Choosing a Mobile Phone - 4/8

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Once you have decided what you are looking for as a mobile phone user, the next step in finding the best mobile phone for you is to examine the options available to you from networks and manufacturers, through to the various extras available.

Mobile phone networks

The networks are the key to your experience as a mobile phone user. They will determine if you get good coverage and how good the customer service is. The networks all offer different features.

O2, Vodafone, Orange, 3 Mobile and T-Mobile are networks – they supply the service, not the phone. There are also ‘virtual networks’ such as Virgin mobile, which uses T-Mobile, OneTel, which uses Vodafone, NTL Mobile, which uses Orange and Tesco, which uses O2.

Mobile phone manufacturers

They will design and build mobile phones and provide you with the latest technology and innovations. Among the leading players are Nokia, Samsung, Motorola, LG, Siemens and Sony Ericsson.

So what makes one mobile phone better than the other? The key, as outlined earlier, is to decide what type of user you are and which tariff best suits you. However, beyond that there are numerous extras available from the various networks. By using the price comparison tool at moneysupermarket.com you can compare the mobile phone tariffs and the features available with each handset.
Here are some of the features you may wish to consider:

• Battery life – Anything between 40 and 100 hours between charges.
• Bluetooth – Short range wireless connection that allows people to talk between a range of devices.
• Call screening – Provides the ability to know who’s on the phone before deciding whether to answer.
• Camera – Built in to the phone and can often be used for picture messaging.
• Colour screen – Can make reading the mobile phone display easier.

In part five we will continue to look at the additional features available.