On both pay as you go and contracts it is always worth thinking about upgrading your phone. Mobile phone contracts are usually two year terms with shorter contracts costing more per month and offering less. Upgrade options on the contract itself usually only become available a month or two before the contract ends and as new generations of phones are released in less than the year after the previous one your phone will be long out of date. With the latest mid-tier phones such as the Samsung Galaxy Ace and HTC Gratia offering extremely competitive features upgrades are very attractive.

New generations of phone will have greatly improved features such as higher resolution screens, with resolutions having doubled over the last generation this is the difference between something you can use as a phone and something that you can watch movies and play the latest games on.

Processing power has also leapt upwards, with more than a doubling from around 400 MHz in phones one or two generations old to the latest monster phones with dual core, 1 GHz chips. A phone with a fast chip like this will be better for browsing, less laggy and be able to record higher resolution video up to 1080p.

Network data reception has also improved in leaps and bounds with the new 4G and LTE, long term evolution, data formats offering download speeds that can compete even with home broadband. With a connection this fast not only is browsing the internet nearly instant but you can stream music and film directly to your phone from services such as Netflix where the new infrastructure has been installed.

With use phones inevitably get damage and while mobile phone contracts offer insurance options these are often expensive. An upgrade is a good way of getting a new phone when the old one builds up scratches and even more serious damage like screen cracks or missing peripherals. As a way of effectively repairing damage through replacement an upgrade is often surprisingly competitive on price once you include the costs of parts, work and the cost of sending a mobile in the post with sufficient insurance. Replacement also replaces any missing peripherals in a hassle free manner.

If you choose to upgrade with a new contract many will include free gift offers such as flatscreen TVs, laptops and even a Playstation 3 console. Alternatively the free gift contracts offer free contract time, with many months on offer, sometimes meaning you can upgrade your phone even when your old contract has time left to run.

The new mid-tier phones like the HTC Gratia and Samsung Galaxy Aceare priced so competitively that an upgrade can be a good way of freeing up your existing phone to provide one for a family member or partner. Once you have the new phone the old one can be unlocked and used with a new contract or as a pay as you go phone.

As deals rapidly improve from contracts on networks and from specialist phone sellers online it is a good idea to shop around for new upgrade options even long before a contract has expired when it is possible to get phones like the HTC Gratia for such good prices.

Max Marston has previously written articles for DialToSave who can also provide information regarding the Sony Ericsson Xperia Play & HTC Wildfire S

Two new smart phones aimed at the mid range of the market were announced in January 2011, the HTC Gratia and Samsung’s latest addition to the Galaxy range, the Galaxy Ace. Both offer slightly off the cutting edge features at highly competitive contract prices.

Hardware is the first point of comparison, with the Gratia packing a previously respectable 600 MHz processor, in 2011 though this just demonstrates how dated the phone originally released in the Summer of 2010 has become as the top end moves on from the 1 GHz barrier to faster speeds and multiple cores. The Samsung Galaxy Ace on the other hand establishes what will be the new level for mid-tier phones with a nippy 800 MHz processor. Storage is fairly limited on both phones with the Gratia only clocking up 512 MB of storage while the Ace combines on board and microSD storage to reach 158 MB plus 2 gigabytes. The Samsung is ahead but both would need a larger microSD card to act as a music buff’s MP3 player.

If we look at the operating systems the Gratia once again shows its age running on the increasingly outdated 2.1 Eclair Android OS while the Ace is more up to date on 2.2 Froyo. With more and more apps making use of the added features available in 2.2 you may miss it on the HTC.

Both phones have five megapixel cameras with the Samsung Galaxy Ace also sporting an LED flash. Picture performance is similar producing reasonable quality images but the Gratia is poorer at recording videos. Data and cell signal connectivity are more or less identical at the 3G level; neither phone is missing any features here as 4G is still non-standard even at the very top of the market.

For cameras both phones offer 5 megapixels, a good size for mid-tier phones, up from the average of 3 megapixels in the previous generation. The Samsung also has an LED flash giving it the edge in this area along with far superior video recording compared to the weak recording of the Gratia. Both have full 3G and phone standard connectivity with 4G still not being standard even at the top end of smart phones.

Where there is a big gap between the two devices is in the looks. The Samsung Galaxy Ace comes out far ahead with an attractive Galaxy S-like design though smaller and edged with a smart metal band reminiscent of iPhones. By contrast the HTC Gratia is very plastic and shaped like a brick with strange fake plastic screws formed in the back of the battery casing.

Price-wise there is little between the phones, the Gratia is available sim-free and unlocked for 330 new while the Ace comes in at 300 and both are available on a range of standard contracts in the 15 to 25 region with options such as cash back and free gifts from various providers.

The comparison of capabilities and aesthetics makes the Samsung Galaxy Ace look like a clear winner over the HTC Gratia in this price segment but both are very capable and solid all round phones. This reviewer would recommend the Samsung phone by a clear margin so unless you especially desire an HTC product or the Sense interface the HTC Gratia has been caught out and left lagging significantly behind.

