T-Mobile Prism Pro Reviews

If any other carrier offered the Prism, we'd have written it off based purely on specs alone. While T-Mobile doesn't infuse the handset with anything truly noteworthy, it does make a suitable starter device for those finally making the leap from feature phone to smartphone. While power users and gamers will want to stay far, far away from the T-Mobile Prism, it's also a decent handset for teenagers to keep in touch with parents and friends - or even for less-discriminating users on a budget.

The Huawei Prism isn't ever going to be an iconic smartphone that everyone -- or anyone, really -- lusts over. It's not that kind of device. Instead, it hopes to provide a simple feature set in an inexpensive wrapper to those seeking the basic entry-level smartphone. In that quest, it succeeds. The Prism is no stunner in the design department, and the middling specs will scare off anyone looking for even a moderately capable smartphone. What the Prism lacks in looks and extravagant software powers, it makes up for with solid performance in the core features. The one real exception is the camera. In short, the Prism's camera stinks. If that's a vital feature for you, look elsewhere. Otherwise, the Prism does an excellent job of connecting to T-Mobile's network, offers outstanding voice performance, and has enough battery power to keep the phone alive for two full days. Throw in decent system performance and the functional communications tool set offered by stock Android 2.3.6 Gingerbread, and you have a fairly good basic smartphone that's well worth the $20 contract price.

For someone who's looking to be a first-time smartphone owner and doesn't care about data speeds, the T-Mobile Prism is a decent start. Though the carrier offers other entry-level phones, like the LG Doubleplay and the Samsung Gravity Lunar for free, the Prism still has a cleaner look or newer OS. However, for just $10 more, I'd consider the Samsung Exhibit II 4G instead. It's still a T-Mobile handset, but as you may have guessed, it runs on its 4G network. And if you want to watch your videos, load your maps, or read your e-mails faster, the extra money forked over will be worth it.