The Best Phone Ever
Technology improves and advances at a feverish pace. It is impossible to own any piece of technology for even a few months before a new, better version is released. Why then, can I not find a decent cell phone?
Let me get this out the way. It is no secret that I am an Apple fanboy, so an iPhone would be the optimal phone for me. Sadly, the other non-secret about me is that I am in college. There is no way I can foot the hefty price tag for Apple’s wonderful device. I get by with a phone + iPod Touch combo and it works well.
Another stumbling block is that I am in a contract with Verizon. I was excited to check my calendar and see that I had marked this month as the point in said contract in which I could upgrade my phone. That excitement quickly vanished as I scanned through the list of Verizon phones.
I do have a few personal preferences about phones. I dislike flip phones, and I have no desire for a full QWERTY keyboard. Obviously that limits my selection, but I would absolutely consider either of those options if I felt it was a well-designed, practical, and functional phone. I cannot find a device that either satisfies my preferences or is enticing enough to make me reconsider them.
For comparison I also scanned through the AT&T list of phones and was equally unimpressed. What happened? Every other piece of technology has gotten increasingly sweet over the years, but I feel cell phones have actually gone backwards as a whole. Not even the iPhone is perfect (no picture messaging?).
This brings me to the best phone I have ever owned: the Nokia 6230.
Nokia 6230 courtesy GSM Arena
The 6230 is the greatest cellular device I have ever used. The astonishing part is that this phone was released in the first quarter of 2004. After five years, cellular manufacturers have not improved beyond this phone. In fact, they have steadily regressed.
The Nokia 6230 has features that simply are not found in phones today. Here are some of the notable missing features in today’s phone market:
- Durability. Go to your local Best Buy and scan through the phones. I challenge you to find one that is not glossy or reflective, much less scratch resistant. At what point did we decide that our phones, devices we carry around and use daily, should be as fragile as glass? Whose decision was it to make a phone, a tool operated solely by the fingers, prone to fingerprint smudging? The 6230 was shoved into my pocket, thrown into backpacks and bags, and dropped onto asphalt more than once. Only careful examination could reveal a few marks.
- Custom Ringtones. Verizon charges you $2.99 a ringtone. I am sure that especially hurts when you already have the song on your computer. There are hacks to get around this and drop your songs onto your Verizon device or iPhone, but both require a bit of effort. With the 6230 I could connect via Bluetooth and simply drag an MP3 onto the device. Done.
- A Usable Keypad. I prefer a healthy button click. I enjoy a simple button layout in which the numbers are separate buttons (as opposed to a layout like the Samsung Sway).
- A Simple Interface. Here is what I need from my cell phone: calls, text messaging, and a decent camera. My current phone, an LG Chocolate, actually has a pretty simple interface to get me to these functions. I do feel some things could be streamlined though, and in testing out many other phones at the Verizon Store I find many of the interfaces extremely clunky. I also am not sold on any touchscreen not made by Apple; they simply do not work as reliably outside of the iPhone and iPod Touch. And if you were wondering if the 6230 had a simple interface, the answer is a resounding yes.
All a phone needs is a solid build and smooth calling/texting capabilities. I am just amazed at the lack of devices that fulfill these simple criteria. The Nokia 6230 is the best phone I have owned to date because it was so simple. Its ease of use combined with its build quality was great. It surely was not perfect, but it was in my opinion to most offerings available today. That is a poor reflection on current manufacturers. I would have thought they could trump a five-year-old design.
The amount of shoddy phones that are available today is depressing. No matter the carrier, it seems there are only a handful of decent options. With cell phones being such a huge market I am surprised to see such a lack of innovation in mobile handsets. Because of this frustration I am likely going to play the waiting game to see if Verizon releases a phone that is worth me resigning their death-grip contract.
Are you satisfied with your current phone? What do you look for when buying a cell phone?
9 Comments
I really like my Sony Ericsson W508i. I did a lot of research before I made my decision. It’s a slider phone (I too hate flip phones), and it feels solid. Matte black plastic. It’s small enough to fit comfortably in my pockets. The keypad is small, and I dislike the button that takes me directly to the internet because I don’t have a data plan.
My first cell phone was a Sony Ericsson T230. It was a solid phone. Small. Durable. Much of the same quality that I like in my current phone.
I’m with AT&T. I had Verizon for a while (family plan) but never considered going back to them when Laura and I got our own phone plan. Biggest reasons: no SIM cards, no third-party chargers, and the standard Verizon phone OS that is installed on all(?) Verizon phones.
this is the reoccurring problem that has gridlocked congress for years. thankfully we have a president in charge today that favors change.
i liked the chocolate and only got rid of it when i got the iphone. i had an older phone too before but i can’t remember what is was. maybe samsung.
I have been through a ton of phones in my life. I liked alot of my AT&T phones cuz they were simply and easy to use. My Verizon phones haven’t been the greatest except for the Samsung U740 aka the Alias. Dual flip design and full QWERTY keyboard and pretty large screen make it very easy to test, call, and take decent pics. I’ve had this phone for over year and a half and have no complaints. I am about to get a Glyde for free and am going to give that away instead of trading my U740 for it.
ben had so many typos in his response that i am offended.
I am going to agree with justin on this, upgrading phones almost always leads to disappointment. When i got verizon i of course got the cheapest phone available, nothing flashy. since then, i have upgrades probably half a dozen times simply because i get embarrassed to have an old phone. my pride always gets me because i am always disappointed with my upgrade. it almost always has a fatal flaw, which lands me back to my trusty blue bargain phone. needless to say i have a phone right now that freezes, shuts off and won’t charge! YAY!
@Ryan: That standard Verizon OS is pretty annoying. They are taking the concept of a simple interface to a new extreme in which each phone is exactly the same. Not sure why Verizon cannot just let the hardware designer also design the interface.
@Mark: I think the Chocolate is ok, but after two years I was hoping to improve on it a bit.
@Ben: The Alias is an option for me but it actually combines flip and full QWERTY, two things I am not sure I can deal with. However it is good you found a phone that fits your needs and are sticking with it.
@Faith: This is exactly what I am talking about. With all the advancements in technology we should have plenty of options for new phones, particularly without the ‘fatal flaws’ as you put it. The bargain phone has the right idea: keep it simple. It just needs a few layers of polish.
@faith: it helps when you don’t lose the phone that you like haha :-)
@Ben i know its in that house somewhere!
I made the mistake of going to a touch screen Voyager with full QWERTY. I’m ready to go back to a flip phone (Since I’m the only one that doesn’t hate them?). The touch screen is horrible and the keyboard doesn’t help me type any faster, in fact it makes it more difficult to type while drive(We all do it, don’t deny it.) @jbomb I know you’ve been looking and it would prolly be best for you to wait it out and get a phone you like instead of jumping on an upgrade that you’ll be dying to get rid of.
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