In my quest for a phone that does all I need it to do, I found some phones that come really close. I also found one that was practically perfect in every way.
The strange thing is that the phones in the U.S. seem to be watered down version of really great phones found elsewhere.
I'm looking for a smartphone that will allow me to connect to the internet through Wi-Fi. Surf the web with all the features you'd find in a normal web-browser. Java, maybe Flash, and other web-technologies. I'd like to be able to check my many email accounts while I'm out and about, and be able to reply to emails. Also, I'd want a keyboard on the phone, not just the phone keys that you have to press many times to get a single letter. I'd like to be able to type effectively, even if it's just a thumbpad keyboard.
I also want it to be contract-less. No contract. It must be Pre-paid, Pay-as-you-go. This contract business locks you into a service that may turn out to be crap. I've had this experience. Stuck with a phone in areas I could not make calls, and customer service telling me I need to buy a tower for my house. This happened with Crap-Tel. (Nex)
I do web research alot. So, the Wi-Fi is a must. I want to be able to use my phone like a computer. Ideally, I want the OS to be Linux or something other than M$. With all the money M$ has been flinging around to pay off the folks they've screwed over in the past, I don't like the idea of them keeping up the practice. I know they will, but I don't like it. Most people will not care as long as they get the products they want. That's what makes it so easy for M$. Apathy.
I want there to be a wide enough screen and enough color to surf the web without straining my eyes.
I thought I'd found the *almost* perfect features device in the Motorola MPX (MPX-300). However, they could not make the OS (M$) stable enough to be of much use to anyone and has been taken off the market.
The Sony Ericsson P910 came close with all it's coolness, but it did not have Wi-Fi. No customer review that I found complained about the flimsy keyboard flap falling off!
Then there was the candy-bar Nokia N91. Slick with Wi-Fi and 4Gig microdrive and just about perfect size, but it has no keyboard. Why put all that power and ability into something you have struggle to type on?
The Palm Treo 650 seemed like an excellent choice, but without Wi-Fi it wouldn't fit the bill. It's got a big keyboard which is great for typing, but the keyboard being out there in the front all the time seems like you would have to constantly worry about about pressing keys. I've done that with so many phones in the past, I wouldn't use this one based on they keyboard problems alone.
Finally there is the MDA III / XDA III / I-Mate PDA2K / Blue angel multi-named hide-away keyboard monster. This is a slick phone. It's only drawback that I can see is that it has an M$ OS, and an old version at that. It has WLAN 802.11b (which I assume is Wi-Fi, but these specifications for accurate acronyms are beginning to make my brain ache). It's keyboard is bult-in and slides down. Really nice. It has excellent color and resolution on a wide screen. I'm disappointed in the only 128mb memory, but you can add memory with an SD or MMC card. It has a camera, which I don't need. It has Java, which is a must for web and applets, but it claims to be "carrier-dependent". I hope that doesn't mean that it's only available through specific providers. If so, then that would explain why it's specs state that it has WLAN 802.11b instead of regular Wi-Fi. In that case, the combination of M$ and poor service would turn me away from this device. Sad really.
Now that I've reviewed these phones, my only hope is to wait for something better. My current slender T28 World Phone by Erricson I've had for 3 or 4 years. It's a tiny thing that I use pre-paid. I can get email, but only a couple of lines of text. The attachable keyboard is cute but impractical. The OS on it locks up about once every couple of months.
Do you have a smartphone that is perfect?
