Pros

The screen display is clear and bright, sitting atop an intuitive keypad.  Users will delight in composing long texts and emails, as the keys are comfortable and easy to use.

The Bold 9000 incorporates many of the features that previous BlackBerry mobile phones have lacked including HSDPA and Wi-Fi internet connectivity, GPS, and an integrated 3.5mm headphone jack.  The email feature supports every major provider, even corporate accounts, and is easy to get up and running.  Whether users want a smartphone to handle on-the-go social networking or need a device that will provide instant mobile access to business email, the Bold delivers.

Overall, the Bold more than lives up to its name in both looks and features.

Cons

The Bold 9000 is quite wide, and some users may find it bulky.  The 2 megapixel camera is decidedly uninspired and belies the rest of the phone’s great features.  The Bold 9000 will not replace users’ standalone digital cameras.  The interface has been revamped but remains confusing for new BlackBerry users, who will likely find themselves searching the internet for operating tips.

Conclusion

RIM has put all of its firepower behind the Bold 9000 with brilliant results.  The screen and keypad make this a real winner among the latest mobile phones from competitors.  For work or play, this phone is a top-notch performer despite the absence of a trendy touchscreen.

This is a side slider phone and a full QWERTY keyboard slides out, which for a change has reasonably sized keys making it easy to use. When the phone is closed it is a fully interactive touchscreen, so for most things you wont need to slide out the keyboard, just touch the screen. The N97 has music player technology and though the Nokia Ovi music shop has never been well received, you can simply upload from your music collection to avoid this problem. Purchasing from other places and moving from the PC to the phone also works as long as you respect copyright restrictions. The Nokia N97 is likely to appeal to the younger generation, as one of the things it does well is social networking, with sites like Facebook being easily accessible from this handset. Overall this is a great phone and the contract is likely to be over before you are ready to give it up.

Motorola have really come through for the social networkers with the Motoblur system that the Dext pioneered. This allows for users to simply integrate all of their favourite network sites like Facebook, Twitter and MySpace into the phone’s system and receive instant updates and messages.

Security is a great part of the Dext and lost phones can be tracked and remotely wiped if they are stolen or irretrievably lost. Having a physical QWERTY keyboard does make the phone a little heavy and its poor back lighting means using it in dim light can be difficult.

The Motorola Dext comes complete with a 5-megapixel camera, a good quality all round video/audio player and 3.5 mm jack. It has a decent level of connectivity and supports USB, GPS, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi.

Like many smart touch-screen phones that run updateable apps, the battery life is a little limited and needs to be watched when away from a socket.  The Motorola claim is that it has a 6 hour talk life and up to 135 hours when left on standby.

For those who prefer a physical keyboard, the Dext is probably still the best Motorola on the market and its vast array of downloadable apps and appealing contract mobile phone offers make it a very viable choice.

Unique amongst relatively cheap mobile phones, it’s aimed squarely at the green market, using eco-friendly paint, recycled plastics and a low-energy charger. Unless you’re a serious tree-hugger, though, you might find this phone a little irritating. It spontaneously erupts in slightly bossy, though well-intentioned, pop-up messages reminding you to unplug the charger from the mains, and the screen annoyingly decides to switch itself off when it feels the environment could do with a break.

However, it does have a creditable 5 megapixel camera with LED flash, and it comes with 3G and HSDPA support up to an impressive 7.2 Mbps. You’ll also find GPS, a good web browser, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and a better than average music player. The 2.2 inch screen, whilst it doesn’t have the highest resolution (240X320 pixels), is perfectly adequate for the apps on offer, like YouTube. The Elm’s abundant widgets offer quick access to Facebook and Twitter but the processor is a touch under-powered and the phone feels a little sluggish at times. On the super-annoying end of the scale, though, there’s no 3.5 mm jack, leaving you to do battle with Sony Ericsson’s own proprietary port.

The website www.mopay.co.uk offers payment in High Street shop vouchers which are accepted in a range of stores.  Argos vouchers are the voucher of choice for a number of firms.  Mazuma mobile offer them as a payment option, as do Envirofone. 

Tesco customers who recycle their old phones through them can receive clubcard points.  This is probably a better option for phones that are considered to have no cash value, as the points are not worth a great deal, but a few points are better than no cash.  Some deals with Tesco offer a gift card for the store or airtime for mobile phones depending on the value of the handset. 

Boots also offer loyalty points to customers who recycle their phones through them.  A total of up to 5000 advantage card points are on offer depending on the make and model of the handset and consumers will also be entered into prize draws and competitions. 

British Gas customers who recycle their phones with them can put the cash towards their utility bills, and sites such as www.musicmagpie.co.uk take not just mobile phones but also old CDs, DVDs and games in return for cash.

