With the holiday season well underway, perhaps you’re looking into buying a popular smartphone for a family member. Maybe your current phone hasn’t been so great and you’re hoping to find a new smartphone in your stocking this year. One stand out phone seems to have the most consumers buzzing this Christmas.

The iPhone 5S is reported to be the top-selling phone for all four major U.S. wireless carriers. The running joke with Apple has long been that just when you’ve gotten good and comfortable with your new phone, another one is released. Regardless of the inevitability of an iPhone 6, many agree that this latest effort is an improvement over the former phone. One of the major features is the ability to use your fingerprint as a passcode for accessing your phone. Talk about high tech security.

Apple’s success dethrones Samsung stateside, as the company’s Samsung Galaxy S4 was the most popular phone in late summer. But don’t count Samsung out just yet. The company’s product did outsell Apple’s last year. Though they may be edged out by Christmas, there’s a good chance that Samsung will take this as a challenge to improve on future phones.

Nokia is still one of the most popular global options for low-end phones, though they are struggling a bit. Rumors of an android phone release make some wonder if they’ll end up with a Blackberry type situation: Too little, too late.

As a consumer, it’s best to not only know which phones are popular, but which phones are best. There are certain top qualities a buyer should be looking for in a phone before they shell out their hard-earned money.

It should be fast (the newest iPhone has an A7 chip), have a beautiful high definition screen (the Samsung Galaxy S4 has the best screen resolution), and give you the best bang for your buck. That last point is highly subjective. Only you or the person you’re shopping for will know whether it was money well spent after the holiday season is over.

Image: Wikimedia Commons