Fairphone Generation 6 vs Fairphone 5: Which Should I Get?
Published date: August 2025
Fairphone has consistently championed long-lasting, sustainable smartphone technology, and with the new release of the Fairphone Gen. 6, there’s now a compelling upgrade path from the Fairphone 5. This comprehensive comparison breaks down every aspect of both models to help you pick the phone that’s right for you.
New Fairphone Gen. 6 & Fairphone 5 At a Glance
| Feature | Fariphone Gen. 6 | Fairphone 5 |
|---|---|---|
| Display Size | 6.31-inch LTPO OLED | 6.46-inch OLED |
| Display Refresh Rate | 120Hz adaptive | 90Hz |
| Display Protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 7i | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 |
| Internal Storage | 256GB | 128 or 256GB |
| Main Camera | 50MP Sony Lytia 700C sensor (OIS, PDAF). Triple lens system | 50MP Sony IMX800 sensor (OIS, PDAF). Dual lens system |
| Software Support | Until 2033 (8 years) | Until 2031 |
| Weight | 193g | 212g |
| Additional Features | Fairphone Moments (custom digital detox modes), modular accessories, stereo speakers | - |
You can exclusively switch with a 5G SIM bundle to the new Fairphone Gen. 6 at Your Co-op Mobile, the longest and most experienced UK retailer of Fairphone. Explore the Fairphone Gen.6 with member pricing from new.
Design and Build Quality Comparison
Fairphone Generation 6
The Generation 6 represents a significant evolution in Fairphone's design philosophy. With dimensions of 156.5 x 73.3 x 9.6 mm and weighing 193g, it's more compact than its predecessor while maintaining the signature modular design that Fairphone is known for (12 parts). The new Gen. 6 also features enhanced modular accessories that can be attached by easily removing screws from the back panel, expanding the customisation possibilities beyond the traditional module swapping for repairability or battery life increase.
The Fairphone Gen. 6 maintains it commitment to durability with:
IP55 Dust and Water Resistance: To keep out dust, sweat and light rain. Not bad for the most modular smartphone around.
MIL-STD-810H Compliance: Rigorous military & industrial grade durability tests and drop resistance up to 1.5 meters.
Excellent Crack & Scratch Resistance: Corning Gorilla Glass 7i, twice as much screen protection than some iPhone’s
Modularity: The ultimate durability booster, a body built in parts you can affordably replace individually to extend the lifespan.
The carefully considered build reflects a premium approach while staying true to the sustainable ethos Fairphone is iconic for.
Fairphone 5
The Fairphone 5, released in August 2023, measures larger than the Gen. 6 with its 6.46-inch form factor and has a 10-piece modular design offering the same ease and level of repairability as the new Gen. 6.
MIL-STD-810H Compliance: The same rigorous military & industrial grade durability tests and drop resistance up to 1.5 meters as the new Fairphone Gen.6.
Corning Gorilla Glass 5 Protection: Reliable scratch, dent and crack resistance you can count on.
IP55 Dust and Water Resistance: The same dust, sweat and light rain protection as the Fairphone Gen. 6.
While still durable, modular and repairable, it lacks the modular accessories that the Gen. 6 has introduced and outright break resistance.
Winner: Fairphone Generation 6 - The more compact design, enhanced modularity experience and improved build quality gives it the edge. However, the Fairphone 5 still runs the new model very close, with similar robustness and repairability.
Display Technology, Face-to-face
This will get a bit geeky, but we’ll make sense of the specs.
Fairphone Generation 6
6.31-inch LTPO OLED display
- The LTPO (Low Temperature Polycrystalline Oxide) technology enables variable refresh rates, contributing to better battery efficiency while maintaining smooth performance on an OLED screen.
120Hz adaptive refresh rate
- Fast on-screen responses, smooth movements and a visually impressive experience.
1116 x 2484-pixel resolution (approximately 432 ppi)
- A high pixel resolution that always ensures a high-quality picture, improving the feel for video, photos, games and more.
Up to 1400 nits
- Impressive brightness levels reaching 880 nits typically and 1400 nits peak, that’s enough to see your screen in sunlight.
Display made from Corning Gorilla Glass 7i
- Super durable to scratches, cracks and damage having been tested to withstand falls from pockets and tables with no issues.
Maintains an 83.7% screen-to-body ratio with a 20:9 aspect ratio.
- A recognisable and appropriate fit for the screen without wasting any space in the corners or distortion.
