We’re in the mood to remember and on a recent podcast we brought up the Galaxy Nexus for some weird reason. Speaking of the phone, I mentioned that it would be one of the 10 best Android phones ever, which then got me thinking what other phones could be on such a list. We have decided to answer this question with the following …

10 most important Android phones of all time

Below is a list of 10 devices, listed in order of importance. Through important, we mean what the devices meant to the entire Android ecosystem when they were released. Obviously, some phones have been more important than others, not only for Android as a whole, but for the manufacturer as well. We have detailed reasoning and arguments for each phone’s ranking below, but we’d love to know if you have any differing opinions. Did we completely miss a bigger device?

Let’s do this!

Photo taken by Akela NDE

10. HTC Dream alias G1

Where would we all be without the HTC Dream aka G1 smartphone? Personally, I have never used the phone, but I do recognize the importance of the phone in being the first publicly available Android device. I remember seeing someone using the device at the time and asking the question. It looked futuristic at the time and I think what intrigued me the most was that it wasn’t an iPhone. Looking back I’m sure the software was pretty limited and the camera probably didn’t produce the best photos, but hey, the G1 will go down in the history books as a very important Android device.

9. LG G2 (2013)

In our eyes, the G2 has established LG as an Android phone maker to be excited about. It was a year before LG gave us the world’s first QHD display in the G3, but this clip from Kellen’s G2 review portrays the G2 image we will all remember. As he said in 2013, “The screen is as good as it gets, the processor is the most powerful on the planet, and the camera understands the next move in mobile photography. When you think of the ultimate spec list, LG ticked all the boxes with the G2.

The G2 built a loyal following for LG, which ultimately didn’t survive several corporate missteps, but LG can look back on both the G2 and G3 and be quite proud of what has been. accomplished. And seriously, we miss that rear-facing volume rocker and power button all the time. So unique and so good!

8. Galaxy S6 (2015)

It is with the Galaxy S6 that we mark as the hub version for pretty much all of the modern Android hardware we have today. It was the Galaxy S6 that showed us the glass-filled future we live in today, and honestly, it was a pretty good smartphone for the time.

Coming from the Galaxy S5, arguably one of the worst phones Samsung has ever released, the Galaxy S6 was a difference day and night, with a premium look and feel you simply haven’t seen in virtually any home. no other manufacturer. Samsung continues this trend with its latest devices, and as we all now know, virtually every Android device maker wants to copy what Samsung has done. This tends to happen when you sell millions of units more than your competition, so it’s really a compliment to what Samsung has accomplished.

7. HTC One M7 (2013)

The One (M7) marked the pinnacle for HTC. Many in the tech community felt it was the most beautiful Android phone ever, and while no one has to feel the same, the phone offered more than just looks. It gave us amazingly good speakers that set the tone for all of its competition, and HTC was always going in the right direction with its Sense UI.

Unfortunately, the One (M7) can also be marked as the beginning of the end for HTC. While the M8 suite was a good phone as well, HTC never got a home run like it did with the M7. In fact, things got really low in 2018.

Long live BoomSound.

Pixel 2 XL

6. Pixel 2 XL (2017)

Ah, the phone 🐧 (or 🐼). We briefly debated whether to put the Pixel One or the Pixel 2 XL in this position, ultimately deciding that the Pixel 2 XL would likely become the most popular of all Pixel smartphones. There was something about it, an almost perfect smartphone (reviewed here).

At launch, the Pixel 2 XL brought its own drama, but that’s just to be expected when it comes to Google hardware. At the end of the day, the results spoke for themselves. The Pixel 2 XL has solidified Google’s position as a good phone maker and leader in mobile photography. The Google Pixel releases remain one of the most anticipated launches year after year.

5. Galaxy Nexus (2011)

Thanks to a decent hype campaign, we don’t remember a Nexus device more anticipated than the Galaxy Nexus. It came at a time when the whole world, and not just the tech industry, was rocked by the death of Steve Jobs. The current Galaxy Nexus launch event has been pushed back out of respect for his passing, so when we think of Galaxy Nexus, we can’t help but think of Jobs.

