The best Android phones

After testing every f lagship Android phone released in the last two years over hundreds of hours, we think the Samsung Galaxy S6 is the best new phone for most people. It looks and feels fantastic, it’s packed with useful features, and its 16-megapixel camera and 1440p Super AMOLED screen are the best on any Android phone. The screen is bright, crisp and colorful: It’s very high-resolution, so everything looks sharp, and because it uses AMOLED technology, the black pixels on its screen are actually black (and do not use any backlight).

We came to this decision after combing through all the available reviews of the top Android phones and testing them hands-on. If you want a phone with a larger screen or one that’s friendlier to your budget, we have alternative picks as well. Should you upgrade?

If you’re happy with your old phone, don’t get a new one yet. The phones that will be out when you are ready for an upgrade will be better than what’s available today. Unless you’re a power user or a serial early adopter, you probably don’t need an upgrade if you bought a phone in 2014 or later. If you use your phone constantly and your old one isn’t serving you well anymore, a new model is worth the cost, even if your current phone is only a year old.

Grabbing whatever phone your carrier offers for free with a two-year con- tract can be tempting, but those phones usually have some combination of unintuitive user interface, outdated software, substandard specs and poor build quality. When it is time to get a new phone, we recommend choosing the best, newest phone you can afford. Wrapping it up

The Samsung Galaxy S6 is the fastest and most well-made Android phone available, and it should be a great fit for most people. This post was done in partnership with The Wirecutter, a buyer’s guide to the best technology. This guide may have been updated. To see the current recommendation, please go to TheWirecutter.com.