The device features a QVGA screen. It is very nice for web browsing, and playback of media files. The screen can be described as “detailed and clean”.

This quad-band phone will offer 3G connectivity in the form of HSDPA, as well as Wi-Fi. It will have 110 MB of internal storage and a microSD slot with support for up to 8 GB cards.

The E71 will have a 2.36-inch display, will be 4.5 in. by 2.25 in. by 0.4 in. (114 mm by 57 mm by 10 mm), and weigh 4.4 oz. (126 g). It will include a 1,500 mAh battery.

Nokia E71 will begin sales around the globe, as well as in the U.S., in the third quarter of 2008. In Europe, it is expected to sell for around 350 Euros, before taxes and subsidies.

The E71 will be available in two colors: grey steel or white steel.

Technical specifications

Operating System
Symbian OS 9.2 Series 60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 1

Microprocessor
CPU
Unknown type

Memory, Storage capacity
ROM capacity: 256 MB
RAM capacity: 128 MB
Hard Disk capacity: Not supported

Display
Display Type: color transflective TFT, 16777216 scales
Display Resolution: 320 x 240
Display Diagonal: 2.8″

Sound
Microphone: mono
Speaker: mono
Audio Output: Proprietary plug

Cellular Phone
Cellular Networks: GSM850, GSM900, GSM1800, GSM1900, UMTS2100
Cellular Data Link: CSD, HSCSD, GPRS, EDGE, UMTS, HSDPA
Call Alert: 64 -chord melody
Vibrating Alert: Supported

Control Peripherals
Positioning Device: Not supported
Primary Keyboard: Built-in QWERTY-type keyboard, 45 keys
Directional Pad: 5 -way block
Scroll Wheel: Not supported

Interfaces
Expansion Slots: microSD, microSDHC, TransFlash
USB: USB 2.0 client, Hi-Speed (480Mbit/s)
Proprietary connector
Infrared Gate: Not supported
Bluetooth: Bluetooth 2.0 + EDR
Wireless LAN: 802.11b, 802.11g

Multimedia Telecommunication
Analog TV: Not supported
Analog Radio: Not supported

Satellite Navigation
Built-in GPS: NMEA 0183

Built-in Digital Camera
Main Camera: CMOS sensor, 3.1MP
Autofocus (AF): Supported
Built-in Flash: Mobile light (LED)
Secondary Camera: CMOS sensor, 640×480 pixels

Power Supply
Battery: Lithium-ion polymer, removable

The E66 is a good looking slider with a neat feature: it switches between portrait and landscape mode when it’s turned.

It has the usual array of connectivity options: quad band GSM, dual band WCDMA (900/2100), WiFi and Bluetooth. There is also an integrated GPS, a 3.2 megapixel auto-focus camera, microSD card slot, accelerometer, FM radio, 2.5mm audio jack and IrDA, USB and Bluetooth for local connectivity.

In common with other recent Eseries devices (starting with the E65) there are One Touch keys to access the key functions of the phone. These default to Contacts, Calendar and Messaging but are user configurable (both single press and long press).

Nokia E66 will be priced at around EUR 350 before taxes and subsidies, will start shipping in July and will be available in black and white versions.

Technical specifications

Size
107.9 x 49.5 x 13.6 mm

Weight
121g

Display size
240 x 320 pixels

Talktime
7.5 hours

Standby time
14 days

Internal memory
110MB

Networks
EGSM 850/900/1800/1900

OS
S60 3rd Edition, Feature Pack 1

Camera
3.2 megapixels
Autofocus
Flash
Video camera resolution 240 x 320 pixels

Connectivity
Bluetooth
Infrared
WLAN
GPRS
EDGE
WCDMA
HSDPA

The super-thin slider is powered by S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2 running on top of Symbian v9.3.

The Samsung L870 sports a 3 megapixel camera and microSD card slot, so it’s ready to capture the action. The handset also features a built-in FM radio, an advanced music player, and Bluetooth 2.0 with A2DP support for stereo headsets.

