→ 10 answers so far ↓

• 1 phil // Dec 3, 2008 at 11:26 am

  1. Works as a phone – A phone should be a phone first. The phone has to have good reception and not cut off in the middle of calls. I like t-mobile service and have had it for like ten years and don’t want to switch.

  2. Simple, intuitive menus – I should be able to start a text message by pressing one button. I should be able to program it so the buttons do what I want.

  3. Long battery life – This is important cause if the battery runs out I can’t do anything. I don’t know anyone else’s phone number and there are no pay phones anymore anyways. I want a small screens without web browsers, cameras, mp3 players and all that because battery technology hasn’t improved much in the past 5 years. Maybe in 5 years it’ll be different.

  4. Small and with a “Candy bar” shape – I carry my phone everywhere so I don’t want it to be big and bulky. I also don’t want it to be overdesigned. It should be rectangular with no blinking lights or moving parts to break.

  BONUS: Even the expensive phones are not that expensive, but they don’t really appeal to me. I’ll probably get a new low end Nokia if my current one breaks. I could imagine getting one of those t-mobile google phones if they fit the criteria above.

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “word”

• 2 zjyw // Dec 3, 2008 at 11:40 am

  - memory or capability of having a memory card
  - Nokia-like texting capabilities. (Nokia has T9 Motorola but somehow it’s different and I like it.)
  - Have a regular number pad (if it has qwerty too, it’s coo) but I need to be able to text with one hand otherwise it’s not efficient.
  - and the “little loopie thingy” that you can use to string a lanyard around it.
  - camera and video (with zoom preferred).
  - music player
  - able to back information up to my computer
  - good calendar that I can input stuff easily.
  - being able to be on AIM
  - some kind of voice recorder

  I know I’m difficult.

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “I agree”

• 3 zjyw // Dec 3, 2008 at 11:42 am

  Bonus: That new Google phone looks appealing but I don’t know much about it. Or a Nokia of some sort, I’m a Nokia person. Maybe the new one that debuts next year that has a touch screen.

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “black word!”

• 4 Dannikins // Dec 3, 2008 at 12:03 pm

  I prefer Windows Mobile on my phone so that I can edit the occasional Word document or spreadsheet from the field as I do not own a lappie. The threaded sms texting, combined with several gigs of memory allow me to refer to random old conversations with people that only do business via text…I know, strange, but it happens. Also, I have Guitar Hero 3 Mobile for boring waits in cars without a book or whatever.

  I wish the camera was better on my phone since it is always with me, but I generally like to not carry a second camera.

  I don’t use my phone to play music…and do carry an ipod around. This is tolerable.

  And black. It should be black. Oh, and bounce a little when I drop it.

  I like Samsung.

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “I take my hat off to the person who made this comment”

• 5 feverishpoptart // Dec 3, 2008 at 12:35 pm

  I’ve only ever had sidekicks. My sidekick 3 is on its last legs and I can’t decide what I want. I may just upgrade to another sk, I like having the buttons memorized and not having to look while I type.

  The iphone is tempting, but I hear it’s AIM sucks, and I use my phone for chatting. I hardly ever make any calls. I would also have to keep my nails short, which isn’t a plus.

  So basicaly I need a phone with a keyboard (with actual buttons), have AIM capabilities, and a decent web browser.

  If money was no object, I would have the latest sidekick and and iphone. I am actually considering this, but money is still an object right now.

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “[applause]“

• 6 prof. fancy pants // Dec 3, 2008 at 2:45 pm

  in my phone book, a phone and a PDA are two different beasts. if we are talking about a phone, then all of phil’s criteria fit. the only thing i would add is working buttons that light up in the dark. if we’re talking PDA, then all of sudden it is much much more complicated. so complicated, in fact, that i’m going to assume that you are only talking about a phone so i don’t have to answer the PDA part.

  bonus: a rotary dial.

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “kudos”

• 7 Tiffany! // Dec 3, 2008 at 3:07 pm

  1)Money- that’s pretty much what has stopped me from changing phones. I am on a family plan that is wicked cheap and ATT is DYING to get me off of the plan, so I stay with my crappy phone, and crappy ATT service because I know if I change anything then I will have to start paying at least twice more per month than I do.

  Bonus: If money were no object I’d pay to fix AT&T’s crappy network so it wouldn’t drop calls and then I’d get an iPhone.

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “word”

• 8 tarbot // Dec 4, 2008 at 10:38 am

  When shopping for my current phone, a blackberry pearl I purchased almost two years ago, I was looking for these things:

  1. affordability, both for the phone and service…which is why i switched from AT&T to t-mobile….they gave me a fat discount on the phone and the service was way cheaper
  2.web service…with my old phone I was always so jealous of Pete and his access to the internets!
  3. customer service…i went to both the at&t store and the tmobile store, at&t wanted to make it helluv complicated and the guy explaining the service plans was a dick…tmobile helluv hooked my shit up….and any time i call their customer service they are nice and fix it right away
  4. size…my camera must fit into the little pocket inside my purse and the little pouch on my bike bag

  things i did not look for in a phone:
  music: my dad plays music off his phone constantly and it is really annoying….it sounds so tinny! i already have an ipod so not neccessary to me
  camera: i’m a girl and i carry a purse which has my camera in it, so i didn’t need another one…camera phones are getting good these days so i can see why people would want to consolidate but i like my regular camera enough

  bonus: i would have bought the super expensive fancy Nokia I was looking at at the time (sorry I forgot the model #) However, now that I have it, I love my blackberry and wouldn’t get rid of it for a fancier phone. I tend to get attached to my phones though…I’m pretty sure I’ve only had three in my life. Once I get one I use it until it breaks…

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “unnggghhhh!”

• 9 beth // Dec 4, 2008 at 12:44 pm

  I guess cost vs. usability is a factor. Meaning, it needs to work well and have great function as a phone first, with the peripherals as merely an added bonus. However, these fancy gadgets aren’t worth the extra cost to me if I am not going to use them (which is highly likely).

  Bonus:
  My dream phone, it has:
  1) a wrist tether, for loss-prevention
  2) good service, with optional “I-can’t-hear-you-I-must-be-in-a-bad-reception-area” button
  3) web browsing that I don’t have to pay hella extra for.
  4) break-resistant, yet delicate & attractive design
  5) Retractable power cord that will plug into a standard outlet.

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “black word!”

• 10 Joe // Dec 5, 2008 at 2:19 pm

  The following things are what is important to me in a phone:

  1) phone — I need the device to work good as a phone. This means it is comfortable to talk on has fast access to my contacts. I can dial without looking while I am in a car etc.

  2) email — I need to be able to reliably get email to my phone from a variety of sources. It is best if I can rely on its push mail but just a reliable fast email access is all i really need. I am beginning to realize how much I like a full tactile keyboard for sending mail as well.

  3) web — This one is pretty obvo since it is the job I have (I do this sort of thing http://us.m2.yahoo.com/w/ygo-onesearch?p=ukiah), but in general I need to be able to look up crap on wikipedia, find movie times and all that sort of junk from my mobile phone.

  4) Maps — at this point a good map app is mandatory. Luckily Jesus made google maps which most devices run.

  5) Camera – I don’t carry a purse and carrying two electronic devices around is probably not going to happen so I would like to take acceptably decent photos. Having a flash gets you bonus points

  6) Misc – there are a number of extra factors such as battery life, ability to play games, mp3 support etc that don’t matter as much but are nice to have. battery life < 1 day is a dealbreaker though.

  current votes: 0 vote if this makes you say “kudos”

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