Your Guide to the Best Products
Smartphone Comparison Chart
The Pros and Cons of the Newest Smartphones
Updated January 9, 2010 
Set Alert
The following table lists the top smartphones in the market right now. The table doesn't include any BlackBerry phones because their technology has fallen too far behind to be considered a legitimate contender. Same goes for Windows Mobile powered phones at this time.
Some notes on the phones below... First, although the Droid ERIS and HTC Hero are currently the only phones running Flash, we expect all phones with the possible exception of the iPhone to be running flash by summer. The Nexus One has great hardware, but is held back by its lack of multi-touch support and apparently broken or limited Exchange sync capabilities (calendar sync doesn't work); it also lacks a unified inbox which we think is Google's way of pushing people to gmail.
Our favorite phone OS at this point is the HTC Sense version of Android, available on the HTC Hero (Sprint) and Droid ERIS (Verizon). HTC Sense will be upgraded to Android 2.1 in the near future (Feb? March?) which should make it darn near perfect. It already has the best contacts list of any phone, Exchange sync that actually works (for Calendar, email and contacts), Flash support, multi-touch, etc.
| iPhone 3GS | Palm Pre(2) | Nexus One | Droid Eris(1) | Motorola Cliq | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| carrier | AT&T | Sprint | T-Mobile | Verizon | T-Mobile |
| multitouch | YES | YES | NO | YES | NO |
| physical keyboard | NO | YES | NO | NO | YES |
| ActiveSync | YES | YES | broken | YES | YES |
| multitasking | NO | YES | YES | YES | YES |
| Google Nav | NO | NO | YES | soon | NO |
| Google Voice Search | optional | NO | YES | YES | YES |
| Layered Calendar | NO | YES | no | YES | YES |
| Android 2.1 Upgradeable | N/A | N/A | has 2.1 | YES | YES |
| simultaneous voice/data (a) | YES | NO | YES | NO | YES |
| weight | 4.8 | 4.8 | 4.6 | 4.2 | 5.7 |
| Flash support | NO | Feb | soon | yes | soon |
| screen resolution | 480x320 | 480x320 | 480x800 | 480x320 | 480x320 |
| voice quality | so-so | so-so | good | good | excellent |
| camera quality | good | good | good+ | ok | ok |
NOTE: (a) only AT&T and T-Mobile networks are capable of providing data access while on a voice call (b) the HTC Hero is the first smartphone with Adobe Flash support (1) The Sprint HTC Hero is virtually identical to the Verizon Droid ERIS (2) The Sprint Palm Pixi runs the same software as the Sprint Palm Pre, but it's the smallest and lightest smart phone available at 3.3 oz
Here is a good review of the HTC Hero (same as the Droid Eris), our favorite phone at this time.
Which Carrier is Right For Me?
Here are the trade-offs we see:
- T-Mobile: lowest cost unlimited voice and data plans by a meaningful amount; for a family with 2 smartphones on unlimited voice and data plus one kid on unlimited voice and text, T-Mobile could be as much as $2,000 per year cheaper than Verizon or AT&T - that's big money. T-Mobile has the newest and fastest 3G network in the country, with download speeds 3 to 5 times faster than the competition. Coverage is solid and nationwide, but not as extensive as the competition. T-Mobile is also the only carrier other than AT&T that does voice and data at the same time (meaning you can put the caller on speakerphone while you look something up on the web). If the coverage map works for you, this is a great carrier choice.
- Verizon: tied with AT&T for cost (expensive). Verizon's network is significantly faster than AT&T in most locations, and Verizon covers more areas with 3G than any other carrier. If price is not a factor and coverage is high on your list, Verizon is a great carrier choice. The Droid ERIS is our pick for best Verizon phone.
- AT&T: it's hard to find anything to like here, other than the fact that they offer the iPhone. Service is as expensive as Verizon, but coverage and speed is nowhere near as good. But if you want an iPhone it's your only choice.
- Sprint: a good overall carrier choice. Almost as cheap as T-Mobile for unlimited voice and data, wide coverage, adequate network speed. HTC Hero and Palm Pre are good phone choices.
Just Tell Me: Which Phone Should I Get?
Let's cut to the chace:
- If you are locked into Verizon, get the Droid Eris (it's the smaller, better, cheaper of the two Droid phones they sell).
- If you are locked into AT&T, get the iPhone.
- If you are locked into Sprint, get the HTC Hero.
- If you are locked into T-Mobile, it depends. If you don't need Exchange sync (i.e. access to your work calendar), get the Nexus One. If you do need Exchance sync, the choice is less clear but we would probably go with the Motorola Cliq.
- If you are not locked into any carrier, our suggestion depends on whether or not you need Exchange sync (access to your work calendar in particular). If you don't need Exchange sync, get the Nexus One on T-Mobile. If you do need access to your work calendar, get the HTC Hero from Sprint (we favor this only because the rate plan is better than the Droid Eris on Verizon).
