RIM BlackBerry 7100t

When it comes to email-enabled phones, nothing beats a BlackBerry, and the Vodafone-branded 7100v has enjoyed a deserved place on the A List since last year. But since then, a few other flavours of BlackBerry have arrived on the scene. O2 and T-Mobile have launched their 7100x and 7100t variants respectively, and Orange is rumoured to be gearing up for a 7100g launch in the near future.

Unlike most phones, where the operator branding is simply a matter of silk-screening a logo onto the case and customising the menus, with the 7100 series the changes go a bit further. Although all of these 7100 devices have the same innards and are roughly the same size, they also have distinct physical differences, including the actual colour of the device.

We don't think you should be seduced by these variations in styling, though. Instead, pay attention to the tariffs offered by the mobile operators, and in particular check out how much monthly allowance they'll give you for your email data: Vodafone wants £15 for 6MB; O2 will relieve you of £11.50 per month for 5MB of data; T-Mobile, on the other hand, offers a whopping 50MB for just £10 per month. Due to the bandwidth-efficient way the BlackBerry service operates, this 50MB should be plenty for even the most ardent email addicts. And this means the 7100t displaces the 7100v on the A List.