Which Android phone is best?

brokeinbristol

Hi, my orange contract is up in a week, so urgently need some advice on phones as they seem to have come a long way in 18 months! I don't want to spend a fortune a month, don't want an initial out lay for the phone.Love the Iphone, but can't justify spending the money on one right now. I really like the new android technology, would use my phone for email, calls, texts etc but don't do facebook! I have two small kids that destroy most things so need it to be pretty robust as well. Asking to much??!! Please help, any suggestions welcome!

Oscar_The_Grouch

Hi there

If you want the best android phone, go for the HTC Desire.

If you want an ok android phone on a cheaper contract, go for the HTC Wildfire.

Hope this helps.

Fifer

Oscar_The_Grouch wrote: »

Hi there

If you want the best android phone, go for the HTC Desire.

If you want an ok android phone on a cheaper contract, go for the HTC Wildfire.

Hope this helps.

I think that's reasonable comment, although the Samsung Galaxy seems to be getting some good press and may be worth a look. I'm still frequently amazed by the capapbilities of my Desire.

jay_1978

I got my wildfire 3 weeks ago and you won't go wrong with it,

gjchester

brokeinbristol wrote: »

Hi, my orange contract is up in a week, so urgently need some advice on phones as they seem to have come a long way in 18 months! I don't want to spend a fortune a month, don't want an initial out lay for the phone.Love the Iphone, but can't justify spending the money on one right now. I really like the new android technology, would use my phone for email, calls, texts etc but don't do facebook! I have two small kids that destroy most things so need it to be pretty robust as well. Asking to much??!! Please help, any suggestions welcome!

As ever it's never as simple as it first seems.

Not only do you need to look at hardware you need to look at the software and where you get it from, and consider what the makers plans are for upgrades.

Most Android phones are branded by the mobile company, you pay less for the phone if it's subsidised by contract than sim free, however it means you need to wait till the mobile co approves firmware before it will be released to your phone. As an example if you had a Sim Free (unbranded) Desire you'd probably be on Android 2.2 by now as HTC have released it. If it's branded by a mobile co your still probably on 2.1 untill they OK a release.

Also it depends on the maker as to what you get. Although new both the SE X10 and the Dell Streak still only have Android 1.6 on them. Both vendors have promised updates, but nothing yet. If you have the "wrong" version of the OS then some of the hardware is redundant. The Dell streak has a forwards and backwards facing cameras, but as Android 1.6 does not support the backwards facing camera its simply redundant at the moment.

HTC took a year to get the Magic to 2.1 and to be honest many vendors don't push upgrades out. Android updates are released by google to the makers, who then tweak them and send them to the mobile co's who further tweak them and then release them.

Go to a shop and try the phones , thats the best option, to see what you like the feel of.

sandiep

I have galaxy s - it is lovely! The only fault is that if you run it off wireless all day long, it eats into battery life. Screen is lovely, size is lovely, functionality is lovely, wifi connection is strong, keypad good and easy to type with.

One thing that I would say though, with having young children myself, is that young kids can kind of scramble a touch screen, I saw a touchscreen mp3 last just 8 hours with my elder daughter. They touch it too quickly and the software gets kind of scrambled.

devizes18193

I have a sony x10 build quality is impressive , however its still on versoin 1.6 . We won mine but i love it for moor info on android . http://androidforums.com/ and look at the phone of your choice

brokeinbristol

Phoned Vodaphone to check tariffs, asked about the Galaxy S & the HTC desire, The galaxy was too expensive per month £35 min contract. the bloke said the HTC legend was the best as a cheaper contract of £23 per month, has anyone any thoughts on this please?

MyUserNamesTaken

I'd say go for the Samsung Galaxy S. Much better than the Desire and easier to get ahold of. You can get the Galaxy free for a lot less than £35 per month. The Vodafone version is 16gb rather than 8gb (direct from Vf, that is).

http://www.buymobilephones.net/mobile-phones/Samsung/Samsung-i9000-Galaxy-S-Free-Line-Rental-Discount/T-Mobile/T-Mobile-25-%2824mths%29-inc.-Internet/6068724


