after reading that n8 dead issue when it came out i restarted my phone upteen number of times and thank God i dont have any issues (touchwood)

U are lucky, not all phones are defective ,but nokia acknowledged the fact That atleast some of em are defective only by nov 18, so its better to wait till new batch reaches stores (hopefully with no problems). and waiting drives me crazy !.

Try LG optimus1(p500) ,price 12.5k. Android 2.2(latest android version) 3.2 inch hvga capacitive touch screen(read multi touch,pinch to zoom ) 3mp cam, 1500mah battery, also check out galaxy3, lg gt 540. Both are androids.androids application base is huge compared to symbian,and symbian is an out dated os(comaring with android) but E5 is a nice phone too if ur ok with the os

Please don't suggest Windows Mobile OS to a user who wants more out of his devices...
No possible updates can correct the Winmobile problems like no multitasking, no copy paste, not a decent gallery, etc.etc...
WinMob can only be suggested to a new mobiles user, or the one who has less demands, not an old and experienced user..

Try these 2 sets:->

Nokia C7 - Full phone specifications

Nokia C6-01 - Full phone specifications

If you get the E5 you get a built in document reader already. It fits your bill finely.

Symbian is a great platform. Android is more on the rise due to a fantastic apps store and google aid to ensure enough free apps.
For example, The Documents/ Presentation editor on Symbian costs something, but its free on the Android.

So, if you don't download much apps, Symbian is ideal for you, as its a mature OS with good usability... Android is a comparatively a new OS.

If you STILL want an android, you can get Samsung Epic 4G or a Galaxy 551.

About GPS being a substitute, I can say that it can be a substitute if you get a good external Bluetooth GPS Receiver and use it. Internal GPS's are somewhat slow at getting a lock on & they can't perform around buildings and city level obstructions...
Although, my N8 has real quick lock-ons & strength, so it substitutes a navigator to the extent of my basic needs... Maybe Companies are giving better GPS's hardware now than before?


If you get a US Phone, pre-ensure where you'll unlock it. Plus you won't get warranty for the phone here... There are unlockers online and in US too, and they charge a certain fee... Once unlocked you can use any network on it.

HTC's

Wildfire - around 13K - Value for money
Desire - 26K - U get everything.

@above.. +1. Also, Win Mob 7 does not have support for SD cards as of now and less compatible apps than even Bada.

@Anyone looking for a SuperAMOLED, Samsung Galaxy S i9000 is your one and only option. But the Nokia Clearblack AMOLED (on the C6-01 and C7) is not very far behind.. in fact almost as good as SAMOLED. Read Mobile phone display mega shootout: The full picture - GSMArena.com for more details.

@ everyone looking for Samsung Wave S8500 and cannot find any... the above 2 mentioned by Samarth are the new S8500s At least till the January launch of Wave II S8530.

@All looking for budget androids(< 15k), Do not give the LG Optimus One P500 a miss. It may be specced and priced similar to the Galaxy 3 (At approx. Rs.12k) but it has 5 basic advantages over Galaxy 3. A slightly higher 320x480 resolution (vs 240x400 gor Galaxy 3), Android version 2.2 (Vs 2.1 for Galaxy 3), 512 MB RAM (vs 256MB for Galaxy 3), HSDPA 7.2 (vs 3.6 for Galaxy 3) And preinstalled MapMyIndia voice guided GPS Navigation software worth all India maps which costs Rs. 1990 to buy and is arguably the best GPS Navigation software you can find for India.

As for Samsung Galaxy 3, the only advantage is the 667Mhz processor (vs 600 MHz for P500) which is not necessarily a good thing w.r.t. battery backup.

Anyways both can play standard definition Divx/Xvid and other formats very well, both have preinstalled document editors and decent audio playback so now, the recommended budget Android in my books is the LG Optimus One P500

@Mik, Try the LG Optimus One P500 or Ping me if you want an Epic 4G (Will work only on Tata and Reliance CDMA as Epic 4G was never made for GSM). Also, it wont cost you <15k.

@111diablo111 Samarth's recommendations are working for you.

C7, and c 6 01 ? if Ur main priority is camera i wont recommend this phones , (c7/c6 01 fixed focus as opposed to n8/waves auto focus ,when it comes to picture taking auto focus really counts.google to know the differance)
Windows phone7 os does have a lot of drawbacks, but for a brand new os (ver 1.0, (remember ios and anroids early versions?) it is simply great.(ms already released an update enabling copy-paste, and more such updates are on their way ,check engadget for more info) BTW.windows phones hardwares specs and UI are awesome. But have to wait and see if its going to be any serious threat to android.

galaxy s is one of the best android phones in the country. 4inch super amoled display is awesome. but be carefull,if it managed to kiss the ground and its goodbye for 4inch awesomeness .
And wave2 its going to cost 21+k when its launched in india, with similar specs to original wave, just a 3.7 inch screen alone is not worth the extra buck it commands(and that too, just a Lcd)
@antz.bin ,Lg optimus one have map my india app preloded in it? Thats new.thanks for the info

@All: Any idea when the E7 is going to be released in India? I've prebooked&waiting impatiently...

@Samarth 619: Any news on this?

1) When would be Nokia C2 (dual Sim) available in the market. As I know it has already been launched along with C1 but its not available in the market. Dealers say it would be available this month (December). Moreover, as I understand it is not a dual-sim gimmick like the C1 and dual sims simultaneously work on it.

2) Do we have any chances of Galaxy S with a manual qwerty something like the Samsung available in US( I guess its the epic or something but thats CDMA)?

Source the Google Nexus S from US. You'll get a legally unlocked phone for $529 ~ 24K Rs. It has everything you want with 4 inch super AMOLED (yes this phone is manufactured by samsung) and the latest Android 2.3 Ginger bread.

Google Nexus S goes official

the Nexus S has only been announced. Wouldn't it take a while before it is released ?

^^^It will be on stores frm dec16(us).

Nokia just announced c2, not launched yet. It will make a good back up phone. What i liked about this set is that we can actually change one sim card without even turning off the phone.(hot swappable sim). And unlike c1 it got dual stand by too.
Epic 4g is another galaxy s variant which is specially designed to use with sprints wimax network, and i dont think they are going to launch it here. But there is an upcoming galaxy 551 ,but its a mid range device with 3.2mp cam,querty slider, froyo(android 2.2),etc looks neat too. Price Will be around 14k.

@Reaper agreed the fixed focus are never as good as the autofocus ones... but what can we do if there are no other good options in that range..

About WinMob 7, It is an OS still in its infancy.. how many of you know which is the 1st Android Phone? (P.S.: I am using one right now and it is NOT AT ALL good.)

and about the MapMyIndia Maps on LG Optimus One P500, I read it here
Source: LG P500 Optimus One - Right for the Price > Reviews > Mobile > Smart > Tech2.com India

@Saravjit E7 will once again have an 8 Mpix fixed focus unit.

@DevilPulsarian Galaxy S for GSM comes without qwerty only. And I doubt the Galaxy 551 will be priced 14k.

As for Nexus S, it is just Gingerbread'ed Galaxy S.. similar to the arrangement between Nexus 1 and HTC Incredible where Incredible turned out with much better sales.