Best Gaming Phones Of 2024: Poco X6 Pro, iQOO 13, More
Best Gaming Phones: iPhone 16 Pro Max, Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, and more to choose from.
Best Gaming Phones Of 2024: Gaming on mobile phones continued to be a rage in 2024. Although the concept of phones dedicated to gaming seemed to be on the way out (in India at least), the number of phones that could deliver a decent gaming experience to users went up substantially in 2024, as good specs trickled down to lower price points. As the year came to a close, mobile gamers could find great gaming on devices at prices that ranged from Rs 25,000 to Rs 1,50,000 (and more).
Here is our selection of five devices that rocked the world of mobile phone gaming in 2024:
Poco X6 Pro: Bringing High-End Gaming To The Mid Segment
When was the last time a phone priced in the region of Rs 25,000 emerged as a terrific gaming option? Well, the Poco X6 Pro took everyone by surprise at the beginning of 2024 and while the Poco F6 and Vivo T3 Ultra followed its formula later in the year, the smiles of sheer surprise that it brought to gamers' faces in early 2024 got it into this list.
The phone pretty much threw the gaming kitchen sink at the spec sheet - you got a 6.67 inch 1.5K AMOLED display with 120 Hz, LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0 storage and what was then a flagship level MediaTek Dimensity 8300 Ultra processor.
Rounded off with a very good pair of stereo speakers, this made the Poco X6 Pro THE budget gaming flagship for a large portion of 2024, and also made many realise that you did not need big bucks for a good gaming experience.
The phone had some software bugs initially but those were ironed out.
iQOO 13: Flagship-Killing Premium Gaming Phone
iQOO started out as a gaming brand and although its horizons (and market share) have expanded since, the brand has not forgotten its gaming roots, churning out devices with premium specs and design at less than super-premium prices.
And as the year drew to an end, iQOO unleashed the iQOO 13, which is pretty much the best value for money premium gaming phone you can get at the time of writing, and is likely to remain so for a while.
The phone brings a large 6.82-inch quad-HD+ AMOLED display with a staggering 144 Hz refresh rate, super-fast LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.0/4.1 storage, very good stereo speakers, and best of all, a super powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite processor to the gaming table. A 7K Ultra VC cooling system ensured that the phone kept its cool while we were chilling in the gamezone.
All in a design that was premium and with a price tag that was the lowest among all-new premium flagships. That made it nightmare stuff for every premium flagship out there right now and right through 2025, and dream stuff for gamers wanting premium specs and design at flagship-sinking prices.
iPhone 16 Pro Max: Bigger, Better Than Before
Apple's big iPhones have always been great for gaming, but the iPhone 16 Pro Max took the iPhone's gaming potential up several notches. This was mainly because of the largest display ever seen on an iPhone (and bigger than even other Android flagships launched in the year) - a 6.9-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display.
Adding to the gaming muscle of the phone was the insanely powerful A18 Pro processor with Apple's own GPU for good measure. Making every gunshot and footstep sound authentic was the task of the best stereo speakers we saw (or rather heard) on a phone in 2024.
Combined with Apple's smooth software and hardware integration and App Store game optimizations, meant that the iPhone 16 Pro Max served up staggeringly good gaming. And unlike its predecessor, it had no heating issues whatsoever.
Of course, all this came at an eye-watering, pocket-emptying price but then you also got a fantastic set of cameras and a terrific phone experience in the bargain.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra: Ultra Special For Gaming Too
No, it was not sold as a gaming phone, but like the Pro Max avatar of its iconic rival (the iPhone, don't you know), the Galaxy S24 Ultra was THE phone to go for if you had no budget constraints and wanted a powerhouse.
The phone brought everything a gamer needed to the table - a large and brilliant 6.8-inch quad-HD AMOLED display, a top-of-the-line Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, lots of storage and RAM, great speakers and a terrific software update record.
And unlike some of its predecessors, this Galaxy flagship kept its cool even when the gaming going got tough, and refused to heat up. Of course, it was an outstanding phone in other regards too, and the only flagship out there to come bundled with a stylus.
But that only added to its LOTR "one device to rule them all" aura. Ultra expensive it was, but an Ultra performer it was too, even in gaming.
Amkette EvoFox Deck Smartphone Gamepad: Making Every Smartphone A Console
All right, we know that this is not a gaming phone, but Amkette's impressive-if-elaborately named EvoFox Deck Smartphone Gamepad controller came with the gift of adding a gaming dimension to just about every phone paired with it.
Park your Android smartphone or iPhone in the middle of it (its length is adjustable - even our iPhone 16 Pro Max fit easily in it) and you have a portable gaming console like a Nintendo Switch or Steamdeck in your hands, with a large display (your smartphone), flanked by backlit gaming controller buttons (including joysticks) on either side.
The EvoFox Deck delivered smooth gaming without our needing to depend on touchy touchscreen buttons while letting us have a clean, uncluttered view of the game. Even though the gamepad connected with phones over Bluetooth 5.0, we never experienced any significant lags in gameplay.
Hardcore gamers will love the Prism RGB lighting effects, the responsive buttons and the option to even map the keys for some games that do not support gamepads.
Handy battery life, commendable build quality and a super affordable price tag (Rs 2,999) made this pretty much THE budget mobile gaming device of the year.
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