Top 10 phones in March

For the first time in many months, there's finally an even representation from each of the major phone-makers in our monthly Top 10 charts. LG, Samsung and Sony Ericsson each snagged two spots on the list. Nokia secured three positions, with the Apple iPhone 3G placed 6th.

The Nokia E71 remained a hot favorite, while the Samsung F480 and Nokia 5800 XpressMusic were tied at second spot. The latter is the first Nokia touchscreen smartphone that runs on the S60 5th edition software. It is also the first to support Comes With Music, the Finn's unlimited music download service. You can read more about the device and service here and here, respectively.

Other new entrants to the Top 10 list included the Nokia E63, LG Secret and Samsung Ultra Touch, while the Nokia E66, N85, 6600 slide, 3120 classic, Sony Ericsson C902 Cyber-shot and Samsung Pixon all fell out of favor with the crowds.

Note: Results are based on readership as well as data collected from retail outlets (Mobile Square and WhyMobile) and the major mobile operators in Singapore including:

MobileOne

SingTel

StarHub

	1.	Nokia E71          CNET Asia rating: 8.7 out of 10 The good: Slim and stylish design; solid build quality; full range of wireless features; works right out of the box; snappy performance; excellent battery life. The bad: Counter-intuitive camera autofocus; media browser could do with a little upgrade; Easy Dial feature not available. The bottom line: The Nokia E71 is easily one of the best QWERTY smart phones that combine strong features as well as a good balance between business and entertainment, at a competitive price. Review | See full specs | Rate this
	2.	Samsung SGH-F480   CNET Asia rating: 6.6 out of 10 The good: Compact size; solid build; cool widgets interface; HSDPA; Bluetooth stereo; microSD expansion card slot. The bad: Vulnerable to fingerprints; software can be improved; lacks Wi-Fi. The bottom line: The F480 is a stylish touchscreen handset with a wealth of features, but its user interface could do with a little improvement. Review | See full specs | Rate this
	2.	Nokia 5800 XpressMusic   CNET Asia rating: 8.1 out of 10 The good: Good set of connectivity features; unlimited music download with Comes With Music; hard-to-match price for features. The bad: Inconsistent user interface; not many apps optimized for the screen resolution and touch UI. The bottom line: Nokia's first outing with the S60 5th Edition platform and unlimited music download service proves to be very compelling. It just needs to address the inconsistencies in the user interface. Review | See full specs | Rate this
	4.	Sony Ericsson W595 Walkman   CNET Asia rating: 7.4 out of 10 The good: Easy to use; good sound quality; decent resolution camera; battery life; screen. The bad: No 3.5mm headphone socket; no camera flash. The bottom line: This is a solid phone, aside from its lack of a real headphone socket. But if you're expecting anything radically new, you might want to wait a little while for Sony Ericsson to start innovating before you upgrade. Review | See full specs | Rate this
	5.	Nokia E63   CNET Asia rating: 7.9 out of 10 The good: QWERTY keypad; Wi-Fi. The bad: Lack of HSDPA and GPS. The bottom line: The Nokia E63 is a good phone that delivers a competent texting and email experience, but its E71 predecessor is better, offering more features and greater finesse. If you want a smartphone that stands out from the crowd, however, the colorful E63 is worth checking out. Review | See full specs | Rate this