Max Marston has previously written articles for DialToSave who along with the HTC Gratia, also provide information on the Samsung Galaxy Ace

Now a days most people use some of the latest cell phones which have become the important means of communication today and availability of inexpensive mobile phone deals have made them all the more affordable. These phone deals possess played a big role in bringing the unit closer to people from different economic as well as social strata.

Network service providers such as Vodafone, O2, Orange, Three mobile, T mobile and Virgin mobile offer a wide range of offers which can be either spend monthly contracts or they could be in the form of payg plans.

Pay monthly mobile phone deals are the most favoured offers that require an agreement to be signed by the user. These deals are available on just about all leading mobile networks and are mostly accompanied by many free gifts such as free mobile insurance coverage, free cash back offers and free line rentals for pre-specified amounts of time and one can also get totally free televisions, gaming consoles, audio players, digital cameras as free gifts.

The contract can last for a fixed period of time. Usually the time period of agreement ranges from 12 months to 18 months. This can be renewed or terminated as per the desire of the customer. For users who want to maintain stability and use their own phones very frequently can opt for these types of plans.

Pay as you go mobile deals which are also known as PAYG offers are just suitable for the users who do not want to indulge in any kind of contract deal and wish to avoid the monthly rental fees. Pay as you go phones tend to be prepaid deals as well as enable the users to pay for what they use.

To really make it more convenient for the customers, there are many online cell phone comparison websites where one can compare all the best phone offers. These assessment portals help customers to get the details of all of the plans available on a particular handset at one platform. As per the requirement, one can choose the one which best suits his or her requirements.

With so many exciting choices to choose from, one can be sure to get the best offer upon his or her favourite handset keeping in view his / her flavour, requirement and wallet.

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Sony Ericsson allow us a brand new cell phone that will cause for example storm how the iphone will seem millions of miles away. The Xperia Play handset looks similar to the current Sony PSP Opt for a slide multi-touch screen boasting four inches corner to corner.

The OS running the Xperia Play handset is Android 2.3 the primary applications running from PlayStation Pocket, but up to now there aren’t any signs and symptoms of apps or content that is no real surprise as Sony is going to be keeping things well hidden before official release date.

The mobile providers are scrambling over each other to try get their hands on this new must have phone, Orange has been rumoured to be one of the suppliers and we can only guess about the others but O2 will more than likely be in their with a chance. Consumers are asking the question as well as gamers, what will the price tag be both on contract and off contract.

Contract deals for most will be the preferred option as this means the handset is heavily subsidised, but that said there will be an upfront cost as with the iPhone as Sony know this will be a highly demanded phone.

Off contract prices that are being thrown round the rumour mills are varying from three hundred pounds to 5 hundred pounds, because of this , many people will choose the on contract deals.

What exactly games are we able to expect for that new Xperia Play handset? Wellness a Sony bred phone don’t be surprised the best selling older games being remade for that Android system, in addition to already a large number of new games being designed because the game developers heard bout the telephone this past year.

Will this be the iPhone killer phone? Only time will tell but in our opinion this new release from Sony is right up there and ready for the fight.

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As the immensely successful Galaxy S has come about and surprised the world with its innovative designs and Applications. It now has to take a step back and make way for the new Samsung Galaxy SII which rivals the iPhone 4 and comes in a 32GB or a 16GB.

Firstly you will notice that its sleek design and it boasts a 4.3-inch 480×800 WVGA Super AMOLED Plus screen display, which is extremely more vivid than other phones. Now upgrading from Pentile matrix to Real-Stripe penal technology this takes it to the next level with 30% more pixels per inch for a clearer, brighter and richer viewing experience. The new technology uses even less space and less energy, consuming 18% less energy than the previous phone, making it one of the longest lasting smartphone available.

The 8-megapixel camera with an LED flash might not be too impressive, but the 1080p HD video recording makes up for that at 30 frames per second video playback running at a blistering 1.2 Ghz. The Samsung Dual Core Application Processor is based on Quad GPU and has 3200M pix/s. The performance of this provides unsurpassed functionality and density for faster downloads, quicker multitasking, a smoother UI, snapper streaming and highly efficient gaming.

Samsung have also redrafted the user interface by giving it four hubs to help you make the most out of your Galaxy SII. Music – With access to over 12 million tracks supporting MP3, AAC, eAAC+. Readers – Samsung’s new eBook reader area. Social – Your chatting life in one place with Google talk and E-mail. Its brilliant web browsing function will put it into perspective with easy search optimization and a clear view of your subject matter. Game -The easiest way to download and play the best games around.

The 8-megapixel camera with an LED flash might not be too outstanding, but the 1080p HD video recording makes up for that at 30 frames per second video playback running at a blistering 1.2 Ghz. The Samsung Dual Core Application Processor is based on Quad GPU and has 3200M pix/s. The performance of this delivers unsurpassed functionality and density for faster downloads, quicker multitasking, a smoother UI, snapper streaming and highly effective gaming.

All in all, the Samsung Galaxy SII has reached new pinnacles that no other phone has yet reached. This is the start of a new age of phones and the SII is right at the top.

For details on the Samsung Galaxy SII visit Expansys.