In short, these specs are a welcomed evolutionary advancement on what was a previously beautiful display on the Fairphone 5. Smoother, brighter, more efficient and stretching closer to the edges of the corners for a fuller and vibrant display.
Fairphone 5
The Fairphone 5 sports a larger 6.46-inch display with 2770 x 1224-pixel resolution and uses an impressive 90Hz refresh rate that is still higher than many market leaders and Apple releases. The level of brightness is the same 20:9 aspect ratio as the Gen.6 with 880 nits, plenty for daylight scrolling.
Winner: Fairphone Generation 6 (probably) - Superior OLED technology, higher refresh rate for a smoother screen, brighter and more advanced efficiency makes for a compelling upgrade. Though if outright size matters for streaming, scrolling and gaming then the Fairphone 5 is the better choice as it has a larger display.
Performance and Hardware: What it Means for You
The engine of your phone and it’s memory centre. Better specs make for a faster, smoother, and more capable phone.
Fairphone Generation 6
Brain of the Phone (Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3): This is a powerful, modern processor built on efficient 4nm technology.
- It's like upgrading to a much faster, more fuel-efficient car engine. Everything runs faster and in a more stable fashion, from opening apps and new webpages to playing games. The smaller '4nm' size also means less heat generated and better battery life.
Graphics (Adreno 810 GPU): This handles all visuals of your vibrant display.
- Smoother animations, better-looking games and snappier performance in anything visual.
Working Memory (8GB RAM): Your phone's short-term memory for active tasks.
- You can open more apps at once and switch between them seamlessly without slowing down.
Storage (256GB, expandable):
- Plenty of space for your photos and apps, with the option to add more.
Fairphone 5
Brain of the Phone (Qualcomm QCM6490): A solid, competitive though, less powerful processor.
- It's capable, chosen for performing long-term and gets the job done for daily tasks, but might fall short of what the Fairphone Gen. 6 can achieve with very demanding apps or games, and isn't quite as energy efficient.
Memory/Storage:
- Available with 6GB or 8GB RAM, and 128GB or 256GB storage.
Winner: Fairphone Generation 6 - Significantly more powerful and efficient processor and improved graphics for an all-round better viewing and scrolling experience.
Camera Systems, Photography Evolved
Fairphone Generation 6
The Gen. 6 features a sophisticated triple-camera system that keen eyed photographers will appreciate.
Main Camera: 50MP, f/1.6 aperture, 1/1.56" sensor, 1.0µm pixel size, PDAF, OIS
- What it means: The 50-megapixel count captures a lot of detail, while the f/1.6 and f/2.2 aperture help let in more light, which is good for photos in various conditions. OIS helps reduce blur from shaky hands, making photos sharper, especially in lower light or when recording 4K video.
Ultrawide Camera: 13MP, f/2.2 aperture, 1/3.06" sensor, 1.12μm pixel size, PDAF, OIS
- What it means: This lens allows you to capture a much wider field of view, perfect for landscapes, group photos, or when you want to fit more into the frame. The 50MP resolution is high for an ultrawide smartphone lens, offering more detail than many competitors. Autofocus helps ensure your wide shots are sharp.
Depth Sensor: TOF 3D sensor for enhanced depth perception
Additional features include:
- Dual-LED dual-tone flash
- HDR (High Dynamic Range)
- Panorama mode
Comprehensive video recording capabilities:
- 4K resolution at 30 frames per second (fps)
- 1080p resolution at 30, 60, or 120 frames per second (fps)
- 720p resolution at 240 frames per second (fps) with gyro-EIS (electronic image stabilisation)
The front-facing camera is a 32MP sensor with f/2.0 aperture, 1/3.42" sensor size, 0.64μm pixels, autofocus, and OIS - a significant upgrade that includes optical image stabilisation for selfies.
Fairphone 5
The Fairphone 5 features a versatile dual-camera system on the rear, designed for everyday photography though does share some similarities to the Gen. 6:
Main Camera: 50MP sensor with f/1.88 aperture, 1/1.56" sensor size, and Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS).
- What it means: The 50-megapixel count captures a lot of detail, while the f/1.88 aperture helps let in more light, which is good for photos in various conditions. OIS helps reduce blur from shaky hands, making photos sharper, especially in lower light or when recording video.
Ultrawide Camera: 50MP sensor with f/2.2 aperture, 1/2.76" sensor size. It also includes autofocus (PDAF).
- What it means: This lens allows you to capture a much wider field of view, perfect for landscapes, group photos, or when you want to fit more into the frame. The 50MP resolution is high for an ultrawide smartphone lens, offering more detail than many competitors. Autofocus helps ensure your wide shots are sharp.
