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I've just been told by my SP that I can renew/upgrade my phone.

Can anyone recommend a decent phone - mid-range spec, decent camera, poss decent for net?

NOT LG!!!!!

Cheers.

The best fone out is the nokia n97, basically an i-phone but hundreds times better with a 5mp carl zeiss lens full touch screen with a slide out full qwerty keyboard.

If internet applications aren't a main priority the nokia n86 is a great fone small and compact with a 8mp carl zeiss lens, full internet access and available from 25 pound a month

Obviously there is a lot of decent fones out there but these 2 are both reliable and best value for money plus there is a Nokia shop in birkenhead that will fix anythink under the 2year warranty.

Sorry, but as much as I "detest" the iPhone (Windows Mobile FTW), you arnt half talking some utter bollox there mate. The iPhone's fast and simple interface pisses all over the N97's cumbersome and slow piece of crap.

Anyone who doubts this, go and compare the two and you will notice within seconds how BAD the N97 interface is.

As for Nokia's being reliable - they are about as reliable as any other major branded phone - Nokia have lost their old reputation for ultra-reliability in recent years, and other manufacturers have significantly caught up, so the reliability factor doesnt really mea much... unless you happen to bee a phone salesman trying to sell a Nokia.

Lol.

Suzy, the best phone is not what anyone can recommend to you to be honest. If you asked me, it would always be the HTC Universal or HTC Athena when it comes to smartphones/business class, or the K800i (old but still great in just about every aspect) when it comes to normal phones. But others will tell you the iPhone is the best phone out. Others will say the N97, others will say the E71 (one of my tech's swears by his).

Set yourself a price range, and see what phones have the features and style/design you like. Then make a shortlist, and have a read around the net, look at YouTube video's etc, see other user opinions and more importantly reviews. Then go into a couple of stores and actually have a play with all the phones you are interested in.

Do some research. Don't just buy a phone because X tell's you its the best, because that doesnt mean its the best for you.

Phones can vary massively, from how many features they have, to how good each feature is, to style, to interface ease-of-use, to speed of running etc... Its hard for someone to suggest a specific model for another person nowadays, because we all want and like different things.

Not many people like my HTC Universal, because of its size for instance... but everyone likes the fact its essentially a pocket laptop. Most people like to keep laptops and phones seperate though. I need it for my business unfortunately for me, so its something that I have little choice over.

Btw, any modern phone (not Windows Mobile unless like me, you use 3rd party Midlet manager, and the iPhone but that has Safari instead) should support Java/J2ME which means you can use Opera Mini on it - so you can have great mobile internet access regardless of the handset you choose.

Opera Mini is quite simply, the fastest mobile web browser available (using Opera's CacheX/TurboCache technology, or whatever they are calling it this week, it can compress web pages by upto 90% and thus saving you massive amounts of time and money (data usage), even when using GPRS it feels like 3G), and in terms of ease of use, whilst 4.2 is quite out of date and has a very professional but not modern interface (hasnt changed signifcantly in years - its become a case of if it aint broke, don't fix it, imho), works perfectly even for my needs 99% of the time (very intensive), but 5 is a real iPhone Safari beater - though at present it is still in BETA.

I run Internet Explorer 6 Mobile, Opera Mobile 9 and Opera Mini 4.2 and 5 on my phone, and even 4.2 outdoes the former two, even though they are more geared towards being "proper" browsers. The only reason I sometimes have to use Internet Explorer, is because it has full Flash support, whereas neither of the Opera's do (neither does Safari on the iPhone), so it can stream YouTube videos. For everything else, Mini wins hands down. Oh the other limitation Mini has, is when using internet banking, it only lets you go "so far", with both my HSBC and Santander IB services, I can login, and view the initial screen with balance etc, but certain functions and requests don't work, im guessing its related to the caching technology limitations/security but it doesnt bother me much anyway.

You all go on about phones internet abilitites....

phones are there to ring people. if you want to go online use a computer.

nokia 3310 ftw plz omg.

how am I ment to use a computer when im walking around town shopping or waiting in a que?

I'll stick with the Iphone

I actually like the idea of not using the net on my mobile - but with my business I have no choice. The HTC is "connected" 24/7 checking emails etc, 30% of my job is done from my phone nowadays as this allows me to leave the house and know whats going on and when with the business. I often SSH to servers and fix problems, or respond to customer support tickets etc... It really does annoy me not being able to get away from it sometimes. I can even do it all from my K800i but its not suited to doing it, and can take me far longer to perform tasks on it.

I don't get people who say they could not live without the net on their phone, who dont use it for their livelyhood, thats just silly, but I don't see any harm in everyone wanting the net on their phone, so they can browse their favourite sites in their free time.

Indeed I was posting on Wiki this morning using my phone - with the Qwerty keyboard and 640x480 VGA screen though, it is essentially like using a laptop lol - so its very quick and easy for me get around the web fast on it, no fiddly zooming and scrolling for hours, or pressing of buttons to do this and that.

Thank all Clear as mud

Btw Suzi, make sure you haggle for a better deal...

Your loyalty should be rewarded, they need you more than you need them!!

I'm Reading and writing this on my phone now and typed it quicker than I can on my laptop lol. It is a full querty and I'm not having any fiddly scroll and zoom problems Matty . So don't know what the problem is? I am also conected via wifi making it really fast

The big difference is screen real estate - you run out of it after 320 pixels, I have 640 at my disposal. You have to zoom and scroll to use websites, I dont.

I have the option of an onscreen keyboard, or the real mcoy; I can type using the real keyboard 3x faster than most people can on a touchscreen.

It is also vital when using SSH etc, which can the iPhone even do yet?

I basically have a netbook in my pocket, you have a mobile phone with internet acess and a web browser.

When it comes to managing your business, it makes a MASSIVE difference, trust me. You would need to do the crap I do to understand why screen real-estate and the real keyboard is absolutely vital.

Btw, I didnt know they did Wifi everywhere. But I know that GPRS has about 99% coverage. I know that when im in Alton Towers for instance, I might not be able to get a 3G or Wifi signal (my phone does both btw, not bad for a phone made in 2005 eh), but I can still get onto and use my client system at a speed that feels like 3G.

Windows Mobile - for IT professionals.
Apple iPhone - for fashion victims.

Right well I'm not gonna tell you what I got I'll only get ragged like a small dog int he mouth of a rottweiler

What mobile did you get Snooze ? I won't shake you like a rag doll, honest.

Its a Samsung bert.