This sliding smartphone supports tri-band GSM (900/1800/1900MHz) and WCDMA (2100MHz) to stay connected, and the 2.4″ QVGA display should be easy on the eyes. This handset is planned to be available in Europe in August 2008, with other regions following soon. Pricing information is not yet available.

Technical specifications

Operating System
Symbian 9.3 / S60 3rd Edition Feature Pack 2

Band
GSM 900/1800/1900MHz, UMTS 2100MHz

Data
GPRS/EDGE/WCDMA/HSDPA

Size
103.5mm x 50.5mm x 13.5mm (4.1″ x 1.9″ x 0.5″)

Weight
Not Available

Battery Life
Unknown standby battery life
Unknown talk time battery life

Main Display
2.4″ 16m color QVGA TFT, 240×320 pixel resolution

Camera
3 megapixel

Video
Record/Playback

Messaging
SMS/MMS/IM

Email
POP3/IMAP/SMTP

Bluetooth
2.0 with A2DP

Memory
100MB internal, microSD card slot

Availability
Planned August 2008

Other
Speakerphone, FM radio

Here is brief information about the application to be analyzed:

Back

We analyzed the following list of aspects and application details:
• Installation
• Trial period
• Settings
• Help and Support
• Application in action
• Special features

• Conclusion

Installation

The application is quickly and easily installed if you follow the instructions on the screen of the mobile phone.

Back

Trial period

Mobile Task application has a 10-day full functional trial version. After expiration you can purchase a license.

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Settings

Mobile Task Settings are placed in the main application screen, where you can adjust them.

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Help and Support

Mobile Task contains no Help, that is not convenient for application usage; the e-mail to contact a developer is info@sept-solutions.de I liked the speed of the support department work; the answer has been received in course of one hour.

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Application in action

When opening the application you can see the main view Jobs, which shows the list of all created jobs:

In case you haven’t created any job, this screen contains no data.

Left soft key Options contains the following items:

• Load jobs – to load the list of the created jobs
• Save jobs – to save the list of the created jobs

• Delete job – to remove the current job record
• About – displays information about the product and the license
• Exit – exits the application

To start using the Mobile Task application you have to switch to the Applications view:

This screen shows the list of all available applications which you can operate using Mobile Task.

Left soft key Options contains the following items:

• Start application – select time of the current application start

o 30 minutes
o 60 minutes
o 90 minutes
o Different duration – enter time you wish
o Time – enter date and time you wish

• Stop application – select time of the current application stop

o 30 minutes
o 60 minutes
o 90 minutes
o Different duration – enter time you wish
o Time – enter date and time you wish

• About – displays information about the product and the license
• Exit – exits the application

Having created at least one job record, the Jobs view will look as following:

After the certain period of time the created job will act to the previously defined settings (for example the Screenshot application will be started):

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Special features

The main special feature of the Mobile Task application is that you don’t need to remember to turn the application on or off. You have just to adjust the definite settings which will start or stop the application at user defined duration time or at a specific timepoint.

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Conclusion

Mobile Task is not only useful in everyday life because it simplifies your work with the mobile, but it is also very easy and pleasant in use. With Mobile Task you don’t have to worry any more to start or stop the needed application at time you wish.

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The Samsung i550 is a fresh reinforcement to the high-end smartphone portfolio of the company.

Samsung i550 is the first Samsung GPS-enabled smartphone, sporting 3G and HSDPA (3.6 Mbps).

The Samsung i550 also features dedicated keys for GPS, music player and internet browser. Other specifications include a 2.6″ display, FM radio with a 3.5 mm jack, 128 MB RAM, microSD card slot and microUSB.

