Get yourself the best smartphone in the world

Posted: 22 January 2009

Get yourself the best smartphone in the world

The mobile world is constantly evolving, and as it progresses, a trend is beginning to emerge. Phones are getting smarter; they're doing more, and becoming more than ever before. We're in a period that can definitely be summed up as the rise of the smartphone, with these mobile powerhouses going from strength to strength every day.

There's a question, though, that crops up from time to time, and it's simply 'which is the best smartphone you can get?' Before that can be answered, however, it may be a good idea to actually define what a smartphone is, since simply saying that the best smartphones do everything is accurate, but a little bit vague.

The first key thing to remember is that a smartphone, unlike its lower-end siblings, gives you an experience that's much more like a tiny, handheld PC than a mobile phone. Take, for example, the Sony Ericsson X1, considered by many to be the best smartphone on the market. The PC analogy is a fair thing to say here, as it's actually powered by Windows Mobile, and that's something that applies to a large proportion of the best smartphones out there, not just the glorious Sony Ericsson, but also to phones like the HTC Touch HD.

That raises another key issue. In deciding which is the best smartphone for you, the operating system it's built on is going to be an important factor, and there are a few to choose from. As already discussed, Windows Mobile powers some of the highest-spec mobile phones in existence, but it's not the only option out there. For example, from Google, you've got the Android OS, currently found in the T-Mobile G1, a totally open source project that has the potential to go on and power some of the best smartphones the world's ever seen.

Meanwhile, there are a range of phones that have developed from pure email machines into proper, top-end smartphones: you know the name, and it's Blackberry. They're aiming for the top as well, with their Blackberry OS powering phones like the Bold and Blackberry Storm. Email, however, is always going to be the central selling point of any Blackberry, and if you ask anyone which is the best smartphone for doing email, chances are they'll tell you it's a Blackberry.

There's one big name that's not appeared on this page so far, however, and any rundown of the best smartphones isn't going to be complete unless Nokia get in on the act. After all, they are the single biggest name in mobile phones, and they make some of the best all-round smartphones in existence, the ones that do just about everything brilliantly. And if you're talking Nokia smartphones, then what you're really talking is 'Nseries', the badge that only the best of the best wear.

The question that gets asked on many occasions is 'which is the best smartphone that Nokia makes?' The problem is, that's a hard question to answer, because Nokia make so many of them, including some of the nicest smartphones on the market. However, there's one thing which you can say about Nokia's Nseries smartphones: they're all powered by Symbian S60, an OS that has a lot of the same functionality as Windows Mobile, but sets things out in a vastly different way. So popular is it, that Symbian can be found not just in phone like the Nokia N96, but in other manufacturers' products, notably the Samsung INNOV8.

One area that Nokia's only just getting into, but which has been a staple ingredient in the best smartphones since they first arrived on the scene all those years ago (with a device called the IBM Simon), is that of touchscreens, the current success of which is no doubt thanks in part to the arrival of the iPhone on the scene, heralded instantly by Apple lovers as the best smartphone ever. One thing's for sure, though, the surge in touchscreen phone production since the iPhone's launch has heralded the arrival of one of the most touchscreen-only handsets ever seen: with a bigger screen, and the sheer power of Windows Mobile powering it, the touchscreen smartphone battle is being taken directly to Apple's door by the HTC Touch HD.

There is one key thing that all the different operating systems have in common, and this is possibly the truest mark of a smartphone. Consider, first of all, so-called feature phones such as the W902 by Sony Ericsson. A fantastic phone in its own right, but what is important here is the range of extra software you can get for it. You see, with a feature phone, it's what's known as sand-boxed software, confined to s very small software platform, in this case, Java.

Not so with smartphones, where software can be coded to work alongside the entire operating system, very much like a PC, giving a richer experience. Maybe the way to judge which is the best smartphone is simply how much software you can get for it, and how easy it is to install? Or maybe it comes down to what software you can add on, and which extra functions you can apply. Maybe that's the mark of the best smartphones?



Whatever the case, it's becoming readily apparent that smartphones are becoming a really big deal in the mobile market. There really is one for everybody now, from the gadget nut, to someone who just needs it for work. No matter what you want it for, you're sure to find a device you fall in love with, one that you can honestly call the best smartphone for you.