Editorial Standards

What we cover

SmartphoneAwards.com covers smartphones — primarily flagships, mid-range, and budget devices that have placed at MKBHD's annual Smartphone Awards or are credible award contenders.

We don't cover: feature phones, smartphones from manufacturers with limited US availability and no clear award recognition, or devices we cannot test for at least two weeks.

Conflicts of interest and disclosures

• Affiliate links: every article that contains affiliate links also contains a clear disclosure. We earn a commission on purchases via our links — at no extra cost to you. See our full affiliate disclosure.
• Review units: when manufacturers provide loaner units, we disclose this in the relevant review. Receiving a loaner does not influence our scoring.
• Sponsored content: we don't accept sponsored editorial. We don't accept paid placements in listicles or reviews.
• Stock holdings: editorial team members do not hold individual stock in phone manufacturers we cover (Apple, Samsung, Google, etc.). We disclose any indirect exposure via diversified index funds.

Corrections policy

When we get something factually wrong, we:

1. Update the article within 24 hours of confirming the correction
2. Add a clear "Updated" date to the article
3. Note the nature of the correction at the top of the article
4. Re-issue updated content via our existing distribution (newsletter, social) when the correction is materially significant

Spotted an error? Email corrections to the contact address in our footer.

Sourcing and attribution

• MKBHD's Smartphone Awards: we link directly to MKBHD's annual award video on YouTube for each award we reference. Our awards archive embeds the videos.
• Manufacturer specs: phone specs come from official manufacturer pages or product datasheets. We update specs when manufacturers issue corrections.
• Pricing: list prices come from manufacturer official pricing. Discount estimates are based on observed historical pricing at major retailers (Amazon, Best Buy, carrier websites). Discount claims are forward-looking estimates, not guarantees.
• Editorial opinion: clearly distinguished from factual claims. Phrases like "we recommend," "in our testing," and "our pick" indicate editorial opinion vs verifiable fact.

Independence from MKBHD

SmartphoneAwards.com is not affiliated with or endorsed by Marques Brownlee (MKBHD) or his team. We are an independent fan-made archive that covers his annual Smartphone Awards. We do not speak for MKBHD; our editorial opinions are our own.