Best compact smartphones (2022)
What are the best compact smartphones you can buy right now? So what exactly is compact? And what are the possible disadvantages of a compact phone? You can read it in this article.
Update: Last month our Sebastien tested the ASUS Zenfone 9. According to him, this compact smartphone, with an incredibly good battery, is a real buying tip. The device is therefore included in this list. In addition, we have been using the Google Pixel 6a for a month now. Our first findings added with the device.
Contents
Petition for compact smartphones
Earlier we wrote about the news that Eric Migicovsky, the founder of Pebble Technology, has started a petition for more compact Android smartphones. With this petition, he wanted to show that there is enough enthusiasm for these more compact smartphones. He also wanted to bring fans of compact smartphones together and put pressure on the smartphone manufacturers and convince them to build the dream smartphone for “compact smartphone enthusiasts”. You can read more about the petition in this article. You can find the petition itself here.
What is ‘compact’?
The concept and our opinion about what we consider a large smartphone has changed a lot over the years. In the past, everything was different, and yes, smartphones too. For example, people used to talk about a large smartphone if it had a 4-inch screen. People also laughed at the 5.3” display of Samsung’s first Galaxy Note from 2011. People said, among other things: ”Much too big!”, ”You can hide behind this”. But yes, look where we are now. We are now looking at 6.7-inch displays, without complaining or joking about it.
This is due on the one hand to the changing image of the times, as well as to new techniques. Because of these new techniques, smartphone manufacturers can place larger screens in smartphones, without the smartphone itself becoming larger. The bezels, for example, the edges around a screen, are getting smaller and smaller and the aspect ratio of our smartphones has also changed. Where smartphones first often had an aspect ratio of, for example, 16:9, these have recently become increasingly elongated. Usually we now look at a screen with an 18, 19, 20 or even 21:9 aspect ratio. As a result, smartphones, despite their size, are still easy to handle. The width increases relatively little, so you can reach the other side of the screen with your thumb. Nowadays we talk about a compact smartphone with screens from 5.4 inches to 6.2 inches.
What are the best compact smartphones right now?
So much for a brief background on the compactness of smartphones. We now move on to the three best compact smartphones that we think are available right now. We look at the actual use of the smartphone. That is why the Z Flip 3 is not mentioned in this list. During the usage this smartphone is not much smaller, but narrower, than other smartphones. Of course if you fold it in half. This is our top 4:
1. ASUS Zenfone 9 (5.9 inches)
The ASUS Zenfone 9 is the most compact smartphone on this list. With 5.9 inches, ASUS has built a high-end smartphone that is smaller than all Android competitors. With this, ASUS continues the line that it already introduced with the Zenfone 8 last year. This device was also a compact high-end topper. Some drawbacks of this device, not a brilliant camera, slow fingerprint scanner and moderate battery, ASUS has also solved with the Zenfone 9. Sebastien even called the battery life of the Zenfone 9 fantastic and the fingerprint scanner very fast. A major disadvantage of the device is its update policy. The device is only supported for two years, which is quite sad for a high-end device. In his review, Sebastien also said the following about the device.
ASUS shows with this phone that they can not only compete with the big boy in the industry, but also that they can make damn good phones in a quirky way. The battery life is very good, its fingerprint scanner is lightning fast, it has very good sound and the night photography is surprisingly good with this phone.
- Great battery life
- Gimbal stabilization works really well
- Extra software features that please
- Fastest fingerprint scanner we’ve ever seen
- Stereo speakers with good bass sound
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2. Xiaomi 12X (6.28 inches)
The Xiaomi 12X is the most affordable device from Xiaomi’s new 12 series. The device comes with a suggested retail price of 699 euros and is, just like the regular Xiaomi 12, relatively compact with its 6.28-inch screen with fine and thin screen edges. We have extensively reviewed the Xiaomi 12X and we were very enthusiastic about the device. The conclusion of our review? The Xiaomi 12X brings a luxurious high-end experience for ‘only’ 699 euros. However, in terms of specifications, the device is slightly inferior to its more expensive brother, the ‘regular’ Xiaomi 12. For example, the 12X has slightly less strong performance, you cannot charge it wirelessly and the device is officially not waterproof. But you do get a very luxurious and affordable smartphone with a beautiful display, very good battery life, beautiful design and excellent cameras. Sebastien said the following in his review:
The Xiaomi 12X is a very good phone. I have a soft spot for smaller high-end smartphones and the Xiaomi 12X is one of the best you can buy. It also looks very nice with its fine screen edges and finish that hides fingerprints. Furthermore, the beautiful screen is a very strong aspect of this device, the performance is also very good, even if it does not have the latest high-end Snapdragon. But what I appreciate the most is the good battery life. It’s great to end the day with a margin and even if you do get into trouble, a good fast charger is ready for you. In addition, the camera of the 12X is very versatile.
