Communication Breakdown

Picking a cell phone in a fast-paced world

Picking out a new cell phone can be hard, especially for normal folk who may not know a megabyte from a megapixel. Meta Events feels your pain. That’s why we have recently compiled a comprehensive lists of what we feel are the finest phones from each of the four best manufacturers: Nokia, Samsung, Sony/Ericsson, and Motorola.

Nokia

Nokia 6820 The Nokia 6820 is just an excellent phone. It’s slim, attractive, and well designed. Call quality is impressive as is connectivity with Bluetooth chip. It’s not a smart phone, but it does have a full QWERTY keyboard tucked away for fast messaging and emailing. All of this makes it perfect for text message addicts, aim and email users, and people who need to stay connected 24/7. The camera is fully integrated, which means snapping photos and using video playback is easy as well. One minor design flaw: the camera doesn’t have a button dedicated solely to its operation, so it will take a bit of getting used to if you’ve never had a picture phone before. Speaker phone is also a bit tough to use, and the screen could be brighter. That said, the Nokia 6820 is still probably the very best Nokia model when it comes to dashing off quick messages and staying connected to your friends and co-workers.

Nokia 6230 The Nokia 6230 is absolutely loaded with features. VGA camera, video recorder and Bluetooth AND infrared connectivity is just the beginning. This phone also plays mp3s and has a new feature that is becoming popular with media phones like this one: an FM tuner. Memory is a bit lacking, but it is expandable via memory card to hold sufficient mp3s for any commute. It may not be the slickest looking phone, it’s a little awkward in your hand, but it actually works for everything it does. Signals are seldom lost with the 6230, and it’s full supported for wireless chatting. But, as we said already, this thing really shines as a media phone. Pictures come out with breathtaking clarity, the video recorder and player is top notch for its class, and even if you take up your entire memory with big pictures and videos, you can still listen to music on the FM tuner. Plus, it sends email, keeps tight, organized contact lists and schedules, and syncs with PCs for business use.

Nokia N90 OK, we know we said phones for normal folks only, but we couldn’t resist this cool multimedia phone. What’s so cool about it? The phone twists and flips to become a side-viewing camcorder, yet it still fits in the palm of your hand. The down side? Not picked up by any service provider yet, so if you want it, it’ll cost you almost $950. But you’ve got that, right? It’s got a 2 megapixel camera, RealPlayer media, it supports MPEG-$, MP3, AAC< and WAV. Of course it has Bluetooth, a USB port, and PC syncing built in. It has more than adequate email capabilities and great speakerphone and ring tones. While it does, indeed, fit in the palm of your hands, it is large for a Nokia phone at 4.4 inches long and 6.1 oz. But if the 6230 just isn’t good enough for you, and you have the extra scratch, the Nokia N90 will absolutely not disappoint.

Samsung

Samsung SCH-i730 The Samsung SCH-i730 is the only smart phone that made the list, in part because it is a Samsung. It’s got five-way wireless support (IrDA, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, CDMA, and EV-DO), speakerphone, a full slide out QWERTY thumb keyboard, and two batteries included with the phone. The slide out nature of the keyboard makes it convenient and fun as well as easy to use. You’ll always be able to access your data on the go no matter were you are, and this is the phone’s greatest benefit, so it’s more fore the business type who must stay connected with the office or clients. One negative, mysteriously, you can’t leave the phone on while the Wi-Fi is connected, so in a way you have to disconnect yourself in order to connect yourself.

Samsung SGH-P777 The Samsung SGH-P777 is a multimedia phone unlike any other. With a whopping 100MB of internal memory, it has plenty of room for mp3s, pictures, and video. But it’s not just a multimedia phone, it’s also a messaging phone with a slide-out QWERTY keyboard ready for quick text messaging. And, since it is a messaging phone, Samsung saw fit to include AIM and ICQ pre-installed standard. The call quality is solid even for a Samsung, and data transfer is quick over the Infrared connection. However, Bluetooth is notably lacking, as is a speakerphone, two big omissions for a media phone. But overall we were amazed at how many things the Samsung SGH-P777 not just did, but did better than most other phones.

