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These were the best Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 phones ever released
It’s 2017 and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor is no longer the latest hotness, with both the 821 and 835 succeeding it. Still, it was a great processor and even now some of the once-flagship phones that run it are worthy of picking up at steeply discounted prices.
With this in mind, we’ve put together a list of the best Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 phones ever released. Shall we get started?
Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge
While most Samsung Galaxy S7 handsets come with the manufacturer’s own Exynos 8890 chipset, the USA and China version have Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 version has proven to be superior in some ways, while also inferior in others. You can read our review to get all the details.
In a nutshell, the Samsung Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge offer a premium design and specs that will definitely offer great performance even today. The S7 touts a 5.1-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) display, Android 7.0 Nougat, 4 GB of RAM, 32/64 GB of internal storage, a 12 MP rear camera, a 5 MP front shooter and a 3,000 mAh battery. The S7 Edge has identical specs, save for a 5.5-inch curved display and a 3,600 mAh battery.
Samsung Galaxy S7 Active
The Galaxy S7 Active is also powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 820 chipset. Also under the hood are basically the same specifications as the two other Galaxy S7 devices: a 5.1-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) display, Android 7.0 Nougat, 4 GB of RAM, 32 GB of internal storage, a 12 MP rear camera and a 5 MP front shooter. The S7 Active also has a bigger 4,000 mAh battery.
Read our Samsung Galaxy S7 Active review
Where the S7 Active differs, though, is its MIL-STD-810G certification for salt, dust, humidity, rain, vibration, solar radiation, transport and thermal shock resistance. Of course, it’s also IP68 certified for dust and water resistance, just like the S7 and S7 Edge.
LG V20
LG’s new V20 wasn’t the modular smartphone many were expecting (but this turned out okay, considering LG bowed out of modular design altogether), but it certainly was – and still is – a powerhouse. Powered by the Snapdragon 820 and backed by 4 GB of RAM, the LG V20 flies through just about everything you throw at it.
Plus, this phone has some other tricks up its sleeve. It sports the popular Second Screen that first appeared on the V10, a removable battery, military-grade shock absorbency, a Quad DAC and support for lossless audio while video recording (24 bit, 48 kHz) as well as HD recording for audio alone (24 bit, 192 kHz).
LG G5
In the battle of the flagship smartphones, LG may not always sell the most handsets, but in terms of raw quality they always give the big guys a good fight. While the LG G5, was far from a commercial success, it was still a solid device overall.
What about under the hood? Of course, these specifications do include the Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, as well as a 5.3-inch QHD (2560 x 1440) screen, 4 GB of RAM, 32 GB of internal storage, a 16 MP rear camera, an 8 MP shooter on the front and a 2,800 mAh battery.
The awesome part here is that it has a removable battery and a microSD card slot. In addition, the phone supports external modules that LG has decided to call “Friends”.
HTC 10
Like the LG G5, the HTC10 was far from a big hit, despite getting quite a bit of praise from reviewers when it first was released. It features the solid metal construction we have grown to love, integrates a fingerprint reader and moves the lower BoomSound speaker to the bottom (it works as a subwoofer now).
The HTC10’s specs are worthy of competing with the best. Of course, it carries a Snapdragon 820 processor. This handset also sports 4 GB of RAM, a 5.2-inch QHD screen, a 3,000 mAh battery, a 12 MP UltraPixel rear camera and a 5 MP front shooter. Not bad, right? Maybe this time around HTCwill do better.
OnePlus 3
OnePlus’ fourth smartphone, the OnePlus 3, was no slouch in the specification department. Of course it sports a Snapdragon 820 chipset, but it also comes with a big 5.5-inch 1080p display, 6 GB of RAM, a 16 MP rear camera, 8MP front camera, and a big 3,000 mAh battery.
There are also a few other notable features worth mentioning – it has a front-mounted fingerprint sensor, USB Type-C, Dash Charge technology, and, oh yeah, it only costs $400! This certainly isn’t a bad price for what you’re getting here.
Moto Z and Moto Z Force
The Moto Z and Moto Z Force (DROID Edition) were a big departure from what we were used to seeing from Motorola’s Moto X line, as they were both modular smartphones that support accessories called Moto Mods. Moto Mods can be attached to the Moto Z’s back plate and come in the form of a powerful speaker, an external battery pack, and even a projector.
Both phones come with a 5.5-inch Quad HD AMOLED display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor and 4 GB of RAM. They both also run Android 7.0 Nougat out of the box.
ZTE Axon 7
As a followup to 2015’s Axon Pro, ZTE’s Axon 7 aimed to bring a new meaning to the term “affordable flagship.” The device was not only the world’s first Daydream-ready smartphone, it also sported some great under-the-hood specs. The ZTE Axon 7 offers a 5.5-inch QHD AMOLED display, Snapdragon 820 processor, 4 GB RAM/64 GB storage and 6 GB RAM/128 GB storage, microSD expansion, 20 MP f/1.8 camera with ISOCELL sensor and OIS/EIS/PDAF, 8 MP front-facing camera, USB Type-C (with USB 3.0), NFC, fingerprint scanner, and a 3,140 mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0.
The Axon 7 is available now for just $399!
Well, that’s our list of the best Snapdragon 820 phones. Any other notable entrants that we missed? Let us know in the comments!