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There is a lot to think over when looking for a new cell phone. Each flavor has its own unique draws and flaws. The current generation of smart phones is more like mini-computers than telephones. And just like when buying a computer, each one has its own particular way of doing things.

Contacts, Calendar, and Email

The biggest use for any smart phone is access to your mailbox, contacts and calendar. Both iPhone and Android phones use a protocol called ‘ActiveSync’ to connect to a mail server. Blackberries use their own proprietary system called “Blackberry Enterprise Server (BES for short.)” Both systems have pros and cons.

A BES allows fine granular control over what every Blackberry that is connected to it can and cannot do. You can configure the system so that individual or groups of phones can be restricted from running certain programs or can access only certain features. The down side to this control is that all communication with the Blackberry handheld must go through a separate BES server before reaching the phone. This limits the ways in which mail can sync and the ways in which the phone. For example, removing messages from your mailbox on your computer may not remove them from your mailbox on the phone.

Blackberry and BES services are best for managing large organizations of mobile users. If you are looking for a way to provide phones to a large group of employees and want to be able to manage all of them, then a Blackberry and BES solution may be best.

Android and iPhone devices use ActiveSync to connect. This is built into most Exchange mail servers and therefore you do not need any additional hardware or software. The phones connect directly to the mail server and sync with your mailbox. If you delete a message on your computer it will delete from the phone.

If your company does not have a BES or if you are looking to allow employees to bring their own phones then ActiveSync is the way to go.

Apps

The next biggest use of smartphones is for downloadable programs called Apps. Apps are what make smartphones truly smart. There are Apps for everything from games, to maps to social networking, to credit card readers. The Apple slogan “There’s an App for that” is accurate. Both Android phones and the iPhone have built-in app stores that make it easy to search for and install Apps on your phone. Some of them are simple, like an app that turns the camera flash on the phone into a flashlight, and some are more complex, like the Google Maps app that turns your phone into a GPS navigator.

In terms of sheer numbers and compatibility the iPhone is the best choice here. There are simply more apps for the iPhone than any other single phone. Android phones are a close second. iPhone apps have an advantage over Android and Blackberry apps because they are all written for the same hardware. Each Android phone is different than the next one, and some apps will not work on all phones. Usually this is listed in the app description in the app store, but it can still be frustrating to find the perfect app only to see that it won’t work on your phone.

While there are apps available for Blackberries there are much fewer and the install process is sometimes much more complicated. The Blackberry App World has been plagued with problems in the past, and while you can download apps directly they often do not work well. RIM has been working hard to update their app platform and change this, but the fact of the matter is that the Blackberry app system is just not as well developed as either the Android Marketplace or the Apple App Store.

Keyboards

Touchscreens: some people love typing on them and some people hate it. Some Blackberries and Android phones offer physical keyboards, but the iPhone and most Android phones use a virtual keyboard on the touchscreen. Vibration feedback and autocorrect can help you get used to typing on glass, but if you absolutely have to have a keyboard then the iPhone is out of the running for you.

The Bottom Line

iPhone:

Apple’s phone is an extension of their general computing philosophy. The Software and Hardware are designed hand-in-hand to complement each other. This creates a straight-forward user experience that fits in neatly with the rest of the Apple ecosystem. If you are already a Mac user then the iPhone is almost certainly the best fit. Apple products are meant to work well with other apple products. If you are using a Mac you are most likely already familiar with using itunes, iphoto, and the app store. And if you have used an iPod touch or an iPad then you are already familiar with the phone’s interface.

If you are not a Mac user you may still like the iPhone. The phone’s interface is intuitive and easy to learn. The display is crisp and the touch interface is incredibly responsive. The camera is simple to use and the quality is good enough to replace a point-and-shoot camera.

Andorid:

Android phones offer the largest selection of hardware and software. If the iPhone is like other Mac products then Androids are like PCs. Each manufacturer has their own idea of what the hardware should be like and what the user experience should be like. A Motorola Android phone will be very different than an HTC Android phone. This gives you the ability to find something that meets any specific needs you have. There are varying sized devices, devices with dual-core processors, devices with keyboards, and devices with 3D screens and cameras. On the flip side of this, some phones have bad battery life, some phones have poor interfaces, and some phones are underpowered. Before buying an Android phone it is best to do some research online and make sure you are picking out the best phone for your needs.

Blackberry:

Blackberries are best for corporate environments. The physical keyboards make it easy to type out long emails. Running a Blackberry Enterprise Server will allow a company to set security permissions on individual phones and allow your IT staff to control what a phone can be used for. If you are only interested in contacts, calendar, and email access, or if your company runs a BES then a Blackberry may work best for you.