A Business Phone Alternative from INQ - The Chat 3G

Recall that the INQ1 garnered the Best Handset award from the MWC last February besting other mobile phone heavyweights from Nokia, LG and Blackberry. It was clear the Hutchison Whampoa owned INQ had a winner in its hands for having made a niche market with the most affordable social networking phone.

With further market research revealing that 30% of INQ1 users regularly send emails over the phone, INQ has refined and updated the handset with a more powerful and more affordable model. Capitalizing on its market behavior, INQ just recently launched its INQ Chat 3G with full QWERTY keypad, a very appealing and a better value proposition than a similarly configured handset from Nokia, its E71.

Looking like a Blackberry Curve but without its hefty price, the new INQ handset is expected to land in the UK markets by the last quarter of the year and is anticipated to hover in the ₤110 price point.

Practical QWERTY Features

The INQ Chat 3G is one of the most affordable QWERTY handset and may well be the best value social networking phone out there. With a focus on the emerging social networking crowd, the handset sports only what matters to its market, nothing fancy or extraordinary to push the price tag up. So don’t expect cutting-edge camera or multimedia features that have brought other smartphones targeting the same market into stratospheric prices.

Sporting a decent 2.4" QVGA landscape display on a candybar form factor just like any QWERTY phone that’s not a slider, the handset has one of thinnest profile with a slim 114.5mm x 61.0mm x 12.8mm size that gives it a pocket-friendly dimension.

The INQ Chat 3G carries a very capable 3.2 megapixel autofocus camera without flash that’s fairly typical for many mid-priced camera phones. It even gets a built-in GPS and iTunes syncing thrown in to complete its versatile features.

Where the Chat 3G really stands out are its messaging and social networking features. It has push e-mail for Gmail accounts and has homescreen widgets for Facebook, Twitter, Skype and Windows Live that allow tight integration with the phone for instant updates and access. And talking about access, it’s a 3G phone, as its model name clearly indicates. With it comes high speeds support for HSSPA/HSUPA that allow fast internet access and downloads not possible on a handset without it.

To cap it off, the INQ Mini 3G has a decent 120 MB of internal memory. Good enough for storing still shots prior to uploading to your Facebook or Twitter accounts. Otherwise, you can expand that up to 8GB with a microSD memory card.

An Alternative with Great Value

It’s clear that the Hutchison Whampoa based mobile phone maker has set the INQ Chat 3G on a direct collision course with leading smartphones targeting the same social networking crowd. Its edge though is its current but practical features with a keener focus on social networking apps tightly integrated into the phone. This production and design strategy obviously paid off with lower SIM-free price tags on a mobile phone that is sure to delight its target markets.

To find a comparison of INQ Chat 3G deals then visit Best Mobile Contracts. They compare prices to help you save money.