Best Smartphones of 2016

Companies are competing to manufacture and produce smartphones that can increase their sales each year. They aim to capture customers with their innovations and unique devices – just like they do each year!

Smartphone users can be divided into two main categories: the first has brand loyalty and waits for a specific company to produce a new model regardless of the pros and cons! While the other checks the different specifications and features presented by various companies!

Whether you – as a user – belong to either of these segments, it is normal to be curious about the best phones that were released in 2016 whether when it comes to their specifications, features, and designs!

Labeb.com brings you this article to answer this question. We have conducted a questionnaire that included more than 1000 store and 4000 customer to find the best smartphones in 2016. The results of this questionnaire depended on two aspects: the first is the sales (and buying interest), and the second is actually using it and giving critics and reviews.

After analyzing the answers, we resulted in the eleven bestselling and most interesting smartphones for 2016. You can check these phones and their specifications below:

iPhone 7

iPhone 7 did not have any major changes when it comes to its appearance and design. In that way it became similar to previous iPhones (specifically the ones released during the last two years!). Nonetheless, iPhone customers were satisfied by this release stating that it had improved features and specifications.

The camera resolution and battery performance were among these improvements. In addition to: removing the audio jack, better screen resolution and brightness, and being resistant to water and dust (reaching a depth of one meter for a period of 30 minutes).

These specifications – and according to experts – were not impressive as they have been introduced by other phones before. Also, they described iPhone 7 as an improved copy of iPhone 6.

iPhone 7 had a 4.7 inch screen covering a percentage of 65.6% of the front side with a resolution of 750x1334 pixels. System wise, iPhone 7 operates on a quad-core Apple A10 fusion processor working on a frequency of 2.34 megahertz. It is powered by iOS 10 operating system.

It is available in more than one version when it comes to its colors, internal storage, and RAM. You can choose between 32, 128, or 56 gigabytes for its internal storage; 1 or 2 gigabytes of RAM; and between black, silver, gold, and pink (note that there are two shades of the black version!).

The back camera’s resolution is 12 megapixels and the front camera has a resolution of 7 megapixels. iPhone 7 has a non-removable 1960 mAh lithium ion battery.

iPhone 7 was on top of the list of the most popular phones for 2016 in Arab countries even though it was released in the last third quarter of this year (September 2016).

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge   

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge resides in the second place of the most popular phones in Arab countries for 2016 even after the problems Samsung faced with their Note 7’s battery (which led to them withdrawing the product from the market).

Samsung unveiled their Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge during February 2016 and it immediately got accepted by users and experts. This is because the phone had many developments with its design that included: better curves, improved panel menu (Edge Panel), and being water and dust resistant (reaching a depth of 1.5 meters for a period of 30 minutes).

The improvements also included the screen, processor, camera, and battery!

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge has a 5.5 inch screen making a percentage of 76.1% of the front side with a resolution of 1440x2560 pixels. It also had two different processors depending on the county it is being sold in!

The first operates of a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, and the second operates on an octa-core Exynos 8890 processor. Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge is also available in two versions when it comes to its internal storage: 32 or 64 gigabytes. Both versions have a 4 gigabyte RAM.

It is available in black, white, silver, gold, and pink (note that there are two shades of black). Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge is powered by Android 6.0 operating system – also known as Marshmallow.

The main (back) camera has a resolution of 12 megapixels, and the front (selfie) camera has a resolution of 5 megapixels. It also has a non-removable 3600 mAh lithium ion battery.

Huawei P9

When Huawei released Huawei P9 it came as a turning point to the Company’s status in the smartphone industry. This is because P9 was admired by experts and users earning its third place on this list!

Huawei with the collaboration of the German Company Leica, released Huawei P9 in April 1016. Leica equipped the phone with a dual camera, the first of its kind in the smartphone world. The rest of the smartphone companies started producing their cameras using this technology after Huawei released P9.

In addition to the camera, P9 had a stylish design, strong processors, large battery and many other specifications and features. All this reflected in their sales this year! Reports show that Huawei sold more than 10 million Huawei P9 and Huawei P9 Plus (its bigger version) during 2016.

