.FLYINGHEAD BACK TO BASICS
.TITLE Choosing the right smartphone for you
.AUTHOR Jessica McCurdy Crooks
.SUMMARY With all the fuss these days about the new iPhone 4, "Antennagate", and all the other exciting phones coming out, what’s the best choice?
.OTHER
With all the fuss these days about the new iPhone 4, "Antennagate", and all the other exciting phones coming out, what’s the best choice? If you’ve never used a smartphone before, how should you even think about choosing? In this article, I’ll help you think through your options.
These days, it seems like a new smartphone is being rolled out almost every day. A smartphone is basically a cell phone with the capabilities of a PC, in a pocket-sized package. This makes them very helpful, especially for business people who are always on the go.
The biggest issues these days are determining if you really need a smartphone or a feature-rich cell phone, and which type to buy. Of course most people will say that they need a smartphone, after all, they can be quite addictive. Also, to be part of the ‘in crowd’ owning a smartphone can be seen as a status symbol.
.TEASER Tap here for more smartphone joy than you can possibly handle.
Be smart. Don’t buy just because you want to be cool. There’s nothing cool about lugging around a slab of electronics. Make your decision baed on your need and budget.
.H1 Quick history of the smartphone
The [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IBM_Simon|first smartphone]] came out in 1992 and hit the market in 1993, yes, that was over 18 years ago. So technically, the smartphone has come of age. Over the last 18 years, things have changed rapidly from the IBM’s Simon, which way back then had an impressive array of features. Some of these included:
.BEGIN_LIST
.BULLET An address book
.BULLET A calculator
.BULLET Email capabilities
.BULLET Enabling both the sending and receiving of faxes
.BULLET Games
.BULLET Notepad
.BULLET World clock
.END_LIST
These were pretty advanced for the time. Today’s smartphones offer these features and much more.
.H1 Categories of smartphones
Today’s cellphones are a far cry form the cellphones of just five years ago. These days, even the most basic mobile phone has features that can cause them to be called smartphones. Manufacturers create different types of smartphones since users invariably have their own needs. It is for this reason why an iPhone may be the perfect smartphone for one user while a Blackberry is ideal for another.
Smartphones can be broken down into the following types, generally based on operating system:
.BEGIN_LIST
.BULLET Android: One of the newest offerings on the market. Some say it doesn’t yet have all the features that most businesspersons want in a smartphone, but with over 100,000 apps, you’re bound to find most of what you need
.BULLET Blackberry: This is still quite popular especially for business people who need to be constantly in contact in more ways than one. Of course, the line between smartphones for business and for everyday use has long blurred and is mostly insignificant today. BlackBerry is most often chosen by those with email-intensive lifestyles.
.BULLET iPhone: Offers the best of both worlds, that it, it’s ideal for both the business and personal cellphone user. The iPhone is not without its problems, including reception issues, and often arbitrary limitations on the apps you can run on it.
.BULLET A catchall group comprising all the others. This group includes many feature rich phones that can do many of the things the others can but on a more basic level. There are also not equipped to handle the needs of most business people.
.END_LIST
.H1 Do you really need a smartphone?
This is a serious question. It would seem that almost everyone, regardless of need, feels inclined (or pressured) to purchase a smartphone. The truth is, most of the needs of the average cellphone user can be easily met without a smartphone.
There is a wide variety of feature-rich mobile phones on the market. This means that the average user who mainly wants to make and receive calls can avoid the expense of a smartphone.
All smartphones are not the same and as such, they all serve different purposes. So to determine if you really need one, establish what your needs are. Then start reading online reviews and asking others their opinion of their smartphones.
.H1 How much does a smartphone cost?
Like most things, the cost of smartphones varies widely. The advancements in technology and the growing market have made it possible for just about anyone to buy a smartphone within their budget. Some determining factors for cost are the features offered, the manufacturer and how current the model is.
In addition to the cost of the instrument itself, other costs to consider include call charges, service charges such as internet connectivity, as well as music downloads and third party applications. When factoring the cost of your smartphone make a comparison of the various plans available in addition to the handset itself.
Sometimes the added cost of the smartphone can be balanced by the avoidance of additional fees. For example, most basic cellphones will let you take pictures, but all those pictures must be paid for individually through your phone service plan. A smartphone like an iPhone, by contrast, doesn’t involve charges for photos. Just sync your phone to your computer and take as many photos as you want.
Some smartphones can be purchased new for around $150 or less (look for discounts and special offers), with prices moving up the ranks to $500. Of course, here we are referring to regular smartphones and not those in the thousands of dollars range with diamonds, brand names and other celebrity-inspired features and settings.
Choosing the right smartphone for your needs isn’t as simple as walking into a store and picking a nice one off the shelf. You have to know what you want from your phone.
.BIO