For example, the link above gets you the Galaxy S on T-Mobile at £25 a month on a 24 month contract with 600 minutes, 500 texts and unlimited data (1gb fup, but if you ring t-mobile, you can blag an upgrade to 3gb fup and another free flexible booster). You get 2 months free by redemption, too, so bringing the overall cost down to £22.92 a month. Use a cashback site like topcashback to get to buymobilephones.net and get an extra £30 cash back, bringing the total cost down even further (£21.67pm)

bubblesmoney

read up smartphone top 10s froM various tech websites like techradar, pocketlint, pocketnow, cnet uk, etc and the decide what is best for you. BUT REMEMBER THEY ONLY TEST THE PHONES FOR A FEW HOURS OR A COUPLE OF DAYS UNLIKE US USERS WHO TEST OUR PHONES IN REAL LIFE CONDITIONS FOR MUCH LONGER TIMES SO WE WOULD HAVE A BETTER IDEA ON THE PLUS AND MINUS POINTS AND LOAD OF REVIEWS HAVENT A CLUE ABOUT THE ACTUAL PLUS AND MINUS POINTS AND EVEN THE FAMOUS TECH WEBSITES SOMETIMES GIVE USELESS REVIEWS. SO TAKE REVIEWS OPINIONS AND OUR OPINIONS WITH A PINCH OF SALT. AS WITH EVERYTHING BUYER BEWARE.

there is no such thing as a best phone. each one has his own needs and not every phone will meet those needs. each will have its limitations and plus points.

in android at the moment look at the samsung galaxy s, htc desire, htc wildfire. the htc desire (non branded) has already got android 2.2 froyo update, the unbranded wildfire should have got it as well or will soon get it. the samsung galxy s is due to get it in sept/oct too. dont touch the android phones on 1.6 software version etc that is 2 versions old, unless you want to modify the software etc.

but depends on where you want to use the phones, if you want internet access through wifi at your work place or university etc and their wifi uses proxy access then go buy some other phone (not android) that can do proxy wifi access easily (unless your workplace allows you to access the internet by tethering your phone to your computer and access internet via computers internet connection. (there are some work arounds even for proxy wifi acces in android but wont suit most people). if you dont need proxy wifi access and just use your home wifi then that should be fine even buying android phone. not all android phones can handle wifi n routers so if you have a wifi n router then go for the galaxy s (hardware is capable but 2.1 android is not wifi n capable and presently galaxy s has got 2.1 android but will get 2.2 android soon so that shouldnt be an issue. the desire on 2.1 could not do wifi n, it has now got 2.2 but i dont know if it can do wifi n, i dont have a wifi n router so cant check this fact for you. hope someone with a desire and a wifi n router can confirm this for you. internal memory on the samsung galaxy s (as well as a lot of other hardware is better on the samsung galaxy s). harware and software isnt everything, you need to like the phone too! i have 2 htc desire phones btw if i was buying today i would definitely have a look at the samsung galaxy s although there is a chance i still might buy the desire. the desire has its faults but still is a great phone and more so after the 2.2 froyo update.

the wildfire is basically a lower spec desire.

the samsung galaxy s has it minus points too. just google and you will find it.

for general use the desire is great (surfing / texting / typing / voice search / voice activated navigation / even music (after the froyo update as sound quality and volume a lot better than before, i could easily hear the good music at less than max volume today when using the lawn mower!) / viewing documents -word/excel/pdf / filling online forms / youtube videos / other flash websites / gps / google voice navigation etc etc etc

the galaxy s might be easier to find than the desire and may be cheaper too if you look on comparison websites like omio / cnet reviews / techradar etc

dont limit your search to just android, see other models that interest you too.

read up on the thread "iphone or android" on MSE forums. or see similar threads elsewhere too. go see in the shops and see how you like the phones but do some reading on the phones and see youtube videos on your shortlisted phones and only then go try one in a shop. but buy on the phone (from the same shop if needed) or on the internet rather than buying direct from store to get better consumer rights.

anything with a big glass front like all touchscreen phones will be liable to break. so take care with small kids and smartphones.

what network are you on, are you getting any good deals on any phones

i wouldnt bother with the legend now, the wildfire might be a better bet. but compare the specs and see if it suits you.

no point buying a ferrari if you just want to drive down to the shop a mile away! unless you want to blow some cash. see what your requirements are, i am sure there will be loads of phones that can do what you need very well. short list a few and see what suits you best in terms of money / performance / looks etc

LeeSouthEast

The Legend is the more stylish, but lower specification when compared with the Desire. A colleague got the Samsung Galaxy S three days ago and yes, it IS nice, but it's also huge. It doesn't sit well in pockets, in my opinion. The HTC Desire is fast, not quite so huge, and fits nicely in pockets.

Disclaimer: Yes, I own the Desire.