How we calculate the score
The spec sheet becomes a score from 0 to 10, with public weights.
What counts toward the score
The score is the average of six components, each from 0 to 10. If the spec sheet doesn’t list one of them, it drops out of the calculation and the weights of the others are recalculated; with fewer than four components, the phone gets no score.
- Performance30%
Chip, from basic to top of the line, and RAM
- Screen20%
OLED or LCD, refresh rate, size, resolution and brightness
- Camera15%
Optical zoom, number of lenses, main camera megapixels and front camera
- Optical zoom35%
The closer to 5x, the more points. No optical zoom on the spec sheet, zero.
- Lenses30%
Three cameras only count as a set when the optical zoom confirms the telephoto.
- Main camera megapixels25%
Diminishing returns: past 50 MP it stops counting, and it never counts for more than 8 out of 10.
- Front camera10%
It counts for little and also stops at 32 MP.
- Optical zoom35%
- Battery15%
Capacity in mAh, extra points for fast and wireless charging
- Connectivity10%
5G, NFC, eSIM and water and dust resistance (IP)
- Longevity10%
Release year: the older it is, the fewer points
What the score doesn’t consider
- Real-world photosThe spec sheet says how many megapixels there are, not how the photo turns out.
- Battery in real useIt counts the capacity in mAh, not how many hours it lasts.
- Updates and supportHow long the manufacturer updates the phone is not on the spec sheet.
- Buyer opinionsCustomer reviews and lab tests are left out.
Two phones with similar spec sheets can perform differently. That’s why the score is for comparing phones at the same price level and finding where paying more stops paying off, not for choosing on its own.
Next step
See the score of each mobile phone next to the price
The chart plots all the new phones by price and score.
How to read the score
It measures what the spec sheet promises. A phone with a top-tier chip, a 120 Hz OLED screen, a big battery and a recent release gets close to 10. An entry-level phone, with a basic chip, a 60 Hz LCD screen and three years on the market, lands around 3 or 4. The same math applies to every brand.
A score from 0 to 10 calculated by Radar from the phone’s spec sheet (chip, memory, screen, camera, battery, connectivity and year). It doesn’t measure real-world photos, durability or buyer opinions.
What does each axis of the chart show?
The chart always puts price on the horizontal axis. On the vertical axis you pick the question:
- Best overall: the 0 to 10 score on this page.
- Gaming and performance: only the chip and RAM component, from 0 to 10. It’s a spec sheet score, not a game test.
- Screen: only the screen component, from 0 to 10. A more complete spec sheet scores higher.
- Bateria: the size in mAh, not the battery life. The chip and the screen change how long it lasts. Phones that don’t list the capacity are left out.
- Memory: the internal storage, on a doubling scale (32, 64, 128 GB and so on). Each version of a model is one point and memory cards don’t count.
- Cheap for the spec sheet: how far the price is below the median of phones with a similar score (a difference of up to 0.5 points, at least 5 phones). Only trusted sellers count, with no price jump of 20% or more between collections, and only cases where a price curve by score and storage also points to a price below what’s expected. The score comes from the spec sheet, so brand and software aren’t part of the calculation.
- Today’s finds: how far today’s price is below the median of recent days from the same seller. It only appears when there are at least 7 data points in the history, and a one-day drop only counts with a trusted seller or when confirmed in the next collection.
The line on the chart connects the phones that no other phone beats on both price and the chosen axis. On the price difference axes there is no line: the biggest ones get their names shown.
Where does the data come from?
The attributes come from the Amazon product catalog, accessed through the official API. The price is the lowest among trusted sellers (official store, or a top-rated seller with 100 sales or more) and shows the date it was collected. The source of the score appears on screen next to each phone. If we start using another source, such as buyer reviews or an editorial score, this page and the screen will say which one and since when.
How to read these numbers
The score goes from 0 to 10 and comes from the phone’s spec sheet: chip, memory, screen, camera, battery, connectivity and release year. The math is the same for every model and it’s on this page. It tells you what the phone delivers on paper, not how it holds up in use.
Still have a question?
Write to contact@radarofproducts.com.