The 7 Most Wanted Smartphones of 2017

2017 will be remembered as a massive turning point in the history of the smartphone era where manufacturers moved towards “edge-to-edge” designs, and shy’d away from large bezels. A few brand such as Apple kept the bezels in tact such as the iPhone 8 and 8 Plus, but Apple jumped into the edge-to-edge game with the debut of the holy worshipped iPhone X. Apple joined rival Samsung, who launched 3 smartphones with massive displays and minimal bezels this year including the Galaxy S8, S8 Plus, and Note8.

The list that follows are the 7 most wanted smartphones in 2017.

1. This is the first Apple iPhone design that is nearly edge-to-edge, aside from the camera indent. The Apple iPhone X includes features such as Qi wireless-charging capabilities and a dual-camera. The iPhone X also introduces Apple’s FaceID facial recognition technology for unlocking the device, taking the place of TouchID fingerprint recognition.

2. Similar to the Apple iPhone X, the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus both offer Qi wireless charging, which recharges the device through laying it on a charging pad. Both iphones also include a new glass backing, which enables wireless charging. Meanwhile, the iPhone 8 Plus features a dual-camera and a new camera option called “portrait lighting,” which improves the lighting of the contours over a subject’s face in real time.

3. The KEYone is a BlackBerry-branded phone and the biggest differentiator is a physical keyboard — which can do more than just type. Users can program keys to become shortcuts to certain contacts and apps, and the keyboard has some of the responsiveness of a trackpad, as well. Another leading feature is that the KEYone uses BlackBerry’s fabled mobile security software, while the phone also promises all-day battery life (thanks to a 3,505mAh battery) and includes a 12-megapixel camera with a Sony IMX378 sensor.

4. Samsung’s Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus both feature large displays with a minimal bezel so that the phone doesn’t feel massive overall. Along with strong battery life, the phones include strong durability features — Gorilla Glass 5 for display protection, IP68 rating for withstanding submersion in water. The S8 and S8 Plus also offer iris scanning and facial recognition for biometric authentication, as well as the new DeX feature, which lets you connect the phone to an external display, keyboard, and mouse using a special dock.

5. The Google Pixel 2 XL has a smaller bezel around its display, though both phones use a variety of OLED technology in their displays. Both models also include a 12.2-megapixel rear-facing camera with features including optical image stabilization, improved autofocus, and a new type of portrait mode. And like with the original Pixels, the Google Assistant is built into the Pixel 2 and Pixel 2 XL smartphones.

6. The LG V30 aims to specialize in its photo- and video-taking capabilities, with a dual-camera setup (16-megapixel and 13-megapixel) that has an f/1.6 aperture lens on the main camera, as well as improved color-grading presets and point zoom. The V30 also features strong durability, with IP68 water resistance and Gorilla Glass 5 on its edge-to-edge display.

7. The digital pen housed in the phone itself is back with the Samsung Galaxy Note8, while other productivity-oriented features include App Pair, which lets you open two apps in split-screen mode with a single press. The Note8 also features strong battery life and a dual-camera setup, with options such as “Live Focus,” which lets you automatically blur the photo’s background.