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Cell Phone Buying Guide

When deciding on which cell phone to buy, you’ll first have to decide which of the two types, Traditional or Smart-Phone, meets your needs and budget. Choose a Traditional model if you need only voice and text-messaging capability, and perhaps a music player and camera. Smart phones, with their advanced operating systems, QWERTY keyboards, and other PDA-like features, are a better choice for people who need frequent access to e-mails, an organizer for appointments and contacts, and Internet-based services. Useful features such as support for wireless Bluetooth headsets, GPS navigation, and high-speed data access can greatly enhance your satisfaction. We have outlined information about cell phone types, and the most popular features below.

Traditional cell phones

Most models are compact and priced less than $150, or come free with a two-year contract. The keypad and overall operation is generally straightforward. All allow you to store frequently used numbers and to send and receive text messages. Many have basic cameras and support for wireless Bluetooth headsets for hands-free communication.

Smart phones

Often used by corporate travelers to keep up with e-mail and appointments, smart phones are catching on with consumers. Some want to tap out text messages on a QWERTY-style keyboard rather than the tiny keypad of a conventional cell phone. Others see no reason to tote a PDA and a conventional cell phone when a smart phone can do the job of both. They allow you to create and edit spreadsheets and documents, and they usually come with Microsoft Outlook, Palm Desktop, or other personal information management software for your PC. Many of these models have touch screens for accessing the phone's many features.

Cell Phone Features

Today's phones come equipped with many useful calling and multimedia features, including a media player, camera, Web browsing, child-location, and call-management services. Some features, such as programmable shortcuts, Bluetooth, speakerphone, and voice command help to make the phones easier to use.

Bluetooth

This technology enables the phone to work with wireless headsets and most hands-free car systems for tangle-free calls. Some phones support stereo Bluetooth headsets for music and other multimedia. And some can wirelessly exchange pictures, contacts, and other files with other compatible Bluetooth devices, such as a computer, cell phone, or PDA.

Camera

Most new phones have cameras with resolutions of 1-megapixel and up that are capable of producing respectable snapshots, though many lack a flash, which is helpful when taking pictures in dark environments. Look for models with 3-megapixel cameras or higher if you intend to print some of what you shoot.

GPS navigation

All phones have some type of location-based technology to help emergency responders find you when you dial 911. But an increasing number of phones support GPS Navigation services. They integrate GPS with maps and search engines to give you real-time, spoken, turn-by-turn directions to an entered address, or to help you find nearby businesses by name or category, such as "Lonnie's Night Club" or Auto Care.

Hearing-aid compatibility

Some phones interfere with hearing aids. Even those with hearing-aid compatible designations are not guaranteed to work with all hearing aids. Your doctor can help you choose a phone compatible with the aid you use.

Media player

Most phones have very good media players, allowing you to view videos and sort music tracks according to genre, album or artist, playlists, etc. They also typically have more than one playback option, such as repeat and shuffle.

Memory card

Many phones have slots that accept memory cards to expand storage capacity by as much as 32GB. The removable cards can also serve as an easy way to shuttle files between your phone and other devices. Card formats include Secure Digital Card SD, miniSD, and MicroSD.

Preset and custom text messages

Besides providing a quiet means of communication, text messages have been known to get through even when networks are overloaded. Most phones come with preset messages, such as "running late" or "call home". And most allow you to program customized messages for an emergency or frequent use, for example: "Don't forget to call Mom."

Programmable shortcuts

These let you assign functions to the phone's controls (touch screen, jog dial, etc.) so that you can quickly access contacts, text messaging, and other frequently used features.

QWERTY keyboard

Keyboards make composing and editing text and e-mail messages much easier than a keypad does. Some phones have keyboards that try to save space by having some letters, numbers, and symbols share a key. Those "condensed" keyboards, though still more convenient than a keypad, are not quite as easy to handle as full QWERTY keyboards

Speakerphone

A built-in speakerphone, which allows hands-free use in a car or elsewhere.

Standard headset connector

The standard connector on the handset, also known as a 2.5-mm or 3.5-mm connector, is compatible with most aftermarket wired headsets. Some phones with a proprietary connector might include an adapter to a standard connector.

Touch screen

Full touch-sensitive displays respond to light contact with a stylus, finger, or both. They provide an alternate, and sometimes more direct, method to input data and launch phone features and controls.

Voice command

This feature allows you to dial numbers from your phone book by speaking the name, without the usual training. You can also dial numbers by pronouncing the digits.

Wi-Fi

Cell phone data networks--even those designated "3G broadband"--are much slower than the broadband Internet connections many people have at home. But a rising number of phones have a built-in Wi-Fi radio that gives them faster Internet and e-mail access through home networks and Wi-Fi hotspots. On some phones, the Wi-Fi is just for Web browsing; on others, you can use the connection to swap files with a PC or make calls using Voice Over Internet Protocol.

Compare cell phone features, price and technology side-by-side with our comparison tools. We provide cell phones with an array of features, and offer these cell phones with a new plan, upgrading your existing phone and service plan, or buying the phone by itself. Choose by carrier, such as Sprint, Verizon Wireless, T-mobile and Alltel, or choose by brand including LG, Motorola, Samsung, RIM and more.