By Jefferson Graham, USA TODAYThe iPhone helped reinvent the category in 2007. Some 50 million iPhones have been sold, fueled by the App Store, a collection of about 300,000 software programs, for free and for sale, that enhance the iPhone. Apps include everything from airline schedules and calendars to games. There's even a program that lets you plug in your electric guitar and have the iPhone replicate an amplifier."The experience on the iPhone is still the best," says Charles Golvin, an analyst at Forrester Research. "The range of apps and things you can do with it and the amount of information that is out there helping you learn about interesting and new things you can do with the iPhone is almost overwhelming."The major drawback with the iPhone is the phone service. Consumers complain about dropped calls with the iPhone, and Consumer Reports declined to recommend it earlier this year because of problems with its antenna. And AT&T, the iPhone's only U.S. wireless carrier for now, was just rated dead last among the big four carriers, by CR. The biggest problem: dropped calls.Verizon (No. 1 in CR's rankings) is expected to add the iPhone to its offerings soon. "I tell everyone who's interested in buying an iPhone, 'Wait until next year for Verizon,' " says Jessica Foust, a supervising producer for the TopTenReviews website, which lists the iPhone at No. 1 and No. 3 (for the older iPhone 3GS model.) "The network is so much better."AndroidGoogle's line of state-of-the-art smartphones is the fastest growing. By next year, they'll become the most popular, some tech analysts predict. An estimated 300,000 Android phones are being activated daily, up from 100,000 daily in August, Google says.Manufacturers love Android because Google offers the software to them free. Verizon has the Motorola Droid X and HTC Droid Incredible. Sprint offers the HTC Evo 4G. AT&T sells the Samsung Captivate. T-Mobile markets the G2. All have similar interfaces.Adding to the confusion: Last week Google announced the Nexus S from Samsung, coming Thursday to T-Mobile. The Nexus S has a 4-inch screen and is the only Android phone running the latest version of Android software, called Gingerbread. The new software allows users to make mobile payments directly from the phone, without having to pull out a credit card.The app store, called Android Market, offers 100,000 apps compared with Apple's 300,000.TopTenReviews ranks the Droid X as the No. 2 smartphone because of its large 4.3-inch touch-screen, 8-megapixel camera and its ability to capture 720p high-definition video. "It's the phone to get if you don't want the iPhone," says Foust.BlackBerryThe dean of business phones, BlackBerry is "still a really good platform, especially if you're a business user," says Golvin. "It's the best solution for e-mail, calendar and managing your day."BlackBerry phones have come a long way from the basic phone/e-mail combo. They now have cameras, full Web browsers, qwerty keyboards and touch-screens. Like Apple and Android, BlackBerry has apps, too, though far fewer. There are both traditional BlackBerrys with a small keyboard and touch-screen BlackBerrys. The Torch, No. 5 on the TopTenReviews list, has both a qwerty keyboard and a virtual touch-screen keyboard. "It's the best of both worlds," Foust says.WindowsThe Windows phones of the past have been overhauled. A new line of Windows Phone 7 smartphones arrived this fall, months behind other smartphone competitors but sporting a distinctly different look from iPhone and Android models. A group of tiles highlight the main screen of the Samsung Focus, LG Quantum and HTC Surround. The phones also offer integration with Windows services, such as the Internet Explorer browser, Bing search and Microsoft Office.Windows "is aimed at getting you where you want to go," says Golvin.AT&T and T-Mobile offer the first Windows Phone 7 models, but Sprint and Verizon will follow with more models next year. Windows has only about 1,000 apps available for the phone. "They have a lot of catch-up to do, but it's not too late," Golvin says.WANT TO GIVE A PHONE AS A GIFT?In days of old, new and renewing wireless subscribers would get free phones. Now it's a different story with the proliferation of smartphones.If you want to put the Internet in your pocket, and talk on the phone at the same time, you'll generally have to pay extra for the service (an additional $25 or more for a data plan) and $199 for a new or extended contract.That makes it harder to buy a smartphone as a gift.Most carriers ask you to agree to a two-year plan for the recipient, or buy the phone outright — and that's not cheap. AT&T, for instance, sells the iPhone 4 for $599, compared with $199 with a two-year plan.Here's an alternative: a prepaid plan, which doesn't require a contract. Historically, prepaid plans offered plain vanilla phones, but this year smartphones joined the mix.•T-Mobile offers the Comet, an Android phone, for $179.99 without a contract. Non-contract plans start at $30 a month with T-Mobile.•Virgin Mobile has the Intercept, another Android phone, at $299.99. Non-contract plans are $25, $40 or $60 monthly.•Boost Mobile, owned by Sprint, has the BlackBerry Curve for $199.99 and month-to-month plans are priced at $25 to $50.•Verizon Wireless is on the high side with three smartphones and three BlackBerry models that don't require a contract. The least expensive model we could find was the BlackBerry Bold at $294.99 and month-to-month plans starting at $64.99.What if the person you're buying for must have an iPhone or Windows Phone 7 and you don't want to commit to a two-year contract? Opt instead for a gift card for a set amount, say $99 (which will get the iPhone 3GS), and let them negotiate with AT&T after Christmas.Guidelines: You share in the USA TODAY community, so please keep your comments smart and civil. Don't attack other readers personally, and keep your language decent. Use the "Report Abuse" button to make a difference. Read more.
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