There is now a definite trend towards basic phones which are cheap to buy and simpler to use. They don’t have internet access, MP3 players and they don’t even have a camera. However, they do allow you to store phone numbers and have text and voice conversations with friends and family while out and about. These phones are ideal for people who only carry a mobile for emergencies or simply don’t want the clutter and complication of these additional features.

We decided to test cheap phones currently available on pay-as-you go tariffs, avoiding those with anything but the most basic features. After much research we decided upon the six most suitable phones; one clamshell and five conventional designs. We were keen to test a basic clamshell phone, because they did well in our last  review on mobiles back in April 2004. Although the models chosen for this review were cheap to buy they still had many useful features. All had vibrating alerts, SMS and  predictive texting, and all but one had colour screens. Five models were dual band and one had tri band technology. Dual band means that the phone can be used within the UK, Europe, Africa and Asia; tri band means it will work in North America as well.