Best Flagship Smartphone ($1000$1800) in 2021

Moderators at OzBargain are now running yearly polls to decide the best products in popular categories that get asked repeatedly in the forum. Our aim is to have a central thread where users can vote on the items, suggest options and also change their vote throughout the year. For more information on how these polls work, or if you want to suggest a new poll that isn't covered already, please refer to our announcement thread here.


Question

What is your favourite flagship smartphone (up to $1800) in 2021?

(edit: ceiling price raised to $1800 to accommodate the ultra-premium class of flagships like the iPhone 12 Pro Max / Galaxy S21 Ultra.

Remember: You can change your votes at anytime, and suggest more than 1 product over the course of the poll.


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Do try to make a sensible suggestion (e.g make sure the phone is still available to purchase) and include a brief argument as to why you would recommend the product. You can only suggest 1 product at a time.

Poll Options expired

This is part of What Should I Buy poll for 2021. Check out other recommendations from the OzBargain community.

Comments

  • -8

    Got my S21Ultra for $348 outright!! It is an anchor and still waiting for case and writing stick. Too bad can't disclose the deal here, anything that is against the profiteering of this forum gets punished just like the facebook jail!

    • Is that a deal others can potentially get? For that price I’d be willing to become an android user.

      • Yeah I was going to buy the IP12 as it sits better in the hand and makes a part in a predictable ecosystem. The 21U is heavy hard to hold without a case no exposure bracketing option so far. Bloatware is a pain but I like the ultrasonic fingerprint reader, screen intelligence and even does macro better than the upcoming Xiaomi Mi11 ultra. Now chasing up on the ebay ordered case. Ah sthe stick option makes it a semi phablet someone can sign contracts on screen!

  • Sony Xperia 1 III is technically a good phone, but without local repair/support it's hard to justify over Samsung S21 Ultra.

    • Sony, once a leader turned fossil maker overall just part of Japanese culture!

  • Suggested Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra

    note 20 ultra still has a comparable camera system to the new note 21 ultra whilst offering an spen and an sd card slot

    • +1

      Where did you get the Note 21 Ultra?

    • Not really, the lack of the laser focus makes it a slow pain

      • note 20 is the one with laser autofocus. S20 Ultra is the one without laser.

  • Suggested Asus ROG Phone 5 Pro

    Cant decide between these 3 phones to upgrade to.

    Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G
    Xiaomi Mi 11 Ultra
    Asus ROG Phone 5 Pro

    I really want WiFi 6e, 12GB ram but 16GB would be nicer, 256GB storage but 512GB would be nicer.
    I dont really take that many photo's but want something powerful to edit videos and photo's from my Gopro and DJI drone through their apps while out and about.

    • They all perform similarly I doubt you would notice a difference unless youre rendering the video. Where you may take a few secs less than the other flagships on gaming phones

    • This is a great phone but heads up to anyone looking for a beefy gaming phone they did not survive JerryRigEverything's bend test.

      https://youtu.be/Dqi9QGyRWGk?t=420

      The ROG 5 basically broke immediately.

      https://youtu.be/Jz_vxrm8rjM?t=412 (for nice jab at ROG 5)

      https://youtu.be/Jz_vxrm8rjM?t=530 (for the fatality)

      And the Legion Duel Phone 2

  • Suggested Google Pixel 5

    great phone

    • Not really flagship though hey.

      • The next tier down ends at $800 as far as OzB polls go, it seems.

  • There's no Mi 11 pro for Global market. Otherwise I think they are doing a great job and providing more value.
    Samsung is often not that honest and they use different quality parts on the same models. What you get is nowhere near what youtubers show to you. Especially in their cameras.
    Google pixel isn't that especial this year. Pixel 6 could be my first choice but not released yet.

  • P30 pro and P40 pro take nanoSD which is proprietry to huawei. Expensive and only 256gb max capacity

  • BB to the moon.

  • I would not spend more than $800 on a phone

    • -1

      I was the same way too but after experiencing 16gb ram with a snapdragon 888 I can't go back.

      I can do whatever I want and the phone never says no ok that sounds very bad that came out wrong wait I can explain.

  • Suggested Asus Zenfone 8

    New Asus phone coming out. Base model is ($999 at JB Hi Fi)[https://www.jbhifi.com.au/products/asus-zenfone-8-5g-128gb-obsidian-black] (apparently coming out today, but as of 8:30AM AEST it's still awaiting stock - hopefully later today it will be available)

    SD888, Adreno 660, 8gb/16gb RAM, 128gb/256gb storage (depending on model), headphone jack (!!!) and more, while fitting into a 5.9" screen!

    As soon as the 16gb/256gb option is available in store for me to walk in and pick up, I'm definitely getting this phone

  • +1

    why is there a gap in the poll options? high end smartphone has a ceiling of $800 but the flagships have a floor of $1000…

  • Suggested Oppo Find X3 Pro

    Oppo Find X3 Pro

  • Suggested Samsung Galaxy Z Flip3 5G

    It's only recent, but seems decent this time around, compared to previous models.

  • Suggested Google Pixel 6 Pro

    Looks like the Google Pixel 6 is now out at a price of $999 AUD and the Pixel 6Pro at $1299

    https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/658123

    Main differences as per Toms Guide

    • 90 hz refresh rate display at 6.4 inches vs 120hz refresh rate at 6.7 inches

    • Battery size : 4,614 mAh battery versus 5,003 mAh battery for the Pro

    • Pixel 6 has 8GB RAM and 128GB or 256GB of storage. The Pixel 6 Pro instead uses 12GB RAM, and either 128GB, 256GB or 512GB storage.

    • The basic Pixel 6 features two cameras on its back: a 50MP main camera and a 12MP ultrawide camera. The Pixel 6 Pro adds a third camera to this: a 48MP telephoto with 4x optical zoom and 20x digital zoom. The standard Pixel 6 has up 7x digital zoom.

    So then… are these upgrades worth the extra 26 percent difference in price?

  • Suggested iPhone 13 Pro Max

    Came at the end of 2021 but still popular mobile, 128GB is for $1699. 256GB around $1800.

    • where did you see the iPhone 13 Pro Max 256GB for $1800?

  • While the S21 Ultra is good, It's still suffering from a camera that feels half baked, and still is nowhere near as good as it was being pitched. Even ignoring that, it's cost at launch was too high (I was lucky to make use of EDU pricing). I've cracked the glass from small drops, and due to the curved screen it was always going to be easier to do. So it is good, runs fine. Just feels underwhelming, especially for its cost.

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