Buying a cell phone in the 2010 is a completely new and unique experience, and 2011 will probably be the same. But my contact is on November 4th this year, so it is decision time, not to be confused with LeBron's free agency spectacle that aired nationwide on ESPN this summer.
Starting from scratch you need to decide which of the major platforms/OS's you want to go with, each with their own pros and cons. They are:
RIM Blackberry
Apple iOS(iPhone)
Google android
Microsoft Windows Phone 7 (coming november)
Right now I am still on a contract with ATT with my blackberry bold. Its been my first smartphone and has been great for the most part. A couple things it has going for it are reliability, data security, and a great e-mail system. The cons are a pretty outdated OS, underdeveloped application catalog, and the relatively small non-touchscreen.
The iPhone has been the hot smartphone for the last few years and that is probably because they have great hardware and the best applications. However, I'm not a fan of the way apple tries to control everything on their phones and limits applications and customization of its products.
Microsoft Windows Phone 7 is the latest attempt by Microsoft to get into the mobile space before Apple and Google become insurmountably dominant. Early reports are promising, but the first phones are not out yet, but come November we will have a better idea of its viability in this competitive space.
Finally, the google android system is my personal platform of choice. Since its introduction around two years ago it has really matured into a stable platform. The tight integration with the excellent google apps such as gmail, google maps, google docs and google calendar really give it an advantage over the others. The hardware has also evolved from the first touchscreen slider, the G1 to the current wide range of phones produced by several hardware makers including, motorola and samsung. This is also the most open platform which is why each carrier and each hardware maker has their own customizations to the OS and why the consumer is able to personalize most aspects of the phone.
The next decision is what carrier to go with. Unlike most of the rest of the world, phones here are closely tied to carriers which subsidize the price of the phone in exchange for committing to a one or two year contract. The major ones are AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, and T-Mobile.
At&T is the largest in terms of subscribers, but common complaints are spotty service and high cost. I can personally attest to the spotty service complaint as I cannot be on a call for the 10 minute drive home through the center of San Diego without dropping my call at least once. My experience with At&t in the bay are was even worse. My parent's house in cupertino, where the Apple headquarters is located, is a dead zone. This is ironic because Apple is the maker of the iPhone which is the bestselling phone on At&t. How could they miss that?
Verizon is generally considered the best in terms of phone service reliability and coverage, but the cost is also high. However, they use CDMA technology on their phones which means no SIM cards which means most of their phones are not world capable for traveling.
Sprint and T-mobile are the smaller providers offering cheaper plans but also having a smaller subscriber base and therefore perhaps less comprehensive coverage.
My personal experience with AT&T has led me towards Verizon in the hopes of not having to constantly worry about my calls being dropped midway through one of my SUPER important phone calls, usually to decide where to go for happy hour that afternoon.
Now that we've narrowed it to Verizon and google android, the available phones are more manageable. The most fully equipped phones at Verizon are as follows:
Motorola Droid X
Motorola Droid 2
HTC Droid Incredible
Samsung Galaxy S Fascinate
Monday, October 4, 2010
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