Group test: what's the best mobile OS?

The best operating system for your phone

By | PC Advisor |

PC Advisor reviews the best mobile OSes for your smartphone.

5. BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0

BlackBerry PlayBook 2.0
  • Reviewed on: 22 February 12
  • RRP: FREE
  • Rating: Rated 6 out of 10

Although I can't recommend the PlayBook due to its physical flaws and its limited overall capabilities, it could make a nice business communications appliance for tech-averse senior execs who don't want a full-on tablet. The BlackBerry PlayBook could find a small niche as the business equivalent of Amazon.com's simple media-and-Web tablet, the Kindle Fire, or of the old AOL's simplistic version of the Internet -- especially if RIM delivers sleeker hardware. But if PlayBook OS 2.0 is truly what the forthcoming BlackBerry 10 reboot is based on, I'm afraid that RIM's smartphones too will end up battling the similarly narrowly functional Windows Phone 7 for the scraps that iOS and Android leave behind. As for the PlayBook, outside of a niche audience looking for the AOL equivalent of a tablet, it'll get trounced by the iPad, which even Android and I suspect Windows 8 will struggle to unseat. In that dogfight, there may be not even scraps left for the PlayBook.

4. Google Android 2.3

Google Android 2.3
  • Reviewed on: 13 December 10
  • RRP: FREE
  • Rating: Rated 8 out of 10

Google Android 2.3 Gingerbread isn't as big an update as Froyo was, but you'll find some useful new features and nifty enhancements.

3. Microsoft Windows Phone 7 'Mango'

Microsoft Windows Phone 7 'Mango'
  • Reviewed on: 22 June 11
  • RRP: Free for all Windows Phone 7 customers
  • Rating: Rated 0 out of 10

You've probably seen the Windows Phone 7 ads depicting people on their phones walking into trees or not paying attention to their partners because they're constantly staring at their phones. This idea that Windows Phone 7 makes finding information on your phone easier wasn't so apparent in the initial release. But now, with the ability to pin more information to your Start screen, search across applications, and further integration between your social networks and contacts, I'm starting to buy what Microsoft is claiming.

2. Google Android 3.0 'Honeycomb'

Google Android 3.0 'Honeycomb'
  • Reviewed on: 9 March 11
  • RRP: FREE
  • Rating: Rated 7 out of 10

All in all, Google's Android Honeycomb OS is a powerful and promising platform for tablets. The software takes the Android experience to new heights, giving users robust opportunities for customization and creating a framework for devices that are far more than just supersized phones. That said, Honeycomb is still young, and it needs time to mature -- particularly when it comes to the availability and complete compatibility of third-party apps, which are a crucial part of the tablet experience. But if the history of the mobile market is any indication, the growth of Honeycomb's app ecosystem won't take long -- and the platform, aided by the oncoming army of Android tablets, will quickly earn its place as a commanding force in the mobile market.

1. Apple iOS 5

Apple iOS 5
  • Reviewed on: 13 October 11
  • RRP: £0 inc. VAT
  • Rating: Rated 8 out of 10

The new operating system for the iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch, will be released on October 12, and will include a whole host of clever new features.

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