You don't need to be an expert to notice how much effort HTC has put into their new flagship, the One. HTC's new device touts the highest pixel density display of any smartphone on the market (468ppi). It also packs the latest quad-core Snapdragon 600 processor, 2GB RAM, and a new UltraPixel camera. To put it simply, this is HTC's most valiant effort at getting itself back at the top of every buyer's list and their voice is louder than ever.

Google and LG's Nexus 4 is a very hard device to ignore. The price tag of the device puts it in a league of its own, and the build quality rivals every other device that demands twice the dough. Google has outdone themselves with the Nexus 4, and you're going to have a hard time finding a better deal. If you're an Android fan, it doesn't get more Vanilla than this.

The Samsung Galaxy S III is one of the best Android smartphones of 2012. Samsung marketed true features and gave their flagship device a meaningful refresh. Compared to the HTC One X, Samsung put a package together that effectively labelled itself as the antithesis to iPhone, and the epitome of Android. This cannot go unnoticed in a time of such fierce competition and for that, it stands at #3 in my book.

The BlackBerry Z10 is the only gesture-based UI available to the masses. Yes, you can Jailbreak an iPhone 5 and administer gestures. There are even Android apps like Wave Launcher that give users a similar effect. But nothing comes close to how much flair and ingenuity put into BB10. Even though BB10 has its quirks, every young OS does. No matter your opinion of BlackBerry, you can't say they're not trying with the Q10 and Z10 which is why they make my cut.

HTC's Windows Phone 8X is an awesome device for an even better operating system. Though Microsoft has had trouble gaining traction with devices running their OS, it's clear that Nokia has a thing or two to learn from HTC and their marketing of the 8X. And HTC's 4.3-inch SLCD2 720p panel is easily the highlight of the device. It's a sweet spot for the Windows Phone 8 OS. HTC has made it hard for me to recommend any other device running Windows Phone 8. It's an all-around winner.