Best phones of 2017 in India: the 10 top smartphones we've tested

Alternatively, if you prefer Google's OS, then our best Android phone roundup should be right up your alley.

2016 was a stellar year for smartphones, and 2017 is shaping up to be even better. The launches of the iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus, the Google Pixel and Google Pixel XL late last year mean that the humble smartphone is destined to become faster, more powerful and even more versatile than ever before.

Here at TechRadar, we check out every phone under the sun, putting the ones that matter through our vigorous testing process to create our in-depth mobile phone reviews.

However, with so many to choose from, we've spent hours whittling them down to a top ten, taking into account power, specs, design and value for money. And we'll always point you in the direction of the latest handsets – after all, nobody wants to be carting around a phone that doesn't get any updates in a year's time, right?

So whether it's one of the many slick Android handsets, the latest iPhone or one from a range of other cool manufacturers, we've extensively tested them all so you don't have to!

Here are our rankings for the best smartphones around, currently available in India.

iPhone SE

The Sony Xperia XZ Premium comes packed with tons of features, a crisp 4K display panel and the latest processor to serve you with theist performance. Not just this, it also offers you an excellent camera and great battery life despite of the power-greedy display.

No doubt, the price is high, which lands it into a dense competition in the Indian market. But if you are going for the most powerful phone, it is the only one offering the Snapdragon 835 in India right now. It fares pretty well against the most popular Samsung Galaxy S8 and iPhone 7 Plus.

Apart from the chunky bezels on the top and bottom, the design gives you no chance to complain. It comes with a reflective mirror finish, which is hard to get on any other smartphone.

Read the full review: Sony Xperia XZ Premium

HTC is back with another effort aimed at becoming the phone you want to have in your pocket - and this one has squeezable sides.

You read that right - and unfortunately, they don't really add a lot. But wait! Beyond that this is a very impressive phone, getting the basics right across the board.

The camera offers some brilliant snaps and has a strong HDR mode, the audio performance (combined with the bundled buds and headphone upgrader in the box) is excellent and the two-tone design is thoroughly unique.

It doesn't do enough to topple the Galaxy S8, but if you're looking for something a bit different the U11 is a phone that won't disappoint.

Read the full review: HTC U11

LG G5

If you're worried about whether the new Galaxy Note 8 will be any good, don't be - it's an excellent handset that rivals the best on the list, despite being 'productivity-focused'.

The large Infinity Display on the front slots in far more screen than you'd expect from a phone this compact, the S Pen is something not a lot of other phones can offer and the all-round speed is almost breathtaking at times.

The new dual camera is really what separates it from the Galaxy S8 duo (if you're not bothered by the stylus features) and while it's expensive, it's certainly worth looking at if you want a brilliant smartphone.

Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy Note 8

Nexus 6P

The Honor 8 Pro comes with dual 12MP cameras at the back and 8MP camera on the front. Just like Huawei P9, the secondary lens at the back comes with a monochrome sensor which enhances the quality of the image especially in low lighting conditions.

The handset comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB internal storage which makes it compete directly against the OnePlus 5. Priced at Rs 29,999, Honor 8 Pro is exclusively available on Amazon India.

Read the full review: Honor 8 Pro review

iPhone 7

On paper, the iPhone 7 doesn't seem like much of an upgrade from last year's terrific iPhone 6S, but seeing as that phone was fantastic, that's not such a big deal.

Much has been said of Apple's decision to drop the traditional headphone jack from the iPhone 7, and while we can't really agree with this "courageous" decision, the flagship handset does pack its fair share of improvements, too.

It's got slightly longer battery life, a better camera, fast innards and protection against water – if you're going to buy a new iPhone, this is the one to get. However, many of the changes are slight, and the iPhone 6S, for the lower price, suddenly becomes a very attractive option.

Full review: Apple iPhone 7

HTC 10

The Google Pixel is an excellent flagship phone that's only let down by mediocre battery life and the still-developing Assistant. If you can stomach the price point, the Pixel is a breath of fresh Google air in a world of Android over-complication.

The 12MP camera on the back is one of the best on the market, while the clean, fresh Android Nougat interface is a joy to use.

There's heaps of power under the hood making it perfect for gaming and multi-tasking, while the bright, colourful screen provides an excellent viewing experience for your movies and TV shows.

It may not be the most attractive handset on the market, and it's far from ugly. What you can be sure of is a lot of bang for your buck.

Read the full review: Google Pixel

With the LG G6, the modular design of the LG G5 is gone in favour of a more traditional phone, one that takes multiple elements from the top handsets around, blended together to assemble a terrific all-rounder of a handset.

The G6 is a much more conservative design than its predecessor, taking the form of a sealed unit that drops the removable battery of the previous LG flagships, replacing it with a larger-capacity power pack and waterproof shell, which we think is a pretty good trade-off.

While it lacks somewhat in innovation, it makes up for with its impressive 18:9 display. This, along with reduced bezels, gives the user more screen real estate to play with, and also introduces some clever little changes to the user interface to exploit the extra pixels, especially when it comes to multi-tasking and photo taking capabilities.

