As we come to the end of 2023, I want to share some of my top phone picks from the past year. Every phone on this list has been thoroughly reviewed and tested, and you'll find options across iPhone and Android that fit a variety of needs and budgets. In this article, I'll highlight five of my top picks, but please check out our full list of best phones on CNET for even more options.

First up is the $799 Apple iPhone 15 with Dynamic Island multitasking, a USBC port for more convenient charging, and a higher resolution camera that can automatically take portrait mode photos of people and pets even if you're not in portrait mode. The iPhone 15 is a significant upgrade for those coming from older iPhones, feeling like a scaled-back version of the iPhone 14 pro, which isn't a bad thing at all. It's available in two size options, the 6.1-inch iPhone 15 and the 6.7-inch iPhone 15 plus, both running the A16 Bionic chip and both having a new colorful matte design.

Next up is the $699 Google Pixel 8, which is unlike any other phone you can buy today. It has a refined design that's lighter and comes with 7 years of software updates, the longest for any phone on this list. The screen is bright and easy to see outdoors, but it's the upgraded camera and new AI features that truly define the Pixel 8. You can use Best Take to swap out people's heads to get a photo where everyone's smiling, or use the Magic Editor to change two people jumping off a rock into an epic hangtime moment. I recommend the Pixel 8 for anyone coming from a Pixel 6A or older, but if you have a more generous budget, that brings me to the $1,200 Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra.

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is a lot, but in a good way. It has a 200-megapixel camera, not one but two telephoto cameras, and a massive 6.8-inch screen. Even better, it comes with a stylus that pops out from the bottom, making it perfect for those who want to create art or take notes on the go. The phone also comes with four years of software updates, so if you're looking for a giant screen or one of the most versatile camera systems on any phone and can afford the $1,200 price, you won't be disappointed.

Next up is another richly priced behemoth, the Apple iPhone 15 Pro. Apple gave its Pro Models a glow-up with a refreshed lighter titanium build, a USBC port, and a new shortcut button. The $1,000 6.1-inch iPhone 15 pro has a three times telephoto camera, while the $1,200 6.7-inch 15 Pro Max has a new longer five times telephoto Z Zoom. Apple's new A17 Pro chip gives each phone the performance chops to handle console-tier video games like Resident Evil Village, making it one of the best phones released by Apple or any phone maker this year and last.

Last but not least, is a phone aimed at those of us on a tighter budget, the $500 Google Pixel 7A. It runs on Google's Tensor G2 processor and has most of the photo editing and language translation tools from last year's Pixel 7. The phone has a 6.1-inch high refresh rate display and supports wireless charging, making it perfect for those who want a great camera and a snappy interface without breaking the bank. Out of all the phones on this list, the Pixel 7A proves you don't need to spend a lot of money to get a great phone that will last you for years.

If you're looking for even more top phone picks, make sure to check out CNET's full list of best phones. Now, I want to hear from you: did you get a phone in 2023? If so, let me know in the comments and tell me if you think it deserves a place on this list. Finally, if you enjoyed this video, hit like and thank you for watching!

