Get smart
Published: 27/04/2009 - Filed under: Archive » 2009 » May 2009 » Lifestyle » Features » Features » Lifestyle » Features » Lifestyle » Technology »
With countless new smartphones on the market, which is the right one for you? Mark Prigg reveals what to look out for.
Choosing a phone used to be easy – you wanted good call quality, simple text-messaging and a quick address book, and that was pretty much it. But that’s all changed with the advent of the new breed of smartphones. There are hundreds of them, all with impenetrable names, and all seemingly identical. The list of standard features to look for – which is growing all the time – now includes 3G, GPS chips to turn the phone into a mini satnav, and high-quality digital cameras.
So how do you choose? The biggest decision is whether you want a keyboard. Touchscreens have come a long way but for the email addict who needs to send long messages, nothing beats the keyboard found in products such as Nokia’s E75 or the Blackberry 8900.
For most business people, the dealbreaker might be what your IT department is willing to support. While most will help you with models running Microsoft software, Apple phones are often still frowned upon. Some will even try to persuade you against a Blackberry, because subscribing to the email service costs extra.
Whatever you choose, it’s worth trying it out in a mobile phone shop to ensure you get one that’s the right size for your needs.
Nokia E63
Free on contract
Nokia’s E63 is an out-and-out email phone, and does the job brilliantly. The keyboard is superb and incredibly quick to use. As with all Nokia products, the build quality is also good, and the handset is solid and feels great in the palm.
There’s a main navigation button above the keyboard, along with menu keys just under the screen. The software is Nokia’s standard operating system and it works well. The icon-based system is straightforward and everything from texting to email is simple and logical.
However, for multimedia support the Nokia software is showing its age. The music software, for example, is terrible and looks as if it was designed at some point in the late 1980s.
Overall, it’s a decent handset but lacking in the slickness and polish of some of its rivals. However, for email it’s hard to fault, and if your needs extend only to this and the odd text, then it’s well worth a look.
Pros Great keyboard
Cons Terrible music player
Blackberry Storm
Free on contract
vodafone.co.uk, blackberry.com
The Storm initially looks a bit chunky and definitely doesn’t have the smooth edges of the iPhone, but don’t be fooled, this is a revolutionary handset. The large touchscreen is superb and video quality is astonishing, with colours far clearer and more vivid than the already excellent Apple iPhone.
The menu system has also been redesigned to make use of the screen, and is simple and easy to use, with popular websites such as Facebook and Flickr integrated so you can instantly see if you have any new messages. There’s also a decent web browser but as the phone doesn’t have wifi, browsing is nowhere near as fast as on rival handsets, even though it uses the high-speed 3G network.
Typing is the revelation here. The screen allows you to “click” on it when you want to press a key, giving the impression you are using a real keyboard. It works superbly, and users can choose from either a horizontal or vertical keyboard. Typing is a far better experience than on the iPhone, although still not a patch on the speeds you can get up to on a real keyboard.
Where the Blackberry falters is with music and video. It doesn’t have enough memory, with only 1GB as standard, although that can be expanded with a memory card. Getting your files on to it in the first place is also harder than it should be.
Blackberry’s software is adequate but there are too many different bits needed, and there is no way to buy and download video easily. The iPhone, on the other hand, has a slightly less impressive screen but a vast catalogue of music, film and TV shows that can be downloaded.
For the typical consumer who does a bit of everything, the iPhone, with its superior music capabilities, is probably still the best bet – just. But for heavy emailers or business users, the Storm is an obvious choice.
Given the touchscreen functionality, it’s advisable to try before you buy as many big email users still prefer using a real keyboard.
Pros Innovative touchscreen keyboard and good video quality
Cons Unreliable software, no wifi
Sony Ericsson Xperia X1
Free on contract
This attempt at killing off the iPhone combines a large touchscreen with a good-sized slide-out keyboard. It’s a little on the chunky side but the good screen quality makes up for that. Sony Ericsson has designed a great menu system for the handset, and it revolves around the X-Panel, a kind of “smart desktop”.
