apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

i used to get a new phone every other month or so. it's just nice trying out so many different models and always having the latest/greatest.
now with the exception of my work crapberry i rotate between a SE t650 and an iphone.
features i need:

clear screen
good speaker
quality camera/flash
BT file transfer
ease of moving files (music/movies) onto phone
sms
mms
email
strong build quality
'good' size

because i travel so much i used the iphone a lot more so i didn't have to carry an ipod and could watch movies on a larger screen. of course, the lack of customization on an iphone is ridiculous so it's jailbroken to allow me to get what i need out of it.
i also have a problem paying for phones through carriers and signing contracts. I prefer buying unlocked phones and using them in whatever way i feel fit.

Cheers,
M

my phone is a piece of junk because i broke mine a year ago and have been using a hot pink replacement that used to be my moms, and have said i would get a new one but can't find the right one.

I am not a cell phone power user. I don't need mobile web and all that jazz. Although it would be nice, i really don't feel like paying a monthly that high for it, so that is the main thing for me.

-Low monthly (seriously how the heck does cell coverage cost THAT much)

-Small. Make it thin, make it small, i don't care how you do it. My phone goes in my pocket. I don't have a purse, or a bag that I am putting it in. It has to fit in my pocket comfortably without me having to wear loose sweat pants or to look like everyone i meet is turning me on...

-Wifi would be amazing, no monthly fee for getting on the web and all that.

-I don't text right now, but am interested in it, so if i were to do that a full easy to use keyboard would be nice. I like the env2 set up, but seems like they could still make it thinner.

Or for the people like me that aren't the power users. The ones that don't need texting, a keyboard, the web, or anything. Just make it small, that's all i ask.

I'm not a power user either so my must-haves may be a bit simple. I'm currently using a Samsung Gleam on Verizon

Signal strength - I need it to work as a phone first of all

small - prefer flip with external lcd - I keep it loose in my pocket

mini-usb charging jack would be nice - standardized

headset jack - gasp - yes I have two bluetooth headsets but the quality of a corded headset is so much better

low monthly

I need GPS. I get lost alot...

qwerty keyboard (if I'm somewhere and see something I like I'll type out the product name in Notepad on my phone so when I get home I can check for better deals and reviews on the product)

microSD

camera with Flash-i have the rumor and it has no flash :(

I'm not a power user either so my needs for searching for a phone are rather small.

I'm a bit of a power user but I still want a good phone at the core:
1) sound quality, and speakerphone (since i'm often without a headset here in CA)
2) PIM sync with my mac
3) camera (i always like to have one with me, so now that i have my iphone i'm realizing how much i missed my SE K790a w/ a cybershot-quality camera)
4) expandable memory (for the camera)
5) easy data entry (a real QWERTY kb is best i think, but i miss the size of a regular 9 digit keypad/T9 predictive texting after having an iphone)

just FYI, you can actually use the regular alphabet keyboard on the Blackberrys to dial numbers like 555-PIZZA. The phone's smart enough to interpret it.

Eh, let's make it a wish list:

1. It needs to be able to make and sustain calls. Sporadic coverage in outlying areas, I can deal with. Choppy audio and randomly dropped calls while in the middle of a city with 3 million people, I can't.

2. There has to be at least one ringer that is not obnoxious -- preferably one that sounds like an actual phone.

3. On ringers, it must have the ability to put any WAV or MP3 of my choosing on it.

4. Mac compatibility; and don't lock out any features of the phone or do something astoundingly stupid like prevent me from charging a phone with a USB port from my Mac. Not everyone uses Windows. And not even all of those people are willing to install a third-party application just to get all of a phone's features to work as advertised.

5. Bluetooth for file and phonebook transfers.

6. Been spoiled with my iPod touch, so a touch screen. A QWERTY layout or 9-key layout is fine, I just don't like physical buttons when a touch screen will accomplish the job as well... and provide support for international keyboards and character sets.

7. A camera. I can deal with the fact that the resolution on all cameraphones is horrific. I shoot a DSLR daily, so my standards and needs for photography are already way out of the realm of capability of cameraphones. Still, having that camera right there in your pocket functioning a bit like a notepad is great.

8. An interface that doesn't choke whenever I push a button or ask it to do something challenging... like make an actual phone call. My RAZR flakes out every few days because I've done something unheard of -- like trying to use it.

9. A straightforward interface that doesn't require a 225 page manual to decipher. Designers need to continue the design process beyond the physical appearance of the phone itself and invest an equal amount of time the interface design... and not write the interface in any "portable" language, that is, not Java.

10. Make it affordable.

Ah, forget it... I'm buying an iPhone.

I love my Blackberry pearl. For me, I had to have

1) Good sound quality
2) good calendar with the ability to sync to my outlook. It doesn't do me any good to get to work, turn on my computer and realize I needed to go to Stockton today, not SF.

The WiFi, decent camera with flash, microSD, headphone jack and the rest were just perks, but now I use it as an MP3 player at the gym, and have TMob's hotspot at home to make up for abyssmal reception (with everyone. Why is my city such a black hole?) and those have been wonderful.

@ sentinel :

OMG! I held down my 'ALT' key while I was typing 555-PIZZA (literally, lol) and you're right! It totally worked! I thought there had to be some easier way. RIM couldn't have left out such a huge mistake.

Thanks!

Right now I just want a phone where the first option I get after punching in a number is "call".