- Beautiful screen
- Decent camera
- Great battery life
- Beautiful design without fingerprints
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- MIUI 13 can be confusing
- Appears with Android 11
- Not the best speakers
- Not waterproof, no Gorilla Glass
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3. Samsung Galaxy S22 (6.1 inches)
The Samsung Galaxy S22 is the smallest and cheapest device from Samsung’s Galaxy S22 series. And where we expressed all our love for the device and its compactness in our review of the Samsung Galaxy S22+, the ‘normal’ Galaxy S22 is even more compact and actually the slightly better deal. The device is almost nothing less than its bigger brother, but is more than 150 euros cheaper.
Leon Speek, an AW Beta tester, said the following about the device in his review of the Galaxy S22:
If you look at the specifications with the powerful performance and the improved camera, you know that you really are getting a compact flagship.
- Strong performance
- Very nice software
- Versatile camera
- Excellent update policy
Show more pluses
4. Google Pixel 6a (6.1 inches)
The Google Pixel 6a is the new member of Google’s Pixel 6 line. The compact smartphone is wonderfully compact and with its 6.1 inch it has one of the smallest screens that you can currently encounter in an Android smartphone. The device also looks good and brings a wonderful Pixel experience. At the moment (hopefully this will remain the case), the device has little to no bugs and runs very smoothly. This is due to the high-end Tensor chip and the clean Android experience.
This fast Tensor processor is the same as the one you can find in the Google Pixel 6 and Pixel 6 Pro. In addition, the processor ensures that smart applications are possible. Applications like Magic Eraser, about which you can see more here. In addition, the device will have a Full HD + AMOLED panel, Stock Android 12 and two 12 MP cameras. A 12.2 MP main camera and a 12 MP wide-angle lens. This main camera is the same sensor as the one we have encountered since the Pixel 2, but also provided good pictures in the Pixel 3, 4 and 5. This camera performs well, taking ‘typical Pixel photos’. The colors in the photos are a bit ‘bold’, the dynamic range is high, the photos have a high contrast and are a bit saturated. You can read more about our findings with the Pixel 6a here, you can expect the review on Androidworld.nl and our AW Reader these days.
Conclusion and possible problems
Opinions about compact smartphones are very divided. On the one hand, we read and hear that many people are looking for a compact smartphone. On the other hand, there are indications that the demand for compact smartphones is low. For example, Apple stops its Mini-series because it is by far the least sold. In addition, there are often disadvantages to compact smartphones. For example, the batteries in these devices, due to the small size of the device, are almost always smaller than in other smartphones. And this while modern processors in smartphones have not become much more efficient.
It is of course true that smartphones with a smaller screen need to control fewer pixels. However, power consumption has not decreased in recent years. As a result, smartphones simply have to have a battery that is sufficient to provide a modern smartphone and processor with power for a number of hours. In addition, compact smartphones often have a less good price-quality ratio, they are often slightly less good than the bigger brothers and people sometimes find them too small for viewing content. This makes the compact smartphones just a difficult category and there are the necessary bumps in the road.
Yet many devices in this list manage to circumvent these drawbacks. For example, the Xiaomi 12X has a good battery life, the S22 is almost nothing less than its bigger brother and the Pixel 6a is very affordable. That’s why we think these devices are the best compact smartphones you can buy right now.
Do you agree? Or not? Let us know in the comments below this article.
