Small 3g handset (no, I mean REALLY small)

H

Hay

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Howdy. I am looking for suggestions for a phone that can be carried very discreetly, especially in a front trouser pocket. This will be for use with PC Mobility, which uses the Bell Mobility HSPA network which is ONLY 3G (no 2G) UMTS/HSPA using 850 and 1900 MHz. My Nexus S is great for general use, but some occasions such as going dancing call for something much more discreet.

In the past, I have used my Samsung P300 (http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=849) on Fido (network is 3G/2G UMTS/HSPA/GSM on 850/1900 MHz) for this purpose. This handset's lack of 850 MHz has not been a significant issue in most areas. However, soon I'll be switching from Fido to PC Mobility as my primary line; 3G will be required.

Needed attributes are:
- UMTS/HSPA using 850 and 1900 MHz
- Thin. 10mm or less is ideal.
- Rounded corners and edges.
- Light. Well under 100 grams or 3.5 oz.

Desireable attributes are:
- Small overall, not just thin
- Strong vibrating alert for calls and texts
- Can run Google Maps client
- Email client for POP/IMAP
- Web browser that work well enough for popular sites
- Android operating system
- Keyboard good for moderate texting -- virtual, hardware, querty or T9 are all good as long as they work well
- Good phone value -- stable calls, durability, reception, audio quality and volume, ringer volume
- Flashlight

Most other attributes that I can think of, such as media, camera, daylight readability, tethering, Bluetooth, memory card slot -- are superfluous.

My SE T715a does most of this pretty well except that it is 15mm thick and a bit angular in shape. The best form-factor that I have ever seen is the VK2020. It was super-light and virtually invisible in any pocket. I owned one for a grand total of six hours before finding that its audio was too poor; I exchanged it for the P300.

Contenders for a small 3G handset that I found are:
- Samsung SGH-A727 (http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=1100) -- hard to find now, and a bit long
- ZTE F160 (http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=2652) -- probably poor quality?
- HTC Wildfire S (http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_wildfire_s-3777.php), if there will be an 850/1900 version; more than 10mm in center, but nicely curved on back cover

Considered, but rejected:
- XPERIA X10 Mini (too thick and angular on back)
- Samsung Galaxy Apollo (also too thick)
- HTC Aria (http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=2804) -- close at 12mm and 115g
- Acer Liquid E
- Any Android that is significantly outdated (say, before 2.2) and cannot be updated

I have been through some "phone finder" sites such as phonescoop. Possibly their records are incomplete and I have missed one, or more likely there is some model that is announced, but not yet available. Thanks in advance for any feedback.
 
I was going to suggest X8 or X10 mini but you've already said no to those. Ah well

The HTC Legend is slightly heavier than the Aria at 126 g, but also slim at 11.5 mm. It has Android 2.2 and community ROM support.

Looks to me like the lightest Androids available on 850/1900 are all either Sony Ericsson or other "worse" brands that are liable to have old versions of the OS.
 
The Samsung Galaxy Ace has an 850 3G unlocked version for Latin America, but I don't know if this version is available in Canada. If not carrier available, you may have to hunt it with online phone dealers.
 
Why don't you look at the 3G watch phones? http://www.lightinthebox.com/wholesale-Watch-Cell-Phone_c1298?litb_from=paid_adwords_search&gclid=CKiJ_vjLwqgCFUMUKgodiyRduQ

or http://www.dinodirect.com/watch-phone/?affid=370&gclid=CPv80Y3MwqgCFUhrKgodxnfZvg
 
I doubt most if any of these phones have North American 3G. And Dino Direct is a very scuzzy site - my friends and I have bought items there and are frequently not as advertised.

Sent from my Nook Color!
 
The fact that a phone is on Amazon.com doesn't guarantee anything... plenty of Euro band phones find their way to Amazon for some reason.

Also I'm looking at your links closer now, and zero of those watch phones appear to have any 3G at all - they're all dual-, tri- or quad-band EDGE. Anyway since the phone must be 3G to get a signal on Bell's network, they're all out of the question.
 
Thanks for the responses so far!

I forgot to initially include the Veer on the "Considered, but rejected" list. It's 15mm thick. If there were a keyboardless version, it might do the job.

The Ace is about the same size and shape as the Aria -- somewhat thin, but big and heavy. These two are close to full-sized phones such as the Nexus S that I already have.

I completely overlooked watchphones! I had not checked out the market in quite some time. If any of them had 3G on 850 MHz, I'd go that route. If anyone knows of such a watchphone coming to the market, please point me to it. I am not in a big hurry, but something in the next couple of months would be good.
 
