Cell Phones / Expert Reviews

The Sony Xperia P is a solid mid-range smartphone, and were it endowed with Android 4.0, it would be a true competitor. Its obvious rivals are both the HTC One V and One S, along with LG's new L-Style L7. It outperforms the One V and L7 in day-to-day use and bests all three with its far superior screen... More

Entry into the smartphone world can hardly get any easier than what you'll experience with the Samsung Focus 2. The smartphone offers a nicely looking, no frills, pocket friendly, and well built hardware package, bundled with a software platform which is well known for its elegant simplicity. The latter... More

Despite being the flagship of the new L series, the LG Optimus L7 main virtue is that it ships with the newest Android Ice Cream Sandwich out of the box, rather than design and specs.
The handset is indeed thin and light, but the chassis looks run-of-the-mill with its rectangular shape made of black... More

We are quite impressed with the Xperia P. It has a mid-range pricing but is packed with some good features - a great display enhanced by the Bravia Engine, an 8-megapixel camera capable of 3D photos and a bunch of connectivity. More importantly at that price range it does not feel cheaply built, it is... More

The Samsung Focus 2 isn't perfect, but it's not far off the mark, either. My biggest gripe with the handset is its slippery plastic shell. Yes, it really is that easy to drop. Otherwise, it earns solid A's across the board.
The display looks great, the phone latches onto AT&T's network firmly, voice... More

We were hard pressed in finding fault with this device, as it is essentially a down-scaled version of its big brother, the Xperia S. Still, the Xperia U does not skimp on the features and can still hold its own against all mid-range devices and some of the upmarket ones as well. Given its fairly reasonable... More

The HTC EVO 4G LTE will retail for $200 on a two-year contract on Sprint. The device will contend at this time with the Smasung Galaxy Nexus on the high-end LTE market on Sprint’s lineup. At $200, it offers excellent value to those who are patient as LTE, the phone’s big feature, is still... More

Overall, the Samsung Galaxy S Advance has absolutely no major drawbacks, which makes it a splendid mid-range Android device. We are more than content with its design, the hardware has no troubles handling every day tasks with ease, and the in-call audio quality is absolutely ear-pleasing. Add the smartphone's... More

There's no two ways about it, the BlackBerry Curve 9320 isn't a phone that will excite many of you. Its screen is small and low resolution and the selection of apps on offer is fairly poor. But, if you're in the market for an upgrade to your old budget BlackBerry or you just want a capable messaging-oriented... More

LG makes one of the very few phones for 3D shenanigans with the Optimus 3D and now the Optimus 3D MAX.
If we leave the 3D aspect aside, the 3D MAX it is a bit heavy mid-range device with run-of-the mill dual-core processor and WVGA screen resolution. On top of that it takes mediocre pictures, regardless... More

Not to belabour the point, but the Samsung Galaxy S II HD LTE is a strange beast. At once it is a terrific handset, a capable Android smartphone with a stacked feature set that checks all the right boxes. But all manufacturers should make it mandatory for high-end Android phones to ship with the latest... More

The Xperia Sola does not offer high-end specs, however you sure can look forward to its floating technology. What we can say is that the Xperia Sola is still not at its best. Nonetheless, you can consider it pretty good value for money.

The LG Optimus 3D Max and the original Optimus 3D are so much alike you may have trouble figuring out the differences. Minor changes can sometimes make a big difference but one particular difference is not so hard to notice and, to us, it may as well be the decider in favor of the 3D Max. The sequel... More

A “good enough” starter phone, especially for first-timers or those who hate long-term contracts. Good call quality. 2.03GB of internal storage with room to expand to 64GB via microSD. Muve Music services included. Light, just 4.9 ounces.
Plastic battery cover feels cheap. Limited video... More

If you're an Android fan who intends to play loads of 3D games, or to do loads of web browsing and social networking, the Atrix 2 is just the phone for you.
However, the poor performance of the camera might be a turn off for some but it's highly subjective and most may not even notice the deficienc... More

The Motorola Defy Mini almost fulfils its remit as a small, cheap, rugged smartphone that's ideal for camping, festivals or tearaway kids. However, its lack of true waterproofing, small screen and sluggish processor combine to leave us a bit underwhelmed. If your budget really is limited to around £150... More

I think the Focus 2 is decent. It's a nice phone at a nice price that is light, bright, and super easy to use.
This was my first time really getting to know Windows Phone, and I found it fun and interesting. It's a completely different experience than you'll get on iPhone or Android, and I can see how... More

When Samsung announced the Galaxy S III, they saw to it that their top smartphone matched - at the very least - the best on the market. And because no effort was too much in insuring against any surprises, they ended up with something that's nearly impossible to beat. Love it or hate it, the S III is... More

Unlike many budget phones, the Defy Mini has an LED flash to go with its 3-megapixel camera, and it also has a VGA front-facing camera that can be used for Skype calls - in our tests, it worked but produced an extremely blocky image at the other end. The main camera takes fairly clean snaps, although... More

RIM no longer produces smartphones that compete with the desirability of Apple products and the younger market which once craved BBM is now rapidly migrating to cheap yet stylish Android smartphones and iPhones which now boast iMessage, a more than capable BBM rival.
The BlackBerry Curve 9320 is average... More