If you love watching movies the chance to stream them wherever you might go is very appealing and with mobile technology has advanced so much watching a whole film on your phone, at home or out and about is now very much a reality. Getting the best handset for streaming movies is a combination of many factors, so we have put together a handy guide that also recommended the best mobile phones for movie lovers currently on the market.

Screen Aspects

Clearly, this has to be the first thing you are looking for.  For watching movies a larger screen is going to be better, and there are some great plus or max size handsets on the market, but this is not the only consideration.  The screen resolution will also make a difference if you want to stream in high definition, so the higher the resolution the clearer the images will seem.

The depth of colour can also make a difference to the quality of playback, and you want to aim for a handset that offers true to life colours and a good level of brightness.  Aspect ratio is also important as you will likely be turning the phone onto its side to watch the film and you will want a handset that has 16:9 or higher, which a lot of handsets do offer.

Sound Appeal

Whether you are going to be watching at home with the phone on loudspeaker or out and about using headsets, the quality of a film can be lost if you have a poor sound performance.  Some handsets just don’t have the speaker power to even watch in a quiet room, meaning that to get a good experience you would need to use headphones wherever you are, however, there are plenty of phones that do offer a stunning speaker performance and those will be the ones to aim for.

Internal Power

Streaming a film requires excellent connectivity to either your wifi or 4G – which is beyond the control if your phone, however, they are also fairly energy heavy to play so you need a phone with an operating system and chipset that can cope with films.  Many of the higher end phones can quickly deal with this task, and the version of iOS compatible with all iPhones is no problem; however, some of the Android phones run a cut down version and could struggle, leaving you frustrated with spinning timers instead of the action.

Battery Life

Finally, if you are not going to be at home connected to a power source when you are streaming your films, then you need to consider the battery.  As mentioned streaming is resource heavy, with the app, the screen, the sound and more all working hard to bring you the perfect performance.

This will take its toll on the battery if you are not connected to a charger so this needs some consideration.  Most manufacturers are increasing the battery capacity with every new high-end release, but again, budget and mid range phones may struggle to compete.

The Best Movie Phones

iPhone XS Max

Well, it had to feature at the top really.  Apple’s newest incarnation was almost made to stream movies, the screen is an impressive 6.5 inches, and the operating system is the beefiest Apple has ever presented with the A12 Bionic chipset and iOS 12.  

The screen quality is fantastic, the battery life is impressive, sound without headphones is good, and with wireless headphones, you don’t have wire tangle when you are out and about, so frankly there is little bad we can say when it comes to streaming movies on the iPhone XS Max.  Being the flagship for iPhone does mean the price tag is high, but if this is comfortably within your budget, then it could be the movie phone for you.

Samsung Galaxy Note 9

If you are looking for an Android handset to stream cinema quality films, then you would do well to consider the new flagship from Samsung.  The S-Pen can be used as a remote control to stop and start the action, and the phone is more than capable of dealing with a bit of movie streaming, it doesn’t even break a sweat.  

The screen is a 6.4 inch, super AMOLED display with a resolution of 2960×1440 and the phone runs Snapdragon 845 with Android Oreo and has an aspect ratio of 18.5:9 so pretty much ticks every box and then some.  This year Samsung has increased their prices to the same level as Apple so this is also an expensive handset, but feature-packed and offering a ‘one device does all’ style approach it is an investment worth considering.

iPhone X

If you are looking for something with a lower price tag, then the iPhone X is also a great starting point. The edge to edge OLED infinity screen is the same as watching a top of the range OLED television; the only common criticism is the notch at the top which has disappeared on the iPhone XS Max.  The A11 Bionic chipset makes light work of resource-heavy processes, and the sound with Apple is always good quality. The screen is 5.8 inches so slightly smaller than the top two contenders, but the Super Retina display means the aspect ratio is 19:5:9, which is one of the widest on offer. Having been pushed down the pecking order since the new releases arrived the iPhone X now has a great price tag.

Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus

It is the same story when you compare the Galaxy S9 Plus with the Galaxy Note 9, the technology for streaming movies is all present and correct, and the price tag is now a lot lower due to the new competition.  

The screen on this Samsung Galaxy S9 Plus is 6.2 inches which is perfect for movies on the move and the colour of the screen is warm and inviting.  With 2960×1440 resolution in HD Quad and the same 18:5:9 aspect ratio as the Note 9 this is another solid bet for movie lovers everywhere.