Browse the internet or visit a local wireless store and see the latest makes and models of various brands of cell phone handsets. Cell phones with advanced features like a QWERTY keyboard, digital camera, large video display, MP3 player, high-speed internet connections, multimedia games and many more are available. Text messaging is another standard feature on most cell phones. With this feature one can send and receive messages in the cell phone as in a computer. Through multimedia messaging, you can send audio, video and pictures as an attachment to a text message.

If you want to have a good camera phone, select a handset with three or more mega pixels. Most camera phones have less than a one mega pixel resolution, which produces low-quality images. Camera phone with three or more mega pixels can take clear photos.

After you select the handset with the features that you want to have, do not forget the practical aspects. Look at how often you will need to charge the battery, whether the screen and keypad are too big and too small. What is the reputation of the handset and the handset makers?

Handset makers Palm, Motorola, Samsung, Sprint and LG Electronics are selling cell phones with all these latest features in the US market. Motorola, maker of the Razr and other popular handsets, is one the top brands.

Cellular providers in the US use both GSM and CDMA technology. You can choose one of them. When you buy a handset, it is already tied to either GSM or CDMA cellular network, and they cannot be converted from one to the other.

Verizon Wireless, Cingular, T-Mobile and Sprint are leading cell phone operators in the US. For a phone connection, compare the tariffs of different service providers. There are various schemes with different tariff rates. Select a plan which has the lowest monthly rate and the most minutes or talk time per month.