Despite the lack of touch screen and relatively small display, the HTC ozone still possesses a bright, colourful display and a CPU with comparable power to other modern smart phones.  This phone can handle and traverse through web content just as easily as more expensive models such as the Hero or Desire.  The Ozone can display the same multimedia content and process requests in the same manner.

While many people prefer the tactile feedback of a keyboard, it’s important to note that with no touch screen, the Ozone can make web content difficult to navigate.  Heavy interaction is nearly impossible, and this should be considered before a new smart phone buyer purchases an Ozone. 

For the new smart phone user, or for someone who simply wants to bookmark and read content online, the Ozone is an excellent choice.  It’s only true weaknesses are its lack of a touch screen, which is not necessary for viewing web enabled content.

Photographs taken on the 3.2 megapixel camera look so sharp and stunning that it doesn’t matter that the screen is not the biggest on the market or OLED.

The camera has a video camera and the video player supports the usual file formats; you can use the camera anywhere and anytime as it has an in-built flash so even shots taken in poor lighting conditions will come out sharp and clear.

The audio player supports WMA, eAAC+, AAC+, AAC and MP3 file formats and there is also an FM radio.  You can increase the file storage with a memory card, as there is a microSD card but unfortunately no 3.5 mm headphone jack.  However, this phone is not marketed as a music phone so the lack of standard headphone plug may not be a problem to those who are interested in buying the 6600 Slide.

There is no Wi-Fi or HSDPA but you can browse and email using 3G and GPRS.  Like the majority of the Finnish company’s mid range products the 6600 Slide runs on Symbian Series 40 that uses a simpler operating system and the simplicity will appeal to people who are used to a standard Nokia phone.

A niggling problem with the handset is that the shiny surface shows up every fingerprint, so the great look is somewhat spoiled by smudges.

Aimed at social networkers, the Samsung S3370 comes with social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter pre-loaded. The phone has a 2.6 inch TFT 256k touch screen display with a resolution of 240 x 320 pixels. It sports the TouchWiz UI (user interface) and an auto-rotate accelerometer.

Physically, the phone is a nice size – 100 by 53 by 13 mm and weighing just 86 grams. The only colour choice is black.
The Samsung S3370 is a quad band 3G phone supported by Bluetooth A2DP, USB, EDGE technology, and GPRS – all which contribute to quick access and faster data transfers.

The included camera is somewhat lacking, at only 1.3 megapixels. However, camera functions include smile detection, video recording, and picture wallpaper. The video player supports MPEG4 and H263.

The phone’s music player includes an FM radio, and the phone supports Java games.

The nicest aspect of the Samsung S3370 is the ability to add custom widgets to the home screen, so that you can see those all-important status updates, tweets, and direct messages at a glance.

For individuals looking for cheap mobile phone deals, the Samsung S3370 is exclusively available via 3 Mobile on a pay-as-you-go scheme. The benefit of this includes the ability to make good use of free Skype-to-Skype calls and access to Twitter.

The LG Pop GD510 is small: 3.85 by 1.95 by 0.44 inches. It weighs a mere 3.07 ounces. Its battery life is unremarkable: 3.3 hours of talk time and 15 days (350 hours) of standby time.

The LG Pop GD510’s screen, although small at just three inches, is of a good, albeit not excellent, quality at 240 x 400 pixels. Multimedia features are relatively limited, with video supporting MPEG4 files and a music player supporting MP3, AAC, AAC+, WMA and RA files. The mobile phone also has FM radio.

The LG Pop GD510’s connectivity features are a Teleca Obigo internet browser, microUSB and 2.1 stereo Bluetooth.
The simple layout and easy to use controls are the best features about the LG Pop GD510. The mobile phone is designed with the environment in mind, which is not that common in the mobile phone market generally. It is constructed entirely from hazard free parts and comes in recyclable packaging.

On the downside, the resistive touch-screen can be difficult to use, with users having to hold and press for letters and commands to register. LG Pop GD510 deals come both in contract and pay-as-you-go forms.

It is very simple to use their websites; all you have to do is to enter the make and model of the phone you wish to sell and you will be given a price. If this is acceptable to you, just fill in your details and you will be sent a padded envelope in which to send your phone. Most mobile phones that are under four years old will be listed on these sites, but if yours is not you may still be able to sell it if you contact the customer services section on the site.

Keeping outdated mobile phones in cupboards and drawers actually loses you money. Many people will not sell their phones because they do not think they are being paid enough for them and so they leave them where they are and end up with a totally worthless phone, literally throwing money away. The point here is that if you have old phones, you will get a better price if you sell them right away.

You can still send very old phones for recycling so that they do not end up in landfill sites and this helps reduce the carbon footprint of your phone, but you will not be paid for them.