PDA/mobile device comparison

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Grid comparison of currently available smartphone solutions
(Choosing your perfect mobile device!)

The idea here is to score most current PDA/smartphone solutions and see which one comes out on top. The scores for each criteria are my own personal evaluations. You can apply your own weightings, though, and the page will multiply everything up and work out your most suitable smartphone solution. Models and scores: (10=excellent, 1=terrible). Weightings: 'Not'/'Quite'/'Very' multiplies scores by 0, 1 or 2 respectively.

Updated July 2009. Note that you must have Javascript enabled in your browser for this to work!

To use the Grid:

Work your way down the 30 left hand side criteria, rating each according to how important it is to you
Read off your personalised scores from the bottom row - which is best for you?

Criteria	Importance to you	Apple iPhone 3GS	Blackberry Storm	T-Mobile G1	Nokia E71	Nokia E90	Nokia E75	Nokia 5800 XpressMusic	Samsung i8910 (Omnia HD)	Nokia N86 8MP	Nokia N82	Nokia N96	Nokia N97	Nokia N95 8GB	HTC Touch Pro 2	HTC Touch Diamond 2
Photos (not to scale)
Calendar/Agenda	Not Quite Very	7	8	7	8	8	8	8	8	7	7	7	8	7	8	8
To-do/Tasks	Not Quite Very	1	7	7	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	7	7
Contacts	Not Quite Very	8	9	9	9	9	9	9	9	8	8	8	9	8	8	7
Email	Not Quite Very	9	9	8	9	9	9	8	8	9	8	8	8	8	9	7
Web browsing	Not Quite Very	9	7	8	6	8	6	8	8	7	6	7	8	7	8	8
Wider connectivity options (EDGE, WLAN, GPRS, 3G, HSDPA)	Not Quite Very	10	4	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10
Speed (processor + general impression)	Not Quite Very	9	7	7	8	5	6	6	7	8	5	4	7	8	7	8
Word processing (built-in)	Not Quite Very	4	5	3	10	10	10	4	4	4	4	4	4	4	8	8
Spreadsheet (built-in)	Not Quite Very	2	5	2	8	8	8	1	1	2	2	2	1	2	8	8
Screen font sizes (for those with ageing eyesight, like mine!)	Not Quite Very	10	6	6	6	2	6	8	10	6	5	7	8	7	8	6
Video playback	Not Quite Very	9	6	3	5	6	5	8	10	7	7	8	9	8	5	7
Music playback (over phones)	Not Quite Very	10	8	7	9	9	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	9	9

Still photography	Not Quite Very	4	4	2	3	6	6	5	10	10	8	7	7	7	4	6
Video recording	Not Quite Very	6	4	3	3	6	6	6	8	10	8	5	5	9	4	5
Indoor screen clarity	Not Quite Very	9	8	9	8	8	8	8	10	10	6	8	9	8	8	8
Screen contrast outdoors	Not Quite Very	10	3	10	10	9	10	6	6	6	10	10	7	10	6	4
Regular firmware updates	Not Quite Very	8	8	8	9	6	9	10	5	9	9	9	9	9	5	5
Multitasking	Not Quite Very	3	9	9	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10	10

Text entry speed	Not Quite Very	6	5	8	7	8	9	6	3	3	3	3	6	3	9	4
Gaming and graphics	Not Quite Very	10	1	5	2	5	2	3	8	6	7	6	4	8	5	6
Battery life and options****	Not Quite Very	2	1	2	10	9	8	8	9	6	5	5	6	8	7	5
File management	Not Quite Very	1	5	3	6	6	6	5	5	5	5	5	5	5	6	6
Touchscreen sensitivity	Not Quite Very	10	5	9	0	0	0	7	9	0	0	0	8	0	7	7
Size/weight (double weighting!)	Not Quite Very	7	6	4	9	3	8	8	6	8	9	7	5	7	4	6
Screen resolution (pixels, horizontal and vertical)	Not Quite Very	6	6	5	3	9	3	7	7	3	3	3	7	3	8	9
Robustness (and hardware simplicity)	Not Quite Very	6	5	1	8	5	7	7	7	6	8	4	6	4	5	5
Software stability***	Not Quite Very	8	4	5	9	7	9	7	5	6	7	7	4	9	7	6
Built-in positioning and GPS functionality with maps	Not Quite Very	8	7	8	10	9	10	10	8	10	10	10	10	10	8	6
Size of third party software catalogue	Not Quite Very	10	3	5	7	6	7	6	5	7	7	7	6	7	7	7
One handed operation?	Not Quite Very	4	5	2	7	5	10	8	7	10	10	10	7	10	2	3
Cost*****	Not Quite Very	1	2	6	6	4	6	7	2	4	8	3	2	6	1	2

Criteria	Importance to you	Apple iPhone 3GS	Blackberry Storm	T-Mobile G1	Nokia E71	Nokia E90	Nokia E75	Nokia 5800 XpressMusic	Samsung i8910 (Omnia HD)	Nokia N86 8MP	Nokia N82	Nokia N96	Nokia N97	Nokia N95 8GB	HTC Touch Pro 2	HTC Touch Diamond 2
Overall		TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC	TBC

In the UK, almost all of the phones and smartphones featured here can be bought ex-contract, SIM-free from Mobile Fun. On their web site, click on 'SIM-free Mobile Phones' and you're off and running with what I think to be just about the most competitive prices around.

* How compatible is this solution with the outside world? Is it effectively tied to a PC?
*** i.e. how often does it crash? This is somewhat subjective, I've had to rely on reports from owners. 10=super-stable, 1=buggy as hell
**** Includes consideration of battery life per charge and whether the batteries are replaceable
***** I've included cost as a factor, both for initial (new or second-hand) purchase reasons and also for ease of repair or replacement in case of problems. Rating 10 means £100 or less, 8 is £200 or less, 6 is £300 or less, 4 is £400 or less, 2 is £500 or less. All prices for SIM-free, ex-contract phones and including UK sales tax.

See also my Internet-based TV-style Phones Show... If you'd like to say thank you for the Grid or for the Phones Show, please use this PayPal link to send me a few spare PayPal dollars or pounds!

Thanks to Brian Cryer for his help with the Javascript on this page!

Grid comparison of currently available smartphone solutions (Choosing your perfect mobile device!)

Grid comparison of currently available smartphone solutions
(Choosing your perfect mobile device!)