The new iPhone might still be the big daddy, but here are summer’s other hot handsets, each with a trick up its sleeve.
The TV Addict LG Vu (AT&T)
Talk to friends and family, or ignore them and watch 150 shows thanks to support for AT&T’s all-new Mobile TV service. While Nickelodeon may not be your thing (or maybe it is, weirdo), gems like ESPN Mobile TV, CNN Mobile Live, and Sony Picture Television’s PIX should be more than enough to keep productivity at bay. The two-megapixel camera isn’t so hot, but really, who needs a camera when Mila Jovavich is getting all Resident Evil in your pocket? $300 with contract, wireless.att.com
The I-lookalike Samsung Instinct (Sprint)
Love iPhone but hate the AT&T ball and chain that comes with it? The Instinct from Samsung is being billed as Sprint’s answer to the iPhone—one look at its full-face high-gloss touchscreen and we’d have to agree. It one-ups its Cupertino competition with built-in GPS navigation, expandable memory, and access to Sprint’s high-speed data network, but lacks Apple’s famed spit and polish—not to mention the lack of iTunes integration. Well, guess we just did mention it. $tbd, spring.com
The Photo Tourist Nokia N78 (Unlocked)
Give your pocket some European flair by donning the N78, one of Finland-based Nokia’s latest. There’s a treasure trove of hidden-away features inside its operating system, like an FM transmitter that’ll beam tunes from your phone to a radio. Its killer app? Support for “geotagging” photos with coordinates culled from the phone’s GPS. With a sharp, capable 3.2-megapixel camera on board, you’ll never forget where you were when you snapped that topless French chick. $600, nokia.com
The Beat Junkie Motorola ROKR E8
This thing looks as good as it sounds thanks to its unique morphing keypad. (Phone buttons on the face change to music control buttons when you’re a-rockin’.) Even better, it eschews a proprietary headphone connector for a standard 3.5 mm jack, meaning you can use any old headphones. Add in 2 GB of memory, an FM radio, and a microSD expansion slot, and the E8 could put that tired iPod in your pocket out to pasture. We wish it had 3 G, though. $tbd, motorola.com
The TV Addict LG Vu (AT&T)
Talk to friends and family, or ignore them and watch 150 shows thanks to support for AT&T’s all-new Mobile TV service. While Nickelodeon may not be your thing (or maybe it is, weirdo), gems like ESPN Mobile TV, CNN Mobile Live, and Sony Picture Television’s PIX should be more than enough to keep productivity at bay. The two-megapixel camera isn’t so hot, but really, who needs a camera when Mila Jovavich is getting all Resident Evil in your pocket? $300 with contract, wireless.att.com
The I-lookalike Samsung Instinct (Sprint)
Love iPhone but hate the AT&T ball and chain that comes with it? The Instinct from Samsung is being billed as Sprint’s answer to the iPhone—one look at its full-face high-gloss touchscreen and we’d have to agree. It one-ups its Cupertino competition with built-in GPS navigation, expandable memory, and access to Sprint’s high-speed data network, but lacks Apple’s famed spit and polish—not to mention the lack of iTunes integration. Well, guess we just did mention it. $tbd, spring.com
The Photo Tourist Nokia N78 (Unlocked)
Give your pocket some European flair by donning the N78, one of Finland-based Nokia’s latest. There’s a treasure trove of hidden-away features inside its operating system, like an FM transmitter that’ll beam tunes from your phone to a radio. Its killer app? Support for “geotagging” photos with coordinates culled from the phone’s GPS. With a sharp, capable 3.2-megapixel camera on board, you’ll never forget where you were when you snapped that topless French chick. $600, nokia.com
The Beat Junkie Motorola ROKR E8
This thing looks as good as it sounds thanks to its unique morphing keypad. (Phone buttons on the face change to music control buttons when you’re a-rockin’.) Even better, it eschews a proprietary headphone connector for a standard 3.5 mm jack, meaning you can use any old headphones. Add in 2 GB of memory, an FM radio, and a microSD expansion slot, and the E8 could put that tired iPod in your pocket out to pasture. We wish it had 3 G, though. $tbd, motorola.com