The world of mobile phones is going to be an almighty battleground in 2008, with two big names in the industry, Nokia and Samsung, squaring off for a fight. But how do their respective weapons stack up?



Samsung - the i8510 INNOV8

2008 is already turning into a bit of a scrap between the major manufacturers of mobile phones, but one thing has made it kick off big style, as we move into the second half of the year. That, as if you couldn't guess, is the Apple iPhone 3G. It's fair to say that it's put the wind up the other big names in the industry, people like Nokia, Sony Ericsson and Samsung. Everyone is rushing to bring out super-powered mobile phones, all trying to top one another.

Samsung's entry comes in the form of the i8510 INNOV8, a brand new, S60-powered smart phone, with a not-so-secret weapon on its back. Or, in other words, it's got an 8 megapixel camera, making it the first smart phone to reach that high level benchmark. Not only that, but it's got 8Gb of memory (which you'll need, with an 8MP camera) and Samsung's patented and really, really nice media player. Oh, and GPS. And HSDPA. In other words, it's really rather powerful, it looks stunning, and admit it, you want one, don't you...

The thing is, though, the big name in the business, Nokia, aren't taking a threat like that lying down, and they already have a smart phone planned for later this year: the fabulous Nokia N96.

Nokia N96 - will it beat every other mobile phone?

Announced earlier in 2008, the Nokia N96 really does look like it has the potential to be better any other mobile phones released this year. The best way to describe it is as a mix between the sleek-shininess of the Nokia N81, and the sheer power of the Nokia N95. But with lots and lots more memory, coming to 16Gb in total (the most seen on any mobile phones so far, up there with the iPhone 3G). Ok, it only has a 5 megapixel camera (and that's still pretty big!), compared to the Samsung's 8, but this also includes Carl Zeiss lenses, and on other features the Nokia easily matches, or outclasses, the Samsung. It's going to be an interesting fight, though, because both these mobile phones have some VERY strong features. I reckon this one is going to go right down to the wire...