best phone for internet browsing and texting - advice needed

[jimmyt1]

Im coming to the end of my current 18month Orange contract and am looking to upgrade - what is the general opinion regarding the best phone currently on the market for texting and internet browsing?

Also, has anyone got any good deals on a 12 month contract as i do not really wnat another 18 month contract.

[Mark Grant]

I would be tempted by a Nokia E71 when it is out.

http://www.boygeniusreport.com/2008/...ia-e71-review/

http://europe.nokia.com/e71

not sure if its keyboard is too small though.
qwerty on something 57mm wide is small....

at least it would fit in your pocket as it is slim at 10mm thick.

Mark.

[Johnnie]

Do you want a qwerty keyboard or do you prefer a keypad for texting, have you considered a screen or 'soft' keyboard?

I also have similar needs, for web browsing you really need HSDPA, a good screen and a decent browser.

Then you have the issue of size and weight, any device with both a large, high quality screen and a physical keyboard is going to be large and bulky compared to the average phone.

I came to the conclusion that it is better to have a screen keyboard and a better screen and having used a screen keyboard on both the iphone and my current phone, the orbit 2, I know think that screen keyboards offer more advantages than a cramped physical keyboard, eg multiple keyboard layouts, better word prediction/completion and often larger 'keys'.

I used to have an HTC Advantage, basically this was like a mini computer with a 5" screen and detachable keyboard, what I found was that I never bothered carrying around the physical keyboard and just used the screen keyboard, maybe this was partly due to the physical keyboard being cramped with spongy keys.

I also had an Orange M3100 which was similar to my orbit 2 but had a slide out qwerty keyboard, I found that I rarely bothered using that either and the phone weighed almost twice as much as a normal phone due to the added weight of the keyboard.

Ironically, the new 3g iphone would probably suit your needs very well for browsing as it has a good large screen, very good browser and decent 'soft' keyboard.
Unfortunately the texting abilities of the first iphone were very basic so unless this has been improved or there is some sort of alternative sms 'plugin' available for the new iphone then this could make it a poor texting device.

I would say either the HTC Diamond or the Samsung Omnia i900 would be you best bet depending what physical size device you prefer, both have HSDPA, good screens, good browsers ( opera ) and user friendly UI's to hide the ugly windows mobile OS.

[jian]

iphone because everything just works and the browsing expereince is the closest you'll ever get to a desktop experience. The soft keyboard is very good as well.

I would avoid Windows Mobile devices because the browsing software just doesnt cut it. The new opera is for WM good but it's stil a bit jerky and there are still problems viewing the page if the screen is less than 3 inches.

The browser on the Nokia is very good, not far behind the iphone i would say but it is not quite as fast.

The E71 looks nice. if it can improve on the speed of the E61, I would put that in second place.

[Johnnie]

I have to disagree with jian, although the browser on the iphone is very good it is let down by limited abilities such as a 'right click' menu with the ability to cut and paste etc and is actually trailing behind the latest opera mobile browser in term of technical abilities, although it does have some very user friendly features built in, maybe with the extra speed of the 3g iphone these limitations could be tolerated.

I had my iphone for a few months and sold it after I realised it was lacking too many features I needed, the new iphone should include some important new features and I ended up carrying to phones, however I'm reluctant to get another iphone which is a shame as I love Apple products, I have 3 Macs!

I think the best browser would combine the ease of use and simplicity of the iphone browser but with the ability to toggle an 'expert' mode on or off which would allow access to features such as cut and paste etc without cluttering up the normal browser.

The 3g iphone looks amazing in some respects, is mediocre in others and is poorly equipped in a few key areas. I feel that the 3g iphone is only just about adequate in terms of specs, although the UI is the best there is.

[Johnnie]

Maybe the new Blackberry Bold would be another possibility for you?

I think it's out soon.

[avinitski]

if screen size and non qwerty keyboard are not important to you then check out the Nokia N95, good phone, good camera, small pocket sized, symbian based with some great apps out there.

[jian]

Originally Posted by Johnnie

I have to disagree with jian, although the browser on the iphone is very good it is let down by limited abilities such as a 'right click' menu with the ability to cut and paste etc and is actually trailing behind the latest opera mobile browser in term of technical abilities, although it does have some very user friendly features built in, maybe with the extra speed of the 3g iphone these limitations could be tolerated.

I had my iphone for a few months and sold it after I realised it was lacking too many features I needed, the new iphone should include some important new features and I ended up carrying to phones, however I'm reluctant to get another iphone which is a shame as I love Apple products, I have 3 Macs!

I think the best browser would combine the ease of use and simplicity of the iphone browser but with the ability to toggle an 'expert' mode on or off which would allow access to features such as cut and paste etc without cluttering up the normal browser.

The 3g iphone looks amazing in some respects, is mediocre in others and is poorly equipped in a few key areas. I feel that the 3g iphone is only just about adequate in terms of specs, although the UI is the best there is.

I agree that the Opera browser is tecnically better but if we were to use that argument, any Wm based mobile would win hands down. At the end of the day, they are annoying to use. Opera 9.5 is very good, but it is still slow compared to the iphone browser. The biggest drawback is that if the screen is less than 3 inches or so, it will be very difficult to read text without lots of fiddly scolling and tapping.

[Jonobigblind]

I'm currently looking at replacing my BlackBerry Pearl and I'm looking for a better web surfing experience so naturally thought about the new iPhone.

I was concerned by the soft keyboard (fat fingers and all that) but having seen a demo on YouTube I was pleasantly surprised. If you text like me (I have a semi qwerty keyboard and I use my two thumbs at the same time to text I gather it's a breeze and just as quick as other phones - even corrects your mistakes as you type).

As for not having cut and paste - I don't often need that feature as I'm not using it for work. The MMS and limited Bluetooth is the biggest stumbling block in my eyes but something I can live with when balanced against the other benefits.

[MILANI5TA]

I bought the Nokia E71 3 days ago, fantastic device. The keypad looks small but it is so easy to use and I have had no problems with it. Set up my consumer and work email (push) on it, had no problems.

As for the speed? Big improvement on the E61i.