Credit: Aamir Siddiqui / Android Authority
We’re inching closer to the end of the year, and it’s almost time to evaluate the best smartphones of 2024. This year brought us some impressive devices, but also left us craving more. As my colleague Hadlee Simons puts it in his recent opinion post describing his ideal smartphone, the Galaxy S24 continues to rely on an outdated camera system, while the Pixel 9 series feels underpowered. Meanwhile, the Xiaomi 14 lineup offers a software experience that has divided opinions. So, we asked our readers — Which brand came closest to building an ideal smartphone this year? It was a close competition, but we have a clear winner.