[General Topics] sauron0101:
I'm putting together a general guide for people to choose an Android phone because increasingly, there are so many choices. This guide will likely be more focused on North American customers at the moment, because that is where I come from and have the most knowledge. This is not going to be completely comprehensive (impossible), but it will be intended to be a good starting point.

I will be updating this thread as new phones emerge and removing older devices.

What to look for when buying a new phone:

Write down all of the features you want. Then take a look at the phones available and the carriers. Remember that specs are not everything (ex: higher megapixel does not mean better camera and clockspeed does not mean faster CPU). Look at how good a carrier is, their coverage, their price, and the customer service. Am I roaming? What are the terms of the contract?

When choosing a phone, remember that each manufacturer will have their flaws:

- HTC: Expensive phones (when buying unlocked), poor battery life, and poor cameras. On the plus side, HTC has the best upgrade record of the Android makers, generally good build quality, and easy to mod (most amount of development at XDA as well), although not always prompt at releasing source code. They use mainly Qualcomm Snapdragon CPUs with Adreno graphics. They are known for their distinct "Sense" UI.

- Samsung: Samsung phones have worse build quality than HTC (they seem to be very fond of soft-touch glossy plastic that makes their phones, even their flagships feel cheap) and they have a bad rep for their slow updates. Samsung generally will have some of the best displays (that is their speciality, although their SuperAMOLED is over saturated), good specs overall (they are a massively integrated company and make most of the parts in their phones themselves). They are also prompt in releasing source code. Cameras are also decent on Samsung phones. They use a variety of different CPUs.

- Motorola: Motorola has good update speed on the American phones, but in the rest of the world, updates are poor. One alarming recent trend is their locked bootloaders, which make it hard to load custom ROMs. They have generally good audio and call quality, but cameras are average. One noteworthy thing is the colour accuracy on their screens is excellent. They use mainly TI's OMAP series of CPUs, although an Nvidia Tegra 2 phone is expected.

- LG: LG has had tough times recently, but seems to be turning around. I have not had a lot of experience with their handsets, but it seems that the build quality is decent, judging by their Optimus series. I look forward to seeing whatever variant of the Optimus 2X ends up in North America.

The next step would be to consider your budget. Low end phones are generally less than $250 USD/about 200 Euros (things are more pricey in Europe), midrange would make up about $250 - $400 USD (200 Euros to maybe 350 Euros), and anything greater than $400 would be considered high end. Higher end phones generally have better build quality, resolution, processors, cameras, and are faster at getting updates, not to mention features that low end phones often skimp on.

Globally: Worldwide, phones will vary significantly based on carrier, coverage, and choice. High end phones tend to come out uniquely for North America and the rest of the world. There are going to be way too many choices to mention here, but here are the ones that stand out. In most cases, I'd recommend getting a phone at least 480x320, becuase that is the resolution that Android was intended for.

- Samsung Galaxy S: Super AMOLED screen, it's own unique variant of the buttons, front facing camera, 5 MP 720p camera, and SuperAMOLED screen. This phone is hampered by no LED flash and defective GPS units.

- Samsung Galaxy Apollo: Mid-range Android phone (need more details)

- Samsung Galaxy Europa: Need details, but looks like low-end phone

- HTC Desire HD: Essentially an Android GSM variant of the HTC HD2 and the HTC Evo. It has a large 4.3" screen, a camera with dual LED flash, standard 4 button Android configuration, but no front facing camera. It's hampered by the poor battery life.

- HTC Desire Z: A smaller variant of the Desire HD with a lower end processor, keyboard, and a smaller screen. I'm not comfortable with the durability of the hinge, but otherwise, an excellent phone.

- HTC Legend: Successor to the HTC Hero, this is phone is a midrange phone and feels pretty snappy. My choice for a midrange phone.

- HTC Wildfire: Lower-end phone (320 x 240), small screen, and light

- Sony Ericsson X10: Currently Sony's flagship. Hampered by Sony's slow updates, and no multitouch. Low storage. On the upside, it has a pretty good camera and a high-res screen.

- Sony Ericsson X8: Pretty decent mid-range phone. Comparable to the HTC Legend in specs, but only has Android 2.1.

- Sony Ericsson X10 Mini: Somewhere in between the X10 and the X8. It's similar to the X8 in most cases and feels like a pretty good phone overall.

- LG Optimus: Well priced mid-range handset. Build quality is pretty good and comparable to the X8 and the HTC Hero.

- Motorola Milestone 2: High end handset, but Motorola's seems to be slower with their international updates

- Motorola Defy: Durable handset, mid-range specs, but stuck on Android 2.1

There are many, many cheap phones coming in from China and India that are too numerous to mention here. I'd recommend looking at reviews and examining what you think is reliable based off of your best judgment. Some nations also have their own phones that cannot be bought elsewhere, such as the Meizu M9 and Sharp's IS03.

