Best Android Phones

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Best Android Phones

Rohan Naravane, Jun 11, 2010 1300 hrs IST

We tell you which phones are worth buying and which ones to stay away from

iPhone 4 was launched with hopes of getting back the attention of people who were looking in another direction; towards Google's 'Android' laden phones. After its release, many tech-sites (ours included) ran opinion polls asking people if would they choose the iPhone 4 or an Android-based phone like the HTC EVO 4G. Interestingly, results showed that people seemed to favor Android over the iPhone. More than 40 percent of people who voted on our site said they'd still prefer an Android over the iPhone 4. That says a lot, doesn't it? Google seems to have done well in drawing people to their mobile OS.

In February Google announced that 60,000 phones laden with their smartphone OS were shipped every day. Another report states that there are 50,000 apps in their "Android Market" as of today, thus making it the second most populated App store after Apple's. Basically what we're trying to say is that, if you want a touchscreen smartphone then the Android platform is worth considering. With the iPhone, you just have one model which costs Rs. 30,000 and upwards. There is an abundance of Android phones to choose from, and appeal even the middle class with a starting price band of Rs. 10,000. All this while if you've been thinking of Android as some kind of human-like robot from science fiction, allow me to introduce you to something (hopefully) less destructive.

Google Android is their open-source Operating System (OS) for smartphones. So, what is so special about this OS?

1) Tight integration of Google's services - You get Gmail and Gtalk as well as Google Maps and many other services built right into the interface. Also, you get Push Gmail free with every Android phone.

2) Multi-tasking - It has been able to overcome one of the iPhone's main flaws (now fixed in the iOS 4), the ability to handle multiple apps running at the same time.

3) Flash compatibility -- Something that the iPhone seemingly will never have, Android has supported since long. Many of the flash(y) websites that you see make use of Adobe Flash.

There are a few more things that make this OS special, like a dedicated notifications bar, which collects all the popups and lines them up in a clean interface. Unlike the iPhone, where every notification pops up in a small box, interrupting your work from time to time. But the best part about Android is also its worst. With the iPhone you have one set of hardware paired with one type of OS, and you know what to expect from it. Since Android can be freely distributed, many manufacturers take it and put it in their phones that have various form factors and feature sets. Some also change the look and feel of the OS. Some have an older version of Android, while others run a newer one.

Bottom line: It wouldn't be wise to go ahead and just randomly buy any Android phone in the market just because the Operating System is good. Here, the phone hardware is also equally important to consider. Read on to find out which Android phones you should buy, and which ones you should stay away from.