There’s a world of excellent phones—flagship smartphones that push photography to new levels and budget buys that confound expectations—that you won’t find in the US for various reasons. Some Chinese phone manufacturers are banned domestically, while other brands prefer to focus their efforts in countries where Apple doesn’t have a massive market share. Whatever the explanation, I have a strong grasp on the best phones you can’t officially buy in the US, having tested the global handsets for years.
Many of these Chinese phone manufacturers release multiple devices under sub-brands. With that in mind, here’s some basic information: Xiaomi is the brand behind Poco and Redmi; Nubia came from ZTE; Honor was a subsidiary of Huawei but separated after Huawei was banned in the US; and Realme spun out of Oppo. It’s also worth noting that folks in the UK and elsewhere in Europe can also buy many of the phones in our guides to the Best Android Phones, Best iPhones, and Best Cheap Phones that are on sale in the US.
Updated July 2026: I added the Honor Magic V6, Nubia Redmagic 11S Pro, Honor 600, and mentions for the Xiaomi 17T and 17T Pro; removed some older devices; and updated prices throughout.
The latest flagship sailing out of Xiaomi is the 17 Ultra (there was no 16), and I’m ready to crown it camera king. The now familiar design, with that huge circular camera module on the back, has ostensibly dropped a lens, but the main 50-megapixel shooter boasts a new 1-inch sensor and lens pairing that helped me capture stunning shots in a variety of scenarios.
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