The magnificent seven best touchscreen phones

Only the most blinkered members of the anti-Apple brigade would have the temerity to deny that the iPhone has revolutionised the mobile phone world.

However, while this excellent ‘jack-of-all-trades’ device continues to amaze with its versatility and oh-so-slick touchscreen interface, it’s not exactly the most accessible option for prospective mobile shoppers.

For starters, it’s only currently available on O2 here in the UK and the high price tag puts it out of reach for those of us that are on a budget thanks to the current state of ‘Credit Crunch’ Britain.

Thankfully, the iPhone isn’t the only option out there if you’re hankering for some touchscreen action with your mobile. The past year has seen a massive rise in the number of handsets that boast this technology and we’ve been keeping tabs on the best examples out there to bring you this handy list of potential purchases.

This feature-packed handset is the current flagship of LG’s entire mobile phone catalogue (and will remain so until the recently-announced Arena hits the shelves later this year) and it’s easy to see why.

It packs an 8 megapixel camera (far superior to the rather weedy one found on the iPhone), Dolby Mobile for improved sound quality and even the ability to play high-quality DviX movies.

The only drawback is that the operating system isn’t anywhere near as polished as Apple’s and the touchscreen uses resistive technology as opposed to capacitive, so it’s prone to bouts of inaccuracy.

Still, considering you can get this free with many contracts, the Renoir represents one of the best touchscreen buys out there at present.

LG has something of a reputation for providing low-cost options for cash-strapped mobile shoppers, and while recent hits such as the Shine, Chocolate and Secret have gone some way to changing this undesirable brand perception, the Cookie is undoubtedly built with ‘Average Joe’ in mind.

At just under £100 it’s currently one of the cheapest touchscreen phones on the market and the most amazing thing is that in technical terms it offers an experience that is very nearly on par with its costlier stable mate, the Renoir.

If you’re keen to ditch the keypad and start using those digits to dial with, then this currently represents the easiest (and cheapest) option - little wonder then that this phone is selling by the truckload and has recently been re-launched in different colours.

Alongside LG, fellow Korean firm Samsung has been the most prolific supporter of touchscreen hardware. After the rather lacklustre P520 (which was crippled by a poor interface), the Tocco is a vast improvement and manages to combine an intuitive menu system with killer aesthetics - the slick casing of the phone is likely to make jaws drop in approval whenever it’s removed from your pocket.

The inexplicable lack of an accelerometer means the Tocco lacks hardcore gaming appeal, but if you value sheer desirability over functionality, then this is a good choice - after all, everyone likes to be a poser sometimes.

Ok, so we’ve cheated a little here - the Secret isn’t technically a fully touchscreen phone, with its ‘Touch Media’ option only granting access to a small amount of features, but it makes the cut because it’s bold enough to use capacitive technology as opposed to the cheaper (but slightly less dependable) resistive option.

If the thought of having to dial phone numbers or compose text messages using a touchscreen doesn’t appeal to you, yet you crave the ability to forlornly prod your screen with a finger from time to time, then the Secret might be an acceptable middle ground.

To activate the ‘Touch Media’ menu you have to hold down a button on the side of the phone. This system only allows you to play MP3s, control the FM radio, view photos, read documents and start up the ‘M-Toy’ gaming platform, but at least it will fulfil your limited touch screen aspirations - and it’s a damn sexy phone, to boot.

We may have been a little disappointed with the overall performance of Sony Ericsson’s much-hyped Windows Mobile Smartphone, but one aspect that did succeed in pleasing us was the touchscreen.

Considering it’s the oft-criticised resistive type, we were expecting the usual issues of lack of responsiveness, but the Xperia really surprised us; in fact, at one point we were even convinced that it packed a capacitive display until we checked the specifications.

However, those of you shopping for a low-cost alternative to the iPhone will probably find the Xperia a little too rich for your tastes: thanks to the insanely powerful CPU and wealth of features contained within, it’s not the cheapest phone currently doing the rounds.

Big things were expected of Nokia’s first ever touchscreen phone, and while it doesn’t quite live up to the incredible hype it’s still a thoroughly likable handset - and it's now even more enticing as Nokia has recently rolled out its ‘Comes With Music’ service to the phone.

Okay, so there are issues - a rather outdated interface being possibly the most troublesome - but the 5800 has its own distinctive charm and if you’ve had a foot in the Nokia camp previously then there’s every chance you might actually prefer this over the iPhone.

T-Mobile G1

The first Android handset arrived on the scene last year in an explosion of frenzied publicity but -as we discovered when we reviewed it in November - it’s more of a commendable first attempt than the all-conquering iPhone-killer that T-Mobile cruelly had us expecting.

It’s bulky, slightly light on features and lacks many mod-cons that we now tend to expect from our cutting-edge phones (no 3.5mm headphone jack - when will they learn?) but to the people who want Android to succeed, none of that will matter: the fact that it features Google’s new operating system will be reason enough to make an investment.

However, like the Xperia, this is a pricey phone and if you’re lucky enough to be in the position of considering a purchase then you might have to stop and ask if the iPhone isn’t a better option.