These are the phones Android Police editors are excited about in 2024
Just because we’ve already seen our first smartphone launch of 2024 doesn’t mean there still isn’t time to look ahead. Yes, the Galaxy S24 series is what the Android community is obsessed with this week, but we’d be remiss to call any of Samsung’s new phones the most exciting devices yet. Instead, Android Police editors — some of them anyway — are looking forward to future products slated to arrive later this year, and to no one’s surprise, the group includes plenty of foldables.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6
I really like the idea of clamshell foldable phones, but the only one I’ve ever actually used for any length of time — the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 4 — didn’t exactly wow me. The extra pocket space the form factor affords is great, and the added friction of flipping the phone open to waste time playing games or scrolling social media did help curb my mindless phone use. But for those benefits, I traded two very important facets of the smartphone experience: battery life and camera quality.
Flip apologists are quick to point out that we shouldn’t expect folding phones to perform as well as their more rigid counterparts. But novel as the flip form factor may be, if I’m spending flagship phone money, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to ask a foldable to at least keep pace with traditional midrange smartphones that cost half as much.
Last year’s Z Flip 5 saw a significant design refresh: a bigger outer display and a hinge that let the phone fold flatter when closed. That signals that this year, we’ll be getting refinements that are less visible — and if they’re in the areas where the Z Flip line needs it most, I’ll be ready to give clamshells another shot. – Taylor Kerns, Gadgets Editor
Google Pixel Fold 2
Before I get started, let me be clear; I don’t expect the Google Pixel Fold 2 to be the best phone of 2024. The first foldable phone from Google hit shelves in late 2023, and I don’t think it’s unfair to say it was a bit of a disappointment. Android Police’s review gave it a 6.5 out of 10 calling it an “$1,800 rough draft”. That’s a lot of money to spend on a foldable in a year when we awarded Samsung’s and OnePlus’ foldables with scores of 8 and 8.5 respectively, the latter even becoming our runner-up phone of the year.
Nevertheless, I’m excited to see what comes from Google now that it can refine its rough first draft into a second-gen product. I don’t always buy into the consensus that Google’s first-gen hardware is particularly poor. For every poor first Pixel product, you can point to similar starting hardware from other companies and see similar faults. The Pixel Fold was a remarkable miss from the company though, and I’m excited to see how the brand can improve it.
The biggest software issues need to be fixed, and that inner display needs a big improvement. With those two changes, we may be on the right track for a phone that can truly compete with the top-end foldables on the market. We’ll probably have to wait for the tail end of the year to see what Google can do, though. – James Peckham, Editor-in-Chief
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Google Pixel Flip
Is it cheating to pick a phone that may not even exist? Well, I’m doing it anyway.
We may not know for certain that Google is working on a foldable flip phone, or that it’ll have one ready to launch in 2024, but it sure seems sensible for them to. Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip phones consistently outsell its Z Folds, so there’s money to be made here — probably more than there is from another big-screen Fold 2.
With big redesigns for both the Z Flip and Motorola Razr lines last year, they’re likely both due for comparatively quiet 2024s, giving Google space to come in and steal some thunder. And thanks to its ‘Comet’ codename surfacing, we know at least one foldable is due this year.
And besides, this is a form factor basically built for Google to own. Besides battery life, what’s the biggest flip phone flaw so far? Cruddy cameras. And who’s been consistently packing its cut-price A-series handsets with lenses that punch far above their weight? Even just throwing the equivalent of the Pixel 7a’s shooters into the Pixel Flip would make it the best clamshell camera around, and I reckon Google can do a bit better than that… – Dominic Preston, Managing Commerce Editor
OnePlus Open 2
With respect to OnePlus, my expectations for its first foldable were pretty low when I first unboxed my unit last fall. That’s not to say the OnePlus 11 was bad, but between software woes and some less-than-inspired hardware decisions — not to mention my disappointment in foldables from both Google and Samsung — I wasn’t particularly excited. That changed once my SIM card found its way into the OnePlus Open. From the thin and light design to the surprisingly excellent software enhancements, the Open earned my vote for the best phone of 2023.
It should come as no surprise, then, that the OnePlus Open 2 ranks as my most anticipated phone of 2024. From wireless charging — perhaps even Qi2 support? — to the possibility of a thinner and lighter design, I’m really looking forward to what OnePlus has up its sleeve for a new foldable. As long as the software stays usable, I wouldn’t be shocked if the Open 2 ranks among my top selection of smartphones for 2024 when we fast-forward to this upcoming December. – Will Sattelberg, Phones Editor
Asus Zenfone 11
Hands down, my most anticipated phone this year is the Zenfone 11. I’m fully enamored with the Zenfone 10, thanks to its small size and blazing performance, but it’s also the fact I can make it through a day with heavy use without charging that really seals the deal. Yet the phone remains small in size, perfectly portable in my pocket. So naturally, I’m very eager to see what the next iteration brings this year with the 11.
Seeing that we had a scare last year with a rumor circulating, the Zenfone 10 could have been the last. Thankfully, this was confirmed untrue by Asus, but we sure came close to losing one of the last remaining small Android phones on the market, giving another reason to look forward to the incoming Zenfone 11. Personally, I’m ready to move to the next Asus flagship when it drops later this year. It’s my most anticipated phone this year, and with the 10 knocking it out of the park, I expect the 11 to deliver similarly. – Matt Sholtz, Games & Apps Editor
Nothing Phone 3
The Nothing Phone 1 was very much a beta product, moreso in terms of software than hardware, but both needed a thorough polishing to say the least. The Nothing Phone 2 delivered on that, rounding the rough edges metaphorically and literally, and I’ve become much more confident in the company’s software development team over the last year.
But now it’s time to take a step forward. While the Phone 2 just needed to fix a few things, the Phone 3 needs something new. Carl Pei and Co. have carved out a niche for themselves as a design-focused brand, so they can’t just slap some AI on their phone like all the other Android OEMs lately — this thing needs to look unique next to competitors and the Phone 2. With the rumored Nothing Phone 2a sliding into place as the company’s more budget-friendly option, I’m expecting a price increase for the flagship line. The question is, will Nothing put that extra money towards features and design, or will it just pad its profit margins? If it’s the former, I’m excited to see what both the hardware and software teams can do. – Dallas Thomas, News Editor