Did your gifts include a new phone? Otherwise you can be your own Santa – here are some of the best deals we’ve found in the UK, Germany, USA and India. In the United States, in particular, we also made a detour to the smartwatch section. The links below will help you navigate to your region:
UK
Apple isn’t known for offering discounts on its current models, so a 128GB iPhone 14 costs £850 from the Apple Store. However, if you go through Amazon you can get the same phone for £50 less.
The Pixel 7 and 7 Pro were some of our favorite phones of 2022, and both are discounted from launch prices. You can get similar offers from Google itself, but Amazon’s prices are a few pounds lower.
The Sony Xperia 1 IV is a very interesting phone, even if only selected people like it. Part of that is the painfully high price tag, though it’s slightly less painful now. Unfortunately, you don’t get Sony’s over-ear ANC headphones bundled (you can, but without the discount).
There’s also the smaller Sony Xperia 5 IV, however, at just £150 less than the 1 IV, is it really worth it? It depends on whether you want a smaller device, because the 1 IV has a classy 4K display and variable focal length camera, but it’s a pretty tall phone.
Sony’s mid-range Xperia 10 IV has a microSD slot and a 3.5m headphone jack just like its flagship siblings, and battery life this generation is outstanding. The Mark 4 flagships might be over budget, but if you’re looking for a mid-ranger you should consider the 10 IV.
We conclude this section with the Samsung Galaxy M53. It’s a big phone with a 6.7-inch 120Hz display, packing a 108MP camera and a suitably large 5,000mAh battery, as well as a snappy Dimension 900.
Germany
The Motorola Edge 30 packs an impressive 6.5” 144Hz OLED display (FHD+ resolution), making it a standout in the $300-$400 category. The Snapdragon 778G+ has a fairly capable GPU (a flagship-class Adreno 642L) to boot. And you get a dual 50MP camera setup. However, the 4,020 mAh battery is on the small side.
The Pixel a series has a devoted following and the Pixel 6a is one of the best entries so far. It’s a bit smaller than the Pixel 7 and uses the original Tensor chipset, plus it has a pair of 12MP cameras. However, it’s about half the price of a Pixel 7 while still offering most of the same features.
The Nokia X30 isn’t the most glamorous phone out there, but it will get 3 years of OS updates – keep in mind that this counts from September 2022. This is a good choice for people who aren’t that busy studying smartphone specs all day .
Finally something cheap: a Moto E22. Its best feature is the €120 price tag, making it suitable for a child’s first phone. It also has a card slot and a 3.5mm jack, so you can load it up with MP3s and skip your Spotify subscription.
United States of America
Samsung will unveil the Galaxy S23 series in February, so now is the worst time to buy an S22, or the best, considering the price has dropped to $650. Also, the phone has long-term support (4 OS updates, one of which has already happened, plus an extra year of security patches), so it will be some time before the S22 becomes obsolete.
That said, you might want to get a Galaxy Z Flip4 instead. Foldables are the form factor of the future as far as Samsung is concerned, all that holds them back is price. The Z Flip4 has gotten cheaper over time and currently sits at $850. Note that the Z Flip5 isn’t too far off either, but it will be about six months before it comes out.
If you’re not into foldables, check out the OnePlus 10T: It has a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset for $550 (the S22 has the original 8 Gen 1). It doesn’t have the best camera setup, but it does have very fast charging, 125W.
The 2021 Apple iPad Pro 12.9 uses the older Apple M1 chip, while the 2022 models moved to the M2. The M1 is still one of the fastest laptop chips out there, so it will beat just about any other tablet out there (aside from its successor we mean).
Let’s take a look at some wearables. The latest Apple Watch Series 8 is $50 off. We’ve linked the 41mm model below, but the 45mm one is just $30 more. Note that this is the version without LTE connectivity.
If the 8 Series is too expensive, how about the new Apple Watch SE (2022). It uses a smaller, older display and lacks an ECG and a skin temperature sensor, but most other features are built-in while the price is over $100 lower.
If you want an all-out adventure watch, the Apple Watch Ultra is ready to go anywhere. This particular one has the Ocean band, which is suitable for diving, but you can choose other bands as well. Note that all Ultra models come with LTE connectivity.
Alternatively, there’s the Samsung Galaxy Watch5, which costs as much as the SE but has an ECG on board, as well as a blood pressure monitor. You can also get the Watch5 Pro if you want longer battery life.
Finally, Amazon has knocked some cash off its new Kindle Scribe tablet. We call it a tablet even though the smart functionality is limited compared to Android tablets. However, the 10.2-inch E-Ink display won’t strain your eyes as you read documents and jot down notes with the included stylus.
India
Let’s kick things off with some old but still mighty flagships. The Xiaomi 12 Pro may lack the 1-inch sensor of its successor, but the 50MP triple camera is still quite capable. And there’s a high-quality 6.73″ QHD+ display for viewing your photos. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 is eclipsed in speed but it’s no slouch, and you get 120W wired charging and 50W wireless.
The Samsung Galaxy S22 will soon be replaced, but the new model will not be that cheap. The S22 is only slightly more expensive than the Xiaomi and will appeal to those looking for a smaller device.
While we’re at it, the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE is a cheaper way to get a high-end chipset with 5G connectivity, in this case a Snapdragon 865.
You can have the Snapdragon 888 instead and that too for less money with the iQOO 9 SE. You can use the chipset to play games on the 6.62″ 120Hz AMOLED display, and the 4,500mAh battery recharges quickly with the 66W charger – it only takes 14 minutes to get back to 50%.
The Redmi Note 12 series has just launched in India, but the base model starts at ₹15,500 for a 4/128GB unit. The older Redmi Note 11 is down to ₹12,500 for a version with 6GB of RAM. Comparing the two, the new model has an ultra wide camera and a microSD slot. It lacks 5G connectivity and its screen is smaller and slower: 6.43″ 90Hz vs 6.67″ 120Hz. The 5,000mAh battery is the same (33W charging).
Finally, an offering in the sub-₹10,000 category, the Tecno Spark 9. It runs on full-blooded Android 12 (with HIOS 8.6) instead of Go Edition and has a large 6.6-inch IPS LCD, though it’s not too sharp with HD+ resolution only. It also packs a large 5,000mAh battery.
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