PCMAG just featured a list of cheap phones all below $100. Of course, all phones included in the site are under a two-year contract with the four major telco’s AT&T,T-Mobile, Verizon, and Sprint.
Here are top mobile phone for less than a hundred bucks:
Pantech Breeze
AT&T may be overstating the Pantech Breeze’s ease-of-use case—our reviewer found that it isn’t much friendlier than most other midrange cell phones. But as one of the company’s most recent designs, the Breeze impresses with its slim profile, robust feature set, excellent reception and battery life, and enhanced voice quality (complete with built-in noise cancellation).
Palm Centro (AT&T)
Palm’s Centro takes everything that’s desirable about the fabled Treo line—including the pioneering, if now out-of-date Palm OS—and squeezes it into a 4-ounce candy-bar form factor that’s no bigger than the average cell phone, even with a full QWERTY keyboard. The AT&T version lacks compatibility with the carrier’s 3G network. But even so, nothing else at this price beats the Centro’s ease of use and robust e-mail and messaging.
Samsung SPH-M520
Anyone who liked the original RAZR but wants a fresher design should look closely at the Samsung SPH-M520. When this sleek handset first hit the market early this year, it was fairly expensive for what it offered. But at today’s reduced price of $50, its clear sound quality, sleek slider design, and powerful e-mail and IM clients are tough to beat. It also weighs just 2.3 ounces and is only half an inch thick, making it a perfect upgrade for that old RAZR.
Palm Centro
Sprint’s version of the Centro is still a terrific deal almost a year after its launch. For $99, you get 3G data speeds, a full (if quite cramped) QWERTY keyboard, a high-resolution touch screen and stylus, and—above all—a good voice phone.
Nokia 6263
Sometimes the simplest design is the right one. Nowhere is that more apparent than in the Nokia 6263, the latest version of the company’s popular line of entry-level flip phones. The 6263 can hook into T-Mobile’s brand-new—and long-awaited—high-speed 3G network. It also offers more robust PC synchronization than many more expensive phones, plus capable IM and e-mail apps.
BlackBerry Pearl 8100
The BlackBerry Pearl ignited a cell-phone revolution—the consumer-focused smart device—almost a year before Apple’s original iPhone hit the market. Today, you can snag a Pearl for just $99 on T-Mobile’s network. That low price gets you one of the best e-mailers in the business. Now, almost two years after its launch, it’s still one of the sharpest-looking handsets out there.
LG VX5400
The VX5400 is the easy, default choice for anyone who needs a new cell phone on Verizon. It offers a crisp, clear screen, excellent battery life, a near-perfect numeric keypad, and top-notch voice quality. And it weighs just 3.2 ounces. Only the phone’s 2005-era VGA camera disappoints—but you certainly can’t beat the price.
BlackBerry Pearl 8130
An even better deal than T-Mobile’s 8100, Verizon’s version of the BlackBerry Pearl offers high-speed 3G data, robust push e-mail, a built-in GPS radio, and a vastly improved Web browser. One of Verizon’s best smartphones at any price; its under-$100 entry fee makes it that much sweeter. (Honorable mention: the $99 Palm Centro , which is just as good on Verizon as it is on Sprint. It’s not as capable as the 8130, but it has a touch screen and a real QWERTY keyboard.)
Read full review over at PCMAG .
