Cell phones serve many purposes these days. They keep us connected to the internet and each other and are excellent, portable entertainment centers. They provide people with directions, keep them on schedule, and even provide emergency communications. They also allow us to shop, store memories in the form of pictures and texts, and learn things like new languages.

Whether their current phone was damaged, they merely wanted an upgraded device or they reached the end of a service contract, those seeking a new cell phone have so many options to choose from today. With the larger manufacturers like Apple, Google, and Samsung presenting exciting new versions of their devices alongside other high-quality phones priced for those balancing a budget, how does one choose? It all comes down to two questions the person needs to ask themselves. What features do they need the cell phone to have? What features do they want for the cell phone to have?

Top 8 Tips to Selecting the Right Cell Phone

1. Pay Only For What You Need
2. Android Offers More Options and Apple is User-Friendly
3. Brightness and Color Quality Over Resolution
4. Look at All Camera Specs Not Just Megapixels
5. Most Processors Today are Pretty Good
6. Select the Right Screen Size For You
7. You Should Get More Than 10 Hours of Battery Life After a Charge
8. You Need at Least 32GB of Storage Space

The Top 8 Explained

When selecting the best cell phone to suit their needs and wants, the user will first want to give some thought to how they use cell phones each day. What do they need to do on them? Once the needs have been determined, they may also decide on one to two features they'd like to have. Then, before they even begin their shopping process, they should know exactly how much they have to spend on the device. Knowing that amount could eliminate a lot of choices and save the user time. The goal is finding a phone with everything they need, and maybe the one to two items they'd like to have while staying within the targeted budget amount.

Most know already if they prefer Android or iOS (Apple). Those new to the debate need to understand that iOS is easier to use, enjoys frequent software updates, and get popular apps first. Android offers far more options, however, when it comes to hardware and affordability.

Phones offering a higher resolution are going to cost more. Is the image quality on a cell phone really worth the cost? More attention should be given to the brightness of the display and the number of colors used in the panel. Bright displays make the phone easier to view outdoors and newer phones offer HDR (high dynamic range) so more colors may be displayed.

Cameras have become one of the most important features cell phones offer but most have been told to look at the number of megapixels only. Attention should also be paid to the other camera specifications like aperture (the lower the number the better), optical image stabilization, optical zoom and other features like dual lenses.

The processors offered on cell phones today are a vast improvement over the processors used in the past. If the user plans to do a lot of gaming or virtual reality on the device, a more powerful processor is warranted. Otherwise, keep in mind that even mid level phones have processors that offer pretty solid performance with most applications.

The size of the screen should also be considered practically and not from the point of view that bigger is better. Those often using their devices one-handed, or who have smaller hands, may opt for a screen smaller than 5.5 inches. Those who watch a lot of movies, videos and television shows on their phone may opt for a larger screen size. With multi-window mode in Android growing in popularity, more users may decide on a larger screen size to enjoy take advantage of the new option.

Another thing a user might consider researching before they buy a new cell phone is the length of time a given device can last between charges. With so many options available, there's no need for anyone to settle for a device that can't last at least 10 hours in between chargings.

When it comes to storage, ensuring a decent amount of onboard storage space is important nowadays. While microSD cards can be used to increase storage space, some Android phones don't use them and some apps won't allow you to use them for storage. 32GB of storage space is adequate for most in providing for the apps they want to install and use, the media they want to keep, and more.

In stopping to consider what they need and want in a cell phone before shopping, most will select a device that suits their needs well at an affordable price.