Ranking: Best smartphones reviewed by Notebookcheck

The Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro is a high-end gaming smartphone that impresses with its enormous performance and special gaming features. Powered by the Snapdragon 8 Elite, it offers up to 24 GB of RAM and a 6.78-inch AMOLED display with 185 Hz refresh rate and a peak brightness of 2,500 cd/m².

Special features include the ROG GameCool 9 cooling system and the AeroActive Cooler X, which improves the gaming experience and prevents overheating with additional physical buttons. The device is robustly built, with Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and IP68 certification. Practical additional functions such as AirTrigger and two USB-C ports make it versatile.

Technically, the Asus ROG Phone 9 Pro is of the highest standard. However, compromises have to be made with the cameras and the update supply. 

The camera equipment is solid, with the Sony Lytia 700 sensor delivering usable results even in difficult lighting conditions. The 5,800 mAh battery supports fast wired and wireless charging, although the energy consumption in gaming mode is high. One point of criticism is that Asus only provides two guaranteed Android updates. 

The Honor Magic7 Pro offers proven technology such as a fast USB 3.2 port, NFC and an IR transmitter, but neither UWB nor Bluetooth LE. The ultrasonic fingerprint sensor works precisely, while the software is based on MagicOS 9.0, which integrates numerous AI functions such as live translations and image editing. With IP69 certification, the device is not only dust and waterproof, but can also withstand high-pressure and steam jet cleaning.

The OLED display offers dynamic 120 Hz, high brightness values and precise color accuracy. Circular polarized light and high-frequency PWM dimming are easy on the eyes. The Snapdragon 8 Elite delivers strong performance, but the Honor smartphone is slightly inferior to the competition in benchmarks, presumably due to the cooling.

The Honor Magic7 Pro offers a lot for a greatly reduced price right from the start.

The camera equipment is a highlight: the 50 MP main camera offers variable apertures, an improved portrait function and good results in low light. The 200 MP zoom lens enables lossless magnification up to a 6x zoom, while the ultra-wide angle also impresses as a macro. Videos can be recorded in 4K with 60 FPS. The front camera also offers 50 MP and UHD recordings.

The battery life is good despite the smaller EU model (5,270 mAh). Fast charging options with up to 100 watts wired and 80 watts wireless enable short charging times.

The Apple iPhone 16 Pro and the iPhone 16 Pro Max are technically almost identical and only differ in terms of their display, case and battery size. Both are powered by the Apple A18 Pro which provides a lot of computing, AI and gaming power. The display is not only very bright, but also boasts accurate color reproduction. Thanks to the LTPO technology, refresh rates are dynamically adjusted with up to 120 Hz possible.

The iPhone 16 Pro is a powerful overall package (just like the Pro Max) with only a few shortcomings.

The triple camera offers good to very good image quality with all lenses. In particular, its videography talents deserve kind words, which now also support recording Ultra HD videos with up to 120 frames per second as well as Dolby Vision. There are no rivals for the time being.

The drawbacks are the lack of support for 320 MHz Wi-Fi and the absence of high-res Bluetooth audio codecs.

The OnePlus 13 presents itself as an innovative flagship smartphone that stands out in particular thanks to its new battery technology. With the help of a silicon-carbon anode, a significantly increased battery life is achieved without increasing the weight of the device. The smartphone's performance is based on the Snapdragon 8 Elite, which enables high performance.

The OnePlus 13 is an all-round successful smartphone that is only not quite on a par with other top smartphones in terms of camera quality. 

The display of the OnePlus 13 impresses with its outstanding quality and the integration of 4K PWM technology, which ensures a precise image that is easy on the eyes. The smartphone also supports fast charging, with the appropriate power adapter included in the scope of delivery. The camera setup delivers solid results and offers a wide range of options. The OnePlus 13 has to put up with criticism, particularly in terms of communication regarding update support and sustainability.

The outstanding innovation of the Oppo Find X8 Pro is the powerful Hasselblad camera with four sensors, each offering 50 megapixels. This includes a main camera with optical image stabilization, two periscope telephoto cameras (3x and 6x optical zoom) and an ultra-wide-angle camera with an equivalent focal length of 15 mm.

The Oppo Find X8 Pro offers a cornucopia of premium features for a comparatively low price. 

