Bleh. I’ll say it again: Bleh! I spent the majority of the morning shuffling between Best Buy and AT&T Wireless stores, checking out the latest models of Windows Mobile based phone and I came home empty handed. How could that have happened you ask? Technology hates me!

I currently have a Motorola MPx200. It has been a pretty good device over all: not too slow, not too clunky, and runs the Windows Mobile SmartPhone software 2002, 2003, and 2003SE (Second Edition) – I hear it will run Windows Media Player 10, which was recently announced. It’s got an SD slot – currently filled with a 64MB card – and has a version of the .NET Compact Framework on it. If it sounds like I’m happy with the MPx200, you’re hearing me correctly: I like this phone… So why am I looking for a new phone?

It’s probably easier to talk about the new models – that may help fill in the blanks… first, lets check out the Motorola MPx220. This is the direct successor to my current MPx200… similar design with some new features. First, it comes with Windows Mobile 2003SE and WMP9, right out of the box. It has quad-band coverage, a built in camera, Bluetooth, and a mini-SD slot. It’s also a Cingular based phone and is currently only available at Best Buy for $349 or $500 if you don’t want a plan.

Erm, OK. First off, I could care less about the following: anything other than 1900 band, a built in camera, or Bluetooth. If my phone has them, fine; if it doesn’t, I won’t miss the features. Honest. So, well, what would I really get with the MPx220? A smaller screen for one – the screen on the 220 is smaller than the 200. Then there’s the question of the phone plan. Yes, the 220 is SIM unlocked, right out of the box. Yay! However, some of the current $100 rebate that’s being offered comes form Cingular, and they won’t pay if you don’t keep their plan… Not only that, but if I wanted to keep my T-Mobile account, I would also have to go ahead and sign up for the Cingular plan, and then cancel it within 30 days or pay the $150/no-plan-surcharge… I asked Best Buy if they would demand the phone back – they said no, but why bother, if the phones not that exciting? Oh, on top of all of this, I’d need to buy a new mini-SD card and USB cable, since my 200 models won’t work with the 220. Lot of money for nothing much to show for it, really.

Next was the AT&T Audiovox SMT 5600, which is better known as the HTC Typhoon. This is a candybar-style phone that reminded me of my old Nokia 8290. It’s got Windows Mobile 2003SE and WMP10, right out of the box. It’s got tri-band support, a built in camera, Bluetooth, and a mini-SD slot. It’s also an AT&T based phone and is currently only available at AT&T Wireless stores for $199 or $299 if you don’t want to get a data plan.

Erm, OK, again. With a data plan? Yep. You not only have to get an AWS voice plan, but the 5600 requires data plan as well. Nice twist, eh? And of course, seeing as it’s an AT&T phone, so it’s SIM locked. That means if I want to use this phone on T-Mobile, I’d have to find an unlocking site – like these people that unlocked my MPx200 so it’s really a non-issue – and pay a little extra. No cradle for this phone either, but at least it uses the same cable that the MPx200 uses… I’d still need a new mini-SD card. And then there’s the phone itself… good screen. Very good, actually. Nice layout. Shitty navigation control. It’s a rectangle that rocks up and down, pushed down for left and right, and if you press the bar in the center, it’s a selector. A five-way control, but it’s very… odd. Odd enough that some carriers will have this same phone, but with a proper joystick (see T-Mobile in the UK for more). It sort of killed the it for me.

So what’s left? The plan? I didn’t even consider Cingular, because I had an out. Even if Best Buy had the phone in stock, I wasn’t too impressed. I considered AT&T for an hour or two… but it was more $10 more a month for a plan that was comparable to my T-Mo plan. Plus I had to get a data plan. And I’ve been happy with T-Mobile, for over a year now… even in CT they stepped up their coverage and in WA they’ve been great.

No need for new features. Moderately impressive hardware. New memory media format. No cradle. A new phone carrier or returns/unlocking stuff. Doesn’t make a very compelling argument does it? So why do it?

At the heart of all of this is the MPx200 itself. I like using my hands free kit. It makes driving easier and it’s useful when it’s raining: I just run the earpiece under my hood and the phone stays dry. The problem is that when I used the mono headset with my first handset, I dropped calls after 2 minutes. I switched to the stereo model, and it worked fine – I eventually chopped off the right ear bud and used that until that broke… since no other headset worked with this phone, I decided to go ahead and finally report it as an error. Motorola had me send in the phone and three weeks later I got back a refurbished phone… the mono headset still didn’t work. I ordered a new stereo headset and that drops calls after 2 minutes, too.

Consequently, I bought a new MPx200 from eBay – it’s cheaper than both the 5600 and the 220 and it works with all of my accessories… screw technological advances!