Best Smartphones in Australia (2026)

With the Galaxy S25 FE now unbuyable on Amazon AU, the standard S25 takes over as our Samsung value pick, and it is a straight upgrade rather than a fallback. The Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy is the same silicon family driving phones twice this price, so games, video export and on-device AI all run without hesitation, and it holds performance far better under load than the Exynos in the FE. The camera system is the bigger jump: alongside the 50MP main sensor and ultra-wide there is a dedicated 3x telephoto, which the FE simply does not have and which changes what the phone is good for - portraits, kids' sport, anything across a room. The 6.2-inch 120Hz AMOLED is small by modern standards and that is the point, since this is one of the few genuinely one-handed Android flagships left. You get 12GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, the complete Galaxy AI feature set including Circle to Search and generative editing, and Samsung's seven-year update commitment. This is the AU retail listing, so it ships with an Australian plug and local warranty rather than the grey-import versions sitting a few hundred dollars below it. The trade-offs are a modest 4,000mAh battery that wants a top-up on heavy days and charging speeds that trail Chinese rivals, but for a compact flagship at this price nothing else in the list competes.

The Pixel 10 Pro is Google's most impressive phone yet. The Tensor G5 chip brings a major performance leap, and the Super Actua display hits a staggering 3,300 nits peak brightness. The camera system now stretches to 100x zoom with Video Boost, and the 50MP sensor captures stunning photos in any light. 8K video recording is a genuine differentiator for content creators. You get the cleanest Android experience going with updates straight from Google for seven years. At around $500 less than the Ultra flagships, it remains outstanding value for a premium phone.

The Xiaomi Redmi Note 17 Pro Max that sat here has lost its buy box on Amazon AU, so the value slot goes to the Nothing Phone (4a), which three outlets rate at four stars or better. What you are paying for is a mid-ranger that does not feel like one. The 6.8-inch AMOLED runs at 120Hz, resolves 2,720 x 1,224 and peaks at 4,500 nits, which TechRadar points out is the same brightness figure as phones costing twice as much. The 5,080mAh battery clears a full day with room to spare, the Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 handles multitasking and most gaming without stutter, and the 12GB memory option ranked here is the one TechRadar recommends for the smoothest experience. Nothing OS 4.1 on Android 16 stays close to stock, with three years of OS updates and six of security patches behind it. The camera is the compromise. A 50MP Samsung main sensor, an 8MP Sony ultrawide and a periscope giving 3.5x optical zoom is a generous kit on paper, and it was the only area TechRadar scored under four stars: photos are clear enough but can look washed out next to a mid-range Samsung. There is no wireless charging either, and the IP64 rating covers splashes rather than a dunking, although Nothing claims 25cm of submersion for 20 minutes. One practical note: Amazon AU keeps this one in shallow stock. At the time of writing the listing shows only a handful of units with more on the way.