The 6.78-inch OLED display impresses with an exceptionally high peak brightness of up to 4,500 cd/m² and a 120 Hz refresh rate, which ensures impressive display quality. The device also stands out with its innovative battery management: the battery technology enables ultra-fast charging and improves the longevity of the battery. Inside is the MediaTek Dimensity 9400, a high-end chip with support for 5G and Wi-Fi 7. 

The design of the Oppo Find X8 Pro is high-quality, with water and dust-proof processing (IP69) and modern materials. The smartphone starts internationally with an RRP of €1,199, but will not be available in Germany until the end of January.

Just like its bigger brothers, the iPhone 16 and the iPhone 16 Plus are identical in most respects and only differ in terms of case, display and battery size. The panels are bright and accurate, but only support a refresh rate of 60 Hz, which means that iOS can sometimes look jerky.

The two iPhone 16 phones are great options if you're fine with the unimpressive 60 Hz refresh rate.

Although the dual camera has to make do without optical zoom, at least the 2x magnification works almost issue-free in everyday use thanks to the sensor crop. The limitations of the Pro models also apply here, and there is only USB 2.0 on board, which is quite a disappointment considering the price.

The Honor Magic V3 is a super-thin foldable with a 7.92-inch main display and a 6.43-inch external display. It offers a fast Snapdragon chip, plenty of memory, is waterproof and is capable of fast charging. Compared to its predecessor, the camera has been significantly upgraded.

The Honor Magic V3 looks like a conventional smartphone, but has a large foldable display.

In the testing, the Magic impressed us with its bright and accurate displays, both of which support pen input, as well as very good battery life. However, the foldable has neither 6 GHz WLAN nor UWB.

The Magic V3 can be had directly from Honor and is also available from MediaMarkt and Saturn, as well as other stores.

The Sony Xperia 1 VI does things differently to its predecessor and the competition. After the 21:9 displays of the past, Sony has now opted for a wider 19.5:9 format, but has significantly reduced the resolution with Full HD+. However, this benefits the battery life, which is extremely long.

The Xperia 1 VI does a lot of things differently and this is what makes it stand out.

The triple camera on the back has a new optical zoom, which can operate variably between 85 and 170 mm. Photos can also be taken in the classic 3:2 format, but unfortunately only with a slightly reduced resolution. 

The Xperia 1 is also dust and waterproof again, has a jack connection and allows memory expansion using a microSD card. Sony has extended the update support, but still lags behind the high-end competition.

The Google Pixel 9 Pro XL is a high-end smartphone with greatly improved features, especially the display and camera. With a peak brightness of up to 2,840 cd/m², it is particularly impressive in direct sunlight. The color reproduction and comfort in different lighting conditions are also praised.

The Google Pixel 9 Pro XL is a powerful AI phone with a long update supply. 

The camera is another highlight. The front camera also occupies a top position, making it a strong choice for selfies. In terms of heat development, the Pixel 9 Pro XL impresses with a maximum casing temperature of just 40.9°C, making it more efficient than many of its competitors. 

However, the device shows weaknesses in terms of battery life. Despite a capacity of 5,060 mAh, the battery life of approx. 10 hours lags behind comparable models. Gaming performance also lags behind the competition, as the new Tensor G4 chip is somewhat weaker in terms of performance.

The Realme GT7 Pro is a high-performance smartphone with a high-quality finish and attractive technical specifications. It features a large OLED display with high brightness and accurate color reproduction, even though it does not use LTPO technology for a variable refresh rate.

The device is powered by a powerful processor that ensures high performance and is also suitable for demanding applications and gaming. The ultrasonic fingerprint sensor works reliably and quickly, enabling convenient unlocking.

The realme GT7 Pro offers plenty of power, but with compromises in terms of premium features and updates.

Another highlight is the generous battery, which ensures long runtimes. Thanks to the fast charging function, the smartphone can be recharged within a short time. However, some premium features are missing, such as wireless charging, a UWB chip or a USB 3.2 port, which are increasingly common in this price range.

There are also some limitations in terms of connectivity: For example, no eSIM is supported. In addition, the update guarantee is not particularly generous compared to other manufacturers in terms of long-term software support.