Smart Phone Recommendations

[GB72]

It is upgrade time on my phone contract and I am looking at a smartphone. Main uses will be net surfing, email and music but a reasonable camera would not go amiss.

I am determined not to go down the Iphone route. Great piece of kit but the contracts are hugely expensive and then they want a couple of hundred quid on top of that for the handset.

At the moment I am looking at the HTC Desire or the Samsung Galaxy S as I can get both free on a decent contract. I have looked at the Blackberry options but look a bit too 'business' for me and want something a bit fun as well.

Has anyone got any comments or suggestions.

 

[Imurg]

I've got the HTC Desire and I love it.
Allegedly it out Iphone's the Iphone!
I've never used an Iphone so I wouldn't know but the Desire is a nice bit of kit.
Good camera, good music player too

Just watch the battery. All these Smartphones eat power like its going out of fashion.

 

[Sneds]

iPhone 4. £45/month £29 upfront. Fine, no?

 

[GB72]

iPhone 4. £45/month £29 upfront. Fine, no?

If I do not go Iphone then I can stay on my current contract rate which is only £20 month with loads of minutes, unlimited texts and unlimited data download.

 

[brendy]

Im on a business iphone 3gs 32gb and locally its as practically free call wise as local and same networks are free.
International is where it gets silly expensive but there has just been a new regulation brought out that limits costs to £40 quid before you have to authorise any more.


HTC would be my other recommendation but dont get a windows mobile version as they are laggy as hell compared to android varieties, havent had my own htc in a year or so so cant comment on the very latest models. Would love one of the HD versions though.

 

[Sneds]

I understand that and I know you said no iPhone in your OP etc. But I really do believe that the iPhone is worst the money. It is simply the best phone out there ESPECIALLY for internet browsing, email and music.

I mean internet browsing can't be touched by anybody really.

However, they do have official impartial phone ratings somewhere and I have been told that this year is the first in a few where the iPhone has not topped the list. I'm told that this is because of the reception issue. (of which I had none btw and is meant to affect 2% of iPhone 4s)

 

[haplesshacker]

I've had windows mobile for years, until recently. Nothing else compared to it for years. Not even the original iPhone. However I was in the same situation as you last year. Far too much choice and far too confusing. In the end I went for the iPhone 3GS. For some reason I just couldn't get to grips with Android, and it didn't appear to have some of the software that I wanted for the business. So far so good.

Incidently the wife recently got an HTC Desire. I still can't get to grips with it, but my 3 year old has.

But for the uses that you've given, I'd take a look at the iPhone. There might be a deal to be had on the 'old' 3GS.

Sorry. I do realise that you said anything but an iPhone!!

 

[GB72]

I thought that there might be a deal to be had on a 3gs iPhone as well but on o2 they still wanted 45 quid a month for a semi decent contract plus £179 for the phone. This was only £30 less than an iphone4

 

[RichardC]

Another Desire user here.

I switched from an iPhone 3GS and I think the desire is a much better phone. In my opinion the only thing where the iPhone trumps Android is on official apps, but im sure that now 2.2 is out Android will start getting more official apps.

 

[scottbrown]

I have a 3gs and would highly reccomend. HID has a desire and to be fair for the money she pays its not far behind the iphone. But her contract is like £10 a month cheaper than mine.

Defo for me
1.Iphone
2. HTC desire
3. Blackberrys ( these can be had proper cheap now on contracts

 

[Sneds]

My missus has a blackberry. I'm not really impressed with it. Internet browsing is poor. App store, poor.

 

[The_LHC]

HTC Desire for me as well, great phone, does everything well, colleague in the office with an iPhone is wishing he hadn't bothered now.

 

[johng]

I have a HTC Desire and my wife has a Samsung Wave. Both are really great phones.

I have no complaints at all about the Desire, though as mentioned they eat battery power for fun. There are some great apps available on Android - one of the best is simplegolf gps.

The google maps and navigation app give you a free in car gps with voice prompt, which I find very accurate.

Well worth looking at. The Iphone 4 may be slightly better for web browsing, but, I don't think it's worth the extra cost.

You wont be disappointed if you get a Desire.

John.

 

[Oddsocks]

It is upgrade time on my phone contract and I am looking at a smartphone. Main uses will be net surfing, email and music but a reasonable camera would not go amiss.

I am determined not to go down the Iphone route. Great piece of kit but the contracts are hugely expensive and then they want a couple of hundred quid on top of that for the handset.