Additional features include:
- LED flash
- HDR (High Dynamic Range) for better balanced exposures in tricky lighting
Video recording capabilities:
- Up to 4K resolution at 30 frames per second (fps)
- 1080p resolution at 30 or 60 frames per second (fps)
The front-facing camera is a 50MP sensor with an f/2.45 aperture and is focus-free.
- What it means: A high megapixel count for selfies means more detail. "Focus-free" means it’s ready to go and you don't need to worry about waiting for the camera to focus, making it quick and easy for snapshots.
Updated in 2024
- A rarity in today’s market that’s worth remembering, the Fairphone 5 received an entirely software upgraded camera experience. With 50% quicker shot-on-shot time and 230% faster first-shot time to get you closer to capturing your moments and improved zoom quality. Find out more about the Fairphone 5’s upgraded camera.
Winner: Fairphone Generation 6 - Superior camera hardware with OIS on both main cameras, larger sensors, and advanced features ensure an evolutionary improvement on the finely tuned dual-camera system of the Fairphone 5.
Battery Power and Charging Capabilities
Fairphone Generation 6
The Gen. 6 includes a 4415 mAh removable Li-Ion battery with 30W wired charging capability, achieving 50% charge in just 25 minutes. The battery is quickly removable due to the modular design, allowing you to swap a new fully charged battery in seconds.
Fairphone 5
The Fairphone 5 features a 4200 mAh battery, also modular and removable in moments, with similar 30W charging capabilities. While the capacity is slightly lower than the Gen. 6, the difference in real-world usage difference isn’t night and day due to the impressive charging performance of the Fairphone 5.
Winner: Fairphone Generation 6 - Slightly larger battery capacity, though both devices offer excellent battery life that’s replaceable even on the go.
Software and Updates to Future Proof Fairphone
Fairphone Generation 6
The Generation 6 launches with Android 15 and promises up to 8 major Android upgrades, providing exceptional long-term software support. This commitment to software longevity helps to protect the future-proof nature of the Gen. 6 and therefore, more sustainable.
Fairphone 5
The Fairphone 5 comes with Android 14 and also benefits from Fairphone's extended software support commitment, with updates until 2031. Allowing users to keep the device beyond the industry-leading 5-year warranty with software support.
Winner: Fairphone Generation 6 - Latest Android version from go but both benefit from industry-leading hardware warranty of 5 years plus at least 6 years of software support for the Fairphone 5.
Connectivity Features
Fairphone Generation 6 Connectivity
- 5G: Comprehensive band support so signals will find you in more remote locations with the fastest speeds possible
- 4G LTE: Extensive band coverage for when 5G isn’t available
- Bluetooth: 5.4
- SIM: Nano-SIM + eSIM support
- Sensors include a side-mounted fingerprint reader, accelerometer, gyroscope, proximity sensor, compass, and barometer.
Fairphone 5 Connectivity
- 5G: The same as the Gen. 6, signal will find you in more remote locations with the fastest speeds available to smartphones
- 4G LTE: Extensive band coverage for when 5G isn’t available
- Bluetooth: 5.2
- SIM: Dual SIM (2 Nano-SIMs or 1 Nano-SIM + eSIM)
Fairphone App
- Both Fairphone’s have the app, which is a hub of live info, troubleshooting guides, warranty info and support direct from Fairphone, among so much more. Explore the Fairphone app to see what’s in it for you.
Winner: Fairphone Generation 6 - More advanced connectivity standards and eSIM support though the Fairphone 5 can store more Nano-SIMs.
Modular Designs, Repairable with Ease
Fairphone Generation 6 Modularity
The Gen. 6 features 12 separately replaceable modules, establishing it as the most modular smartphone available. You can replace parts like the display, camera systems, battery, loudspeaker and USB-C port and various internal hardware using only a standard screwdriver and just a few moments of your time. That means no unwanted and costly trips to repair places and you can swap in a fully charged battery in seconds.
In addition, Fairphone has introduced a series of modularly mountable accessories to evolve the Fairphone Gen. 6 to you. Pick from a finger loop, card holder and lanyard in addition to cases and screen protectors that will all soon be available.
Key modular innovations include:
- Tool-free component replacement accessible to non-technical users
- Expanded accessory ecosystem with changeable backplates
- Integrated card holders, lanyard attachments, and loop systems
- Custom design options for personalisation
Fairphone 5 Modularity
The Fairphone 5 incorporates 10 modular spare parts covering virtually the same level of repairability as the new Gen. 6. You can swap include the display, camera modules, battery, speaker components, charging port and more.
