So, my V3 has finally crapped out after a whole year of brutal 'being in a pocket' and 'lying on a table' I shall need a new one, then. Now I won't spend tons of money because I intend to buy an iPhone when it comes here in Q1/08 so I'll go for a free or almost free one from a provider, unlock it and use it with my anonymous prepaid card. I have sifted thru their choices and boiled it down to: Nokia e61 or Sony-Ericsson W810i. The Nokia is a pure business phone with a full keyboard. It can easily double as a PDA and iPod substitute when I don't need the whole music library, for example on the way to work. Downsides: according to reviews, the user interface isn't really great and it's big and heavy. Other than that it can do anything but brew latte macchiato (but they might address that with a firmware upgrade). Additionally, you can stick in up to 4 gigs with dirt cheap MicroSD cards. Also has WLAN. Visually it gives off the vibe of an 80s digital watch *shiver* The Sony has the whole cuteness thing going for it. It's no organizer but a great looking Walkman phone with very good music capabilities. It can digest Memory Sticks up to 4 GB which is enough for the intended music use from and to work. There is also a camera with a Xenon flash - I hate those cameras, but the flash can actually double as flashlight which seems handy. In a few days, the HTC Touch will be available too which is an iPhone clone and quite attractive. I'll definitely wait and see how many €s they want for it - probably too many. OTOH, why not get that and forget about the iPhone. Nah. Apple's marketing is too good What I actually do with a cell phone is making phone calls and write SMS. I totally don't care about cameras, mobile Internet, mobile TV or watching movies on those tiny screens (even tho the e61's is as large as the iPod's). If they are present, I'd take advanced PDA functions because I'll need one for the job anyway. I'd prefer a Windows one on that but they are too expensive for the few months I'll use ite. WLAN is not a must but can come in handy - there are hotspots everywhere here. Don't care about games and stuff. MP3 is nice but not a must; it'd probably replace the iPod in everyday use. Now... does anyone have one of those phones? What is your experience?
^ I know, but the point is: why not get something better for the same price (which happens to be zilch, nada, nothing). Sure, a Nokia 2xxx or an Emporia does exactly what I want and I wouldn't miss a thing... but OTOH, why not get a few features when they don't have enough time to break anyway.
HTC looks nice, would not get an iphone just because it's going to be filled with apple shit and you know it's not going to run other formats. (bet you £5 they will sneak some sort of DRM on it) W810i are nice phones, i use a w300i does everything i could want a phone/media-thingie to do, even watch eps of family guy on it when i'm waiting for the train. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/6722629.stm
My wife dropped her Samsung for the last time, so we went and got a pair of LG VX8300's... I like Bluetooth. Bluetooth is a good thing.
The E61 is on its last legs in the UK and is scheduled to be withdrawn from sale. The w810i however goes from strength to strength. Despite Sony introducing three newer Walkman phones it's still very popular. It's definitely the better of the two you've mentioned and will become a dependable back-up handset when you get your iPhone. And it inevitably breaks.
I got the Samsung SCH-u740 a couple months ago. I like it. Has a dual-hinge design so you can open it portrait mode for talking, landscape for text / wireles email access, etc. Full qwerty keyboard in landscape mode. http://reviews.cnet.com/cell-phones/samsung-sch-u740-champagne/4505-6454_7-32160880.html
^ Don't offer that one, I'll have to stick to the provider's collection when I want it for free. The Nokia 6300 is kinda nice too. I think it's 6300 vs. 810 now The e61 is just too ugly and too bulky and has too many functions. Jeez, you can edit Powerpoint presentations with it. Who needs that crap.
Yeah... I use verizon so this phone was offered. I hadn't gotten a new phone in 2 years so I was eligible for 100 dollars off a phone (or a free phone under 100 dollars). This one cost me 50 dollars out of pocket. I don't regret choosing it. The camera is annoying, as it has a delay on taking pictures of about 1 second. More specifically, the front display shows a picture, then it takes the real picture about a second later, so people think the picture has already been taken and then they move. A lot of pictures get wrecked. However, the camera isn't a big deal for me. I wouldn't recommend getting a smartphone though. My dad has one and I looked at a lot of them when I was choosing a phone. Sure, they do a lot of stuff, but they do a crappy job at them all. The iPhone seems pretty badass for stuff like looking up phone #'s online, for voicemail, and it seems pretty solid for web browsing. Text entry seems like it will suck ass though so I'm sure its not gonna be that great for email or web use though.
Heh, I'm more likely to be programming for the iPhone than buying one, if the rumors about an iPhone SDK at WWDC are true. As for the question at hand, unless their interface for semi-smartphones is different than for regular phones, I'd go with Nokia. They do interface a hell of a lot better than anyone else, IMHO.
Your first description states you make calls and write sms - the rest is just bonus. AFAIK, you like your stuff shiny, so go for that, basic but beautiful.
Think I found it. Sexaaaay-uh Costs a little right now but might be free or severly down in a month or so.
^ Buttons are irrelevant. That's what voice dialing is for And it's a slide phone. The keyboard vanishes.
That phone is sexy!! This is what I currently have, but it's going to be painted black.... This is what I want mine to look like after it's painted.... And this is what I am hoping the next SK is going to be. The one on the right.
Would wait for the next model as that will support 3G and have a slide out keyboard. (maybe 6 months) Do still really like the HTC as it beats the hell out of the iphone as you can use it as a real phone.
The sound on it is total shit and it drops the call 80% of the time. Could be AT&T dropping the call but the sound is just down to shitty software or a cheap part in it.
