After years of using my mobile for nothing else but calling and texting I see the need for a smartphone. It's a hassle to have to bring along my notebook when traveling (domestically and abroad) so that I can surf the internet and, most importantly, use Skype.

I'm not after a top of the range phone, but one that has an OK screen, Wifi, Bluetooth and GPS, and it has to work with my Dtac pre-paid sim card.

And it must not be made by Apple (bought an Ipod a few years back and became allergic to Apple products after trying to use Itunes)!

Any advice you can give me would be appreciated.

Samsung galaxy s.... Go in a shop and try it.. :-)

Theres a new version coming out in a couple of months which will have dual core processor...amazing

I have a HTC Desire and i am extremly happy with it apart from the battery life. Voted No 1 in the UK recently

I wouldn't be so quick to rule out the iPhone! I had the same allergic reaction after I purchased an iPod years ago and agree iTunes is not the best. iTunes has improved slightly over the years but the iPhone is possibly one of the best phones I've ever used. Simple & easy, has all the features your looking for as well. If your not too bothered about loads of apps then you don't even have to use iTunes.

It does work with D-Tac and they have set plans for both iPhone users and Blackberry users. B650 & B790 iPhone & BB plan.

The Samsung Galaxy S is a very good phone indeed but I've heard many people struggling to get to grips with it. The people I know who can use it swear by it though, likewise the Galaxy Tab.

HTC are always worth considering and they have a huge range of smartphones available. They've been around for quite a while now and they are reasonably priced too.

Acer have entered the market with a range of smartphones recently but their phones are pricey considerin many of them are 99% HTC's with lesser software & features.

I think Nokia also have some but I can't comment on these as I'm of the opinion that they are one of the worst brands on the market place. This opinion is based on experience of working in the mobile industry, testing handsets.

Try as many as you can to get a feel for which phone is the right one for you but I would not rul out any just because of an earlier experience with a different product produced by the same company.

good luch, hope you make a good choice!!

You should put together a list of requirements, applications, budget and network providers. Then some decent recommendations may follow. I'm not even sure if you want an Android phone?

A new, mid-range Android phone getting great reviews here is the Samsung Galaxy Cooper/Ace (S5830), widely available for 9,100 THB.

I can recommend the HTC Desire Z.

My wife has an iPhone 4, so I can compare.

iPhone 4 looks nicer but in my opinion the Android OS is way better.

For me Android and HTC with their own interface on top of Android did a very good job in improving the usability and the "feeling" of the OS.

That is also one advantage of HTC Android over Samsung Android. The HTC Sense interface feels better than the Samsung TouchWiz interface.

The Desire Z has a built-in keyboard which is really nice if you write many emails.

I have also tried Android phones (both HTC and Samsung) of the next lower price range. These are usually good too but you can definitely feel the difference in terms of touch behaviour and screen quality.

I am 100% satisfied with the Desire Z.

If I had to mention downsides it would be the battery life and the weight.

For me this is not an issue so far.

Good luck with your smartphone.

The Orange San Francisco (AKA ZTE Blade) costs just GBP89 / 4500Baht without contract from Argos in the UK and does just about everything all those other phones do. It is excellent value for money, and especially suitable for use anywhere where it might get lost/broken/stolen. Unlock is free online. It works 100% with my Thai SIM. Many ROMs are being developed for it and mine currently runs 2.2

The only thing that it doesnt have is an ARM7 processor, which means that Flash wont install on it, which means that you cant access BBC iPlayer directly. Apart from that it is great (and there are work-arounds for BBC iPlayer).

I am allergic to the notion of paying any supplement for anything (which rules out all Apple products and Blackberries) and so the Blade suits me perfectly.

Thanks for the help! I should now have what I need to make a choice.