Bonnie Cha,
Senior Associate Editor
June 4, 2009
Smartphones with touch screens certainly aren't new; we've seen them on Palm, Windows Mobile, and Symbian devices for years. But what has changed is the way we interact with them. Before, touch screens served as an easy and convenient way to perform simple tasks like opening and closing applications and switching between menus. However, with the introduction of handsets like the HTC Touch and the Apple iPhone, we are seeing (and expect) touch screens to perform more advanced functions.
You can now zoom in and out of Web pages with the pinch of your finger, and drag and drop icons to customize your Home screen. And it's not just HTC and Apple; more and more cell phone manufacturers, including Palm and Samsung, are jumping on the bandwagon and developing new touch interfaces that let you interact with your smartphone in a totally different way. Touch-screen smartphones certainly aren't for everyone, but if you're in the market for one, here are six of the hottest models today.
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| Price | Check Prices | $149.99 | $199.99 | $199.99 to $299.99 | $199.99 | $599.99 to $699.99 |
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| Review date | July 11, 2008 | October 15, 2008 | November 25, 2008 | September 12, 2008 | June 03, 2009 | November 11, 2008 |
| The Bottom Line | The iPhone 3G delivers on its promises by adding critical features and sharper call quality. The iTunes App Store is pretty amazing, and the 3G support is more than welcome. Critical features still are missing, and the battery depletes quickly under heavy use, but the iPhone 3G is a big improvement over the original model. | While we're not in love with the design and would have liked some additional features, the real beauty of the T-Mobile G1 is the Google Android platform, as it has the potential to make smartphones more personal and powerful. That said, it's not quite there yet, so for now, the G1 is best suited for early adopters and gadget hounds, rather than consumers and business users. | Though slightly more expensive, Verizon customers looking for a touch-screen smartphone will get a better user experience and faster performance from the Samsung Omnia than the RIM BlackBerry Storm. | The HTC Touch Diamond for Sprint brings some nice additions and improvements over the unlocked GSM version--most notably to performance. It's best suited for first-time smartphone buyers or light users, while business customers should wait for the Touch Pro. | Despite some missing features and performance issues that make it less than ideal for on-the-go professionals, the Palm Pre offers gadget lovers and consumers well-integrated features and unparalled multitasking capabilities. The hardware could be better, but more importantly, Palm has developed a solid OS that not only rivals the competition but also sets a new standard in the way smartphones handle tasks and manage information. | The Sony Ericsson Xperia X1 is a well-designed and fully stocked smartphone that offers great customization through the interactive panel interface. However, with its high price tag, the X1 will be a hard sell for most customers and will be a purely luxury item. |
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| Features | ||||||
| Weight | 4.7 oz | 5.6 oz | 4.34 oz | 0.3 lbs | 4.8 oz | 5.1 oz |
| Built-in devices | Camera | Camera Digital player | Camera Digital Player | Camera Digital player | Camera Digital player | Camera Digital player |
| OS provided | Apple MacOS X | Android | Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.1 Professional | Microsoft Windows Mobile 6.1 | Palm webOS | Microsoft Windows Mobile |
| Band / mode | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900 | GSM 850/900/1800/1900 (Quadband) / UMTS 1700/2100 (Dual Band) | Info unavailable | GSM 900/1800/1900 | CDMA 800/1900 | WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900 |
| Full specifications | Full specifications | Full specifications | Full specifications | Full specifications | Full specifications | Full specifications |
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