Compare and buy smartphones

Smartphones are mobile phones that allow you to do just a little more than make phone calls. Apps make it possible to perform the most extensive functions. To make this possible, a smartphone runs an operating system. Examples include Android or Apple's iOS but there are also alternatives.

Types of smartphones

Smartphones come in all shapes and sizes and at every conceivable price. But which smartphone should you choose? The models shown here can be roughly divided into the following categories:

• Budget smartphone: Low-cost smartphones, when price is most important
• Low-end smartphone: Basic features with some extras sometimes
• Mid-range smartphone: Smartphone with all the features at a competitive price
• High-end smartphone: Comprehensive smartphones with the best camera and display

• New smartphone: Latest smartphone simlock-free
• Android phone: Latest Android smartphones
• European smartphones: Smartphones from European phone brands
• 5G smartphone: The latest 5G phones

Popular smartphone brands

Besides price, brand can also be an important consideration when choosing a new smartphone. For instance, you are familiar with the interface, you may have other devices from that brand, and you have bought certain apps. In other words, you are already in the ecosystem. Here are some well-known phone brands that make smartphones:

• Samsung phones
• OnePlus smartphones
• Apple smartphones
• Xiaomi smartphones
• Motorola smartphones
• Sony smartphones

Android smartphones

Three quarters of all smartphones sold are Android phones. This mobile operating system is updated with a new version every year by Google. Manufacturers can use it for free, provided they meet a number of conditions, which is why many companies have developed phones with it.

So the Android offering is large and varied. So is the price. Therefore, those who want a budget smartphone almost always end up with an Android phone. When considering an Android, pay attention to what the manufacturer says about future updates. Manufacturers, unless they apply Android One, are not obliged to update their phones regularly.

Apple iPhones

The remaining quarter of the number of smartphones sold is mostly an iPhone. These are often a bit more expensive to buy but, unlike Android, are updated for much longer. Software that is updated regularly is safer, contains fewer bugs and usually has more features.

A big advantage of Apple's iOS operating system is that the range of apps is so incredibly large and usually of high quality. Apps have to be approved before they are allowed in the App Store. An additional disadvantage is that iOS is a bit more closed. You can modify and or replace fewer things yourself, unlike Android.

Other smartphones

There are also minor alternatives such as e/OS, an operating system based on Android but stripped of all Google services, and HarmonyOS. The latter was created by Huawei as an alternative to Android after they were denied access to Google services.

History of smartphones

Many people think Apple is the creator of the smartphone with the iPhone announced in 2007. Nothing in less true. The first smartphone dates back to 1992 and was from IBM but it was not widely available. The 1996 Nokia 9000 Communicator was; a foldable cross between a PDA and phone.

In the early 2000s, the rise of the Symbian operating system created a wide range of smartphones. That was also the period when brands like BlackBerry and T-Mobile dominated with its Sidekick. That changed when Microsoft came out with Windows Mobile in the mid-2000s.

When Apple announced the first iPhone in 2007, it caused a shift from smartphones with small screens and keyboards to large touch-sensitive screens. It would herald the end of BlackBerry, Nokia and Windows Mobile. But also the rise of Android.

Functions taken over by smartphone

Smartphones have taken over the function of many devices. Think PDAs, the compact camera, camcorder, MP3 player, GPS navigation, calculator, alarm clock, watch, etc etc. This became possible because electronics became smaller and more powerful. Moreover, the price went down, making the smart phone more accessible to many more people.

By now, the list of obsolete products has become very long and we hardly see timers, voice recorders, photo albums, address books, road maps, answering machines, landline phones, telephone booths and scanners.