We all know there are some really scarily powerful mobile phones headed our way this Christmas… but what if you don’t want to go for the top of the range phone? What if you want something similar, but want to stick to a budget? What if you want a mobile phone that’s nearly as powerful as the really new, exciting ones, but it’s loads cheaper?
What, in fact, if you want awesome power on a budget?
I’ve banged on at many points in the past about how people who are saving cash, or who are on a tight budget, should have the same quality in mobile phones. I did a blog post on a similar theme ages ago, with super cheap pay as you go phones (Remember? The Sony Ericsson J110i won).
Maybe it’s a social conscience that made me write this post, or maybe it was Nicola shouting at me until I said I’d write it, but the question today is how to get yourself a budget mobile phone that can cut it with the big boys, with the likes of the LG Renoir or the Samsung Pixon.
Believe it or not, it is possible.
Subject 1: LG Renoir
Alternative: LG Viewty
As one of the first wave of 8 megapixel mobile phones, the LG Renoir is sure to be a hit, especially with that enormous great big touchscreen. The cheap alternative to this one’s actually really easy to pick, since the Renoir’s the direct descendant of it: the LG Viewty. Y’see the LG Viewty still has what it takes it play amongst the really top-end mobile phones. It’s got the same awesome touchscreen as the Renoir, and although the camera is only (and using the word ‘only is kind of stretching the definition of ‘only’, here) 5 megapixels, it’s got Schneider-Kreuznach lenses, like its descendant, and the same slow-motion video mode.
Put simply, the LG Viewty is basically an LG Renoir with a slightly lower megapixel camera. And of course, the LG Viewty is now dirt cheap, because it’s been out longer. So, you get a mobile phone that’s nearly as powerful as the LG Renoir, that gives you a vastly cheaper deal!
Subject 2: Samsung Pixon
Alternative: Samsung Tocco
The Samsung Pixon is going head to head with the LG Renoir in the super-high-end-touchscreen-cameraphone category this Christmas, but just like the Renoir, there’s also a cheap alternative to the Samsung Pixon: the Samsung Tocco. Now, obviously, the Samsung Tocco doesn’t have an 8 megapixel camera, so you’re not going to get pictures anywhere near as sharp as the Pixon, but it does have a 5 megapixel camera, so it’s not far off, at all, really. And yes, the Samsung Tocco also has a gorgeous touchscreen interface, and is generally all-round lovely.
Ok, sure, the Samsung Pixon is a better camera phone; no-one’s denying that, it has an extra 3MP to play with, but the Samsung Tocco is far from being a loser. In fact, if you’re on a budget, the Samsung Tocco is the perfect alternative!
Subject 3: Nokia N96
Alternatives: Nokia N85, Nokia 6600 Slide
The Nokia N96 is easily one of the most anticipated mobile phones of the year, as it’s the successor to the iconic N95. In fact, internally, it’s very similar to the N95, but the Nokia N96 also brings to the party 16Gb of memory and BBC iPlayer right out of the box. Surely nothing can compare to that, right? Surely that’s way beyond what any other mobile phones can do, right? Wrong, there is an alternative, the Nokia N85, the phone that is, to all intents and purposes, the N96 without the huge built in memory. You get the same 5 megapixel camera on the Nokia N85, and you only lose 0.2 inches off the screen size. Granted, you also don’t get iPlayer on the Nokia N85, but when you can download it onto the phone, anyway, that’s not such a big loss!
Meanwhile, if you want to go for a really cheaper alternative, there’s the Nokia 6600 Slide, which, as its product description says, is basically as close as you can get to being an Nseries mobile, erm, without actually being an Nseries mobile phone. Put simply, if you want a great camera, with a great multimedia player, and a frighteningly cheap deal, then you’d do well to look at the Nokia 6600 Slide.
Want to get loads of power, but save money? Grab yourself one of these top-end but dirt cheap mobile phones, today!