The phone itself wasn’t that good in several categories, but if there was one main issue we had to report it was the battery. In fact, it was so bad that Google ended up removing LTE connectivity for its tracking device, the Nexus 4. However, the phone introduced the world to Google Now, which was replaced on Pixel phones today by the Discover, rich in news. And no one can deny that Phase Beam live wallpapers are not an absolute icon.

4. HTC DROID Amazing (2010)

While many had the original Motorola DROID as their first Android phone, others had HTC’s DROID Incredible. I remember there had been battles between factions over which phone was better, but looking back there was no wrong answer. Both phones are awesome and have immersed themselves in this crazy world.

For HTC, whose history dates back to the very early days of Android, the DROID Incredible is an incredibly important device. It spawned a long list of tracking devices which eventually led to the release of the HTC One (M7) in 2013. More importantly, it attracted a lot of people in the world of Android and c is what makes him incredibly special in the eyes of many.

3. OnePlus One (2014)

OnePlus One (review) came out at a time when we were starting to see smartphone prices go up more and more. It was launched as a “flagship killer,” offering specifications and a software experience that could rival anything on the market, while still maintaining an incredibly affordable price of just $ 299. At the time, it seemed crazy. OnePlus has also introduced sandstone backs with this phone and we can’t tell you how much this texture is missing in our pocket.

These days, OnePlus sells its smartphones with the same price schedule as Apple and Samsung (aka super expensive). It was bound to happen and it’s pretty clear that the company has completely lost its sense of the underdog competition that made it so special a few years ago. Looking back, the OnePlus One will be a constant reminder that it’s possible to deliver an exceptional device at a price that can bring everyone down and capture the imagination and wonder of a buying audience. Well done to Cyanogen too!

2. Moto X (2013)

The only phone to win a back-to-back POTY (Phone of the Year) award, the Moto X first arrived in 2013. There was also a big competition that year. There was the HTC One (M7), the Nexus 5, as well as the Galaxy S4 (Google Play Edition). Still, the phone’s hardware customization options were too special to ignore, and the software features Motorola introduced were a game-changer. Active display, are you interested?

I’d like to share Kellen’s reasoning on why this phone ranked so high for us in 2013. It’s a fun throwback, but it also depresses me now to know the fate of Motorola as a whole. .

The Moto X tops the list for many reasons, but there are two in particular that set it apart: Choice and Active Display. With the Moto X, you have a choice of how it looks, how much storage it has, what media it runs on, and whether it’s a developer edition. You can’t say this for any other phone on the planet. The Moto X that sits on my desk today has a one-of-a-kind bamboo back and works on Verizon because that’s the medium I wanted it to be. But I could have gone green with yellow accents, picked T-Mobile, and unlocked the bootloader to tinker with my own way. Either way, customizing phones is a revolutionary idea that Motorola has brought to life. I just hope they’ve had enough success with this to keep it going.

It’s unlikely that we’ll ever see an Android phone as awesome as the Moto X again.

1. RED Hydrogen One (2018)

Haha just kidding! We love to have fun here.

1. Motorola DROIDDE (2009)

We promise we’re not trying to play favorites, but the Motorola DROID is taking the cake as the most important Android phone ever. Obviously this phone inspired the creation of this site, but beyond that it has inspired thousands and thousands of people to learn more about Android and to get into tech as a hobby or career. .

The history of the telephone is well documented and this is because we know how important it has been to this industry. The phone brought Android to the masses and saved Motorola’s phone business. It is quite amazing.

For Android enthusiasts here, it’s easy to point out the amazing community of developers and tinkerers we had back then which led to so many wonderful experiences with this phone. Every day there was a new custom ROM or theme to flash, allowing the phone to effortlessly scale up and transform into anything the user had imagined. It was special times, people. It was the real one IPhone Killer in our eyes.


What do you think? Did we miss one? Are we blinded by our OG DROID love that we missed the real # 1? Please feel free to chat with us in the comments.