I thought I wanted colorful Android phones until I dropped mine

For a while, color options for flagship phones felt stale. The top iPhones and Android phones always seemed to be limited to neutral colors and muted pastels. If you wanted something bright or bold, you were out of luck. Now, the tide seems to be turning. We have a bright orange iPhone 17 Pro, a deep purple Samsung Galaxy S26, a rich blue Galaxy Z Fold 7, and a pastel green Google Pixel 10 Pro. These fresh color palettes offer something new in a world with too much black, white, gray, and silver.

After buying numerous personal phones with traditionally boring colors, like my white titanium iPhone 16 Pro or my titanium silver Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge, I thought I wanted a change. Then, I tested review units of Samsung’s boldest blue and purple colorways. These devices looked pristine out of the box, and I loved the unique look, but it was only temporary. All it took was a few drops leaving permanent scrapes for me to realize colorful phones aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.