The X-Panel consists of a number of different start screens shown either as a grid or as a fan. The only screen you cannot replace with any of the built-in (or downloadable) alternate designs is the main “Today” screen, but otherwise it’s completely customisable with your favourite applications or sites. It’s a great idea, and works well.
However, overall, the X1 is a bit of a disappointment. The Windows software looks nice with the X-Panels but it seems a little sluggish, and is not as responsive as some of the other handsets here.
On the whole, it’s a decent-enough first attempt at a keyboard smartphone, and if you’re tied to Windows it’s definitely worth a look. But it’s clear that Sony needs to raise its game if it is going to take on the Apple iPhone or Blackberry. The X1 is available on Orange and O2 networks and is free with O2’s £39, 24-month contract with 1,200 minutes.
Pros Slide-out keyboard works well, good design
Cons No unique features
Apple iPhone 3G
Free on contract
Apple has barely put a foot wrong since the launch of the iPhone two years ago. This new incarnation adds a thinner, slicker design, 3G and GPS. Thanks to Apple’s blanket ad campaign, it’s probably safe to assume that most people know just how good the iPhone’s interface is. Two years on, it’s still streets ahead of the competition for ease of use and simplicity. The addition of downloadable applications was a masterstroke, and there are thousands of these available.
However, it isn’t perfect. There is no cut and paste function, and if you’re using it to the full, particularly on 3G, battery life is poor – you’ll be lucky to get a day’s use out of it. It’s also not a brilliant day-to-day phone – the lack of MMS (multimedia message service) and ability to forward contacts via Bluetooth, for instance, can be frustrating. Whether this will be fixed in a new version of the phone, set for release in the summer, remains to be seen.
As an entertainment device, the iPhone is stunning. Video is sharp and you can download podcasts to your handset without having to use a PC. It’s not perfect, but of today’s crop of smartphones, it’s still the benchmark.
Pros Iconic design and still the best interface on the market
Cons Phone capabilities are still lacking, battery life is terrible
T-Mobile G1
Free on contract
Running Google’s Android software, the T-Mobile G1 is billed as the iPhone killer and integrates all of Google’s online applications, such as contacts and diary data.
Visually, the G1 is an ugly little handset, with a strange upturned bulge at its base, but hidden under the screen is a full QWERTY keyboard, which gives it an edge over the iPhone. The G1 interface is impressive, although nowhere near as slick as the Apple model. You can navigate with your finger or via a neat trackpad. However, the menus seem cramped on screen at times, and with so many ways of getting around, it can be a little confusing.
In the UK, the handset is being offered with the company’s Web ‘n’ Walk tariff, so it works fast on the 3G network and wireless internet is available. Browsing is quick and easy via wifi, and email is impressive, especially if you use Google’s Gmail product. There’s also a decent 3.2-megapixel camera, and Google has added an application store so you can download add-on software easily. The G1 doesn’t have the slickness of the iPhone but it is impressive nonetheless. With Google’s weight behind it, it’s worth keeping an eye out for future versions.
Pros Excellent integration of Google’s products
Cons Looks ugly
Nokia E75
Free on contract
Nokia’s E75 is designed to give phone users everything they need – a normal phone keypad for numbers and short text messages but also a slide-out QWERTY keyboard for typing emails. For the mobile phone giant, this is a pretty radical design, and Nokia has spent a lot of time making it look good. (It comes in red, silver and black, and copper-yellow.)
It’s an easy-to-use gadget, using Nokia’s standard software, and setting up corporate email is not a problem thanks to the fact that virtually every company now supports Nokia handsets.
The build quality is flawless and the unit feels sturdy even with the keyboard fully extended. For music fans, there’s a full-size headphone socket, and the sound quality is reasonable enough for listening to occasionally – it’s nowhere near as good as Apple’s iPhone, though.
The 2.4-inch screen feels slightly squeezed, particularly when using the keyboard to type, and long emails can become irritating to write as you can’t see very much of what you’re doing at any one time.
