Phones

An exciting modular idea that was too complex to work, rated a 4/10 fail since it never reached a final product.

Called the worst smartphone ever, with an unpolished OS and laggy typing, rated 7/10 fail.

A $4 phone that was close to fraud, with few orders delivered, rated 8/10 fail.

Especially prone to bending in the Bendgate saga.

The Facebook phone was underwhelming, with features available on better Android phones, earning a 3/10 fail.

A social-media phone missing basic features like an app store, rated a 5/10 fail.

A refined S8 that fixes most of its flaws and adds a dual aperture camera, super slow-mo and better speakers, though it looks very familiar.

A landmark 2011 phone that feels slow, dim and poorly specced in 2018, though its light plastic body and removable battery have some charm.

Average durability, good in the hammer test but hurt by the reverse hammer hit.

Pitched as a life companion loaded with Samsung apps, but it had the first recycled box and a favourite unlock pattern.

Held up remarkably well in the smash tests thanks to its tough plastic build.

The first full-size OnePlus phone with an AMOLED display, and the start of Oxygen OS.

The 5G version of the Plus is mentioned as an interesting extra tier in the Note range.

A light, cheap KaiOS phone that surprisingly handles Maps, YouTube and Google Assistant, and could suit a secondary phone or festival use.

A dummy prototype of the rumoured iPhone 11 whose big square camera put many people off, though some still ranked it above rivals because i…

Used as one of the comparison phones in the design ranking, with several people placing it first.

Used as one of the comparison phones in the design ranking, and often ranked first or second by participants.

A limited edition with camo finish and 12GB RAM that stands out, and is still cheaper than the Asus ROG Phone in the UK.

A bulky but very good value gaming phone with a big battery, fan cooling and strong benchmark scores.

Sony's unboxing video for it, filmed in what looked like a swimming pool, was misleading even if the phone was probably fine.

Its trailer implied selfie quality the phone cannot deliver by showing a DSLR shot, which he says is not what it produces.

His concept of a Tesla-themed Note 10 Pro was never real, but he thinks a Samsung and Tesla limited edition could work well.

The hardware looks ultra premium, but he thinks the Porsche-designed software skin clashes and looks worse.

A budget phone with a slick look whose main strength is easy two-day battery life.