Smart buy
Vodafone's own-brand Smart smartphone is now available to purchase for a mere £60 on pay as you go; there are no contract options, as Vodafone offers much more capable handsets with its pay monthly tariffs.
Although decidedly at the budget end of the market, it still has most of the features you'd expect of a smartphone. The Smart runs Android 2.2, has a 2.8in capacitive touchscreen, a 2-megapixel camera and packs 3G connectivity. The Smart is available in black and white as standard, with further colourful cases available, at £10 a pop, putting the price of the handset itself into some perspective.
Vodafone says the Smart is pre-loaded with "a host of useful features," including a prepay management application for topping up. Access to the Android Marketplace means the Smart can also be loaded with third party apps - a step up from less budget Android devices, which sometimes eschew Google's Marketplace.
The Smart isn't particularly impressive, but its low price excuses that somewhat, so if for those worried about how much your phone costs than what it can do, it at least presents another option.
