This month in everything

My next phone dilemma has been haunting me for the past 4 weeks but has now resolved itself in a rather unexpected way. With a mere three months in which to make the decision and with new and intriguing hints, like the lg windows 7 phone or the Dell streak and the slowly materializing iPhone 4g the scope of the project seems ever more clouded.

Then there is the issue of cost. The main reason for all this agonising vacillating is the pay monthly contract. 18 months of i chose the wrong phone hell beckons if this decision isn't properly made. So, what if I just BUY the phone? The whole monthly contract thing is merely an HP agreement for you to buy the handset anyway. Cost it out and £400 for an HTC Desire and a cheap PAYG sim will probably work out no dearer (and probably) cheaper in the long run, but with the added freedom of being able to whack the thing on bay at any point for a decent price toward "the next big thing" (tm).

So there I was, budget of £400 sitting in the bank, waiting for the early termination term to expire so not as to be fined £250 by Orange for hating their crap 3G, unable to stop wandering round the mall or the Internet looking at the best deals as one does (assuming one is a completely obsessed geek gadget magpie), when Friday May 28th came round.

Now £400 is a good budget for a top netbook or a Desire or even a decent laptop in a sale. Which makes it a very awkward amount to have burning a hole in your pocket especially on the day the iPad was launched.

Yes, I know, it was the strangest thing, I just went to look to see if there were long queues, I just went to mock perhaps but there was only a tiny queue and as I said in a previous post it's not the apple kit per se but the perceived snobbishness of the fanboi advocates.

Anyway to cut a long story short...

Sent from my iPad

PS...

I'll post a review after a week of use. So far after one day, it's a big iPod touch which is not a bad thing at all. It's easier to type on than my EEE and some of the productivity apps are excellent for quick creativity. There are lots of annoyances but they are minor and the usual Apple gripes. Like the touch, it just works and the size makes the Internet much more useable.

PPS...

The phone? I'll get the desire, probably on contract.

Xx

TWiT : My next phone dilemma (tm)

My next phone dilemma (tm)

The HTC Touch HD is the best phone I've ever had. Period. And I've had a mobile phone since the early 90's. It's just great and, as far as windows mobile legacy (or whatever they are calling 6.n now) goes it's still and amazing device.

However...

It's slow...

Compared to the iphone 3GS and android phones it's painfully slow and most definitely the finest example of a previous gen. Orig Xbox vs 360. And like Xbox Live on original xbox, it's time for it to go quietly into that dark night of things left behind by progress.

Which brings me to "My next phone dilemma (tm)".

I like the iPhone, always have, but I hate Apple as a glaring symbol of style over substance. The iphone delivered (eventually) but the evangelical, poseur fanboi air it carries with it put me off for years. Now I can upgrade to one for less than £100 (and an OS upgrade in the offing) while the coffee-shop-cognoscenti explode over the '4G' and their iPads leaving the excellent 3GS available to those of us who want a device that works and not just shoves a lifestyle choice in peoples faces.

But...

And it's a big BUT. I have an ipod touch. So all the ancilliary non-phone apple-ness is sorted. And we don't want duplication do we? Especially as the HTC Desire is living up to it's name. Android may be a little behind on the apps but it's open and geek-tastic. Linux on a phone with sleek lines and a UI to die for.

So an ipod touch and an Android Desire, but wait...

Soft, what light from yonder window breaks?

The Dell Lightning! Windows Phone 7! Innovative hubs, sleek designs and, oh, Oh, OH! XBOX LIVE INTEGRATION!!

But, that would make me a gen one early adopter. Can I take the risk when a new contract will mean I'm stuck with whichever one I choose for the next 12, 18 or even 24 months!!

What a "My next phone dilemma (tm)"