Fanboys and pundits will continue flaming each other unabated, but it looks like the smartphone battle has been won — well, for a brief second of a war with no end in sight, anyway. Venerable magazine Consumer Report's gold, silver, and bronze medals for best smartphone are for... Samsung, Samsung, and Samsung. Samsung all the way down.
Ranked on all their features, the S8+ and S8 lead the listings due a combination of design, displays, cameras, environmental resistance, and battery life. Apple's iPhone 7 Plus and LG G6 came close to third place, but both ended up falling short of the eventual second runner-up: the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge. If you're not a fan of Samsung phones and feel upset by this news, cry not: given that we're a lull between flagship releases, these rankings should last only until the next volley of premium smartphones from the world's biggest companies. Apple's iPhone 8, Samsung's Galaxy Note 8, and others are waiting in the wings to shake things up.