The North American Market:

North America uses what is known as a subsidy model. The carriers buy the phones from the manufacturers, brand them (often with their own bloatware), and in the case of GSM carriers, apply a SIM lock. I recommend that if you live in North America, that you only buy a high end phone if you are going on contract. The cost of a high end phone (an extra $150-$250 + tax) is not significant relative to the life of the contract. I suppose that if you are buying lower end phones, you could consider something less potent.

LG Optimus is my recommendation for a low-end phone. An alternative are the low-end HTC devices, most notable the HTC Wildfire and HTC Aria. I anticipate that as Android gains more traction here, that we'll begin to see low end, prepaid Android phones within the $100 mark.

Canada (my home country):

The Canadian market is dominated by 3 carriers (Bell, Telus - which shares infrastructure with Bell, and Rogers, the largest). Three drawbacks that we Canucks face is the poor choice of smartphones compared to the US, the expensive data plans, and the 3 year contracts. On the upside, buying a phone unlocked is cheaper than Europe (all electronics are generally cheaper than Europe, but cheaper still than in the US). They all use GSM and HSPA+ at this point, with their phones unlockable and interchangeable.:

Bell:

- Samsung Galaxy S (dubbed "Vibrant", although it is an i9000). Be careful about upgrading to Froyo, bricked devices have been reported.

- Desire Z (your choice if you want a keyboarded phone - luckily, it can be bought and unlocked. At $500 CAD, it isn't a bad deal either)

Telus:

- Samsung Fascinate (GSM version of the Verizon phone)

- HTC Desire (Nexus One Clone)

- It is expected that the HTC Desire HD will come onto Telus in H1 2011

Rogers (best coverage of the three carriers, but poorest Android support):

- Samsung Captivate (i896 - buy this instead of the i897 if you're going off contract; it doesn't seem to have the lag or GPS problems, plus no bloatware)

- Acer Liquid E (cheaper alternative)

I recommend against buying the Dell Streak (poor build quality overall) and the X10 (poor updates). For Rogers particularly, every year, there is a 6gb data promotion that I recommend holding off and waiting specifically for.

United States:

Dominated by 4 carriers, plus a host of smaller CDMA carriers.

Verizon: Largest carrier, CDMA; going to LTE. They seem to have lots of Motorola phones.

- Motorola Droid X (large screen, no keyboard)

- Motorola Droid 2 Global (keyboard, good for world travel as it has a SIM slot, although the GSM SIM card doesn't work on AT&T)

- Motorola Droid Pro (like a Blackberry sized version of the Droid 2)

- Samsung Fascinate (Galaxy S with LED flash, but less storage, and standard Android key layout); Bing

- Samsung Continuum (smaller Galaxy S with a "ticker on bottom")

- HTC Droid Incredible (older phone now, still pretty good device that appears to be derived from Nexus One)

AT&T: GSM carrier; second largest in North America. Be advised that AT&T locks down their phones, allowing no apps from unknown sources. A custom ROM is recommended.

- Samsung Captivate: Variant of Galaxy S; no front facing camera, standard Android button layout

I mentioned that I would only recommend high-end phones, because for the duration of a contract, the extra initial price is not significant. I do not recommend choosing the Sony X10 over the Captivate. AT&T does have a host of lower end phones, such as the HTC Aria and Motorola Backflip.

Sprint: CDMA carrier; currently rolling out WiMAX in many cities (be aware that WiMAX phones carry and extra $10/month charge):

- Samsung Epic 4G (Galaxy S phone with keyboard and standard Android button configuration. WiMAX. Also has LED flash, but less storage. Arguably the best of the Galaxy S variants).

- HTC EVO (first WiMAX design): Qualcomm Snapdragon 1 GHz, 4.3" LCD screen, front facing camera.

Note that there is a significant drop in battery life with WiMAX enabled and that the high frequency of WiMAX can make it hard to get a reliable signal in some buildings and underground. Not all cities have WiMAX yet either.

Recall what I said about getting a high-end phone in North America.

T-Mobile: T-Mobile is also a GSM carrier, using mainly AWS banded phones. They were the first Android supporter.

- Samsung Vibrant (not be confused with the Canadian Bell version, this is a variant of the Galaxy S with the standard Android button configuration)

- Nexus S (I'd recommend in most cases that you get this instead of the Vibrant between the two due to fast upgrades, NFC, and gyroscope. On the downside, the concave screen is more fragile, there is no microSD, and no HSPA+).

- HTC MyTouch 4G (latest version of MyTouch, comes with a variant of HTC Sense, and a trackpad)

- HTC G2 (basically a variant of the Desire Z intended for the T-Mobile bands; unique to this variant is that it is close to stock Android)

- HTC Nexus One (aging now, and not available for sale, but an worthy mention as this is the phone that made this generation of phones happen)

Feedback and constructive criticism are always welcome.