"I'll take 'Cutest Cellphone Ever' for $200, Alex."

November 22, 2007 8:02 AM

My wife is looking for a 'Cute' cellphone - This is obviously something I'm not having a lot of luck searching for on Google.

We're trying to stay under $200. Good reception and user interface, GSM preferred. I don't mind undoing subsidy locks, and reserve the right to punch anybody who says 'iPhone!' in the arm.

posted by Orb2069 to technology (28 comments total)

I personally think motorola has crappy UI but the PEBL is pretty cute.
posted by stratastar at 8:11 AM on November 22, 2007

If you can still find it, the Pantech c3 is almost comically small (and cute). AT&T used to have it. You cannot believe how small that thing is. I think it is still the world's smallest camera phone.
posted by 4ster at 8:14 AM on November 22, 2007

Oops. Here is the link I meant to use.
posted by 4ster at 8:15 AM on November 22, 2007

The Motorola PEBL is kinda cute, I think.

And there are only a few cellphone manufacturers (I'm probably forgetting somebody, but there's Motorola, Nokia, Samsung, LG and Sony/Ericsson, plus a bunch of also-rans (Kyocera, Pantech, etc.) and PDA makers)--you could visit their websites, and check phone-geek sites like Mobiledia, Phonescoop and Howard Forums.

But cuteness is at least partially in the eye of the beholder, and so it seems to me that this might be one of those things where you'd be better off browsing cellphone stores. Lucky you.
posted by box at 8:16 AM on November 22, 2007

I don't know what the "real world" prices are for these, so forgive me if they don't fall within your budget.

A young lady coworker has one of these.

Then there's this.

This previous generation model might be less expensive.

And here's another.
posted by The Deej at 8:23 AM on November 22, 2007

It's way over your budget, but there's really no getting any cuter than this.
posted by ferociouskitty at 8:36 AM on November 22, 2007

Datapoints from a limited sample: among my friends, "cute" is code for "pink".
posted by jamaro at 8:36 AM on November 22, 2007

One of my friends has a Nokia 5200 and I totally covet it -- hers is the red one and it's very cute!
posted by ukdanae at 9:02 AM on November 22, 2007

Red Motorola RIZR?
posted by GuyZero at 9:06 AM on November 22, 2007

The Nokia 5300 has the exact same look as the 5200, but is considerably better with more features at only a slightly higher price point. I bought my 5300 for $175 new off Craigslist. I think it's cute - especially if you get the purple one. So far, I like it quite a bit, but i've only had it a month or so - we'll see how it holds up.
posted by cgg at 9:11 AM on November 22, 2007 [1 favorite]

I think the pink RAZR might qualify. I see a lot of girly girls with these.
posted by reenum at 9:17 AM on November 22, 2007

My wife adores her puke green PEBL. Seems to be a chick thing.
posted by schwa at 9:24 AM on November 22, 2007

2nding the Pantech c3, it's cheap too, I got it free with my contract. It's not a bad phone either, the keys are actually bigger than my last phone. If she's a heavy phone user it might not be the best as it's fairly light on features but it's a great basic camera phone. It accepts faceplates - you might find a cute one online.
posted by Craig at 9:31 AM on November 22, 2007

Hey, that Pantech looks cool, and I'm not even a girl. Or a girly-man.
posted by The Deej at 10:02 AM on November 22, 2007

I've bought 2 or 3 unlocked phones from myworldphone and they've always got weird cool european nokia/samsung/motorola phones you can't get here that would definitely fill the cute bill. They have the PEBL in colors within your budget.
posted by mathowie at 10:30 AM on November 22, 2007 [1 favorite]

For the record: the LG Chocolate phone has shitty reception. Don't buy that, even though it is a "fashion" phone.
posted by loiseau at 10:42 AM on November 22, 2007

I think the "Juke" is probably the "cutest" cell phone that I've seen lately.
posted by davidmsc at 11:19 AM on November 22, 2007

Girls seem to like my phone, the samsung trace. They say "omigod! that is MY phone!"
posted by BlackLeotardFront at 12:32 PM on November 22, 2007

My Little Kitty. (But it's way out of your price range.)
posted by Steven C. Den Beste at 1:00 PM on November 22, 2007

I <3 this phone. It is beyoooootiful. Next to the totally unaffordable Hello Kitty phone, it is my favourite mobile design.
posted by DarlingBri at 2:13 PM on November 22, 2007 [1 favorite]

My 13 year old daughter LOVES her Samsung u700. It's thin and shiny and sleek and, dare I say it, sexy. The large screen and 3.2mp camera allow her to take her own cute girly photos and apply her own cuteness as wallpaper.
Again out of your price range. I got hers for $0 upfront on contract.
posted by goshling at 2:26 PM on November 22, 2007 [1 favorite]

I have the Pantech c3--it is almost toy-like in its diminutive size. As said above, it is fairly easy to use and very easy to carry. I am a pocket girl, not a purse girl, and it is just right for that. Might be too easily lost for a time if you are used to just throwing your phone into a huge bag. The big downside is that finding a usb package has been all but impossible. I had to get ringtones from a phone call, and I still can't get the pictures off of it. This may change? I do wish there was more support, but the cute, it has.
posted by thebrokedown at 6:08 PM on November 22, 2007

Oops, one more thing. The texting is not at all user friendly and I have yet to find out how to punctuate without going into a special "punctuation" mode. For some people, perhaps not a problem, but I tend to not use txt spk.
posted by thebrokedown at 6:10 PM on November 22, 2007

i had a motorola KRZR that was completely awesome. only thing i've liked better so far is the iphone i upgraded to. (yes i am superficial, shut up.)

KRZR is jewel-like in impression, but not to the point of silliness. fits in a jeans pocket. kinda thick, but wth. great camera, if that's important.
posted by patricking at 6:18 PM on November 22, 2007

I know you said you prefer GSM, but I have to agree that the Juke is pretty stylish. If your wife wants to make a statement and stand out with her phone, the Juke is the way to go because it's so much different than all the other phones out there right now.
posted by joshrholloway at 6:57 PM on November 22, 2007

Take a look at the new Palm Centro. It's kind of cool looking, and who knows, she just might latch onto the whole PDA concept. Palm devices works so well ...
posted by intermod at 8:38 PM on November 22, 2007

The Wife Has Spoken!

Intermod: She's currently using a M130 for PDA stuff, but she dosen't want to move to a Treo. I can't blame her, since I'm currently moving away from one(270).
posted by Orb2069 at 8:07 AM on November 25, 2007

...And then I found out that the 7373 is available in pink.

Thanks, everybody! Now my wife is yelling about how unfair life is!
posted by Orb2069 at 8:19 AM on November 25, 2007