Technical specifications

General
Network GSM900 / GSM1800 / GSM1900 / HSDPA
Introduced 2007 Q3
Status Available
Form factor Block
Antenna Internal

Size
Weight 109 g (including battery)
Dimensions 115 x 53 x 13.8 mm

Display
Type Graphical
Colours TFT, 262K colors
Size 240 x 320 pixels
- Trackball navigation

Memory
Shared Memory 150 MB
- microSD (TransFlash)
- Photocall

Ringtones
Polyphonic Yes
- MP3

Networking
GPRS Yes, Class 12 (4+1/3+2/2+3/1+4 slots), 32 - 48 kbps
Modem Yes, Class 12
3G Yes, HSDPA, 3.6 Mbps
Bluetooth Yes, 2.0 with A2DP
WAP Yes
Browser Yes, WAP 2.0/xHTML
Email Client Yes
- Symbian OS 9.2, Series 60 v3.1 UI

Features
Vibration Yes
SMS Send / Receive
MMS Send / Receive
Camera Yes, 3.15 MP, 2048×1536 pixels, autofocus, video, flash; secondary VGA videocall camera
Java Yes
Changeable Games Yes
Games Yes
Clock Yes
Alarm Yes
Calculator Yes
Voice Dialing Yes
Voice Memo Yes
T9 Yes
Handsfree Yes
- Built-in GPS navigation with pre-installed Google Maps
- WMV/3GP/H.263/MPEG4 player
- WMA/MP3/AAC/AAC+/OGG/ASF player
- 3.5 mm audio output jack
- Organiser
- Document viewer (MS Word, Excel, PPT, PDF)

Standard Battery
Type Li-Ion
Amperage 1200 mAh

Samsung L870 is new cell phone that integrated with SYMBIAN as operating system.

Samsung L870 comes with slider form factor and compact dimensions of 102 x 50 x 13.5 mm. This cell phone has support 3G network and equipped with great features such as: 3 megapixel camera, FM radio, Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP, Color TFT 262.144 colors with resolution 240×320 pixels.

Technical specifications

Network
Phone Network EDGE, GPRS, GSM, UMTS (3G)
Service 850, 900, 1700, 1800

Connectivity
Bluetooth v2.0 with A2DP
Infrared No
Wi-Fi (WLAN) N/A
USB 2.0
Fax / Data No

Display
Main display Color TFT
Color display 262.144 colors
Dimensions N/A
Resolution 240×320 pixels
External display Yes

Memory
Internal memory N/A
External memory N/A
Memory slots N/A
Storage types N/A

Basic
Battery Lithium Ion
Standby time N/A
Talk time N/A

Calling
Vibrate alert Yes
Photo ID N/A
Ringtones MP3, Polyfone

Camera
Camera Yes
Megapixels 3 megapixels
Maximum photo resolution 2048×1536 pixels
Digital zoom N/A
Optical zoom N/A
Auto focus N/A
Flash N/A
Recording video N/A
Second (front) camera N/A

Messaging
SMS Yes
MMS Yes
T9 text function Yes
E-mail Yes
Internet browsing Yes

Entertainment
FM radio Yes
Java Yes
Audio player N/A
Video player N/A

Features
Add ringtones Yes
Organiser Calculator, Calendar, Currecy convertor, Reminders, Document viewer
Video call N/A
Other features Built-in handsfree, Voice dial, Voice memo

Format
Weight N/A
Dimensions (H x W x D) 4×2x0.5 in

Here is brief information about the application to be analyzed:

Back

We analyzed the following list of aspects and application details:
• Installation
• Trial period
• Settings
• Help and Support
• Application in action
• Special features

• Conclusion

Installation

The application is quickly and easily installed if you follow the instructions on the screen of the mobile phone.

Back

Trial period

The VibrateCall application has a limit of 30 calls for the trial version. After expiration you can purchase a license.

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Settings

VibrateCall Settings are placed in the main application screen, where you can adjust them.

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Help and Support

VibrateCall application has no Help file, the application is very simple in use; it has an e-mail (wolftongren@gmail.com) to contact a developer in case of any questions or suggestions.

