There's little room left for smartphones in a world dominated by Apple iPhones and Samsung's Galaxy range. Here are some of the best phones you're probably going to pass over in favour of the big names – and some reasons why you should maybe reconsider.
Panasonic Eluga
Panasonic's first foray into the Western smartphone arena looks set to be more of a tentative dip to test the waters as opposed to a full blown assault. The Eluga's 1GHz dual-core processor looks more than a little soft in comparison to the quad-core innards of the HTC One X (reviewed here), and it's set to be overshadowed by its upcoming bigger brother, the Snapdragon S4-powered Panasonic Eluga Power.
Why you should get it
If you're not in the market for a pocketable powerhouse then the Eluga's unique curvy waterproof design might tempt your wallet, despite its 1,150mAh battery and flash-less camera.
Panasonic Eluga hands on
Fujitsu quad-core smartphone
Fujitsu's upcoming quad-core smartphone lacks both a final name and completed design, which explains why it scores rather low on the desirability scale. As a newcomer to the non-Japanese market, its name might also scare you off – through no fault of its own.
Why you should get it
Fujitsu's quad-core offering is fully waterproof, and packs in plenty of fancy Japanese internals. They include a noise cancelling mic which adjusts for echoey environments and an optimised call speakerphone tailored to your age group's ideal hearing frequency.
Fujitsu's Tegra 3 quad-core phone hands-on
Nokia Pureview 808
The Nokia Pureview 808's ridiculous 41MP camera sensor is impossible to ignore – though so is the exclusion of Windows Phone 7. Yep, believe it or not, the Nokia Pureview 808 is still inexcusably rocking Symbian Belle, making this (in our eyes at least) a camera first, phone second.
Why you should get it
If you don't want the hassle of carrying around a compact camera and couldn't care less about apps, then this is the niche phone for you.
41MP Nokia 808 PureView hands-on
Huawei Ascend D quad
The Huawei Ascend D quad isn't by any means a terrible phone. It passed our hands on treatment without any fuss, but gadgeteers looking to harness the power of four cores probably won't be able to take their eyes off the HTC One X (reviewed here), which just makes the Ascend D quad look a bit plasticky in comparison.
Why you should get it
It might not have the same build quality as the HTC One X, but the Huawei Ascend D quad is still packing plenty of grunt in the silicon department – and it'll likely be available at a more wallet-tempting price.
Huawei Ascend D quad hands-on
Asus PadFone
You've got to hand it to Asus – it's the master of gadgets that turn into other gadgets. While its Transformer Prime should be top of any respectable gadgeteer's wish list, the PadFone/Tablet dock concept isn't as fluid, or as sleek, and falls into the 'does this really need to exist?' category.
Why you should get it
You're a pioneer, a risk taker. Your house is littered with HD-DVDs and Apple Newtons. You're a hardcore tech-head who respects innovation and will stop at nothing to sample all the wacky offerings that the gadget world has to offer.
Hands on with the ASUS Padfone
