've seen this year. It features a larger (and slightly taller) screen, making it one of the smartest designs: for watching movies. The design is also very slim, and although the camera protrusion is thicker than the camera module on Google's Pixel 9 Pro Fold or Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 6, it makes up for it in camera performance. The Vivo FunTouch OS had some issues when we tested this smartphone, but the latest version with Android 15 fixes many bugs and adds some AI features. When it comes to battery life, Vivo's foldable device not only lasts more than a day, but it also charges very quickly at 100W, well above all other devices in the segment, making it a stick device's flagship product

Google Pixel 9 Pro XL:

Google has always had performance issues with its Pixel Pro series of smartphones. This year, the Pixel 9 Pro XL gets several updates with the new Tensor G4 chipset, but it also has a vapor chamber cooling system that solves all the heating problems of the Pixel 7 Pro and Pixel 8 Pro series. Even when using the camera, the Pixel 9 Pro XL performs well so far and is easy to recommend to anyone looking for a premium smartphone with clean software and great cameras. We found that the new Tensor G4 SoC includes many new AI features and significantly speeds up existing ones. Video Boost, first introduced on the Pixel 8 Pro, now works much better on the Pixel 9 Pro models, delivering impressively stable and clear low-light video capture. However, you need to wait for the cloud processing to finish. So get ready for that. AI tricks aside, the Google Pixel 9 Pro XL is one of the best.

Oppo Find X8:

Oppo's Find X8 Pro didn't make the list, but the smaller Find There are only a handful of premium compact flagships in India, but Oppo's Find I like the design, which is simple and elegant with a flat screen (with a thin bezel) and smooth sides. It has a powerful processor that handles everything from gaming to image processing with ease. This camera is very good for the asking price and with features like IP69 rating, 50W wireless charging and 80W wired charging, it should quickly be at the top of the list if you're looking for a reasonably compact flagship.

Realme GT 7 Pro:

Realme has always stood out with its unmatched price-quality ratio. The Realme GT Pro series returns to the premium segment after a long hiatus, but like the previous GT Pro model, it offers a good price-performance ratio. If you're interested in performance, you've come to the right place: the Realme GT 7 Pro offers the latest and greatest from Qualcomm at an affordable price. This thing and the GT7 Pro seem to be moving away from the boring designs that have plagued Realme flagships in the past. While we tested the Chinese version of the phone with a significantly larger 6,500mAh battery, Realme claims the 5,800mAh device offers better battery life and charging speeds. Camera performance is pretty decent, which is good as previous models have been a bit lacking in this area.

OnePlus 12:

The OnePlus 12 is one of the easiest smartphones in the premium segment to recommend due to its price and features. It has a lot of power and offers software that is tuned and optimized for the use of high-resolution displays. Aside from the smooth software experience, the camera is also excellent. Fast wired charging and a recent software update offer some useful AI features. The only catch is that the OnePlus 13 is currently shipping to India. 13 has proven to be a valuable alternative, so we recommend keeping it.

Vivo X200 Pro:

While Oppo launched the Find X8 Pro, Vivo launched its flagship X200 Pro in India in late 2024, which came as a bit of a surprise. The phone has a 3nm MediaTek processor which is powerful enough for everyday tasks. It is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite processor, which is also available in other high-end flagships. Vivo's main focus with the X series has always been camera performance, and this year is no exception. The phone takes photos with excellent color reproduction that remain consistent in all shooting situations. The star of the show is the 200-megapixel telephoto lens, which provides excellent magnification beyond the native 3.9x optical zoom. This year, the collaboration with Zeiss goes even further as the optics aim to create a Zeiss-calibrated color display for its Zeiss-branded cameras.