Top 5 phones for listening to music

The magic of the modern mobile phone is that, as well as making calls, taking pictures and sending texts, it also has so many other exciting extra features.

When deciding on your next phone, an essential feature you’re bound to be looking out for is fantastic audio playback. Whether this is for playing back personal videos, watching the latest Netflix series or jamming to new music, excellent audio playback is a must.

We at giffgaff want you all to have the inside scoop on which phones offer the best audio playback, since there are so many phones out there nowadays. So, here are our top five picks, all of which are the best for listening to music (say your Spotify playlist), and watching videos:

Samsung Galaxy S9

With 64GB of storage, there’s plenty of room to store videos and music on the Samsung Galaxy S9. It has a 3.5mm jack for earphones, which is ideal, especially if you have a pair of killer earphones or headphones that you really love listening to audio through.

The S9 is loud, but in a good way - believe us. Did you know that Samsung actually worked with AKG, the prestigious acoustics engineering company, on the audio quality of their S9 model? Well, now you do, you’ll understand how unlikely it is that you’d need to crank this phone up to maximum volume.

So, whether you’re looking to listen to your mum nattering on speakerphone while you cook your tea, play music out loud or listen to an audiobook through your earphones, the S9 definitely won’t disappoint.

iPhone X

Hailed by many critics as the best-sounding iPhone, the iPhone X also has 64GB’s worth of storage, providing a great deal of space for lots of audio files. Despite not having a headphone jack, the audio output is second to none, and the Lightning connection means it’s wireless and Lightning headphones, all the way.

With balanced dual drivers - one of the bottom and another in the earpiece speaker - it has an excellent audio output, which disperses fantastically when held up to your face.

LG V30

Audiophiles everywhere just love the LG V30. This Android phone has a headphone jack, making it ideal for you guys who already own a pair of top quality headphones.

However, a particular downside for many audiophiles is the 32-bit DAC, which turns digital audio files into the signal your earphones play. To cut out the technical stuff, this means the distortion in the signal is reduced and the dynamic range is increased. Don’t let this put you off, though; the sound quality of the actual speakers may not be the loudest on the market, but they are super clear.

HTC U11 Plus

HTC U11 Plus incorporates BoomSound speakers, which use a treble driver next to the earpiece - pretty swish, right? There’s also a nifty primary speaker on the bottom of the phone, which creates a crisp and rounded sound for listeners.

While there is no headphone jack, the HTC U11 Plus does come with a high quality adapter cable, incorporating an excellent DAC built into the sleeve. This adapter means you can play your favourite tunes through your earphones from the phone.

Sony Xperia XZ2

Sony is one of the original brands to spearhead the improvement of mobile phone stereo speakers and to this day, they still produce devices with brilliant sound quality.

The Xperia XZ2 phone does require an adapter to listen to music or other audio through your earphones, but the quality of the front speakers are likely to make you forget about your earphones, altogether. They really are impressive…

This phone from Sony supports LDAC, a wireless standard included in the brand’s Bluetooth headphones. This snazzy phone even has a vibration feature, which sets off the vibrate motor to buzz in time with the music. We know, we know - it’s not an essential feature but it’s a cool little bonus, nonetheless.

When it comes to audio playback, what do you look for in a phone? We’re always looking to hear your feedback and build on new ideas. Maybe there’s a pointer we didn’t quite cover? Whatever feedback you’ve got for us, make sure you get in touch and share the wisdom with us, fellow giffgaffers.