Thanks to the efficiency of the support department I received an answer to my question in the course of 1 business day.

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Application in action

When opening the application you can see the main screen:

• Dialing profile – choose the needed profile

o Vibrate
o Loudspeaker
o Vibrate & Loudspeaker
o None

• Vibration Intensity – select the level of the vibration intensity
• AutoStart – you can choose to activate/deactivate the Autostart of the VibrateCall application

Left soft key Options of the main screen offers the following list of buttons:

• About – displays information about the product and the license
• Share
• Exit – exits the application

The principle of VibrateCall usage is very simple.

When you are making the call, your mobile phone keeps vibrating (depending on the corresponding dialing profile chosen). After the call is answered (or after a time-out), it stops vibrating.

This is very convenient for drivers; it is possible to dial a call with the loudspeaker on.

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Special features

The main special feature of the VibrateCall application is that you don’t need to hold your mobile phone near your ear when calling somebody, just hold the phone in your hand, you will know exactly when the call is answered.

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Conclusion

VibrateCall is a very simple and interesting application, which allows you to avoid holding the mobile phone near your ear when waiting for the call to be answered. I guess this will be useful for many users in their everyday life.

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Here is brief information about the application to be analyzed:

Back

We analyzed the following list of aspects and application details:
• Installation
• Trial period
• Settings
• Help and Support
• Application in action
• Special features

• Conclusion

Installation

The application is quickly and easily installed if you follow the instructions on the screen of the mobile phone.

Back

Trial period

AutoThemes application offers the trial version which lasts 10 days, during which you can try it before purchasing.

Back

Settings

AutoThemes suggests the following settings options:

• Active – to activate or deactivate the application
• Autostart – to turn autostart on or off

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Help and Support

AutoThemes application contains the detailed Help file available for separate software item; the e-mail for customers support is support@symbianguru.com

The support department works efficiently and delivers answer to the question in the course of an hour.

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Application in action

When opening the application you can see the main screen:

At first application start it contains no rules.

At the first application start you will be prompted to turn the Autostart option On. This means that application will be activated every time the phone starts. You will be able to change this option when choosing the Setting button.

Left soft key Options of the main screen offers the following list of buttons:

• New – to create new rule
• Settings – to modify app settings
• Help – displays the Help
• About – displays information about the product and the license
• Exit – exits the application

To create new rule, you have to fill in the following fields:

• Theme – select the appropriate theme of the new rule from the list given
• Type – select the appropriate type

If Time based type was chosen, then you will have to fill in the following fields:

• Condition – select how often your new rule will be executed
• Activation date – select when the rule should be activated, in case of condition <once> point the date of rule activation
• Activation time – choose the time of theme schedule activation

If Profile based was chosen, then you have the following field:

• Profile – select the appropriate profile from the list given

Having added at least one rule the main screen will have the following view:

Left soft key Options of this screen contains the following items:

• New – to create new rule
• Edit – to modify fields of the already existing rule
• Disable/Enable – to deactivate/activate the current rule
• Delete – to remove the current rule
• Delete all – to remove all rules
• Settings – to modify app settings
• Help – displays the Help
• About – displays information about the product and the license
• Exit – exits the application

You can disable the current rule just clicking on it:

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Special features

The AutoThemes application has many interesting features, among which:

• Quick and smooth theme change
• Two types of rules for theme change: profile based and time based
• Quick rule deactivation/activation with only one key pressing
• Nice interface, easy to use

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Conclusion

AutoThemes is a unique application which allows you to change your favourite themes automatically according to your predefined time schedule or profile. All you have to do is just to create rules defining condition, theme and type of rule. You will enjoy using AutoThemes making good use of all its features.

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Recently we have tested the first security application from SymbianGuru called Phone Guardian. So far this has been the only reliable software against thieves. We have got to know about the newly released application of the same kind named WaveSecure Lite from tenCube. The result of their comparison, advantages and disadvantages of every of them can be found in this review.

