Best smart phones

Round-up by: Andrew Lim

Last updated: 17 Sep 2008

All phones are smart in their own way, but some are much smarter than others. If you're on the lookout for a phone that will help you manoeuvre your way through the urban jungle as well as pick up your emails, you're going to need a full-on smart phone with all the trimmings and maybe even some onion gravy.

Depending on your needs, you may find some smart phones more useful than others. Take touchscreen phones such as the iPhone, for example -- they're excellent if you're keen on a large screen for reading documents or watching videos, but not so great if you want to type out massive emails and aren't used to using an onscreen keypad.

If the thought of fiddling around with a touchscreen sends shivers down your spine, don't fear, because smartphones come in Qwerty keypad flavours too. While some prefer a large slide-out keypad that hides beneath a screen, others might enjoy the simplicity of a keypad on the front of the phone, right underneath the screen.

Keypads and screens aside, it's a smart phone's insides that give it its 'smart' title and these days you can get almost everything you'd find in a laptop crammed into a tiny little phone. If it's the Internet you're after, keep an eye out for Wi-Fi and HSPDA (3.5G), and GPS if you're planning on getting lost during your business travels.

Depending on your email needs, it's always worth checking out whether the smart phone you're about to buy is compatible with the office's email system. It's also worth looking at what documents the phone lets you view and edit, as some don't support Microsoft documents, which may be annoying if you like to work on the go. Here are four of our favourites.