Android or Symbian belle ?

[power_8383]

Hello guys,
In this Diwali I want to gift a handset to my little brother, so please help me.

1. Budget?
---> max budget is Rs. 17,000

2. Display type and size?
---> Any

3. Form Factor? bar, slider, flip?
---> Bar

4. Preferred choice of brand?
---> Nokia, Samsung

5. Preferred input method (QWERTY, touchscreen, numpad, touch-n-type).
---> Qwerty or touchscreen

6. What camera option you want? Please specify need for flash, autofocus, front facing camera.
---> Autofocus, would be better if it has front facing camera

7. Preferred operating system? (Android, Symbian, iOS, Windows Phone etc).
---> you convince me which is better.

8. Preferred connectivity options (3G, Wifi etc)Please specify clearly.
---> Need both 3G and WiFi

9. Preferred applications (Flash, Swype, GPS, etc)?
---> Flash (He wont use GPS or Skype)

10. Primary use of handset (multimedia, camera, mails, internet, gaming etc)?
---> Internet, Multimedia

11. Any specific mobile phones in consideration?
---> Shortlisted Motorola Defy, Spice MI-410 and Nokia 701
I am afraid my parents won't allow to buy Motorola or Spice.

12. Any other info that you want to share
---> If anyone using Motorola Defy or Spice MI-410, then please share your views on them.
Will you suggest me to buy Nokia 701 even if it has fixed focus camera ?

Waiting for your replies guys.
Thanks.

[vgowtham97]

If your brother does a lot of gaming and use a lot of apps nothing is better than android.Symbian Belle is a new OS and it needs to be developed.If your brother is not inerested in gaming then,Nokia 701 is a very good phone with a very good screen suitable for multimedia. If you go with android then Motorola defy is the good phone within that budget.But there are lot of new android mobiles in that budget.And,Don't go for SPICE.Their after sales service is not good.

[Sarath]

I think introducing him to the Android world would be a better choice at this point.

Better stick with Nokia, Samsung, HTC and Motorola

Avoid spice

[AndroidFan]

Symbian Bella is dead on arrival. Android is superior, faster, smoother. Your budget is 17k. You can get the original Galaxy S device for around 18k, or better yet, get him pure Google phone, Nexus S...

[sygeek]

If you can extend your budget by 2k or so, I'd recommend you Nexus S.

[power_8383]

Originally Posted by vgowtham97

If your brother does a lot of gaming and use a lot of apps nothing is better than android.Symbian Belle is a new OS and it needs to be developed.If your brother is not inerested in gaming then,Nokia 701 is a very good phone with a very good screen suitable for multimedia. If you go with android then Motorola defy is the good phone within that budget.But there are lot of new android mobiles in that budget.And,Don't go for SPICE.Their after sales service is not good.

Thanks for your reply.

He will play some games on the device for sure.
Can you suggest any new android phone ?

Originally Posted by Sarath

I think introducing him to the Android world would be a better choice at this point.
Better stick with Nokia, Samsung, HTC and Motorola
Avoid spice

Thanks for your reply.
Ok, removed spice from the list.

@ AndroidFan and sygeek

Thanks for your replies.
I cant increase my budget.

[rajan1311]

Originally Posted by AndroidFan

Symbian Bella is dead on arrival. Android is superior, faster, smoother. Your budget is 17k. You can get the original Galaxy S device for around 18k, or better yet, get him pure Google phone, Nexus S...

i assume you have already had an hands on? cos i have, and its not so bad as you say it is...

only real thing holding it back is community support.... the screen on the 701 is very good...

also, 701 is NOT fixed focus...

[mitraark]

Samsung Galaxy ACE maybe ??

i've heard it is quite popular.

[kiranm516]

Around 17K these are good
Samsung Galaxy SL - 17.9K
LG Optimus Black - 18.9K
Sony Xperia Ray - 18.9K

Also check out SE Xperia Mini series around 15K

[Terabyte]

Originally Posted by rajan1311

also, 701 is NOT fixed focus...

Nokia 701 DOES HAVE fixed focus camera.
Check it out - Nokia 701 Specs

[NainO]

Originally Posted by rajan1311

701 is NOT fixed focus...

I hate to say this, but it is FIXED FOCUS

Originally Posted by mitraark

Samsung Galaxy ACE maybe ??

i've heard it is quite popular.

It is popular, but not for good reasons

@power_8383
Defy or Galaxy S, make ur pick!

Symbian Belle maybe smoother than its previous installments, but still no match for Android. It's just a multimedia phone (atleast for me)!!!

[vgowtham97]

Originally Posted by mitraark

Samsung Galaxy ACE maybe ??

i've heard it is quite popular.

Don't go for ACE.It is not worth it's price.

Originally Posted by power_8383

Thanks for your reply.

