I don't even consider iPhone to be in the top 3. The iPhone 6 plus could have been great but iOS 8 is very buggy and I still don't know how app developers will take advantage of the 5.5" screen. If Apple made a "phablet" section in the app store it would be much easier to identify optimized apps. Other than the small tweaks the 5.5" is just a big iPhone.
But here are my best phones as a Verizon customer.
1. Note 4
2. Droid Turbo
3. Nexus 6 (if coming to Verizon)
4. Moto X
5. iPhone 6 Plus
6. Note 4 Edge
7. LG G3
8. iPhone 6
9. Samsung S5
10. HTC M8
The only reason why I rank the Note 4 above the Turbo is because of Gear VR. It will not beat the consumer Oculus Rift but this is the direction VR is heading into; wireless, portable and easy to use. And even if you don't care about Gear VR you still have a beast of a phone with metal body, tons of productivity, 32GB to start, 128GB SD card support, removable battery, IR blaster and the best display (according to DisplayMate). The only negative is that Samsung is still doing their touchwiz crap. They really need to focus on not breaking the look of stock Android but add features like Motorola does.
The Droid Turbo appears to be a smaller Nexus. Battery should be bigger and the software is stock with useful features. Screen resolution, cpu and ram matches the Note 4. Should be just as fast as the upcoming Nexus.
The Nexus 5.9" may be too big but it should offer the fastest Android experience and have access to many Roms such as CM. Only con here is the rumored 2GB of ram. But I'm tired of rooting/hacking my daily drivers. That's what my Nexus 7 is used for. So I'd rather get a Nexus 9 at this stage with dual front speakers.
The Moto X is this years Android iPhone. Running stock OS with nice Motorola tweaks, heavy duty build quality, fast, decent 1080p display and only $100 off contract or $500 out the door with the ability to customize the phone. My only negative here is memory storage options and the camera is not the best but it works just fine for my purposes.
The Note Edge brings something totally new to the table that no other smartphone has. I used it and came away liking it but it won't work with Gear VR, rumored to cost more than the Note 4, case support and screen protectors are going to be difficult to implement.
All the other phones are old by today's standards but there still nice to own. I personally want the latest and greatest. The M8 should be replaced in about 4 months and the Galaxy S5 is not worth it vs the Notes unless you need a water resistant phone. The G3 is nice but I wouldn't choose it over my top 3. No word on a HTC Max replacement yet.
I had a iPhone 6 but it's very difficult to switch platforms. Everything I did in Android felt more natural and iOS limits you in many areas. I think the vast majority of Android users that made the switch will see what I'm talking about. And let's not forget the bugs with iOS and all the apps not optimized for the new phones. The only positives would be iTouch, the camera, the bright screen, relatively fast OS experience, fast software updates and accessory options. Even with all those positives it's still not enough to make me switch.