Samsung SGH-P207 The Samsung SGH-P207 is probably the most stylish Samsung phone to date. It’s got a sleek, black casing and flips out clamshell styled, revealing a large, bright screen. On top of that, the SGH-P207 lasts longer than any other phone in terms of battery life on moderate use, so if you can’t always get to the charger, this may be the phone for you. It’s not a media phone and it’s not a smart phone and it’s not a messaging phone per se, but if you just want to make calls, and I know a lot of you do, you can’t do much better. Sending and dictating text messages is very easy for a flip phone, and there’s one more surprise, you actually can use the SGH-P207 to surf the web. But, the bottom line here is truly style. It’s got an elegant look and a great balance of features. A good cross between high-tech and high society.

Sony/Ericsson

Sony Ericsson S710a The S710a is another cool innovation from Sony/Ericsson, a twist phone. It’s got a great big color screen with exceptional picture quality, perfect for viewing text and pictures. The phone is MP3 capable and has multiple message quality. Its hands off features make it exceptional for those who often need to talk on the go in cars. It’s Bluetooth ready, so data transfer is easy, plus you get to skip all that nasty wire business when you want to use a headset. That being said, the phone is a bit bulky for our tastes, needs frequent trips to the battery charger, and is a bit hard to navigate the design tactiley. It has a lot of features, but they could come together a little better. The internal design isn’t quite as good as the external design here.

Sony Ericsson K700i If you expect a lot from your cell phone, you won’t be disappointed by the Sony Ericsson K700i. On the outside, the design is very stylish with a high-resolution screen. This phone will work basically anywhere in the world and always get a strong signal. It’s Bluetooth ready, has a powerful speakerphone, and has an attractive, intuitive key design. On the inside you’ll find mp3 support, and the newest craze in cell phone features, an FM radio tuner so you can always listen to music, even when the 41MB of internal memory has been exhausted, perhaps with a big video file or two. Yes, the phone has a good quality camera with video.

Sony Ericsson Z500a The Sony Ericsson Z500a has good features and solid performance. There’s an integrated VGA camera with video recording, a good speakerphone, the capability to use MP3 as ring tones, and a strong media player with support for streaming media. The call quality is clear and consistent across the board. Unfortunately, it has no Bluetooth or infrared port, so it’s a little tough to actually share data aside from standard messaging and picture messaging. At the same time, it does surf the web, so text, multimedia, instant messaging are all in the affirmative. It’s also particularly useful for email. If you want a little bit of everything but can’t commit to something high-tech, this phone is for you. However, it is a little bulky and the display screen is kind of washed out, so all that media won’t be as clear as with other models.

Motorola

Motorola E815 The E815 from Motorola is one of Verizon’s best multimedia phones, satisfying critics, but more importantly, customers. It’s got a cool flip phone design, it’s small, light, and packed with features. It’s got a great internal display, which is perfect for viewing pictures and video, it’s got Bluetooth connectivity for accessories, a pretty good MP3 player, and a TransFlash card slot for memory upgrades. If you want to chat on the go, take snap shots, listen to MP3s and organize your contacts, this phone is ideal. However, the file transfer on Bluetooth has been disabled for some reason, so it’s a little harder to share files with others. Call quality is also not as good as some other models and there is no analog roam feature. Bottom line: occasionally you might be out of the loop, but you won’t be disappointed with the media features on the E815.

Motorola Razr V3 And now the phone everybody’s talking about, the Motorola Razr V3. What’s good here? Design, design, design. The thing just looks cool. It may not have all the features of a high-powered multi-media phone or a super-fast messaging phone, but for such a slim package it does have a number of cool features. The display is beautiful, the phone does in fact take pictures. You can’t take video, but you can view them. The volume is a little low for some, but this tiny phone does have a speaker phone. Plus, it’s Bluetooth active, so it’s extra slick. But don’t get this phone if you’re shy, because when people see you talking on it, they’ll ask to see it, touch it, and hold it. Often. It’s probably the only phone on the list that instantly makes you cooler. (For extra cool points try the limited edition black Razr.)

Motorola A630 At first glance, the Motorola A630 looks like a stubby little hand radio: it’s barely bigger than a double pack of double mint gum. But under its deceptive interior is a wealth of hidden features. You turn this bad boy sideways and it flips open horizontally to reveal a full QWERTY keyboard and landscape oriented 65,000 color screen. It works with PC and Mac, which is cool, and has an amazing speakerphone. The A630 is great for making calls and firing off quick text and email messages, so if you send a lot of the, this is one of the best phones out there. It’s also got an integrated camera and it’s Bluetooth connected, so sharing data and adding accessories is easy. The only down side is navigation, which can take some getting use to, but overall this is a slick little phone packed with features and with excellent sound quality.