What Features Should You Look For When Buying a Phone

By William Normski

I'm sure you have a clear understanding that there are many different types of cell phones on the market. Many of these phones are no moving into what we call the smart phone bracket. With a smart phone you can do so much more than a standard phone simply makes calls and maybe since text messages.

One of the standard features you find on a phone is a camera, a couple of years ago top of the range would have been a 1.2 megapixel nowadays we are getting the camera phones to 8 megapixel and 10 megapixel. But, do you really need this? a standard two megapixel camera can take a picture with quality that can be developed to 8 x10 and do not even know it was taken with a camera phone.

One of the first things that you need to be aware of is when you start to look for a new contract plan that no matter how good the offer seems you need to make sure that this is of benefit to you. There is no point having a plan that gives you XYZ but you are really only looking for X.

We are all looking for connectivity, which seems to be a little buzzword at the moment. Standard connectivity you will find is Bluetooth (for connecting to a car kit or headsets). WiFi, which is great if you are using in an office or at home; this allows you to have access to the Internet without having to incur the charges.

We are now seeing the increase in touchscreen phones into the marketplace and we're also seeing the prices of these drop compared to maybe two years ago when they were a lot more expensive. Having a phone in touchscreen obviously makes navigation much easier and this should be something you should consider if you are thinking of purchasing a new phone.

One option is to look for a SIM free phone. With this you can use it to on any network carrier by simply placing your current SIM card into the phone. One of the biggest problems with sim free phones is that they can be quite expensive, as they are not subsidized like what you get when you sign for a contract plan.

Another option is to check the availability on eBay, you'll find that some people sell secondhand phones on the website. You will also be able to get a clear understanding of the price because most popular phones will be on sale and you can compare pricing on what is available. You need to make sure that the particular phone you're looking at is not locked to a different network carrier than the one you are using. The last thing you need to do is to have two unlock the phone that you have just purchased this can be an extra cost. When buying from eBay make sure that you deal with somebody with good feedback and that you are comfortable that they can answer all your questions before.

Cell phone technology changes quickly and when you sign up for a cell phone plan which may offer you a free phone or one at a subsidized price you are kind of stuck with that until your contract is finished. Most contracts will last for one year or possibly two years and in that time you may feel that you would like to change your handset to a more updated version. You don't necessarily need to sign up for a new plan in order to get a new phone. There are a number of options open to you. - 23211

About the Author:

William Normski has been working with insurance for mobile devices for many years. Check out Comparing Mobile Phone Insurance and for more information look at insurance for mobile phones cover.