Here is brief information about the applications to be analyzed:

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We analyzed the following list of aspects and application details:

• Installation
• Trial period
• Interface
• Settings
• Help and Support
• Application in action
• Special features
• Testing results

• Conclusion

Installation

Phone Guardian is installed in the course of several seconds not causing any difficulties. And this factor is very important because users start evaluating the application efficiency right from the beginning of its usage.

WaveSecure Lite is installed quickly, just follow the instructions on the screen of the mobile phone.

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Trial period

The trial period of the Phone Guardian application lasts 5 days. Take great advantage first to try it and only then to purchase it.

The free trial version of WaveSecure Lite application expires in 3 days.

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Interface

The main screen of the Phone Guardian application has the following view:

The application has nice and pleasant interface, which attracts and is easy to use.

Clicking left soft key Options user will see the following buttons:

• Change password
• Register
• About
• Help
• Exit

When you open WaveSecure Lite application you will see the main screen which looks as follows:

You can see the main menu consisting of the list of buttons.

Left soft key Options shows the following items:

• Help
• About

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Settings

Phone Guardian application suggests no settings options, but the application has all settings in the main screen, so having extra Settings would be too much.

Main screen of Phone Guardian has the following view:

• Guard active – to turn Phone Guardian on or off

When turned on, Phone Guardian performs two main functions:

- Device locking function
- Anti thief function

• Lock mode – to select the lock mode from the list of available:

o On SIM change – the phone is locked on every change of SIM card
o On Lock SMS – the phone is locked after the Lock SMS is received by the phone
o Both – both modes mentioned above are active

• Alarm – is set to emit siren when locked
• Lock message – to enter text of a Lock message which appears on the screen when the phone is locked

• Send alarm SMS to – to indicate the specified number of the phone to which the application sends SMS when a different SIM card is inserted into the mobile phone
• Autolock after – to set the lock-time when the phone is idle

Press Security Settings on the main screen to access settings of the WaveSecure Lite application:

• Default lock message – to enter the message that will appear on your phone whenever it’s locked
• Auto-lock on SIM change – if enabled, your phone will be automatically locked whenever a new SIM card is detected
• Alarm when locked – if enabled, your phone will sound an alarm whenever it’s locked
• SMS Prompt – if enabled, WaveSecure Lite will prompt you whenever it sends out an SMS

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Help and Support

Phone Guardian application includes the Help file, it is divided into parts available for separate items of application; it has an e-mail (support@symbianguru.com).

I liked the responsibility of the support department, which in the course of one business day sent me a detailed answer to the asked question regarding Phone Guardian.

WaveSecure Lite contains the Help file, which provides brief information about the application and its options; you can contact the support department (lite@wavesecure.com) in case of some questions or suggestions.

Unfortunately the support department didn’t respond to our e-mail.

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Application in action

Phone Guardian is a security anti-thief application. So it should be used in the unfortunate case when your phone is gone or you are afraid that it can be stolen. That is why Phone Guardian can be operated remotely, sending special text messages to the phone.

Special text messages should have the following format:

:COMMAND:PASSWORD

i.e. Colons followed by a command followed by a Colons followed by the password (you should remember to send Lock SMS only in this format, otherwise Phone Guardian won’t have any effect)

The following commands are offered:

• LOCK :l: (small letter L) (e.g. :l:PASSWORD)

Small letter “L” Locks the phone. If the lock is enabled, the phone is locked and a text message is sent back confirming this.

• UNLOCK :u:

Unlocks the phone. The phone can also be unlocked on the handset entering the right password.

• TURN ON SIREN :s:

Turns siren settings on (Alarm is set to “On”).

• TURN OFF SIREN :n:

Turns the siren settings as “off”. This command does not change phone lock status!

• FULL LOCK :f:

Turns on siren sound and locks the phone with sending the appropriate SMS to all numbers, including the number from which the Full Lock SMS was sent from. This option is very useful when you know that the thief can be located near you at the moment and you do not know if siren is switched off or on.