At the moment I am looking at the HTC Desire or the Samsung Galaxy S as I can get both free on a decent contract. I have looked at the Blackberry options but look a bit too 'business' for me and want something a bit fun as well.

Has anyone got any comments or suggestions.

Had the iphone 3gs, now got the 4 and the phone is shocking. HD Video recorder and screen, Quicker web browsing, loads of other snazzy stuff i dont use but generally i think your be hard pushed to find a better phone. most companies do a free upgrade to the 16gig version but i paid £100 extra under my upgrade and got the 32gig.

The way i look on it a sky caddie would cost me £250+ and with some of the apps available on the iphone (swing reader, and loads of scorecard/gos apps) i saved the money on a sky caddie and im £150 up.

Im currently using My Caddie Pro which is GPS, Overheadview per hole, score card and stats tracker, but it does eat the batter using this and you wont get much more than a full round of gps out the battery before it needs recharging. It may be the way i used the gps this week, im gonna try locking the screen of in battery save mode and using less GPS to see how effective you can be on battery saving.

 

[Oddsocks]

iPhone 4. £45/month £29 upfront. Fine, no?

I got mine with orange as an upgrade from my nokia.

£45 a month gives me
unlimited net,
unlimited email,
unlimited wifi/gps
Unlimited text
20 hours a month free cross network calls (12 hours)

 

[RichardC]

I got mine with orange as an upgrade from my nokia.

£45 a month gives me
unlimited net,
unlimited email,
unlimited wifi/gps
Unlimited text
20 hours a month free cross network calls (12 hours)

But they are still making you get a £45 contract for a free phone.

My wife was already on an expired £35 24 month O2 iPhone contract and the response to an upgrade request was that she had to increase her contract to £45 to get the phone free. The result was that she phoned t-mobile and the sent her a desire for £25 per month and and a free phone.

 

[haplesshacker]

There-in lies the problem with the iPhone. One way or another, you pay for the privilege. That's why my Mrs went for the Desire.

As for golf apps on any smart phone. Well we've been there before, and their legality during comps. Let alone their general fragility.

Might I suggest another option.

Get a cheap phone on a low per month contract or PAYG, and then get an iPod touch. Okay, so you'll lose some of the cross functionality between the phone and web browsing, but would that be a great concern to you? Other than that their almost identical. Though not sure if the iPod touch has GPS or not.

 

[GB72]

There-in lies the problem with the iPhone. One way or another, you pay for the privilege. That's why my Mrs went for the Desire.

As for golf apps on any smart phone. Well we've been there before, and their legality during comps. Let alone their general fragility.

Might I suggest another option.

Get a cheap phone on a low per month contract or PAYG, and then get an iPod touch. Okay, so you'll lose some of the cross functionality between the phone and web browsing, but would that be a great concern to you? Other than that their almost identical. Though not sure if the iPod touch has GPS or not.

I already have an Ipod Touch which is another reason that I am not too bothered about an IPhone. The problem with that is the need for a Wi-Fi connection. Really I want to be able to check mails, sports results and the forum on the move.

The Desire is certainly looking like the best option at the moment so long as O2 will give me it on the same contract.

I have seen the decent deals on Orange but the reception for them is crap in the village where i live as is T-Mobile so really stuck with O2, Vodaphone (who I dislike as a company) and 3 (who are simply awful)

 

[Aztecs27]

The Desire is a great phone. I have it's predecessor, the HTC HEro which now has the same version of Android on it. It's awesome.

However, the Samsung Galaxy is the most Futureproof phone on the Market. It's got everything the Desire has (it runs Android) but has a much better quality screen and is powerful enough to accept any android updates upto 3.0 (the only phone currently available that offers this I believe).

But yes, I'd definitely pick Android over iPhone and I'm an Apple fanboy (and I have an iPod touch, so I have experience with the interface).

The only way in which the iPhone is better is the amount of Apps, but most of them are useless anyway. All the ones you will actually use have an Android version or something that will do the same thing.

 

[Macster]

£45/month !!!!!! Jeezuz

Blackberry user here, which I adore for the email capability, but with Unlimited Landline Calls, 500txts, and 500 Mobile minutes, I'm only paying £25/mth, and thats for Business use !!

Any more for personal use is just crazy boys, no matter how good the Phone is to 'play with'.
Sounds like some of you have got far too much 'disposable income' !