Huawei P9 has a 5.2 inch screen making a total percentage of 72.9% of the front side with a resolution of 1080x1920 pixels. It operates on an octa-core HiSilicon Kirin 955 processor and powered by Android 6.0 operating system (Marshmallow) with the ability to update it to Android 70 (Nougat).

It is available in two versions when it comes to its internal storage: 32 or 64 gigabytes. The 32 gigabyte will have a 3 gigabyte RAM, while the 64 gigabyte will have a 4 gigabyte RAM. Huawei P9 is available in the following colors to the market: white, gold, pink, grey, silver, red, and blue.

Huawei P9 has a rear (main) camera with a resolution of 12 megapixels, and an 8 megapixels front camera. It also has a non-removable 3000 mAh battery.

The dual camera in Huawei P9 is highly developed. One lens captures colors while the other captures black and white. The camera’s processor later combines the image of both lenses to produce a clear and bright picture!

iPhone 7 Plus

iPhone 7 Plus, with its bigger size, dual camera, and water and dust resistance feature - reaching a depth of 1 meter for a period of half an hour (similar to iPhone 7) - also made it on the list! It has a 5.5 inch screen covering a percentage of 67.7% of the phone’s front side with a resolution of 1080x1920 pixels.

It operates on a quad-core Apple A10 Fusion processor working on a speed of 2.23 gigahertz. iPhone 7 is powered by iOS 10 operating system.  It is available in three different versions when it comes to its internal storage: 32, 128, or 256 gigabytes. All these versions will have a 3 gigabyte RAM.

iPhone 7 has a back camera with a resolution of 12 megapixels, and the front camera has a resolution of 7 megapixels. It has a non-removable 2900 mAh lithium ion battery.

It is available in the following colors to the market: two shades of black, silver, gold, and pink.

Huawei Mate 9

Huawei released Mate 9 in November 2016 with exceptional specifications and with the cooperation of the German company Leica (after the huge success both companies had when Huawei P9 was released).

Huawei Mate 9 is fast and was described as being “revolutionary” by Huawei. It operates on a Kirin 960 processor, with a smart power saving technology battery (powering the phone for two days without needing a recharge) as well as fast charging feature!

It has a 5.9 inch screen making a total percentage of 77.5% of the phone’s front side with a resolution of 1080x1920 pixels. It also operates on an octa-core HiSilicon Kirin 960 processor with an internal storage of 64 gigabytes.

Mate 9 has a 4 gigabyte RAM and is powered by Android 7.0 operating system (also known as Nougat).

The main camera is made by Leica (the German Company) and it is a dual camera. The first lens has a resolution of 20 megapixels, and the second lens has a resolution of 12 megapixels. When taking a picture, each lens captures certain colors to be later combined by the camera’s processor to produce a high quality image.

The front camera has a resolution of 8 megapixels. Huawei Mate 9 has a non-removable 4000 mAh battery.

It iss available in the following colors: grey, silver, gold, brown, white, and black.

LG V20

LG V20 has a 5.7 inch screen and operates on a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor. It is powered by Android 7.0 operating system (also known as Nougat) and it is available in two versions when it comes to its internal storage: 32 and 64 gigabytes. Both versions have a 4 gigabyte RAM.

The back camera has a resolution of 16 megapixels and it is also a dual camera! The front camera has a resolution of 5 megapixels. LG V20 is powered by a non-removable 3200 mAh lithium ion battery and it is available in the following colors: titanium, silver, and pink.

Samsung Galaxy S7 

Samsung kept improving their device’s edges, curves, camera, and hand grip so that the phones can be more user friendly. Samsung equipped their Samsung Galaxy S7 with a 5.1 inch screen with a resolution of 1440x2560 pixels. It is available in four colors: white, black, gold, and silver.

Samsung Galaxy S7 is available in two versions when it comes to its processor: the first is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820, and the second is Exynos 8890. The type of version depends on the country the phone is being sold in.

It is also available in two versions when it comes to its internal storage: 32 or 64 gigabytes. Both versions have a 4 gigabyte RAM.