The smaller it gets, the less usable it feels. Smallest Android I've seen is the Huawei Ideos but I don't know if you can find that in Canada.

The Motorola Defy is actually smaller than my Droid Incredible. I've put both phones side by side. And yet the screen on both is the same.

I'm also surprised that the Atrix feels smaller than the Nexus S despite the screen being the same size. The design is very efficient when it comes to front space.

I got an HTC Magic and a Droid Eris. Low end spec by now, but these two feels and is, bigger than the HTC Aria.

I feel the Aria and the Ace happen to be very well packaged for a phone. Efficiency measured as Ratio of screen size vs. phone dimensions.

Some of the low end Androids I've seen, like the Galaxy 3, Motorola Quench and the HTC Tattoo and Wildfire, isn't exactly smaller than the Aria and the Ace.
 
I had not heard of the Ideos line. There is a new Ideos X3, though not a NA model yet.

I am afraid that everything suggested so far is still too big. Other than the Veer, they are all moedium-sized handsets. I guess that truly small handsets are unfashionable outside of China these days. If I could put the P300 beside any of the ones in this thread, it would be clear just how chunky the others are!

I think that I'll just wait. If a keyboardless Veer comes out, that's probably going to be the one. I'd also look at a NA Wildfire S if it comes out.

Any more suggestions? Given how many people responded with phones that are trying (but not succeeding) to be smartphones and "small", I'd guess that what I want just isn't out there. I'll accept tradeoffs in usability (such as with watchphones) if it achieves the goal. It doesn't have to be a smartphone.
 
You are right! http://www.mobileincanada.com/cellphone-1135-en-Bell-HTC-Wildfire-S.html

Thanks for the hint. I see that the specs page at http://www.gsmarena.com/htc_wildfire_s-3777.php has been updated to include an 850/1900 MHz variation since this thread started. At 105 grams and 12.4 mm thick, it's the closest current phone to my specs. It is slightly smaller and lighter than the Samsung Apollo. Having a local carrier, I'll be able to check out the Wildfire S in person.
 
Oooh... Google is buying up Modu's assets: http://www.slashgear.com/google-to-buy-patents-from-defunct-modu-20153311/

Now that could be an even better solution (not available for a while) than multiple phones. I'd just use the tiny main handset as a "small" phone and use a sleeve that provides full smartphone capability. The sleeve gets left in the glovebox before heading to a social/dance.
 
Am enjoying this topic because IMO most smartphones aren't particularly well-suited for pockets. I'd like to chime in with these 3 suggestions:

http://www.phonearena.com/phones/Nokia-X3-Touch-and-Type_id4840
http://www.phonearena.com/phones/Nokia-C3-Touch-and-Type_id4889/size
http://www.phonearena.com/phones/Sony-Ericsson-Naite-a_id3771/size

The X3 Touch and Type (X3-02) is the thinnest at ~10mm, but also has sharp-looking corners on top. The C3 Touch and Type (C3-01) is thicker at 11mm (and heaviest), but has more rounded/sculpted corners and is narrower. The Naite-a (not -i) is presumedly more eco-friendly but is the thickest at ~13mm (and with the least impressive specs e.g. smaller camera, lacks Wi-Fi).
 
Excellent. Thanks. I am not sure why my earlier searches of gsmarena and phonescoop did not find these models. The C3-01 is the strongest contender on paper, but the couple of review available on newegg.ca claim that it's not very good...

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16875205231&cm_re=c3-01-_-75-205-231-_-Product

Althought the phone is inexpensive, having it flake out is a bit too much of a trade-off. Maybe other reviews will show it in a better light.
 
Here's some links to the reviews on Amazon.com (U.S.). One link is for the 'Silver' version and the other is for the 'Warm Gray' version:

http://www.amazon.com/Nokia-Unlocked-Phone-U-S-Version-Warranty/product-reviews/B0046RE9DM/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1
http://www.amazon.com/Nokia-Unlocked-Phone-U-S-Version-Warranty/product-reviews/B0046RE9DC/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1

The majority of the comments appear to be positive, but there are some instances of fluky build quality especially with the touchscreen.

Among the AT&T-branded 3G HSPA phones, I'll invoke 1Newfie's earlier post that the Palm Pixi Plus comes to mind as being pocket-friendly but not necessarily wallet-friendly:

http://www.phonearena.com/phones/Palm-Pixi-Plus-GSM_id4521

HTH...
 
I already checked out the X10 mini. It's far too thick at 16mm. Do you have a link for any more models that may be thinner?
 
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