5 features I need in my next phone

Summary

I want my next phone to have features like 10x optical zoom and high-speed wired charging.
Two-day battery life would be nice to have, but seems unlikely given parts costs.
More realistic is something like 256GB of storage by default.

We’re at a crossroads in the smartphone industry, whether phone makers are aware of it or not. Annual hardware upgrades have become increasingly incremental, to the point that companies like Apple, Google, and Samsung are focusing on AI instead — no matter how useful it may be, or even if it’s ready. Many Apple Intelligence features are still missing in action, months after the launch of the iPhone 16.

That said, there’s still plenty of room for genuine improvement. I’ve got a laundry list of features I want to see on my next smartphone, whether I’m buying it in 2025, 2026, or even later. In fact, I might need to think twice about upgrading from my current iPhone if one of these things doesn’t appear.

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1 A telephoto lens with 10x optical zoom

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It might be a little aggressive to demand 10x zoom — I find the 5x zoom on my iPhone 16 Pro more than enough, usually — but I come from a pro photography background, and one of the chief rules of composition is “fill the frame.” There shouldn’t be any dead space in a photo unless it’s intentional, and in that regard, even 5x zoom can be insufficient if you’re trying to shoot vacation scenery, or the lead singer at concert. Heck, it sometimes falls short when you’re trying to snap someone at the opposite end of a large room.

The optical part of my demand is critical. The Galaxy S25 Ultra technically supports 10x zoom, but only at “optical quality” — meaning it uses sensor and software tricks. That won’t look the same as true optical zoom, especially if you want the same resolution you had at 2x.

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2 Two-day battery life

A man can dream, can’t he?

For whatever reason, we’ve collectively accepted the idea that smartphones should only last a day on a charge, at least without turning on special battery-saver modes. The consequences are all around us — you can buy quick-chargers at your local pharmacy, and emergency aid organizations sometimes supply charging stations. It’s a bit ridiculous, considering that “dumb” cellphones can last several days.

What’s holding smartphones back? The cost of batteries, probably. The lithium-ion packs in modern phones are one of their most expensive components, and so doubling their size would lead to higher end costs, especially given the extra design space involved. For that reason, I’m not expecting a two-day battery life anytime soon — it’s just a goal phone makers should put (back) on their radar.

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3 An always-on display

That’s readable in daylight, that is

Live Activities on iPhone Lock Screen on colored background.

Apple / Pocket-lint

In switching from a standard iPhone to a Pro model, one of the things I’ve been spoiled by is an always-on display (AOD). I know the tech is old-hat for Android users, but in combination with lockscreen widgets and iOS’s StandBy mode, AOD can be a game changer. It means being able to check the weather or my notifications at a glance during the workday, and at night, instantly knowing whether I can go back to sleep.

If I return to pre-AOD screens, it’ll be against my will.

Having said all that, it’s important that AOD tech be readable in daylight. My iPhone can be difficult to read with sunlight pouring in the windows, never mind standing outdoors.

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4 256GB of storage by default

Time to update the standard

Many people are probably getting along fine with 128GB on their phones, myself included. Soon, though, 128 is going to be the new 64 — too small to be practical. It’s unrealistic to shoot 4K HDR video on a 128GB device, and even photos can be huge these days, given the existence of 100- and 200-megapixel sensors. Apps are growing as well, particularly when it comes to high-quality 3D games like Resident Evil 8. These can occupy multiple gigabytes on their own.

Making 256GB the new entry level seems realistic for 2026, or at least 2027. Phone makers already charge us more for memory upgrades than they’re worth in parts, and it’s hard to sell customers on features like generative AI or 200-megapixel cameras if there’s barely any memory to use them.

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5 45W wired charging (or better)

No more panicking when I’m in a rush

You might expect me to list Qi2 here instead, but that standard tops out at 15W, and I’m already using it on my iPhone. I’m not particularly concerned with speed when I’m doing wireless charging, anyway — I find the best use of it is sitting my phone on a stand overnight. When I’m in a hurry, I want a wired connection with the best possible performance.

When I’m in a hurry, I want a wired connection with the best possible performance.

It’s about time every phone caught up with the speed we see on flagship Chinese devices. The OnePlus 13, for example, can charge from zero to 100 percent in 43 minutes, and that’s with the 80W North American variant — the original 100W one does it in 36 minutes. The more wattage the better, since it might mean the difference between successfully topping up for your trip to Austin, or your phone dying midway through watching Aliens again. I mention 45W here only because that’s what the Galaxy S25 Ultra supports — I don’t want anything less.

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