He will play some games on the device for sure.
Can you suggest any new android phone ?

There are lot of phones at that price point.Some of them are:

1.Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo V[The phone that best suites you in this price range]

2.Samsung I9003 Galaxy SL[Lacks flash]

3.HTC Salsa[Only 800Mhz Processor]

4.HTC Desire[Specs are good but battery backup is very bad and a very old phone too]

5.Samsung Galaxy S[Very good screen but lacks flash and 1k higher than your budget]

6.Samsung Google Nexus S.[Wonderful phone but you need to extend your budget]

7.LG Optimus Black[You need to extend your budget]

8.Sony Ericsson Xperia Ray[You need to extend your budget]

9.Sony Ericsson Xperia Neo[You need to extend your budget]

Check out these phones and find which suites you the best.

Remember you can use coupon "ICICILB" on Letsbuy and "AMEXEBAY02" on Ebay "Deals of the week" products.

[rajan1311]

but i did use it, focused fine on nearby objects..(my text book)...

dunno why nokia does this, they had auto focus on older phones (C6), now why have fixed focus..

[aroraanant]

My suggestions for u according to ur budget:
SE Neo V and Ray but remember SE sucks in terms of service.costs 17 and 18k respectively
HTC Desire(old one but this phone is really very good,but its batter back up is not that good) costs 15.5k
if u feel like then also check out HTC salsa which costs around 14k
Or u can simply consider Moto Defy for 13-13.5 but I have heard that now a days Motorola also sucks in terms of service
Galaxy S but u need to extend ur budget for that and also there is some problem in its gps and it also lacks flash

Now choose accordingly

One suggestion for u-If u r spending this much amount then please go for Android and nothing else like symbian etc they are totally crap

[Soumik]

At 17K budget, try and get Nexus S or Galaxy S from ebay.
Other option would be Xperia Ray with a slightly smaller screen.
Xperia Neo V would be perfect for your budget.
Other than these, drop your budget to get Motorola Defy.
The spice 410 is a pretty good device and gets updates too(It on gingerbread now). I feel you may better service from Spice ppl than Samsung or Motorola. But Spice M410 is not a spice product.. its a rebranded chinese model.. Huawai Ideos Xsomething. So, if something goes wrong, i doubt Spice will be able to fix it.

[sygeek]

Originally Posted by Soumik

At 17K budget, try and get Nexus S or Galaxy S from ebay.

I would agree with that. @OP: Try and see if Nexus S is available for near 17K at your retail store.

[aroraanant]

^^^^^
Nexus S for 17k,No way man.It is priced for 20k(even on ebay it is not priced below 20k)

[power_8383]

Sony Ericsson Xperia neo V looks good.

[neo7585]

Contrary to all in this forum, I'd suggest you to go with Nokia 701 with Symbian Belle. The basic reasons being the call quality, battery life and the premium hardware, no android in this price range can match them. Ok, what else? USB OTG, yes it connects to a flash drive and plays divx (720p only) videos without any glitches. The brightest screen(with ambient light sensor, of course) is a joy to use on a full sunny day. NFC, despite being so much new, it's a joy to use with bluetooth enabled headset, just tap the phone's back and headset is paired. FM Transmitter. The only advantage I see on the Androids part is availability of huge number of third party apps, Nokia has been providing all the top 100 apps on Ovi. Games are just awesome(with broadcom 2763 2d/3d GPU). one of the best music players out there(with headphones wh-701 attached) The only disadvatage is the fixed focus camera. Now you think what do 'you want to do? Please let me know.

[power_8383]

Camera is one of the primary factors that I am looking for.

[AndroidFan]

Originally Posted by neo7585

Contrary to all in this forum, I'd suggest you to go with Nokia 701 with Symbian Belle. The basic reasons being the call quality, battery life and the premium hardware, no android in this price range can match them. Ok, what else? USB OTG, yes it connects to a flash drive and plays divx (720p only) videos without any glitches. The brightest screen(with ambient light sensor, of course) is a joy to use on a full sunny day. NFC, despite being so much new, it's a joy to use with bluetooth enabled headset, just tap the phone's back and headset is paired. FM Transmitter. The only advantage I see on the Androids part is availability of huge number of third party apps, Nokia has been providing all the top 100 apps on Ovi. Games are just awesome(with broadcom 2763 2d/3d GPU). one of the best music players out there(with headphones wh-701 attached) The only disadvatage is the fixed focus camera. Now you think what do 'you want to do? Please let me know.

Good comment.

But I still don't think Symbian can compete with Android in terms of features, ecosystem or performance. If Symbian was any good, Nokia would not have dumped it in favour of Wp7...

Android is excellent. I browse the internet all day on my phone. I am writing this comment on my Optimus One... Its so east and powerful...

Bella is just copying Android with its Widgets and drop down notifications panel.