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enfrom the brand new iPhone 15 lineup to the foldable Samsung Galaxy zold 5 there's no shortage of smartphone options available to you but as we come to the end of 2023 I want to share some of our top phone picks from the past year every phone on this list has been thoroughly reviewed and tested and you'll find options across iPhone and Android that fit a variety of needs and budgets in this video I'm going to highlight five of my top picks but please check out our full list of best phones on CNET for even more options so let's get into it and first up is the $799 Apple iPhone 15 with Dynamic Island multitasking a USBC port for more convenient charging and a higher resolution camera that can automatically take portrait mode photos of people and pets even if you're not in portrait mode the iPhone 15 is a significant upgrade for those coming from older iPhones it feels like a scaled back version of the iPhone 14 pro and that's not a bad thing the 15 is available in two size options the 6.1 in iPhone 15 and the 6.7 in iPhone 15 plus both run the a16 bionic chip and both have a new colorful matte design next up is the $699 Google pixel 8 which is unlike any other phone you can buy today it has a spelt refined design that's lighter and comes with 7 years of software updates that's the longest for any phone on this list the screen is bright and easy to see Outdoors but it's the upgraded camera and the new AI features that truly Define the pixel 8 you can use best take to swap out people's heads to get a photo where everyone's smiling or use the magic Editor to change two people jumping off a rock into an epic hangtime moment I recommend the pixel 8 for anyone coming from a pixel 6A or older but let's say you have a more generous budget well that brings me to the $1,200 Samsung Galaxy s23 Ultra which is a lot but in a good way the s23 ultra has a 200 megapixel camera not one but two telephoto cameras and a massive 6.8 in screen and even a stylus that pops out from the bottom it comes with four years of software updat so if you're looking for a giant screen or one of the most versatile camera systems on any phone and you can afford the $1,200 price you won't be disappointed next up is another richy Rich priced Behemoth the Apple iPhone 15 Pro now Apple gave its Pro Models a glowup with a refreshed lighter titanium build a USBC port and a new shortcut button the $1,000 6.1in iPhone 15 pro has a three times telephoto camera while the $1,200 6.7 in 15 Pro Max has a new longer five times telephoto Z Zoom Apple's new a17 Pro chip gives each phone the performance chops to handle console tier video games like Resident Evil Village the iPhone 15 pro and pro Max are some of the best phones released by Apple or any phone maker this year and last on my list is a phone aimed at those of us on a tighter budget and that's the $500 Google pixel 7A which runs on Google's tensor G2 processor and has most of the photo editing and language translation tools as last year's pixel 7 the phone has a 6.1 in high refresh rate display and supports wireless charging the pixel 7A 64 megapixel camera takes great photos and out of all the phones on this list the pixel 7A proves you don't need to spend a lot of money to get a great phone that will last you for years and well that's my list if you're looking for even more top phone picks make sure to check out CNET for our full list of best phones but now I want to hear from you did you get a phone in 2023 if so let me know in the comments and let me know if you think it deserves a place on this list last if you enjoyed this video please hit like and thank you for watchingfrom the brand new iPhone 15 lineup to the foldable Samsung Galaxy zold 5 there's no shortage of smartphone options available to you but as we come to the end of 2023 I want to share some of our top phone picks from the past year every phone on this list has been thoroughly reviewed and tested and you'll find options across iPhone and Android that fit a variety of needs and budgets in this video I'm going to highlight five of my top picks but please check out our full list of best phones on CNET for even more options so let's get into it and first up is the $799 Apple iPhone 15 with Dynamic Island multitasking a USBC port for more convenient charging and a higher resolution camera that can automatically take portrait mode photos of people and pets even if you're not in portrait mode the iPhone 15 is a significant upgrade for those coming from older iPhones it feels like a scaled back version of the iPhone 14 pro and that's not a bad thing the 15 is available in two size options the 6.1 in iPhone 15 and the 6.7 in iPhone 15 plus both run the a16 bionic chip and both have a new colorful matte design next up is the $699 Google pixel 8 which is unlike any other phone you can buy today it has a spelt refined design that's lighter and comes with 7 years of software updates that's the longest for any phone on this list the screen is bright and easy to see Outdoors but it's the upgraded camera and the new AI features that truly Define the pixel 8 you can use best take to swap out people's heads to get a photo where everyone's smiling or use the magic Editor to change two people jumping off a rock into an epic hangtime moment I recommend the pixel 8 for anyone coming from a pixel 6A or older but let's say you have a more generous budget well that brings me to the $1,200 Samsung Galaxy s23 Ultra which is a lot but in a good way the s23 ultra has a 200 megapixel camera not one but two telephoto cameras and a massive 6.8 in screen and even a stylus that pops out from the bottom it comes with four years of software updat so if you're looking for a giant screen or one of the most versatile camera systems on any phone and you can afford the $1,200 price you won't be disappointed next up is another richy Rich priced Behemoth the Apple iPhone 15 Pro now Apple gave its Pro Models a glowup with a refreshed lighter titanium build a USBC port and a new shortcut button the $1,000 6.1in iPhone 15 pro has a three times telephoto camera while the $1,200 6.7 in 15 Pro Max has a new longer five times telephoto Z Zoom Apple's new a17 Pro chip gives each phone the performance chops to handle console tier video games like Resident Evil Village the iPhone 15 pro and pro Max are some of the best phones released by Apple or any phone maker this year and last on my list is a phone aimed at those of us on a tighter budget and that's the $500 Google pixel 7A which runs on Google's tensor G2 processor and has most of the photo editing and language translation tools as last year's pixel 7 the phone has a 6.1 in high refresh rate display and supports wireless charging the pixel 7A 64 megapixel camera takes great photos and out of all the phones on this list the pixel 7A proves you don't need to spend a lot of money to get a great phone that will last you for years and well that's my list if you're looking for even more top phone picks make sure to check out CNET for our full list of best phones but now I want to hear from you did you get a phone in 2023 if so let me know in the comments and let me know if you think it deserves a place on this list last if you enjoyed this video please hit like and thank you for watching\n"