If download speed is important to you, get a OnePlus phone over a Samsung Galaxy S21.

This is the conclusion drawn by new research that evaluated the fastest download devices available in the United States. The report also discusses the impact of different cellular networks and cities on cell phone speeds. However, of all the devices tested, OnePlus remained unbeatable.

In a report released today by data speed testing app Ookla, the OnePlus 8 5G recorded the fastest download speeds (average 68.26 megabits per second) and upload speeds (average 16.52 Mbps). iPhone 12 Pro closely followed, The S21 Ultra won for lowest latency, averaging 28 ms compared to the OnePlus 8's average of 29 ms.

Looking at the overall performance of all devices produced by the manufacturers, OnePlus still leads with an average download speed of 50.79 Mbps across the portfolio. Samsung is second with 43.74 Mbps, Apple is third with 40.91 Mbps, and LG and Google follow with significantly lower scores of 34.7 and 32.6, respectively.

OnePlus' success here is not surprising, given that since last year the company has only released one phone without 5G support, the OnePlus Nord N100. It also has a much smaller collection of phones to offer compared to its rivals, especially Samsung, which offers dozens of phones under multiple Galaxy sub-brands.

These results are attributed to Qualcomm's Snapdragon X55 5G modem and Snapdragon 888, 865, 765G, and 855 Plus chipsets, which took first through fifth places in the fastest chipset rankings, respectively. These chips are frequently used in OnePlus and Samsung devices. Several other companies use Qualcomm's silicon, but the two companies seem to know how to get the best speed out of the same chip.

OnePlus just launched the OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro, neither of which has been tested, so these results are definitely out of date. However, one would hope that the speed success of OnePlus' 8 series will carry over to the 9 series.

Apart from the expected download speeds, there are other reasons to choose the OnePlus 9 or 9 Pro. Both models offer greatly improved photo quality thanks to Hasselblad's cooperation, a stunning 120Hz display and amazing charging speeds. That's why both models deserve a spot in the Best Android Smartphones Guide.