Whether you celebrate Thanksgiving or not, Black Friday has turned into a global event. Here’s an early look at what this year has in store for us.
Motorola launched the Edge 40 Neo a few months after the regular Edge 40. Strangely, the price of the newer model is falling quicker – not that we’re complaining. This sub-€300 phone has a curved 6.55” 144Hz 10-bit display (FHD+ resolution) and a Dimensity 7030 chipset. It is rated IP68 and comes in a selection of Pantone colors. It has a 50MP main camera (1/1.5, OIS) and a 13MP ultra wide, plus a 5,000mAh battery with 68W charging.
The regular Motorola Edge 40 is a slightly better phone – at least that used to be the case, when their prices were close together. You get the Dimensity 820 chipset instead and the battery gains 15W wireless charging, though it loses capacity too (it’s down to 4,400mAh). At these prices, going for the Neo over the Edge 40 is a no-brainer.
If you’re looking for something more upscale, the Motorola Edge 40 Pro is equipped with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and a curved 6.67” 165Hz 10-bit display. It has a 50MPP main (1/1.55”, OIS), 50MP ultra wide and even a 12MP 2x portrait camera. The 4,600mAh battery isn’t big, but it supports 125W fast wired charging (it got to 83% in 15 minutes in our tests), there’s also 15W wireless charging for when you want to go slow.
The Xiaomi Poco F5 is a fan-favorite for a reason – namely, the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 is one of the best mid-range chips we’ve seen. The 6.67” 120Hz 12-bit display is nothing to sneeze at, either. The battery has 5,000mAh capacity and 67W fast charging.
Once again there is a Pro model that does it better. It upgrades the 12-bit display to QHD+ resolution (up from FHD+) and the chipset to a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1. Also, the battery gets 160mAh more capacity and gains 30W wireless charging support. Alas, the camera is not upgraded. There’s also a 64MP main camera (a small 1/2” sensor, but it does have OIS), plus an 8MP ultra wide.
The Nothing Phone (2) is the company’ second phone and its first with a flagship chip – even if it is the older Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1. It went with a larger 6.7” FHD+ 120Hz LTPO display and a larger 4,700mAh battery with 45W wired and 15W wireless charging.
By “larger” we mean compared to its predecessor, the Nothing Phone (1). It’s some €240 cheaper and has the same camera – 50MP main (1/1.56”, OIS) and 50MP 114° ultra wide. It has a smaller 6.55” 120Hz non-LTPO OLED display and the less performant Snapdragon 778G+. The 4,500mAh battery inside does 33W wired and 15W wireless charging. While not as capable as the Phone (2), this one offers better value for your money.
The one-two theme continues with Samsung. The Galaxy A54 and A34 are perhaps boring picks – they are from a familiar brand, with a proven track record in software support (these two will get 4 OS updates and 5 years of security patches), plus they hover just above the €300 mark. For a head to head comparison, check out our A34 vs. A54 post.
Next up, the Motorola Moto G84 and Moto G54. Both are 5G phones with 6.5” 120Hz displays – a 10-bit OLED for the G84 and an IPS LCD for the G54, so pick your poison. Both have similar cameras with 50MP mains (with a larger sensor on the G84), but neither can record 4K video. There’s also an 8MP ultra-wide on the back. The G84 has the larger battery, 6,000mAh vs. 5,000mAh, and is powered by a Dimensity 7020 instead of the Snapdragon 695 of the G84. Naturally, the G54 is a bit cheaper.
The Sony Xperia 5 V is falling in price but is still rather pricey. The Mark 4 is cheaper and it came before Sony’s odd decision to axe the tele camera – even if it’s only a 60mm lens, the Xperia 5 IV has one advantage over the newer model. The 2023 phone has a larger, higher resolution main sensor, though, 48MP 1/1.35” vs. 12MP 1/1.7”. And it has the better chipset, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 over the original 8 Gen 1.
If those are too pricey for you, but the Sony formula of a 3.5mm headphone jack and a microSD slot appeals to you, check out the Xperia 10 V. It just got Android 14 earlier this week and it boasts a 48MP main (a small 1/2” sensor, but there is OIS), an 8MP ultra wide and a basic 8MP 2x portrait camera. The 6.1” FHD+ display has a cinematic 21:9 aspect ratio, but it only offers 60Hz refresh rate. The 10 V is one of the best phones in terms of battery life that we’ve ever tested.
We’re going back to Motorola for a moment – its foldable flagship, the Razr 40 Ultra, is down to under €900. It has a speedy 6.9” 165Hz LTPO AMOLED display on the inside and a 3.6” cover display that’s almost as fast at 144Hz. It’s powered by the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 and a 3,800mAh battery with 30W wired and 5W wireless charging. The camera is not particularly impressive, even by flip foldable standards – a 12MP main (with a tiny 1/2.55” sensor, though it does have OIS) and a 13MP rather narrow 108° ultra wide lens.
Did you buy a Steam Deck OLED yet? In case you haven’t, consider the Asus ROG Ally. It has a 7” IPS LCD display that has more pixels (1,920 x 1,080px) and a higher refresh rate of 120Hz. The OLED Deck has a larger 7.4” display but it is a 1,280 x 800px 90Hz panel. The ROG Ally has the more powerful silicon, but you’ll have to pick the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme version to get it (the Extreme model is preferable over the Z1 unless you really don’t have the extra €100).
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