[vishurocks]

Get xperia neo v. available for 18k on letsbuy. best suited for ur requirements

[rajsujayks]

Originally Posted by AndroidFan

Good comment.

But I still don't think Symbian can compete with Android in terms of features, ecosystem or performance. If Symbian was any good, Nokia would not have dumped it in favour of Wp7...

Android is excellent. I browse the internet all day on my phone. I am writing this comment on my Optimus One... Its so east and powerful...

Bella is just copying Android with its Widgets and drop down notifications panel.

Symbian is NOT dumped... WP7 is just another platform.. I'd suggest the Nokia 701... At it's basic, a phone is a phone... And nothing beats a Nokia here..! Let's see your Android surviving 4 five+ feet falls! [Hell! It won't even survive 2 of those!] My nokia 6681 has taken all the beating it has to.. And still the damage was only a ripped chrome side insert!

[sygeek]

Originally Posted by rajsujayks

Symbian is NOT dumped... WP7 is just another platform.. I'd suggest the Nokia 701... At it's basic, a phone is a phone... And nothing beats a Nokia here..! Let's see your Android surviving 4 five+ feet falls! [Hell! It won't even survive 2 of those!] My nokia 6681 has taken all the beating it has to.. And still the damage was only a ripped chrome side insert!

Symbian is dead actually. For now, you may see some Symbian phones but it has no future path. Nokia will most probably release a WP phone soon, while at the same time create some Meego-based phones which will again get dumped eventually. Nokia will then be dedicated to WP.

Originally Posted by rajsujayks

Let's see your Android surviving 4 five+ feet falls! [Hell! It won't even survive 2 of those!] My nokia 6681 has taken all the beating it has to.. And still the damage was only a ripped chrome side insert!

I own a Nokia 6681, it's quite bulky and will most probably survive such a fall. But it did not survive a feet under water.

Android phones are manufactured by different companies and it's quality varies from these companies. Motorola Defy will not only survive such a fall but MAY also survive under rough and harsh conditions, and under water, to a certain limit.

You're most probably a fan of Symbian, nuff said.

[power_8383]

Digit has given 'Best Buy' award to Acer Liquid metal in this month's issue.

[neo7585]

Originally Posted by AndroidFan

Good comment.

But I still don't think Symbian can compete with Android in terms of features, ecosystem or performance. If Symbian was any good, Nokia would not have dumped it in favour of Wp7...

Android is excellent. I browse the internet all day on my phone. I am writing this comment on my Optimus One... Its so east and powerful...

Bella is just copying Android with its Widgets and drop down notifications panel.

Ok. I accept the fact that Symbian Belle is not on par with Android but it's not meant to be believe me. Symbian Belle has the capabilities of standing and emerging on its own. It feels zippy all the time(unlike older Symbians). The browser on symbian Belle is also very much improved in terms of functionality(Not as fluid as on the androids though the best Nokia has ever had). So I don't see any problem there too. The new UI plays a vital part in the overall usage of the phone. And I want you to know(you can rather google) that Symbian Belle has not copied android(I'm the only one to say this here?) instead Android has copied(consider the popular notification bar too) from Maemo powered Nokia N900.
For those who believe(rather very firmly) that Symbian is dead, Nokia has promised to support Symbian until 2016(r u gonna use your(any) phone till then, nope). so, hopefully there'll be as many apps on Ovi store as android before you'd dump your phone.(considering the facts that most of symbian belle phones have identical specs e.g. nHD screen resolution and qt based encoding now enabled). And when Nokia promises you something, they really mean that. So I find this entire-symbian-is-dead kind of thing funny rather than even near to serious.
As far as Edof camera goes, the results are quite impressive. But shots taken within the range of 20 cm are forgettable. HD recording(@30 fps) is awesome. I still can forgive camera on this unit as I don't take as many as close-ups as some might be fond-of of doing.(I own a digital camera as well). So this really goes to the personal preference rather than experts' comments.
Ultimately I don't want to state that Android is bad and Symbian Belle is good rather I'd say Nokia 701 is as good a phone or better than many androids(Consider INR 17000 range) out there.

[ico]

Originally Posted by rajsujayks

Let's see your Android surviving 4 five+ feet falls! [Hell! It won't even survive 2 of those!]

when did build quality became a function of the mobile platform? All companies have decent build quality these days.

Nokia 701 is a good phone and tbf Symbian Belle is promising. Nothing wrong if you choose it. At the end of the day you are going to use same/similar 9-10 apps on all platforms.

But personally, I'd go the Android way.

