All Smartphones

The Bottom Line: While the Nokia N97 is packed with features and offers the freedom of an unlocked phone, its clunky touch interface, sky-high price tag, and outdated operating system make it hard to recommend when there are better touch-screen smartphones on the market.

Specs: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900, Up to 400 min, With digital camera / digital player, 5.3 oz

The Bottom Line: While the Nokia N97 is packed with features and offers the freedom of an unlocked phone, its clunky touch interface, sky-high price tag, and outdated operating system make it hard to recommend when there are better touch-screen smartphones on the market.

Specs: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900, Up to 400 min, 5.3 oz

The Bottom Line: The RIM BlackBerry Pearl Flip 8230 updates Alltel's line of BlackBerrys, but its clamshell design won't please everyone.

Specs: CDMA2000 1X 1900/800, 210 min, With digital camera / digital player, 3.6 oz

The Bottom Line: The iPhone 3GS doesn't make the same grand leap that the iPhone 3G made from the first-generation model, but the latest Apple handset is still a compelling upgrade for some users. The iPhone 3GS is faster and we appreciate the new features and extended battery life, but call quality and 3G reception still need improvement.

Specs: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900, Up to 600 min, With digital camera / digital player / GPS receiver, 4.8 oz

The Bottom Line: The iPhone 3GS doesn't make the same grand leap that the iPhone 3G made from the first-generation model, but the latest Apple handset is still a compelling upgrade for some users. The iPhone 3GS is faster and we appreciate the new features and extended battery life, but call quality and 3G reception still need improvement.

Specs: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900, Up to 600 min, With digital camera / digital player / GPS receiver, 4.8 oz

The Bottom Line: The iPhone 3GS doesn't make the same grand leap that the iPhone 3G made from the first-generation model, but the latest Apple handset is still a compelling upgrade for some users. The iPhone 3GS is faster and we appreciate the new features and extended battery life, but call quality and 3G reception still need improvement.

Specs: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900, Up to 600 min, With digital camera / digital player / GPS receiver, 4.8 oz

The Bottom Line: The iPhone 3GS doesn't make the same grand leap that the iPhone 3G made from the first-generation model, but the latest Apple handset is still a compelling upgrade for some users. The iPhone 3GS is faster and we appreciate the new features and extended battery life, but call quality and 3G reception still need improvement.

Specs: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900, Up to 600 min, With digital camera / digital player / GPS receiver, 4.8 oz

The Bottom Line: The RIM BlackBerry Curve 8900 brings a number of improvements and additions to make it a nice upgrade to the Curve 8300 series. That said, AT&T offers other QWERTY smartphones that include 3G support and for less.

Specs: GSM 850/900/1800/1900 (Quadband), 330 min, 3.9 oz

The Bottom Line: The Nokia E75 is a nice alternative to the current crop of slate QWERTY messaging smartphones, offering a compact design without sacrificing the keyboard or e-mail capabilities. However, without carrier backing, the unlocked phone is a bit expensive.

Specs: WCDMA (UMTS) / GSM 850/900/1800/1900, 320 min, 4.9 oz

The Bottom Line: 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 unparalleled 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.

Specs: CDMA 800/1900, With digital camera / digital player, 4.8 oz