Top 9 Smartphones of 2012 [Editor's Pick]

This year many new and high-end Smartphones have brought a tremendous change in the Android smartphones market. All the phones has given a brilliant eye-catching execution in the biggest events of this year – CES 2012 and MWC 2012. Some are really appreciable and supposed to begin the sale soon this year till the end of 2012. Some of the key features of all the smartphones that capture the attention of everyone are High-end Camera, Operating System, new Tegra 3 Processor and displays with high resolution. Check out some of those high-end smartphones that are distinguish compared to all the phones glimpsed at the events.

1, HTC One X

HTC One X is the first Smartphone from HTC with quad-core processor. The One X has now been improved with its new Android OS of Android 4.0 Build 1.28, which was previously equipped with 1.26 or 1.27 capacity. One X was facing the battery troubles previously even though it carried 1800 mAh battery, but this time the battery of One X is updated with many new improvements with the same battery power. The new design of the device is very well-built and gives more comfort of holding compared to other phone designs. It doesn’t seem that the body of the phone has many different parts combined in single body. This time, One X possesses the unibody structure with a compact battery inside and a one piece of polycarbonate shell that covers half part of the design and a Gorilla Glass that is on the front face of the model.

It looks like a long chunk made up of good plastic. HTC One X has 4.7” touchscreen with 720p display and newest Tegra 3 processor of Nvidia with 4-PLUS-1 configuration. The user will enjoy all the entertaining features without any hindrance as it is equipped with 8 megapixel HD camera with flash, 1GB of RAM, rear camera and Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich OS with new Sense 4.0. One can expand its external memory up to 32GB as it is found in other devices. Those who are hungry for connectivity features should not worry as it possess all the usual features like Wi-Fi and 3G. HTC has priced One X around Rs. 37,500 in India.

2, HTC One S

HTC One S is second in the line of One series devices of HTC. This device is a spectacular example of modern manufacturing and design. The device has only 7.95 millimeters thickness and even after that it is filled with group of advanced technology that was not fitted in the smart phones before. It is equipped with upcoming dual-core processor, brighter screen and a vivid camera. It has truly lightest and slimmest design. The screen of One S is protected by Gorilla Glass till the edges of the phone. There are 3 regular ICS touch buttons underneath the display that gathers Recent Apps, Home and Back button.

One S has 4.3-inch qHD display that holds the bright resolution same as HTC Sensation 4G due to which both the devices are categorized as T-Mobiles. This device is inserted with HSPA+ 42 data speeds for high speed storage as well as 1GB of RAM and 16GB of internal storage for unlimited storage of the images, videos and other such files. Unfortunately, the storage memory of this device is not expandable. One S is assumed to be away from the battery life consequences that were faced previously by One X as it holds 1,650 mAh battery which has been tested. It clings to Qualcomm MSM8260A Snapdragon S4 processor with combination of Adreno 225 GPU and dual-core 1.5GHz Krait CPU. The connectivity options like GSM, Wi-Fi, WCDMA and Bluetooth radios are also provided with some pre-loaded music applications. To enjoy the tremendous features, users will have to pay around $199 on contract basis. The further information will be released on its sale.

3, HTC One V

HTC has faced many unsatisfactory reviews for their releases in 2011. But, this year it has shown outstanding transformation in their devices – the introduction of One Series mobiles. Just like previous two One series models, HTC has induced one more i.e. One V. It has pleasant specifications and optimum design. Though, One V not involve as much features as the other One series devices, it possess the enough useful specs that justifies its price. One V stands with the other One series models only due to its Design, which can be considered as the strength of this model.

One V has 3.7-inch display with huge resolution of 800 x 480 pixels. The display is quiet attractive, which is rarely found in high-end devices and the content looks nice and clear. It possesses single-core 1GHz processor and 512MB of RAM, which is not unique but provides good result. It does not include the front-facing camera and holds 5MP sensor on the back side. The battery life of One V is 1,500mAh, which lasts for couple of days if used lightly. It holds Wi-Fi ad 3G features that are included in the preceding One Series models. If one likes to pay less amount to enjoy Smartphone features of One series models, then definitely can go for One V as it costs less than One X and One S. One will have to pay around Rs.18, 299 to enjoy this smartphone.

4, Huawei Ascend D Quad

This time Huawei made an unexpected knock at MWC 2012 with its newly designed Huawei Ascend D Quad and other new devices. It stands proudly with other devices due to its tremendous and useful specifications. One of the most attractive devices by Huawei was Huawei Ascend D Quad with quad core processor. The design of the handset is not unique and it can’t be said that such design has been shown for the first time as such design has been revealed previously for Galaxy S II but it is quite comfortable to look out the content of the device. Ascend D Quad has very smooth touch-screen of 4.5-inches. It is sized perfectly to give the clear resolution of the contents like text, images and videos.

The impressive features like touch focus, autofocus, image variation as well as improvement, face & smile detection and an LED flash are provided by the 8 megapixel camera of this device. The 1.2GHz K3V2 quad-core processor of Ascend is very dominant in multi-tasking. It can open more than one application at the same time without affecting the performance of the device. The performance of the gadget is enhanced by Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich Operating system. It holds 1 GB RAM and 8GB internal memory, which is expandable up to 32GB with MicroSD Slot. The connectivity features of the device are same as other smart phones like Wi-Fi, GPS and 3G, which can be enjoyed freely with the 1800 mAh Li-ion standard battery of the device. Though, there has been no official announcement for the release of Ascend D but rumors are in the air that it will enter the market in July.

