This is it. This is the big one. The annual Stuff Reader Smartphone of the Year award might not look like the most exciting thing in the world from the outside but we get to see the voting every year and it tends to get… messy. Which might be why we love it so much. People are passionate about their smartphones and brand loyalty is a serious thing here in SA.
So we’re not expecting any issues when it comes to letting users choose which smartphone released in 2020 was the very best of the best. But that might be because we’re asking you to settle matters using an internet form, rather than all stuffed into a room somewhere. First of all, the latter is a stupid idea in this day and age and, secondly, that’s just a recipe for a fight. It’s far better to vote, so you don’t punch your neighbour in the head because he’s a dumbass with the wrong opinion. That’s how governments work.
Dialling up a Reader Smartphone of the Year
As with our other voting initiatives, the Reader Smartphone of the Year process is simple. We’ve got a collection of high-end phones (plus a couple from both the lower- and upper-mid range — because we like to mix things up a little) for you to select from. All of them were serious contenders for the best phone in 2020. Any of them could take the crown. But that’s up to you.
There were a few restrictions on which phones were included in the list. If they’re not readily available in South Africa, they didn’t make the cut (sorry Sony). If they were outrageously priced (sorry, Galaxy Fold 2) then we also left them off the list. You’ll see that everything on the list below is at least kiiiinda affordable, in that they’ll cost the price of a mostly-busted second-hand car rather than a fair solid one.
Our contract with you
Voting for the Stuff Reader Smartphone of the Year is easy. Pick your favourite, enter your details and you’re done. But there were a whole mess of smartphones released in 2020. It’s entirely possible we overlooked something. We’ve allowed for that. If there’s something that should be on this list and isn’t, you can write it in in the last entry. If we get enough of those, we’ll add the gadget to the list of nominees — at the very least. It could even win.
As for your name and email address: we won’t be using those for marketing. We’re just collecting that info to make certain that no brigading goes on. Not that we’re expecting any, but you never know. We’ll be collecting votes until just before the first official issue of Stuff’s print magazine goes to print on 22 January. After that, if you haven’t had your say, then we’re afraid you’re out of luck. Just like real life, if you don’t vote then you don’t get what you want.