• GET INFO :i:

Gets information about current status of the mobile: sends date and time, CellID information, IMSI number, number of the current SIM card. In this way you can track the mobile constantly and not only when the SIM was changed.

In my tests all the commands were executed quickly, there is no sound when the Phone Guardian SMS comes. The Phone Guardian SMS are not visible in the Inbox folder, also the sent SMS are not visible in the Sent folder.

This is the SMS that I have got after the phone was locked:

The main screen of the WaveSecure Lite application has the following view:

Here you can see the main menu which is represented in the list of the following buttons:

• Security Settings – contains the list of configurations which you can modify to your wishes; you can also change your PIN here, clicking left soft key Options of the Security Settings screen
• Buddy Numbers – to add your friends numbers, which will be alerted with SMS if a new SIM card is detected (you can add up to 9 buddies)

• Status – information about the activation status and license type

• Lock now – you can lock the phone yourself against the unauthorized access, for example if you leave it alone for a certain period of time

Special text messages should have the following format:

• To remotely lock the phone

Send an SMS with “Wslite lock <PIN>” to the current phone number

• To customize your lock screen message

Send an SMS with “Wslite lock <PIN><Your message>”

• To make the phone screem

Send an SMS with “Wslite lock alarm <PIN><Your message>”

If someone steals your phone and changes the SIM, you will need to SMS the new number to remote lock, just check the buddy alert to find this number.

The WaveSecure Lite application works efficiently. It locks the phone when the new SIM card is inserted and emits loud alarm sound. When you send the lock SMS, the phone is being locked and only after entering the correct PIN code the phone can be unlocked.

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Special features

Phone Guardian is the application that grabs your attention from the first moment being filled with special features:

• Phone Guardian commands – special text messages to remotely operate the application, very convenient, especially the “i” Information SMS that allows tracking the phone at any time.
• Different lock modes that allow to lock mobile either on SIM change, on lock SMS, or when either of the conditions fulfills.
• Sending Alarm SMS to a specified number with variety of the information which can help to find the phone location.
• Loud and annoying siren: I can imagine how inconvenient it may be for the thief when the siren goes on and he can not turn it off, especially if it is in the subway or other crowded place.

WaveSecure Lite can suggest you the following special features:

• Auto-lock on SIM change – if enabled, your phone will be automatically locked whenever a new SIM card is detected
• Alarm when locked – if enabled, your phone will sound an alarm whenever it’s locked
• Possibility to lock the phone on the spot clicking the Lock Now button

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Summary of the test results

Having analyzed all components and settings and given them the scores from 1 to 10, we have multiplied the scores by a corresponding importance factor in order to get the total score value of the application.

We have used the following Importance factor (IF) values:
• Installation: IF 2
• Trial period: IF 4
• Interface: IF 4
• Settings: IF 6
• Help and Support: IF 5
• Application in action: IF 10
• Special features: IF 7

The total possible score for an application would be 380 points.

Multiplying the score by Importance factors we have got the following table:

Test winner according to the overall application test is Phone Guardian from SymbianGuru.

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Conclusion

Both anti-thief applications are interesting and will be efficient in case the phone will be stolen. But still Phone Guardian remains better and more reliable than WaveSecure Lite application for offering different lock modes that allow to lock mobile, for operating the phone remotely, sending special text messages to the phone, which perform more actions than WaveSecure Lite can. And the app usability of Phone Guardian is more convenient as for me.

If you are worried about your Smartphone and want to preserve it you can calmly download and install Phone Guardian. Together with reasonable price and reliability Phone Guardian will loyally serve you for a long time.

WaveSecure Lite is a decent secure application, it is a bit cheaper than Phone Guardian, but together with this it suggests less security options. The advantage of WaveSecure Lite is the possibility to send alert SMS to 9 buddy numbers simultaneously.

Anyway you can test both applications downloading free trials before choosing which app to purchase.

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