Recommended mobile phone

[skylee]

Anyway, one day this nokia better break so I can rationalize buying a new phone....

I say, you don't need rationalisation when buying new handsets. Hey but can't you trade in your handset to get a new one? I always trade-in my old phones.

[heifeng]

This model doesn't have fancy-shmancy extras like paint, so there's little sign of wear on the actual casing

I wonder if we can get new cases for these older models, I guess we can always buy those new color bubble stickers to give our phones a fresh, new look and feel hehe.

[onebir]

Perhaps I'm only just entering the 21st century, but do some phones let you read ebooks now? Does anyone use a phone for that?

& are there any decent C-E dictionaries that run on Java phones?

[cdn_in_bj]

Perhaps I'm only just entering the 21st century, but do some phones let you read ebooks now? Does anyone use a phone for that?

With a Nokia phone running Symbian Series 60 you can install ebook readers. In fact, a good number of the local population uses their smartphones for reading ebooks. There is also Adobe Reader for PDF files, and in the case MS office docs readers and editors as well.

I'm sure there must be similar applications for Java-enabled phones.

& are there any decent C-E dictionaries that run on Java phones?

The only one I know of is this one (based on CEDICT):

http://www.kugihan.de/dict/chn_eng.html

I have not had a chance to try it out, however.

Note that many phones purchased in China include a C-E/E-C dictionary built-in.

[venture160]

In fact, a good number of the local population uses their smartphones for reading ebooks.

I second that, the 白领阶层 here on the Subway can be constantly seen reading ebooks on their nokias

[cdn_in_bj]

Hi venture160, I noticed that you use a Treo 650... Have you seen any other Palm OS-based Treos sold here?

Last year I ran into a used Treo 600 for pretty cheap. I now wish I'd known about Pleco at the time, I would've picked it up (assuming that Pleco can run on the 600 that is).

[chrisb]

I have an Xplore M98. It's a clamshell style phone running the Palm OS. I have Plecodict and it seems to run it pretty well. Other features are basic, camera etc., if you check out the online forums there are some complaints about the hinge being a little flimsy. But it suits me fine and it's a cheap way to get going with Plecodict if you're buying off ebay.

[venture160]

Hi venture160, I noticed that you use a Treo 650... Have you seen any other Palm OS-based Treos sold here?

Last year I ran into a used Treo 600 for pretty cheap. I now wish I'd known about Pleco at the time, I would've picked it up (assuming that Pleco can run on the 600 that is).

The treo 600 CAN run pleco, but the screen resolution isn't that great. I wonder if the new Treo 755p is available in Beijing. If so the 650 price should have dropped by now. Despite it's qualms, I reccomend the Treo.

Now only if there was a symbian version of the pleco...... I would even go for version that didn't have handwriting recognition, I dont use it that often anyways, I can usually guess the pronunciation of the word 80% of the time.

[tallynole]

I posted this in another thread earlier, I can easily find the treo 680 in Beijing. Try Zol.com.cn or check out the electronics market close to Nuren jie

[Shadowdh]

I'm thinking about getting an XDA... seems to be exactly what I am looking for, but at the moment cant justify it as my L7 and Acer pda do a good job... sigh...

[doumeizhen]

I love my little Nokia 5330. The dictionary is pretty good, but the Chinese does not come with pinyin... Luckily, when I really don't know there always seems to be someone I want to start a conversation with that I can ask how its pronounced.

[Guest alexkos]

I have an old 3220, but it hasn't any hanzi support

I guess, it will not be able to handle chinese SMS

Is it possible to make it understand hanzi? (esp. SMS)

[humanbeing]

3220

flash Chinese firmware in China ~Y30 to 50 / buy "another" mobile in China

[heifeng]

So I would like to ask our expert panel, what are recommendations for a phone with the following features:

1) Very good photo resolution (b/c I hate wishing I brought a camera whenever I run into something interesting around here)

2) Quick chinese input / ergonomic (I have long pterodactyl-like fingers/nails and send tons of text messages daily, so i don't like really tiny keypads that will cause cramps by the end of the day...)

3) Decent Dictionary (optional)

4) Good battery life

5) Around, or under 2000 RMB ish..

6) And lastly, any brand (foreign or Chinese) other than a Motorola please.

____

PS. I actually looked at that lenovo S phone, which is much prettier in pictures...in real life the pink phone model looks like a metallic pepto bismol bottle...what a let down..

[cdn_in_bj]

If what you are mainly after is good photo quality, then in your price range you should be able to pick up a Sony-Ericsson K750c or K758c. And I think it meets your other requirements too.

[heifeng]

Does anyone have any photos they would like to share that were taken with one of the above recommended SE phones? Are they happy with the quality? I probably plan to just take a ton of outdoor photos...mostly of donkeys, poofy clothing, ditches in the sidewalk, pugs, chou doufu等

[roddy]

A lot of the photos on signese.com and dreamsofwhitetiles.com were taken with my w800i. Some are with my Nikon D50, and on signese some are contributions, especially recently, but they should be noted as such. The W800i is, I think, more or less the same as the K750 in terms of camera hardware.

[skylee]

I took these with my SE K810i . If they don't look good, the fault is mine.

[ipsi()]

My girlfriend recently got a SE W610c for 2280 RMB. Not sure how it compares to the K810, but it seems like it could be a newer model. It's also a Walkman model, so you can listen to music if that appeals. 2 MP camera. My girlfriend loves it. I'm likely to get tired of hearing the same song over and over again now that she's set it as her ringtone...