After my phone was munched a week ago by the Skytrain fare gate, I started searching for a replacement.  Fancy phone?  Basic phone?  iPhone?  PC-based interface?  What to do, what to do?

I though my problem was solved when I discovered Tawn’s old Motorola Razr sitting in his dresser drawer.  It looked like it was in okay shape and I thought that maybe it still worked. 

After charging it up and slipping my SIM card in, I discovered why he had abandoned the phone: it no longer reads SIM cards.  Pretty, but functionless.

With the LCD leak spreading, covering about half again as much of the screen as in the picture above, I realized it was time to act.

I was really torn about what to do, hesitant to spend the money on something really fancy (phones are super expensive here – an iPhone is about $800). 

Finally, after a browse in the local Nokia store, I settled on a Nokia 1680, a classic candybar model (pictured left) that is, in their range of about 40 models, about three from the bottom.

The only models more basic than mine were a strictly black and white model (what I had before) and a color model without a camera. 

My model has a color screen and a 3-megapixel camera, but not too much other than that.  Most importantly it looks super-durable.  the buttons are sort of “rubberized” and the case has a very solid feel to it.

Best of all, it was only $52, which for a phone here is quite a steal.  Hopefully it will last me several years.

Whew!  I feel so much better now that that decision has been made.