Which phone for technophobe?

[RyanC]

Hi all
The time has finally come.
Ive been left in the dark ages, and am being dragged into the age of BBM, Apps, colour screens and all manner of things designed to confuse me whilst emptying my thin wallet.

OK. I'm beginning to think I need a new phone. the Mrs has a Blackberry, and loves it, She spends all day BBMing, and playing cards. I struggle to find a phone number on the damn thing.

I feel left out with my Sony - Ericsson, the screen is so scratched I struggle to see whats happening, people try to send me pictures, and the phone gets cross with me.

The point of all this is what phone do I get?
I'm like the kid in the sweetie shop thats only allowed 1....

I'm very tough on my phones, I drop them, put them in my pocket with my keys, they get wet, left in the sun, Dropped in the mud, and worse. (I install irrigation)

I'd like to spend as little as possible, and be able to check email, play cards, look at pictures, maybe hook it up to my wifi and most importantly it must have keys that my fat fingers can find.

I really like the look of touch screens, because I think the writing is big enough for me to see, but don't know if any of them will be able to withstand me.

I had a look on the 8ta specials thing, but didn't understand a word of the blurb about each phone.
Any advice on the good and bad?

[Heebs]

Hey mate, those phones from 8ta are seriously good prices. However the touch screens need a slightly more dainty touch and you need to take care of them a little.
Also some of these new devices are quite tricky if you aren't a bit of a phone wizz. I'd try find out what my mates have and see which one of my buddies is able to help me with the phone when I get it.

Also these new phones are all about apps, social networking, E-mail and internet and all of these things use Data and data costs! It's no longer about making and answering calls only.
So you gonna have call costs and Data costs to consider - do some homework!

[AniV]

You sound like the kind of guy who needs a Motorola Defy. Touchscreen phone with email and all that you need, but you can drop that thing or even submerge it in water and it will keep working just fine. I have personally tested this. Dropped it in a swimming pool and fished it out again. Keeps on working.

That's a tough phone, that.

[Unreal]

I was about to suggest the same phone. Motorola defy. Boredom proof, life proof and very reasonably priced

[Kenny]

You sound like the kind of guy who needs a Motorola Defy. Touchscreen phone with email and all that you need, but you can drop that thing or even submerge it in water and it will keep working just fine. I have personally tested this. Dropped it in a swimming pool and fished it out again. Keeps on working.

That's a tough phone, that.

+1 to Defy, although its not shockproof!
Other thing to consider - you cannot use it if your hands or screen are wet - touch screen becomes unusable

[Rands]

I struggle to find a phone number on the damn thing.

In that case android may not be the phone for u. If u dont set it correctly and watch it closely, u could get a huge data bill. And u say that you install irrigation systems, which means that you are probably out of the office alot, so no wifi.
Unfortunately, the Moto Defy is probably the most rugged phone available....maybe one of the Sonim phones

[Robertvv]

I was about to suggest the same phone. Motorola defy. Boredom proof, life proof and very reasonably priced

this is a real deal.
+1

[AniV]

+1 to Defy, although its not shockproof!
Other thing to consider - you cannot use it if your hands or screen are wet - touch screen becomes unusable

Well I pulled it out the pool and continued using it without problems. You just shake it a touch and the water runs off.
No phone will be entire shockproof, but the Defy is at least a little more rugged than your average phone. I've dropped my Blackberry plenty and it still works just fine - at least the Moto Defy has a rugged casing.

The only alternative I can think of is one of them German Industrial Military Grade cellphones with the layers upon layers of coating. A colleague has one. He throws that thing across the room and it bounces without issues. Also can receive email, but it ain't pretty.

[RyanC]

I wondered around Centurion on Monday, Most shops seem to have blackberry, and a few Samsung's, all at crazy prices. I asked a sales person in a cell c shop about the Motorola defy, and the response was "what's Motorola?" needles to say that was the end of my shopping!
I've now taken over my wife's old Blackberry, if I break it, lovely. Its a pain in the ass so far, but at least its cheap!
thanks for all the help

[Elimentals]

Get a Defy+(water resistant) or other Android phone that can take a knock and install Big launcher

[Vulk]

I'm almost surprised to find myself saying this, but I think you should get a Nokia Lumia.

My reasoning:

1. There's no complicated customisation in Windows Phone 7. The UI incredibly simple. The most you'll ever have to do is re-arrange tiles on your homescreen.

2. Likewise, the aesthetics are designed to promote ease of use. The UI consists of big fonts, big tiles, and simple menus. It's the ultimate in smartphone simplicity.

3. Despite points #1 and #2, it is still a "real" smartphone platform. (I wouldn't say the same about Blackberry.) It has an interface that was designed for touchscreens. It's smooth and fast. You can download apps and games. It syncs with the cloud. It has good developer support - more than 100,000 apps in its app store at last count. The OS will "grow" with you as become more confident in using a smartphone.

(And maybe, after your next upgrade, you'll be ready for something like Android, which is more powerful and more flexible, but also slightly more complicated to use.)

4. If you go with a mid-range option like the Lumia 710, you can get a pretty well-spec'ed phone for a reasonable price.


Here's a review of the US version:

[BeVonk!]

Get a BlackBerry and join your wife on BBM.

[BeVonk!]

Your wife can teach/help you how to use the thing and you don't have to worry about data costs.

[SphereZA]

if you are going to go Blackberry get the 9790 & dont mess around with the crap basic devices or inbetween ones.

[Viva]

The Defy is probably the best value for money phone you are going to find. It might be hard to find a place with stock though, as it's not a new device. If the Blackberry doesn't work for you, that is.