The device also benefits from having all spare parts available today.
You will be glad to know both the Fairphone Gen. 6 and Fairphone 5 have a 10/10 iFixit rating, making them stand alone in the smartphone market for ease and quality of repairability.
Winner for Repairability: A tie – Both are essentially as repairable as each other, only differing in terms of numbers of parts due to different body designs. The level of ease and quality of repairability is the same thanks to their industry-leading modularity.
Winner for Modular features & innovation: Fairphone Gen. 6 – The introduction of the new modular accessories that can be securely mounted brings a new evolutionary upgrade on the previous Fairphone 5, now with more customisation and meaningful convenience.
How Sustainable are the Fairphone Materials?
Fairphone Generation 6 Material Breakdown
The Generation 6’s weight is of fair and recycled materials is over 50%, including: aluminium, copper, steel, tin, indium, magnesium, nickel, plastics, rare earths, zinc, fair trade gold, fair mined silver, cobalt, and tungsten.
Sustainability features include:
- Fairtrade gold from ethical sources
- Fair mined silver through responsible mining credit systems
- Conflict-free cobalt for battery materials
- Fair factory conditions ensuring living wages
- Carbon footprint management through supplier partnerships and Gold Standard climate offset projects.
Fairphone 5 Material Make-Up
The Fairphone 5 incorporates 75% recycled plastics for total plastic use, representing industry-leading plastic waste reduction when new. The device focuses on 14 sustainably sourced materials, including Fairtrade gold, IRMA lithium, recycled aluminium, rare earths, and copper.
Notable achievements include
- 100% post-consumer recycled plastics in connector covers
- Fairtrade gold integration in board-to-board connectors
- Fair mining credits offsetting gold, silver, and cobalt consumption.
The Fairphone 5 has also won many awards and accolades for its sustainability and ethical ethos, including the Ethical Consumer Best Buy label, Platinum Ecovadis rating and sustainable smartphone of the year at the 2024 GLOMO’s.
Winner: Fairphone Gen. 6 – The bar has been raised for use of fair and recycled materials as you would expect. Both models set a high standard for sustainable smartphones, offering unrivalled ethical sourcing, and reduced environmental impact compared to virtually all other phones.
What are the Environmental Impacts of the Fairphone Gen. 6 & Fairphone 5?
Manufacturing Phase
The Generation 6 reduces their need to source new materials by using high amounts of recycled content, implements fairtrade to minimise environmental impact, and offsets remaining emissions through verified climate projects.
The Fairphone 5 significantly reduces petroleum-based material usage through 75% recycled plastics and maintains established fair mining practices throughout its supply chain.
What’s good to know is that all Fairphone devices are made in ‘Fair Factories’ which are 100% renewably powered to further reduce the carbon footprint of production.
Lifecycle Management
Extended software support reduces the need to replace your smartphone by staying up to date with the latest and greatest OS, as well as when accidents or excessive wear occurs with a modular design making repairs easy, affordable and fast. Fairphone's circular economy approach includes take-back programs where every phone sold results in one device recovered for reuse, repair, or recycling. This makes every Fairphone electronic waste neutral!
Manufacturing Ethics
Both devices are produced by staff paid living wages, operating in some of the safest working conditions in the entire technology industry, with worker rights protection and representation, and environmental responsibility standards. Fairphone provides industry-leading supply chain transparency through detailed material sourcing reports, regular factory auditing, quantified impact measurement, and continuous improvement processes. Not to mention they also release detailed impact reports each year, see the 2024 Fairphone report.
In short, all Fairphone devices can be relied on to be honest and fair to not only you and our planet but it’s creators too.
Winner: Fairphone Gen. 6 – Progress is in Fairphone’s nature, especially when it comes to improving on already industry-leading ethics and climate conscious manufacturing.
Final Verdict
The Fairphone Generation 6 represents a significant leap forward in almost every category compared to the Fairphone 5 though at an evolutionary rate, not revolutionary. Key advantages of picking the Gen. 6 include:
- Superior display technology with OLED, 120Hz adaptive refresh rate
- Smoother & faster performance with the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chipset
- Enhanced camera system with OIS and larger sensors
- More compact and refined design
- Expanded modularity options
- Latest software with guaranteed even longer-term updates
- Advanced connectivity including eSIM support
The Fairphone 5 remains a brilliant choice for users who prioritise sustainability, don't demand the latest performance advancements but are looking for the very best deal. See more about why the Fairphone 5 is the best affordable smartphone.
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