The past 12 months have been relatively innocuous for Android, but there have been high points. We asked you what you rate as your “Phone of the Year” for 2022 and, now, we have a winner…
After hundreds of smartphone releases alongside the loss of one big player in the guise of LG, we whittled down the choice to 27 of the biggest and best launched throughout 2022. In the interest of fairness, our shortlist included devices from all ends of the price spectrum. As this was a readers’ choice, you have chosen your favorite devices of 2022.
Phone of the Year 2022 – Google Pixel 7 Pro
It almost comes as no great shock that the Google Pixel 7 Pro has steamrolled the competition to win our readers’ poll for Phone of the Year 2022. With a whopping 40% of the public vote, Google’s biggest and best flagship to date has taken the top spot in our community poll for years.
By focusing on resolving some of the persistent issues that plagued the Pixel 6 series, Google made a borderline-perfect Pixel. Throw in some important upgrades including to the camera, fingerprint scanner, and even some tweaks were made to the display, too.
At $899, the Pixel 7 Pro hasn’t increased in price, yet it’s better in almost every single area. In our eyes, it’s a worthy winner.
Runner up – Google Pixel 7
With almost 20% of our public vote, the Pixel 7 came is ranked second to the Pixel 7 Pro. Coming second to the bigger and arguably better Google smartphone is no great shame. There are some benefits including a much cheaper asking price and a flat display.
Some downgrades exist including a 90Hz display, a lack of a dedicated telephoto lens, and smaller size. Being smaller than the competition is a key selling point and one of major reasons we recommend the Pixel 7 as one of the best entry-level flagship phones on the market today.
Third place – Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
A worthy third place was awarded by you, our readers, to the Galaxy S22 Ultra. Attaining 10% of our reader vote, the S22 Ultra is something of a hybrid that fuses Note-series features like the integrated S Pen. It does this while retaining all of the trappings of an exceptional Galaxy S series phone including one of the best zoom cameras on a smartphone to date and super update promises from the Korean tech giant.
This is all backed by typically flashy Samsung style with beautiful colors to choose from and one of the very best displays on any smartphone to date. Despite releasing in the early portion of 2022, the Galaxy S22 Ultra has hung in there as one of the best you can buy.
Fourth place – Google Pixel 6a
Capping a simply super year for Google, the Google Pixel 6a rounds out the lineup and only Samsung’s best of 2022 prevents a clean sweep from happening. With just over 6% of your vote, the 6a offers last year’s flagship Tensor processor and five years of security updates along with the first in-display fingerprint scanner on an A-series device.
Priced at $449, there are a few things downgraded to help accommodate the lower entry pricing. A 60Hz display and the return of dual 12-megapixel rear cameras are notables. Glass is replaced with polycarbonate, which makes the Pixel 6a feel cheaper than the Pixel 6 and 7 series.
Fifth place – Nothing Phone (1)
A big shock for our reader poll was the inclusion of Carl Pei’s first smartphone – the Nothing Phone (1) – in the top five. With no presence in the United States, this was a big surprise. This is also the second mid-range phone to be voted into the top five of our “Phone of the Year” poll for 2022.
Powered by the Snapdragon 778G, the Phone (1) is a decidedly mid-range Android phone but with a twist. The clear chassis and Glyph-lighting highlight the industrial design. All of this is backed by a lightweight Android build that resembles the Pixel software experience.
At under $500, it’s a fine alternative to the Pixel 6a – which pipped the Nothing Phone (1) to the fourth position in our “Phone of the Year” rankings with 6% of your votes for this handset.
Full results
Do you agree with our readers’ choice awards? Let us know what your favorite phone of 2022 was down in the comments section below.
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