Which cell phone should I get?

[OCNewbie]

I'm discovering that having a cell phone is something that would be very convenient for me in my current job among other uses. I know very little about how one cell phone manuf differs from another. And I know little about service providers as well.

This is what I do know. I think having a camera phone would be a good thing to have. Just photos I think is ok, I don't think I "need" video capabilities. I would want caller-id, though I presume just about all cell phones these days have that. A built-in MP3 player would be cool too, but doubt I'm willing to shell out the extra bucks for that, and I have a nice iRiver now anyway.

I want at least free nights & weekends for service, and "maybe" free incoming calls, though I believe that's quite pricey.

What are some other features you guys would recommend I consider?

I don't think I'll be calling out a lot with it, so I wouldn't need a crapload of minutes. Mainly would like to be able to receive incoming calls.

Thanks for any suggestions =)

 

[Colt45]

brick phone

 

[acemcmac]

one that holds phone numbers and has a back light. the less you pay for it, the better.

 

[calvinbiss]

you should get on the same network as most of your callers/callees use, that way you can use free minutes between those phones. almost all plans (if not every) will have some night and weekend deal, if not, its likes 5 bucks extra. I know t-mobile and other company's give relatively nice, full color phones to any new subscriber, for a couple bucks more, you can easily get a camera

 

[OCNewbie]

Curious how quickly this will get shoved off the first page here at off-topic. Is there another section I might find better advice in? And that doesn't have quite the extreme new topic rate?

 

[Yanagi]

I recently Bought the Sony Ericsson K500i. Its a great phone, affordable, has camera and video capabillities. The camera isnt great. 0.3MP and needs somewhat good lightning conditions to take an acceptable shot but its working. It has MP3/MP4 functionallity aswell. Its a great low-mid end phone. If you'd like some games on it aswell theres a pleuthora of them avaliable which are compatible with the phone.

The only drawback in my opinion is the 12mb memory. allthough its more than most low-mid end phones its not enough to play mp3s on it. you need to encode 32Kb, 22KHz mp3s and oyu might be able to have 3-4 of them while having a few games, photos and so on. Otherwise its a great phone with large screen and lots of features for its price

 

[nageov3t]

what service?

assuming you're smart and going with Verizon, I'd recomend the LG VX6000 (if they're still selling it... they might've moved on to the next version). I've had mine for almost a year and it rocks

 

[dethman]

you need minutes for incoming calls too, not just outgoing.


anyway can't you do any research on your own? do you have to be spoon fed?

 

[dc]

zack morris phone.

 

[Calin]

Nokia seems to have very good quality phones (as every Nokia owner told me until now). However, I bought a Sony Ericsson, as my first phone was an Ericsson. I just like the way all the options are just the way I expect them

 

[alexjohnson16]

I'm with Sprint and I got a Samsung VGA1000 for free, and I love it...

Its a phone that gives me great quality and has tons of extras that are just cool...

 

[rudeguy]

can you give us your location? Different providers are better in different areas. As for manufacturers...I like nokia, siemens and sanyo. Sony-Ericsson and motorola should be avoided like the plague.

Head out to the mall and compare different rates and phones, then jump on Amazon.com to buy the phone and service. Its hard to find better phone deals than they have on Amazon.

 

[Thegonagle]

Originally posted by: OCNewbie
Curious how quickly this will get shoved off the first page here at off-topic. Is there another section I might find better advice in? And that doesn't have quite the extreme new topic rate?

Here's a little primer article you may wish to read: http://reviews.cnet.com/Wireless/4520-7609_7-5537615-1.html?tag=dir.new
(Page two is a bit out of date, so you might as well start at page 3.)

Then start looking at all of the local, regional, and national plan offers from all of the carriers that serve your area. Use their websites to help decide on plans for yourself from a few different carriers.

Then, finally, you're ready to start looking at phones.

http://phonescoop.com is a good place for pictures, specs, and comparisons.

Once you've done a little bit of research, http://www.howardforums.com is a great place place for cell phone discussion.

 

[piroroadkill]

Originally posted by: Calin
Nokia seems to have very good quality phones (as every Nokia owner told me until now). However, I bought a Sony Ericsson, as my first phone was an Ericsson. I just like the way all the options are just the way I expect them

Sony Ericsson > *.*

I have a Sony Ericsson P900 and I wouldn't change it for anything. Well, except the P910.

 

[MrBond]

assuming you're smart and going with Verizon, I'd recomend the LG VX6000 (if they're still selling it... they might've moved on to the next version). I've had mine for almost a year and it rocks

They're not selling the VX6000 now, they've upgraded to the 6100, which is almost exactly the same. There are a few improvements and one "downgrade". The camera has a sliding cover now for the lense, the entire phone is silver now as well. Battery is now internal to the phone, not a clip on backpack like the 6000. They added a flash for the camera as well. The "downgrade" is the exterior LCD. It's not an OLED anymore, it's just a backlight B/W screen that's on all the time. You can use it for self portraits with the camera now when the phone is closed. The phone is trimode now as well.

Verizon was just rated tops for quality by consumer reports. The VX6100 is a good phone if you don't want to spend a lot of money, otherwise I'd look at the VX7000 too (although it's digital only, that's never been a problem for me). You're going to spend at minimum $45/mo after taxes for a phone through Verizon, but you'll have free nights and weekends plus free verizon-to-verizon calling (which is awesome - all my friends have Verizon so I use maybe 20-30 package minutes per month). If you live in a rural area or do a lot of traveling through them, Verizon can't be beat coverage-wise.

If you never leave the city or travel internationally, I'd check out a GSM phone.

Hit up HowardForums - its a great cellphone forum resource.

 

[DivideBYZero]

Originally posted by: dethman
you need minutes for incoming calls too, not just outgoing.


anyway can't you do any research on your own? do you have to be spoon fed?

Really?! That sucks! In the UK you can call my phone all day and it won't cost me a penny.

 

[Pliablemoose]

I just ordered a Sharp TM150 for the wife & an Motorola A630 for me.

I think the Sharp looks gimmicky with the colored faceplate, but the wife doesn't hae a problem with it, I'm looking forward to the A630, looks cool as heck

 

[EngenZerO]

moto razr

 

[simms]

NO MOTOROLA. They have a sucky UI and the T720 I had broke on regular usage.

The razr is ok, but way too expensive for your tastes. Stick to Sony Ericsson or Nokia.

 

[LeonarD26]

I would decide on the service provider that's best for you before you decide on a phone. It just becomes an expensive paper weight if there is poor service where you live/work. I have Sprint and it's great for me..... with the Sanyo 8100. The 8200 is great too....

 

[cloude27]

I have verizon, and i just got the moto v265. I love it, it has a built in camera not to best but its okay. It has great battery life and reception.

 

[OCNewbie]

I live in Orlando, FL. I think most of my friends have Nextel phones, and use the 2-way paging service pretty often. They both have unlimited incoming minute plan, but I think they pay quite a bit for that.

Anyway, I guess I'll do like LeonarD26 suggested and check out the services avail in my area first before looking into a phone. Also will have to check out that howardforums.com website, sounds like a good place to start. Thanks a lot for the helpful suggestions =)

 

[piroroadkill]

You.. pay.. for incoming calls?

....

Speechless.

Tariffs that charge you for incoming calls simply don't exist in the UK. Infact, I didn't know ANY network charged for incoming calls except roaming ones (where you are out of the country).

 

[Anonemous]

Originally posted by: Colt45
brick phone

i'm surprised no one has mentioned... banana phone!

 

[OCNewbie]

TTT