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Home / Cell phones / Consumer messaging phones
10 best QWERTY phones for consumersBy Sindre Lia, 14 September 2007
Prices range from $300 to $50, but does the performance correspond accordingly? Sindre Lia investigates.

Scoring a whopping 90%, RIM's BlackBerry Curve and T-Mobile's Wing are the clear winners of our QWERTY battle. Interestingly, the Curve costs $100 less, so if you're not planning on installing a range of Windows Mobile applications, the choice should be simple. Both phones are EDGE-only though, so the Helio Ocean at third place is an obvious and great choice for those who want 3G connectivity.

Perhaps the best thing about the Helio Ocean, however, is that the phone performs well in pretty much any test paradigm we create. As such, it could very well end up as our "Phone of the year" in December.

More disappointingly is the fact that most of the very recent introductions, such as Motorola's Q9m and Samsung's Blast, aren't capable of climbing higher on the list. It's also worth noting that last year's über-messaging phone, the Sidekick 3, is still hanging in there despite all the new phones that has been released since its introduction. With a serious price drop, the Sidekick 3 would have been a great choice even today, but at $200 it should simply be ignored.

Along with the Curve, the BlackBerry Pearl confirms RIM's success formula of combining great performance with moderate pricing. The Pearl now sells for only $80 with a AT&T contract, and performs way better than the huge crowd of sub-$200 competitors. For current Sprint customers, it's worth noting that the carrier still doesn't have a proper offer in the "QWERTY phones for consumers" market, so switching would be required to get any of the phones below.

SCOREBOARD
Name Messaging Keypad Calling Battery Score Price
Curve Very good Very good Excellent Excellent 90% $200
Wing Excellent Excellent Excellent Good 90% $300
Ocean Very good Very good Very good Very good 80% $295
Pearl Very good Good Very good Very good 75% $80/$150
Q9m Good Very good Excellent Mediocre 70% $200
Sidekick 3 Very good Good Good Good 65% $200
SCH-u740 Good Good Very good Good 65% $130
Blast Good Good Good Very good 65% $100
Sidekick iD Very good Good Good Good 65% $50
VX9900 Good Good Good Good 60% $200




Full reviews of the phones including multimedia aspects:



RIM Blackberry Curve    Similar models »
Score: 64% When: May 2007 Worth: $100 - $200 Carrier: AT&T
Stereo Bluetooth and a real headphone jack make this the best BlackBerry yet for music, but will it convert consumers to the push e-mail cause?
Read »   Gallery »   Features »   Side-by-side »
RIM Blackberry Curve


T-Mobile Wing    Similar models »
Score: 67% When: May 2007 Worth: $350 Carrier: T-Mobile
Designed with consumers in mind, T-Mobile's new Windows Mobile 6 smartphone features MyFaves and Wi-Fi. Will it inspire a whole new crowd of smartphone fans?
Read »   Gallery »   Features »   Side-by-side »
T-Mobile Wing


Helio Ocean    Similar models »
Score: 72% When: May 2007 Worth: $200 Carrier: Helio
Helio's added a few new moves to the Ocean since we last saw it. Did they make all the right changes?
Read »   Gallery »   Features »   Side-by-side »
Helio Ocean


RIM BlackBerry Pearl    Similar models »
Score: 56% When: September 2006 Worth: $80 - $150 Carrier: T-Mobile
With more multimedia, a camera and a new trackball, the Pearl is poised to attract new users to the BlackBerry platform. Will it leave RIM veterans wishing for days past?
Read »   Gallery »   Features »   Side-by-side »
RIM BlackBerry Pearl


Motorola Q9m (Verizon Wireless)    Similar models »
Score: 58% When: September 2007 Worth: $130 Carrier: Verizon Wireless
The original populist smartphone, the Moto Q, gets a musical update with a media-focused menu screen and V Cast access. Is it the sequel we've been waiting for all summer?
Read »   Gallery »   Features »   Side-by-side »
Motorola Q9m (Verizon Wireless)


T-Mobile Sidekick 3    Similar models »
Score: 56% When: July 2006 Worth: $200 - $350 Carrier: T-Mobile
This long-awaited update to the ubiquitous Sidekick II boasts a sleeker design, a build-in MP3 player and Bluetooth. Will it become the latest "it" phone?
Read »   Gallery »
T-Mobile Sidekick 3


Samsung SCH-u740    Similar models »
Score: 54% When: February 2007 Worth: $100 - $190 Carrier: Verizon Wireless
With a full QWERTY keyboard and a unique design, the U740 sends messages on Verizon Wireless' V Cast network. Can it compete with larger QWERTY messagers?
Read »   Gallery »   Features »   Side-by-side »
Samsung SCH-u740


Samsung Blast    Similar models »
Score: 56% When: August 2007 Worth: $100 Carrier: T-Mobile
T-Mobile's latest messaging slider features a SureType keypad for QWERTY-like typing. Did it keep up with our furious fingers?
Read »   Gallery »   Features »   Side-by-side »
Samsung Blast


T-Mobile Sidekick iD    Similar models »
Score: 50% When: April 2007 Worth: $50 Carrier: T-Mobile
With the familiar flip-up screen and customizable bumpers, the Sidekick iD also lacks some of the Sidekick 3's advanced features. For $100 price cut, will you miss them?
Read »   Gallery »   Features »   Side-by-side »
T-Mobile Sidekick iD


LG VX9900    Similar models »
Score: 50% When: November 2006 Worth: $200 Carrier: Verizon Wireless
Verizon's strange new clamshell is loaded with media and made for messaging. Will your friends turn green-eyed with envy when they see it?
Read »   Gallery »   Features »   Side-by-side »
LG VX9900
Best Smartphones
Name Score Price Carrier
C
Nokia N95 8GB NAM 83% $450Unlocked
Apple iPhone 3GS 83% $200AT&T
RIM BlackBerry Storm 9530 78% $50Verizon Wireless
Apple iPhone 3G 77% $100AT&T
HTC Fuze 77% $300AT&T
RIM BlackBerry Tour 77% $200Verizon Wireless
HTC Touch Pro2 77% $350T-Mobile
Sprint Tour 77% $200Sprint
HTC Imagio 77% $200Verizon Wireless
Nokia E75 76% $380Unlocked
Nokia E71x 76% $100AT&T Wireless
Sprint Touch Pro2 76% $350Sprint
Nokia N97 75% $650Unlocked
RIM BlackBerry Curve 8900 (T-Mobile) 75% $200T-Mobile
RIM BlackBerry Curve 8330 (Sprint) 74% $200Sprint
RIM BlackBerry Bold 9000 (AT&T) 74% $300AT&T
T-Mobile G1 74% $180T-Mobile
Palm Pre 74% $200Sprint
Samsung Jack 74% $100AT&T
RIM BlackBerry Pearl Flip 74% $80Verizon Wireless
T-Mobile myTouch 3G 74% $200T-Mobile
Nokia E71 73% $500Unlocked
HTC Touch Diamond 2 73% $575Unlocked
HTC Ozone 73% $50Verizon Wireless
Nokia E66 72% $500Unlocked
Click here to see full and advanced chart »
 
 
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