5, LG Optimus 4X HD

LG Optimus 4X HD is very eye-catching device which gave its first look at MWC 2012, and no one was able to take eye from that device. The touchscreen of the device is trouble-free to slide, browse and even capture lighter pictures. The quad-core processor has nice power to increase the speed when you move from the homepage to the applications and runs them smoothly without any hindrance. This device is equipped with all the physical connectors like HDMI Converter, which sends HD signal to a compatible monitor using special cable, MicroUSB connector and audio plug standard headphones.

The display of LG Optimus 4X HD measures 4.7-inch True HD IPS screen with 1280 x 720 resolutions. It has 16GB of built-in memory and 1GB of DDR2 memory for multiple tasking that can store innumerable songs, videos, images and other files. An 8MP rear camera, 1.3MP front-facing camera allowing video chat and an elongated 2,150mAh battery offers unlimited entertainment. Unfortunately, LG Optimus 4X HD lacks MicroSD Slot. The powerful and latest Nvidia 1.5GHz quad-core Tegra 3 processor along with 4+1 technology offers the comfort to take pleasure of amusing features. There are most enhancing features like Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich and NFC. Users will be happy to hear that with this device they can enjoy the feature that converts 2D games into 3D by plugging the device into 3D capable TV. LG Optimus 4X HD contains all the connectivity options like Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and other multimedia features. It is somewhat disappointing that the release date and price of this device are not revealed yet.

6, Nokia Lumia 610

Nokia – a well-known manufacturer in Smartphone Industry has lined up many exceptional smart phones in their Phone baskets. This time the difference is that Nokia Lumia 610 is the first Windows based smartphone well-alleviated with NFC tool. The device carries the Windows Phone 7.5 very effectively along with the 3.7-inch WVGA display. Nokia Lumia 610 is the cheapest Windows mobile that has been designed to satisfy the needs of youth. It belongs to the medium ranged devices of the Lumia Series. It is assumed that Nokia Lumia 610 will be priced between Rs.11, 000 – Rs. 13,000 and expected to be launched soon.

1300 mAh standard Li-Ion battery powers the device with long talk time hours and reserve time. Lumia 610 endorses 8GB and 256 MB RAM memory for primary data storage and storage of video and other multimedia files. 800 MHz processor and Windows phone 7.5 Mango OS are two strong working engines of Lumia 610, which are responsible to function good of the handset. The device holds connectivity features like Bluetooth v2.1 with EDR and A2DP, GPS, Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n and micro USB v2.0. The connections like GPRS, EDGE and 3G can be occupied in Lumia 610. 5.0 megapixel digital camera of this phone has brilliant resolution of 2952x 1944 pixels with LED flash. To enjoy the features of this phone, one has to wait for few months more as it has not been fixed when it we will be able to see in the market.

7, Nokia Lumia 900

Nokia is again entering the competition of Smart phones, this year with new networking connections which was a drawback previously. This year, it has come up with the new Windows device called Nokia Lumia 900. Nokia faced many controversies regarding the connection problems faced after the US launch of Lumia 900. Nokia took a smart step to bring the improvements in the programming memory of the upcoming stock of the device with a centre point of $100 discount price available at the retail stores of the device. Nokia Lumia 900 2012 model is the first Windows Phone that is availed with the network technology LTE or a 4G Network, which is especially known for quick data transfer.

Nokia Lumia 900 has display size of 4.3” with AMOLED Clear Black technology, which is superior to the previous series phones. There are many applications and features that are found in the Windows Phone alternatively known as Nokia Ace. It holds one piece polycarbonate body that can be bought in three different variants – cyan, black and white. It facilitates 8 megapixel camera with resolution of 2364 x 2448 pixels, which is obviously very high so one can imagine how clear the result would be? For more easiness, 1.3 megapixel front camera is added in the device, which helps video calling. Hopefully, it is going to enter Indian market soon.

8, Orange Santa Clara

Orange has been very successful manufacturer in UK. For the first time, Orange has entered the mid-range devices market with its first model holding the Intel processor. Orange jumped into the lower cost category for the first time, so everyone is curious to know the price of the device. It has 4-inch screen and surprisingly would hold Android 2.3 Gingerbread – missing newer Android 4.0: Ice Cream Sandwich.

This phone was not that much fortunate to be glimpsed at MWC but its features can catch the attention of the consumers. This Android smartphone is powered with Medfield CPU that is a single-core 1.6GHz Atom Z2460 processor of Intel. It also holds 16GB of memory and 8MP camera, which would be unexpected in this device with quite satisfying resolution. It is expected to enter the market during summer.

9, Sony Xperia S

Sony Xperia S does not require any introduction as the specifications of the phone itself has attracted all the users. Sony Xperia S is an Android phone that gave its first look at Consumer Electronics Show 2012. After departing from Ericsson, it is the first release of Sony launched under the name of Sony only. Xperia S gives a brilliant competition to its High-end competitors. It holds Android v2.3 OS and boosts Timescape user interface. The Smartphone possesses the certified PlayStation that will offer the upcoming game experience to all the users with numerous games. It is hoped that it will be updated with Ice Cream Sandwich OS at some time in later period of 2012.

Xperia S has 4.3 inch touch-screen with mobile engine of BRAVIA that adds clarity to the picture and contents displayed. The screen of this handset also supports multi-touch feature and can display 16,777,216 colors. The mind-blasting 12 MP camera of this device can capture video with 1080p High definition and the front-facing camera of 1.3 MP can allow video calling with precision of 720p. The storage features like HDMI-out, 32GB of internal storage and 1 GB of RAM are also present with 1.5GHz dual core processor. The key feature of the device other then mentioned features is the NFC application, which is useful along with Xperia SmartTags. It facilitates all the connectivity features with additional Google Play. This phone ranges between Rs. 30,000 and Rs. 32,000 in India.