iphone/Smart phone ???'s

[pally01]

Help. I am almost completely ignorant of the smart phone scene. I carry a Blackberry, but it's work issued and I use it because I have to. If it weren't work issued, I'd go back to my trusty old pay-as-I-go phone that sends and receives calls. No camera, no email, no web access, no games. You get the idea.....

Anyways; my sister is going to get a smart phone. This will be her first cell phone of any sort, so the both of us are needing some input.

She likes iphones.
- Any big plusses/minuses regarding iphones vs Blackberrys etc?
- If going with a cell contract, she can choose a 3GS 8gb for $0.00 on 3year contract or iphone4 16gb for $159.00 or iphone4 32gb for $259.00. Are the iphone4's significantly better/different than the 3GS's?

- I assume all the storage is for movies/music etc. Are there any other compelling needs to have large storage on an iphone/smartphone?

Dataplans: 500mb/month. Is this a decent size for most people? If she surfs a site and loads a page, this counts towards the plan? If so, how many pages can be downloaded for a 500mb plan/month?

Please feel free to chime in with any/all thoughts. Apologies for the long post.

[David M]

My wife really likes her Blackberry. For her it is a work tool and not a toy for entertainment. What your sister gets should depend on how she is going to use a phone. If it's going to be used as a phone and a miniature entertainment center then get an iPhone. I don't mean that in any derogatory way but entertainment is what a lot of phones are used for now and the iPhone is great for that other than it's incapable of Flash. Otherwise, get an Android based phone.