Technology is something I have been very slow to catch up with. I did not even get a mobile phone until christmas of 2005! Before then I would use a phonebox, be stood there trying to get enough change for the phonecall

Since I've had a mobile I have always got a very cheap basic nokia at about £15. What I have is fine for text n calls but nothing else, it is so basic.

A friend of mine showed me his smartphone with all its gadgets and how he can connect to the net on it and take very high quality pictures and receive emails and download applications. It seems very handy and very clever compared to my crappy cheap basic phone

I have decided its time to try out the latest technology, just like I finally got a mobile in 2005 now I want to finally get a smartphone in 2013!

But I am totally clueless. What is the best model to get? What decent one can I get on a budget without spending ridiculous amounts of cash? I had a browse in carphone warehouse and Vodafone at my local shopping mall this afternoon and was surprised to see Smartphones on sale for £65 and even less. My friend told me a decent smartphone is between like £300-£600. I could have bought one there and then but when something is selling so cheap I wonder is it quality or crap? Especially as I was led to believe they are so expensive.
Are they on sale or bargains for xmas?

Basically what good quality smartphone could I get at an affordable price?

Have a look at the Nokia 520 - reasonable price, good size, clear screen and runs very well.

What's affordable in your terms?

A once flagship device like the Galaxy S3 can be had for £13/month over 24 months with 250MB data/unlimited texts/300 minutes (after cashback redemption). Getting previous generations of flagship devices is sometimes a very good way of getting value for money.

Let folk here know your budget per month and it'll help with the recommendations.

i have the vodaphone smartmini

its a budget handset ,cost me 60£

does everything my kids galxy does at a fraction of the price

i'd say between £30-40 per month

I would say with that budget on pay monthly you probably could just about get any phone on the market.

What phone did your friend have?

For a budget phone then the Nokia 520 is a good recommendation, probably about £100.00

Low priced Android phones can be a bit hit & miss.

But if you are spending up to £40.00 then look at probably the HTC One, S4, Sony Z1 or the new LG. If you can spend about £350ish out right then maybe the new Nexus phone, only released yesterday.

And of course there is also the Iphone as well.

Best advice is go and have a play with them all and see which one you like.