A very shiny collection.

Here are all the phones I’ve used for more than one day:

• Nokia 8860
• Nokia 8260 (2 different ones)
• Sony Ericsson T68
• Audiovox VOX 8610
• Panasonic TX320
• Motorola C337
• LG 1010
• LG LX325
• LG 1100
• LG LX1200
• Kyocera Slider
• Nokia 3586i
• RIM Blackberry 6710
• RIM Blackberry 7230
• Motorola RAZR V3 (2 different ones)
• Motorola ROKR
• LG 5225
• Nokia 6030
• Nokia 6682 (2 of these)
• Samsung SYNC
• Samsung Wafer
• Apple iPhone

This list sadly only covers an 8 year period, and while it represents all major bands (TDMA, CDMA, GSM) on all major national U.S. carriers (AT&T Wireless, Verizon, Sprint, Nextel, T-Mobile, Cingular, Alltel, and AT&T Mobility), there are very few phones on this list that I enjoyed.

Of those 22 phone models, there were 3 I was excited to get: the original Nokia 8860, the original Moto RAZR V3, and Apple’s iPhone. The allure of the RAZR wore off after a few months of living with the software - the physical device was fine, but the software took a lot of getting used to. Power management issues were the nail in this phone’s coffin; you could put a perfectly fine battery in one of them and get only a few minutes of use. The shape and form of the RAZR remains great, however, which is why it’s still out there.

I have nothing but good things to say about the Nokia 8860, 8260, and 6030; these are all small bar phones with decent to great battery life and great reception. The 8860 was years ahead of its time (and had the price tag to match.) I loved it.

Surprisingly, the 6682 was a good smartphone (if somewhat unwieldy and cumbersome) but it had a nasty habit of rejecting SIM cards and failing in the middle of trips. It actually turned out to be one of the worst phones I’ve used for precisely this reason.

The ROKR holds the distinction of being the worst phone I’ve used. Poor interface, poor reception, poor battery life; oi. This poor, poor phone. (Maybe I got a lemon, but I don’t hear anyone raving about this phone.)

The Panasonic and LG 5225 were also good phones, and most of the rest were fair to middling: adequate tools for the job, but not something I’d say you must go out and buy. I don’t think I’ll reminisce about any of them like I do the Nokia 8860/8260s.

Why am I telling you all this? Two reasons.

First, I boxed up most of these today and am sending them off to a cell phone recycling center. It feels good to jettison the clutter.

Second, when I say that iPhone is the nicest, most well-designed phone that I’ve ever owned, you have the proper context.