Overall, the Nokia E75 sports great design but is let down by a screen that is slightly too small. It’s fine for sending the odd email but there are better handsets out there for email addicts. If you’re a huge fan of Nokia’s simplicity and design, it might be worth a look – just don’t plan on writing your first novel on it.
Pros Innovative design
Cons Cramped keyboard and screen
Blackberry Curve 8900
Free on contract
The emergence of the Blackberry, or “Crackberry” as it has been dubbed by email addicts, has been key to the emergence of the two-phone culture, whereby Blackberries are used for email and a second phone for voice calls. Thankfully, the latest generation of Blackberry handsets work just as well as phones, so this is the only piece of kit you’ll need.
Previous models have been on the chubby side, but with the Curve there has obviously been a spot of dieting. It’s a slick, rounded device, and feels great to hold – better than any other handset here. The keyboard is superb and you quickly become proficient in typing almost as fast as on your desktop.
The Curve has wifi and GPS but, rather annoyingly, leaves out 3G. This is particularly noticeable if you’re receiving big emails with attachments, which can take a while. The 2.4-inch, 480 x 360 pixel, 65,000-colour screen is excellent, and the latest version of the Blackberry operating system runs quickly and smoothly. There’s also an impressive 3.2-megapixel camera and a decent MP3 player, although it’s not going to rival the iPhone in that department.
Blackberry fans will need no convincing and for email addicts this is arguably the ultimate handset.
Pros Great keyboard and looks
Cons Multimedia features not strong and no 3G
HTC Touch HD
Free on contract
HTC is building a solid reputation for its touchscreen products, and the HD is one of the most impressive screens we’ve seen on a mobile. It’s incredibly high resolution, which gives it a major advantage, even over arch-rival the iPhone. At 3.8 inches wide, it’s 0.3 inches bigger than Apple’s model, and its 480 x 800 resolution is two and a half times as big as the iPhone’s 480 x 320. This means you can view pretty much an entire web page on screen and it will still be readable.
The HD runs HTC’s own version of Windows Mobile, and is designed to be operated with flicks of the finger rather than fiddling about with buttons. There’s also a 5-megapixel camera, one of the best on test here. Measuring 115 x 63 x 12mm, the Touch HD isn’t small but it’s been well thought-out, with curved edges so it doesn’t feel too chunky. For corporate users who have to use a Windows Mobile device, it’s probably the best multimedia phone without a keyboard you’ll find, but for the average consumer, the iPhone still has the edge for ease of use.
Pros Superb screen
Cons Complex menu
ONES TO WATCH
The next six months will see a whole new range of smartphones hitting the shops, all with the same aim – to break Apple’s and Blackberry’s stranglehold on the market. Here are some to look out for.
HTC Touch Pro 2 and HTC Touch Diamond 2
HTC will raise the bar for phones running Windows Mobile software with its two new handsets, due to go on sale imminently. With an iPhone-inspired design they are sleek, fast and easy to use from early demonstrations we have seen. They also feature a neat web-browsing mode for downloading sites to the phone for offline viewing – perfect for commuters on the underground.
Nokia N97
Due to hit the UK next month, the N97 purports to satisfy the primary needs of all phone owners. It has a large touchscreen, like Apple’s iPhone, and a Blackberry-style keyboard that slides out from under the screen for users to type emails and text messages, and then slots back in, out of view.
Expected to cost about £450 when it goes on sale, the handset is Nokia’s first high-end phone to use touchscreen technology. The company has also redesigned its phone menus and options so users can see updates from their favourite websites, such as Facebook, on the phone’s main screen.
Palm Pre
This is probably the most eagerly awaited phone since rumours of the iPhone began circling. It’s a polished 3.1-inch touchscreen model with a physical QWERTY keyboard that slides out from the bottom.
This, Palm claims, creates the best of both worlds. From early demonstrations of the product, it looks as if Palm may be on to something.
The menu system is simpler and better looking than Apple’s, and the addition of a keyboard means this is a handset that can take a shot at the Blackberry as well. It also has a 3-megapixel camera. It’s definitely one to watch out for when it hits the shops this summer.
Mark Prigg is science and technology correspondent for London’s Evening Standard
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