10 fantastic alternatives to an iPhone: part one
Not everyone wants an iPhone, and unless you’re desperate for an Apple Watch, you probably don’t need one either. But deciding between the other smartphones on offer can be a bit of a minefield. So here’s our guide to 10 of the best alternatives to an iPhone. Whether you want to take great photos, watch a lot of content or even make phone calls (!), read on to find the handset that’s right for you…
HTC One M9
This handset’s as stylish as you’d expect from HTC, and has the hardware to back up its good looks. There’s a 20MP rear camera, 4MP front camera, 5 inch 1080p LCD screen, 3GB RAM, 32GB storage plus a microSD slot and of course, BoomSound speakers – the best of any smartphone, now boosted by virtual 5.1 surround sound. The speedy Qualcomm Snapdragon 810 processor runs Android 5.0 (Lollipop) and the phone comes in three beautiful metallics: gold on gold, gunmetal grey, and gold on silver.
It’s £579.99 SIM free or check out tariffs from £37.50 a month.
Galaxy Samsung S6
This fast, powerful phone is one of Samsung’s new flagships and there’s a lot to love about it. The 5.1 inch screen has a crisp 1440 x 2560 resolution, it can be charged wirelessly, and allows mobile payments through Samsung Pay – which is coming to the UK later this year. It has 3GB RAM, 32GB storage, a powerful Octa-core Exynos 7420 chipset, and runs Android 5.0 with TouchWiz, Samsung’s touchscreen user interface. It comes in black, white, gold, or blue topaz.
It’s £599.99 SIM free or from £40 per month on a contract.
Galaxy Samsung S6 Edge
We called Samsung’s other flagship ‘the best Android phone on the planet right now’, and we meant it. It has a quality build, fantastic performance and innovative design, including that distinctive 5.1 inch super AMOLED display curved screen with a brilliantly clear 1440 x 2560 resolution. The 16MP back camera and 5MP front camera take some of the best pics we’ve seen from a phone, and it’s all powered by the Octa-core Exynos 7420 chipset running Android 5.0 with TouchWiz and a 2550mAh battery with fast, wireless charging. It’s all set up for Samsung Pay and comes in white, black, gold, and emerald green.
The 64GB model is £760.00 SIM free or from £44 per month plus £99.99 upfront on a contract. The 128 GB model will be on sale soon, or get it now for £40 per month with £199.99 upfront.
This is definitely the flagship for you if you’re a photographer: it lets you easily save your images in RAW format and there are lots of options for the 16MP rear camera, including white balance and shutter speed. It’s the first phone to come with an RGB colour sensor to better replicate the way we actually see things, and there’s an 8MP selfie camera that gives excellent results. All those pics will look great on the 5.5 inch Quad HD IPS Quantum display, which is designed to have the perfect colour gamut and contrast ratio. The phone comes with 3GB of RAM, 32 GB storage plus a microSD slot, and the 3000mAh battery is removable in case you want backup. That means it’s not the slimmest, but it does have a gentle curve to make it more ergonomic – and more durable if dropped.
It’ll be on sale on 28 May for £500 for the plastic-backed model and £525 for the much-hyped leather-backed version. Until then, you can register your interest with Carphone Warehouse.
Nokia Lumia 930
With a 20MP front camera, HD video camera, and four directional microphones with surround sound, this phone captures excellent quality photos and video. The 5 inch, 1080 x 1920 AMOLED screen’s great for viewing them too, with an HD display designed to be readable even in bright sunlight. It comes with 4G LTE connectivity, built-in wireless charging, and runs Windows Phone 8.15, so you can chat with Cortana (Windows’ alternative to Siri) whenever you need help. It has a 2.2GHz Snapdragon 800 processor, 32GB storage and comes in black, green, or orange.
It’s £399.00 from the Microsoft Store, or from £26 per month on a contract.
To move onto part two of our smartphone roundup, click here.