While its IPS LCD display lacks the colourful pop of a Super AMOLED screen, the addition of the Dolby Vision / HDR 10 provides support for all manner of beautiful and natural-looking HDR content.

The LG G6 camera is upgraded in a way, but also remains very similar to last year's in others. The same normal and wide-angle camera lenses are back, but they're now both 13MP.

The LG G6 is a phone that takes things back to basics, and does so well. The sleek metal and glass fusion is attractive, and to anyone using the iPhone 7 Plus, the ratio of screen to body will be staggering.

Read the full review: LG G6

iPhone 7 Plus

The iPhone 7 Plus is an excellent phablet, but it would have been nice to see some upgrades to screen resolution. That said, just like the iPhone 7, the iPhone 7 Plus comes with its share of improvements over last year's model.

That's mostly achieved through two things: the battery life and innovative camera. The former is always going to be better thanks to the larger size, but by bringing a dual camera to the mix Apple's made a conscious effort to make the 7 Plus seem like a distinctly different choice.

On top of that, Apple has increased the colour gamut significantly and - as far as we could tell – the contrast ratio as well, meaning the richness of colours and depth on screen was improved. The screen is apparently also 25% brighter than it was on the iPhone 6S.

Overall, it's safe to say that the iPhone 7 Plus is Apple's best phone to date, but it's hard not to wonder if a little more could have been done to make this super attractive to the 6 Plus upgraders.

Read the full review: Apple iPhone 7 Plus

Samsung Galaxy S7

The Samsung Galaxy S8 is the best phone in the world for a few reasons, but none more so than the display: it makes every other handset on the market look positively antiquated.

The camera is still excellent, the screen quality the best that can be found right now and it's smashed through all our benchmarking tests.

While it costs a lot to own, there are a lot of premium reasons for the premium price, and with the screen Samsung has managed to find some impressive innovation at a time when there's very little to be found in smartphones.

Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy S8

Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge

The Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus fits a monstrous 6.2-inch curved display into an acceptably large body that doesn’t feel too different from its predecessor, the Galaxy S7 Edge.

That’s not all that’s impressive. It features the best phone display, chipset and camera of any phone to date, plus it’s still water- and dust-resistant and it features 64GB of internal storage plus a microSD card slot for expandable storage.

The battery life is very good, it can power the next generation of mobile VR games and it has software that rivals stock Android.

Aside from Bixby and some slightly clunky biometrics, the Galaxy S8 Plus is the perfect phone for anyone looking to maximism smartphone screen real estate.

Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy S8 Plus

The OnePlus 5 is slightly expensive than the company's previous handsets, but it's one of the best phones on the market right now. A great camera, phenomenal performance and a premium design combine to make this a fantastic buy for anyone looking for a more affordable flagship phone.

This is a phone that manages to hold its own alongside flagship devices from companies that have enormous pots of money to spend on research, development and design, and a decade or more of experience making smartphones.

Read the full review: OnePlus 5

We're all about reviewing and rating all the phones here at techradar. There's nothing we like more than brewing a pot of tea and deciding where each new phone should sit in the list.

However, sometimes they don't make it into the top 10 - sad, we know, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't have a quick look to see if they fit your needs. After all, there are very few bad phones these days...

Galaxy S6

Samsung Galaxy S7

A true return to form from the Korean manufacturer

The Galaxy S7 may have just been dethroned by the Galaxy S8, but don't count this old boy out of the race yet.

The Samsung Galaxy S7 is a stellar phone. It's a handset that packs great battery smarts, excellent camera abilities and loads of raw power into an increasingly affordable package.

Even though Samsung has replaced the Galaxy S7 with the new Galaxy S8, it's still worth taking a look at the 2016 flagship Samsung phone for your next big purchase. The price has begun to drop quite impressively, and the Galaxy S8 lacks a killer feature that makes it a must-have over the Galaxy S7.

Read the full review: Samsung Galaxy S7 review

OnePlus 3

OnePlus finally has a genuine flagship killer

Addressing a number of issues fans had with the OnePlus 2, it seems the third time's the charm for the Chinese startup, as the OnePlus 3 manages to provide a premium smartphone experience without breaking the budget.

Its impressive Snapdragon 820 processor and huge 6GB of RAM ensure that the OnePlus 3 is future-proofed for the next few years, at least.

There are a few shortcomings, but some compromises are essential in a $550 smartphone with this level of spec, and on the whole the ones made here don't really limit the OnePlus 3 in any meaningful way.

OnePlus 3 review

iPhone 6

Apple iPhone 6S

Same frame but with a brilliant new touchscreen

Apple's iPhone 6S pitch has been 'the only thing that's changed is everything', highlighting that it knows this is phone looks an awful lot like 2014's model.

It makes sense that Apple would try its hardest to show that, despite the handset looking identical to the iPhone 6, there have been loads of changes under the hood that make this an attractive phone in its own right.

If you're desperate to get a new iPhone, but don't need or want the forever change (headphone jack-less) iPhone 7, I'd recommend the iPhone 6S wholeheartedly, especially if you're jumping from a 5S. It's got a great interface that's only going to get better, and the overall package is still excellent.