Mobile Phone questions

[Deleted]

Hi all, for years I never owned a mobile phone. I didn't really want or need one.

I decided when I moved out for Uni that I would take the spare phone from my parents, which has a contract sim-card inside but was put into some crappy old Nokia.

Now it's due an upgrade, so I'll be able to choose a phone and I'm lost, I need your help.

Main questions I have are:
Benefits/disadvantages of each OS?
What phones/which OS is good for gaming&video?

[Deleted]

IOS and Android are both very good for gaming/video and they have plenty of aps, it's basically a matter of taste between those two. Windows is fine also, but i wouldn't buy a Windows phone just yet until there are more aps. I personally like iOS a bit more, most Android phones that i have tested tend to be a bit laggy. And i really have tested many of them as i work in a place that sells phones Asus Padfone 2 is propably one of the best Android phone i have tested in a long time and while it is a bit pricey as a phone, it is also a tablet at the same time, so the price is very reasonable if you are thinking of buying a tablet too.

[Felicia]

I have an Iphone 4s, and I absolutely love it. It's loads much faster then the 3gs, and I recently upgraded from that. Just be careful with the cellular data when you do get one. It tends to suck it dry really fast. I'd turn off Icloud, and only use WiFi when available.

I was looking at the Galaxy SIII, but my frugal senses got the better of me :P So I got the iphone (refurbished) instead. My husband has one as well, and he adores it. He's stationed in Pensacola right now, and I haven't moved down yet. Being able to use FaceTime or Skype is absolutely awesome. I know I can use my computer, but I'm living with the parental units, and everyone is super nosy. Has an 8.0 megapixel camera on both sides, with a flash. Takes great video, too.

[vindicatorx]

I went with a Virgin Mobile Android because I can't afford $100 a month for a cell phone bill. Both have a lot of the same games/applications available and it kinda depends on you which OS you would prefer Apple's user interface is a little more simplistic but I like a lot of the Android functions like the voice to text features on mine. You will see tons of Iphones at college as they are the most trendy. I would suggest going to a Best Buy and checking out phones before buying one.

[imabanana]

This "WP needs more apps" is getting old, been using one for 2 years and there's really nothing I need that's not available right now. This may be more true for games only, but getting way better last months with new version allowing lower level programming for 3d.

For a quick benefits/disadvantages :
iOS / WP are much more stable and efficient, both have no need for crazy hardware to run smoothly, but are more limited in terms of application possibilities.
Android has (much) more configuration options, basically, you can do whatever you want (or not want).

This is the only major difference, I tend to recommend Android to more geeky persons (people who will want their phone to do exactly what they want, and willing to spend hours trying to achieve this), iOS or WP to any other (people who want... well... a phone, not a time-sinking gadget).

For video, no real difference between all this, unless you want to play mkv files or some exotic formats, Android is a must then (not saying it will be easy to do, but doable).

Using both WP and Android daily (both for work and private life), iOS a bit less often and work only.

[Deleted]

This "WP needs more apps" is getting old

This is very true. I had owned a WP up until 2 days ago (screen was so badly scratched that I decided to upgrade) and all the apps I needed were on there. However, that argument might be true for games; there isn't many.
Since this is your first 'true' phone, by true I mean probably a smartphone, I would recommend Android. It does not take a computer scientist to operate it, and games, videos and music run smoothly. Infact, on Google Play, a lot of the apps that would need to be paid for on iOS and WP are free. Pretty cool. Android is more customizable than WP or iOS, you can manipulate anything on it basically. It is your personal phone. You just can't achieve that with WP or iOS. When I had my WP I really missed android, even though I had been bored of Android when I left my old phone. I had though that android was just your 'basic' OS, but for me, it's the best one out there.
If I were you, I'd go for stock android, which means that the device has no manufacturer software 'skin' draped over the pure android OS. An example of this software can be the Samsung WizTouch interface, or something like that, can't remember the software name precisely. This software can sometimes slow down the phone.

Edit: Buy a screen protector. Seriously. If you don't you'll regret it.