The 10 Best: Smartphones

Fancy playing PlayStation on the bus or on a car journey, or looking for a cheaper smartphone for the kids? Read on for our essential guide.

Max Wallis
Thursday 15 December 2011 01:00 GMT
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1. Monte Carlo

£119, Amazon.co.uk

This is a real tween's phone. It's easy on the eye, has a host of games including the ubiquitous Angry Birds, a music software programme and a limited email function.

2. Xperia Play

£199.99, play.com

Fancy playing PlayStation on the bus or on a car journey? Well you can, with the Play, which has a built-in PlayStation Suite and dedicated gaming controls.

3. BlackBerry Torch 9810

£399.99, o2.co.uk

The latest version of BlackBerry's Torch may look the same, but inside is a new super-fast 1.2GHz processor, which makes it very strong on the multimedia front.

4. Sony Ericsson X8

£109.99, sonyericsson.com

The X8 is perfect for those who need only basic capabilities, such as note-taking, simple email and internet function, but don't have a fortune to spend.

5. Samsung Galaxy Nexus

£499.99, three.co.uk

The slim and curvy Nexus has one of the highest-grade screens ever seen on a mobile which means that it gives some netbooks a run for their money.

6. Nokia Lumia

£429.99, amazon.co.uk

This really does give the iPhone a challenge. It's incredibly easy to get to grips with and, as well having as Microsoft office, it has Xbox Live gaming.

7. Motorola Razr

£499.95, carphonewarehouse.com

This slim (7.1mm) phone is made of Kevlar, so won't break when/if you drop it. And it has a decent music-streaming program.

8. iPhone 4S

£499.99, apple.com

Apple's upgraded phone remains top of the smartphone pops. The most interesting innovation is Siri, the phone's in-built voice-activated PA.

9. HTC Cha Cha

£199.95, carphonewarehouse.com

Looking for a cheaper smartphone for the kids? This is largely built around Facebook and it even has its own keypad button.

10. HTC Sensation XL with Beats Audio

£407, htc.com

When it comes to films and music, this is pretty good. It comes with a host of media programs and you can buy Dr Dre's headphones.

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