Samsung Galaxy S7 has a back (main) camera with a resolution of 12 megapixels, and a 5 megapixels front camera. The main camera work on a Dual Pixel feature for better and clearer images, even in dim lights!

It is has a non-removable 3000 mAh battery that will not require a lot of charging!

Samsung Galaxy S7 is powered by Android 6.0 operating system (also known as Marshmallow).

LG G5

LG G5 received a lot of attention from critics and experts from the first day it was announced. Experts saw the LG G5 is one of the best phones produced by LG since they entered the smartphone market. LG G5 had many improvements in its design, appearance, system specifications, and features.

What makes LG G5 special it that it was created with Google’s Project Ara concept (which was released two years ago). Project Ara aims to improve the smartphone sector by giving the customer a selective platform. This allows the user to decide the specifications on their own thus they can change the phone’s parts when damaged and by that increasing its age.

In addition to the stylish steel design, high specifications, the phone got a lot of acceptance because it was designed in accordance to Project Ara. The user can adjust the phone in few minutes with its removable/changeable base where LG G5 can easily be turned to a camera. It also makes it easier to change its broken or damaged parts allowing it to last longer!

LG G5 has a slick design where all the sharp edges were replaced with completely circular ones. It has a full steal frame and is available in four colors: silver, light grey, gold, and pink.

It has a 5.3 inch screen with a resolution of 1440x2560 pixels and it is powered by Android 6.0 operating system (also known as Marshmallow).

LG G5 operates in an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor. It has 32 gigabytes of internal storage, and 4 gigabytes of RAM.

LG gave LG G5 a rear camera with a wide lens. In fact, it is made of two smaller lenses: the first has a resolution of 16 megapixels, and the second has a resolution of 8 megapixels – this is revolutionary as the resultant image is brighter and clearer!

The front camera has a resolution of 8 megapixels and LG G5 has a non-removable 2800 mAh battery.

Google Pixel XL

Google, the number one search engine in the world, entered the smartphone market this year with their first ever manufactured smartphone: Google Pixel. Google are trying to compete in the smartphone industry as well and this was made clear when they announced their new phone. Google Pixel has great specifications and they believe that with it, they can compete against the best smartphone companies like the American Apple, South Korean Samsung, and Chinese Huawei (the top three companies in the smartphone industry).

Google Pixel XL is bigger than the original version. It has a 5.5 inch screen covering a percentage of 71.2% of the phone’s front side with a resolution of 1440x2560 pixels. It has a non-removable 3450 mAh battery.

It operates on a quad-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor and is powered by Android 7.0 (also known as Nougat). Google Pixel XL has a 4 gigabyte RAM and it is available in two versions in the market when it comes to its internal storage: 32 or 128 gigabytes.

Google equipped their new phone with a back (main) camera with a resolution of 12.3 megapixels, and the front camera has a resolution of 8 megapixels. Google Pixel XL is available in the following colors: blue, black, and silver.

Other Devices

In the tenth and eleventh places came Sony Xperia XZ and HTC 10.

Sony Xperia XZ has a 5.0 inch screen. It operates on an octa-core processor and has 16 gigabytes of internal storage and a 2 gigabyte RAM.

It has a main (back) camera with a resolution of 13 megapixels, and a front camera with a resolution of 8 megapixels. Sony Xperia XZ also has a non-removable 2300 mAh battery.

As for HTC 10, it has a 5.2 inch touch screen. It operates on a quad-core processor. It is available in two versions when it comes to its internal storage: 32 or 64 gigabytes. Both versions have a 4 gigabyte RAM.

The main camera has a resolution of 12 megapixels, and the front camera has a resolution of 5 megapixels. HTC 10 has a non-removable 3000 mAh battery.

Summary

According to the survey carried by Labeb.com, these were the best phones during 2016! As you can see, Apple, Samsung, and Huawei were among the top of the most selling and best smartphones for 2016 proving that they have high quality phones allowing them to compete.

It was also clear that some companies were trying to get a bigger market share with their phones! We have seen Google enter the smartphone market this year, and their product is promising!

Remember to stay connected with Labeb.com to get the latest news, updates, guides, and products in the technological world.

Be smart before making a decision!