The BlackBerry and iPhone, which are two of the most appealing and high-volume mobile platforms, also address two opposite ends of a spectrum. The BlackBerry is absolutely rock-solid for the enterprising business user and as far as a consumer device goes, it's hard to compete with the iPhone when we talk about the ease of use and the "cool factor" that comes associated with it. Android, which is a juvenile and yet-unproven platform, comes with the potential to play at both ends of the mobile-phone spectrum and perhaps even bridge the gap between work and play.

On the 5th of November in the year 2007, a group of companies, including Google, HTC, Motorola, Intel, Qualcomm, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile, and NVIDIA, came together to form what is known as the Open Handset Alliance. Their main goal was to develop open standards for mobile devices, and revealed their new product: Android, a mobile device platform which has been built on the Linux kernel.

The Android OS boasts a huge array of connectivity options, including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and wireless data over a cellular connection (for example, GPRS, EDGE, and 3G). A highly popular technique applied in Android applications is the ability to link to Google Maps in order to display an address directly within an application. The new OS also has Support for location-based services such as GPS and accelerometers though not all Android devices will be equipped with the required hardware. There is also camera support in the pocket of Android.

So here we are, Android has hit the market in a big way and a few companies have exploited the new OS well and have provided us with some really powerful handheld devices. So what we have for your, are 6 Android based phones that have been reviewed by us which are also some of the best ones out there in the market. Most of these devices come with 3 of the most popular version of the Android OS, 1.6 which is also known as Donut, 2.1 which is known as Éclair and comes in some of the higher end Android devices with more powerful processors and finally 2.2 known as Froyo (Frozen Yoghurt) which only a few devices have like the HTC Desire. However, being open source, it’s no hard task to upgrade to the latest version.

Motorola Milestone - the 5MP Android 2.1 slider at Rs. 32, 990

For those who are looking for something different from the iPhone, the new Motorola Milestone is one of the best options available. It offers a responsive interface, with an infinitely customizable OS, and a large variety of applications from the Android Market of which almost 50% of the available applications are free. The Milestone will give you great value for money along thanks to its great features like a full QWERTY keypad that slides out from the side and a 5 megapixel camera.

Specifications: CPU: ARM Cortex A8 600 MHz, Display: 3.7 inches, 480 x 854 pixels, Camera: 5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, dual-LED flash, Battery: Li-Ion 1400 mAh



HTC Wildfire – Android weds Sense, yet again…

Priced at Rs. 16,590, the Wildfire is a pretty reasonably priced Android based HTS handset. It also sports a very good and responsive capacitive touch screen with a very good on screen QWERTY keyboard, something which only a few touch screen phones have. If the low resolution of the display and poor contrast do not deter you, then we recommend this - a good, affordable Android based solution.

Specifications: CPU: 528 MHz Qualcomm MSM 7225; Display: 3.2-inches, 240 x 320 pixels, 16 million colours; Camera: 5-megapixel; Battery: 1300 mAh; Weight: 118 grams

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X10 Mini Pro – The tiny professional

This is a very well built and compact handset, the X10 Mini Pro comes with a very good and comfortable QWERTY keypad, and a reasonably sensitive capacitative touch screen.  Although it could have been a bit larger to help those with large fingers use it more comfortably. At a price of Rs. 16,000, this powerful little Android device proves to be worth its price.

Specifications: OS: Android 1.6; CPU: Qualcomm MSM7227 600 MHz; RAM: 128 MB; battery: 930 mAh; display: 2.55-inches (240 x 320 pixels); weight: 120 grams

HTC Desire - Almost absolutely desirable

At a price of Rs. 28,900, the HTC Desire has proven to be a pristine showcase of the pinnacle of current-gen handheld technology. However no device is perfect, it does have its own flaws but they are hard to notice and don’t reduce the overall quality of functionality of the device. It has a display that is to die for and provides a stiff competition to Apple’s Retina display in terms of brightness, and viewing angles. It is powered by a very fast processor and makes full use of it thanks to the latest 2.2 version of the Android OS.  All in all the Desire is a brilliant choice for those who wish to move on from the Apple os and try their hands at something that offers more for less.

Specifications: OS: Android 2.1 (upgradeable); Display: size: 3.7-inch; colours: 16-million; resolution: 480x800 pixels; CPU: Qualcomm QSD8250 (1 GHz); RAM: 576 MB; ROM: 512 MB; expansion: microSD; Camera: 5-megapixel (720p video recording); battery: 1400 mAh; weight: 135 grams

Sony Ericsson XPERIA X8

This is Sony Ericsson’s latest Android device. The price of Rs. 15,990 gets you a pretty good phone in the form of the X8. Unfortunately, there are other devices out there that can prove to be a better choice for spending your cash, no matter how hard the X8 tries it cannot ward off these contenders. Bottom-line being that the XPERIA X8 is quite nice, but it’s coming with a slightly outdated OS and provides mediocre image quality and performance.

Specifications: OS: Android 1.6; Networks: GSM/HSDPA; CPU: 600 MHz; display: capacitive-touch, 3-inch, 320x480 pixel, 16M colours; Storage internal: 128 MB; microSD expandable; camera: 3.15-megapixel; weight: 104 grams

Samsung Galaxy S

This device has been the star of the Android market. The galaxy S is by far the most powerful and the best performing Android based device that comes with a large 4inch Super Amoled display which provides a wonderful mobile experience and its not only good to look at, the capacitative display performs well and has an onboard keyboard like no other. Not even the Apple iPhone’s keyboard can match the speed and accuracy of the keyboard in this phone. it is powered by a 1ghz processor and even with the Android 2.1 OS its pretty fast. It would be fun to see how it performs with the new 2.2 version when it gets out. For a price of Rs. 31,250 this is indeed the Smartphone to buy.

Specifications: Display: Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors, 480 x 800 pixels, 4.0 inches, CPU :  ARM Cortex A8 1GHz processor,  Battery : Li-Ion 1500 mAh, Camera : 5 MP, 2592 x 1944 pixels, autofocus, Memory : 8 GB/16GB storage, 512 MB RAM, 2GB ROM, Weight : 119 g