The average refund for US taxpayers this year is nearly $3,000. There are some fantastic smartphones available or coming soon that you can purchase with some of this refund, as you can see in this gallery.
It has been a few years since I put together a tax refund special. Yesterday was tax day, and with the current fantastic smartphone lineup, changing carrier landscape , and average tax refund in 2013 of around $3,000, it's time to look at what is available now or coming in the next few weeks.
In the past, it was easy to give a recommendation or two for each carrier, but we are now seeing more of the same phones appear across carriers, so consumers have the best options available. I always tell people who ask me what phone to buy to first figure out which carrier or two works best for where they live, work, and play. After that, you can then look at what the carrier offers and choose the best phone.
A couple of months ago, I posted my top 10 smartphones to kick off 2013 , and since then, I have had more time with many of these devices. The Samsung Galaxy S IV is not yet available, but will be by the time people submitting their tax forms yesterday will be receiving their refund.
I wrote that the HTC One was the best smartphone I have ever used , that I think both BlackBerry and Nokia have solid phones and strategies for success, that the Samsung Galaxy Note II was one of the best Android smartphones available, and that the Apple iPhone 5 is a keeper.
Check out the following images in my gallery, showing my top picks for mid-April 2013, with the knowledge that announced devices are coming soon.
Caption by: Matthew Miller
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