These underrated smartphones of 2024 are still worth your money

There was no shortage of great Android phones in 2024. Whether it’s the Galaxy S24 series, OnePlus 12, or Xiaomi 14 Ultra, we saw some fantastic devices this year.

These aforementioned phones grabbed most of the headlines, but there were plenty of great handsets that went under the radar. So we’re recognizing them by choosing the most underrated phones of the year.

The Taiwanese manufacturer took a very different direction with the Zenfone 11 Ultra. Instead of offering a compact Android phone as we saw in previous years, ASUS basically used the ROG Phone 8 gaming phone as a basis for the new Zenfone.

Sure, you missed out on a pocket-friendly form factor, but the end result was a great flagship phone nonetheless. The phone doesn’t scrimp on premium features, including a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor, wireless charging, an IP68 rating, and a flexible triple rear camera setup. We also praised the handset for its modern AI features (including summarization and call translation capabilities), great build quality, and lightweight Android skin. Another point in the Zenfone’s favor is that the large battery didn’t require a proprietary charger to hit the 65W top speed.

The Zenfone 11 Ultra has its fair share of issues, though. We lamented the disappointing update policy (just two OS upgrades), inconsistent camera quality, and lack of 4K recording for the tele lens.

Nothing launched three great mid-tier phones in 2024, but its first handset under the CMF sub-brand was a breath of fresh air. This was primarily due to the phone’s semi-modular approach.

Sure, you don’t have the fancy magnets of the old Motorola RAZR series or the modular parts of the Fairphone. However, the CMF Phone 1 offers a removable rear cover and an “Accessory Point” connector that enables add-ons like a card case, lanyard hole, and kickstand. It was clearly less ambitious than rival modular offerings, but who cares when it only costs $200 in the US?

The rest of the CMF Phone 1 is pretty good for the price too. There’s a respectable Dimensity 7300 chipset, a 6.7-inch 120Hz OLED screen, a 5,000mAh battery with 33W wired charging, and a 50MP+2MP rear camera pairing. The biggest issue with the phone is the extremely limited network support in the US, which isn’t a surprise as it’s only available via a beta program. But those in global markets looking for a very cheap yet unique phone should definitely add this to their list.

The Motorola Razr 2023 was a good mid-range foldable phone, but it was unquestionably a step or two below the Plus model. Fortunately, Motorola bounced back with the Razr 2024, which might be a better buy than the Plus variant.

The Razr 2024 lags behind its more expensive stablemate when it comes to performance, camera zoom, and charging speeds. But the standard model brings a large, full-featured cover screen, much better battery life, and swaps out the Plus model’s 2x tele camera for an ultrawide lens if that tickles your fancy. Either way, the standard Razr phone was a good deal at its $699 launch price, and it’s an even better deal now, thanks to frequent discounts.

Metal phones are a rarity these days, as many brands adopt glass, plastic, or pleather backs. So we were excited to see OnePlus buck the trend with the £429 (~$547) Nord 4. The mid-ranger offers a metal back with a glass visor around the cameras, bringing early Pixel phones to mind. Talk about a throwback.

The rest of the Nord 4 remains pretty compelling, too. It has a powerful Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 3 chip, a 50MP+8MP rear camera pairing, a 6.74-inch OLED screen (1.5K, 120Hz), and a large 5,500mAh battery with 100W wired charging. The Nord 4 even bests the OnePlus 12 by offering an extra year of security updates, bringing it to six years of security patches and four major OS upgrades.

Unfortunately, the phone lacks wireless charging and water resistance, but these omissions aren’t a big surprise for the price. However, the biggest disappointment might be the lack of a US release, although the OnePlus 12R goes a long way to addressing this.

Sony’s phones are perennial entries on this list, and 2024 is no different. However, the Xperia 1 VI makes a strong argument for being the company’s most impressive flagship phone in years.

We praised the Xperia 1 VI for its great battery life, versatile cameras, and solid software. The phone also continues Sony’s tradition of offering multimedia and camera-focused additions, including a 3.5mm port, pro-focused camera features, and an assortment of wireless audio codecs/standards.

It’s not all good news, though. We criticized the phone’s ho-hum update policy (three OS upgrades and four years of security patches), the £1,299 price tag, and the lack of US availability. However, smartphone photographers and those who want the best audiovisual experience should still consider the Xperia 1 VI.

Look at the core specs and Samsung’s Galaxy Xcover 7 seems more like a low-end Galaxy A series phone than anything else. The phone is equipped with a 6.6-inch FHD+ LCD screen (60Hz), a budget-tier Dimensity 6100 Plus chip, 6GB of RAM, 128GB of storage, and a 4,050mAh battery with a mere 15W wired charging. Don’t expect a great camera experience, either, featuring a solitary 50MP rear shooter. It doesn’t even have a fingerprint scanner, so what makes this device worthy of our list?

Well, the Galaxy Xcover 7 packs a microSD card slot, a 3.5mm port, and a removable battery. Just one of these enthusiast features is enough to stand out in 2024, but all three? That’s virtually unheard of for a modern Android phone. There’s even a remappable hardware button if that floats your boat.

Either way, this rugged Galaxy phone retails for £349 (~$445). And with four major OS upgrades and five years of security patches, it’ll be supported for a long time compared to similarly cheap devices.