[sygeek]

Originally Posted by neo7585

Ok. I accept the fact that Symbian Belle is not on par with Android but it's not meant to be believe me. Symbian Belle has the capabilities of standing and emerging on its own. It feels zippy all the time(unlike older Symbians). The browser on symbian Belle is also very much improved in terms of functionality(Not as fluid as on the androids though the best Nokia has ever had). So I don't see any problem there too. The new UI plays a vital part in the overall usage of the phone. And I want you to know(you can rather google) that Symbian Belle has not copied android(I'm the only one to say this here?) instead Android has copied(consider the popular notification bar too) from Maemo powered Nokia N900.
For those who believe(rather very firmly) that Symbian is dead, Nokia has promised to support Symbian until 2016(r u gonna use your(any) phone till then, nope). so, hopefully there'll be as many apps on Ovi store as android before you'd dump your phone.(considering the facts that most of symbian belle phones have identical specs e.g. nHD screen resolution and qt based encoding now enabled). And when Nokia promises you something, they really mean that. So I find this entire-symbian-is-dead kind of thing funny rather than even near to serious.
As far as Edof camera goes, the results are quite impressive. But shots taken within the range of 20 cm are forgettable. HD recording(@30 fps) is awesome. I still can forgive camera on this unit as I don't take as many as close-ups as some might be fond-of of doing.(I own a digital camera as well). So this really goes to the personal preference rather than experts' comments.
Ultimately I don't want to state that Android is bad and Symbian Belle is good rather I'd say Nokia 701 is as good a phone or better than many androids(Consider INR 17000 range) out there.

Comparatively, keeping the price factor in mind, Nokia phones don't give enough VFM. Symbian is dead in the sense that is no longer accepted by a majority of the power users (the one with some sense stuffed into them) and won't be used by Nokia in the future. No one would want a phone a company is no longer dedicated to.

No one gives a damn for features being copied by companies. Not that android actually copied them. Android actually IMPROVED them.

For the apps, Android has more (useful and sensible) apps than the Ovi Store. I never had a good experience with Ovi store.
Hardware-wise and software-wise Android pwns Symbian in every SINGLE way [Keeping the price factor in mind].

Android > Symbian. That's a fact, not even a personal preference.

Actually if you prefer Nokia 701 over any other phone near 17K range, than it's your personal preference and not necessarily accepted widely.

[neo7585]

Originally Posted by sygeek

Comparatively, keeping the price factor in mind, Nokia phones don't give enough VFM. Symbian is dead in the sense that is no longer accepted by a majority of the power users (the one with some sense stuffed into them) and won't be used by Nokia in the future. No one would want a phone a company is no longer dedicated to.

No one gives a damn for features being copied by companies. Not that android actually copied them. Android actually IMPROVED them.

For the apps, Android has more (useful and sensible) apps than the Ovi Store. I never had a good experience with Ovi store.
Hardware-wise and software-wise Android pwns Symbian in every SINGLE way [Keeping the price factor in mind].

Android > Symbian. That's a fact, not even a personal preference.

Actually if you prefer Nokia 701 over any other phone near 17K range, than it's your personal preference and not necessarily accepted widely.

How on just basis of ecosystem can you call android a better option? You only know. As I told you earlier Symbian still is there until 2016. So far as the VFM goes, you better can explain how android does that(may be your point here is only the eco-system or fancy UI). oh C'mone man, which Android provides you with such a brilliant video player(720p Divx, Xvid) with a flash drive. Or say which android phone in 17000INR has FM transmitter. Or better battery life than Nokia 701 has had. Or The IPS lcd with 1000 nits of brightness(you'd say who cares abt brightness? Huh!) If all these things are provided in an Android within 17000 INR, I'd say Android is more value for money. Wake up please and compare the specs. It's not about symbian-is-dead, it's about VFM. How can you rule out an OS without even experiencing just because other OSes are fancy and have better eco-system(that said not everyone needs millions when thousands are enough). Peace.

[sygeek]

Originally Posted by neo7585

How on just basis of ecosystem can you call android a better option? You only know. As I told you earlier Symbian still is there until 2016. So far as the VFM goes, you better can explain how android does that(may be your point here is only the eco-system or fancy UI). oh C'mone man, which Android provides you with such a brilliant video player(720p Divx, Xvid) with a flash drive. Or say which android phone in 17000INR has FM transmitter. Or better battery life than Nokia 701 has had. Or The IPS lcd with 1000 nits of brightness(you'd say who cares abt brightness? Huh!) If all these things are provided in an Android within 17000 INR, I'd say Android is more value for money. Wake up please and compare the specs. It's not about symbian-is-dead, it's about VFM. How can you rule out an OS without even experiencing just because other OSes are fancy and have better eco-system(that said not everyone needs millions when thousands are enough). Peace.

Camera, FM and..Brightness? Just that. I would have written a whole page about it, but I couldn't bother much. Here's a comparison, nuff said.

I always wanted to say this BTW, software-wise Nokia is way below Android. I'm clarifying things comparatively, not that I mean Nokia phones are bad as a whole (they are just decent).