The 10 Best Free Smartphones Available Now

Image via Complex Original

Believe it or not, there's an upside to the rapid release of smartphones that seems to have become the norm: the old models, barely out of their prime when a replacement comes along, have their prices viciously cut. Sometimes to nothing. Take the Google Nexus S, for example. When it came out last year, it was hailed as the Android phone to get. A year later, no one even talks about it as the all-new Samsung Galaxy Nexus has become the new Google Phone. Now you can get the Nexus S for nothing but your signature. It's crazy. Even crazier is that there are a number of good phones you can cop for free (with a two-year contract). Take a look.

Samsung Galaxy Nexus S (AT&T)

Click here to Buy It Now from Best Buy

The big news in the Android world was the release of Google's newest official phone, the Galaxy Nexus. But if you don't mind missing out on next-gen features like facial recognition and near-field communication, you can get the previous Google Phone from AT&T for just your signature. Just because it doesn't have all the new bells and whistles doesn't mean it's a slouch. It still rocks a 1 GHz processor, 16GB of storage, and an uncluttered Android experience.

Xperia Play by Sony Ericsson (Verizon)

Click here to Buy It Now from Verizon

If mobile gaming is truly important to you, it's worth considering the Xperia Play. Sure, it's not the best Android phone on the market, but it's the best gaming phone, by far. Even better than the iPhone.

Motorola DROID Pro (Verizon)

Click here to Buy It Now from Verizon Wireless

The DROID Pro may have been positioned as an Android Phone for the business-minded, but we remember it's great keyboard and video capabilities. Using the DVD-D1 video capture, you could record and play with your footage before easily uploading it to YouTube. Of course, it's made to easily work with Exchange, and all other Push email services like Gmail and Yahoo! The only downside is it still runs Android 2.2, and it doesn't look as if there's an update on the horizon.

Nokia Lumia 710 (T-Mobile)

Click here to Buy It Now from T-Mobile

Heads up: This deal ends today. As in: when you wake up tomorrow morning you'll no longer be able to purchase one of the best Windows Phone 7 handsets for free. The advertisements will tell you that the 710 is the 4G Nokia Windows Phone 7 to hit the States. We'll tell you it's a solid performer—1.4 GHz Snapdragon processor—with a darling of an OS. If you want to experiment with Windows Phone, you can't pick a better phone.

HTC Inspire 4G (AT&T)

Click here to Buy It Now from RadioShack

Going on a year old, the Inspire 4G can still kick it with the middle-of-pack smartphones. It's 4.3-inch WVGA touchscreen paired with HTC Sense is wonderful to use, and it's softtouch back makes it a pleasure to hold. Watch the battery use, though, as we found the battery to drain exception quickly during our tests.

T-Mobile myTouch 4G (T-Mobile)

Click here to Buy It Now from T-Mobile

The myTouch 4G is one of our favorite Android phones. And not only because of it's speedy performance, good build, and awesome keyboard. The phone has one of the best cameras we've ever used on a smartphone. The high-tech camera has a quick shutter, software to reduce blurriness and shaking, face detection, and shoots great in low-light situations. For that alone this is worth the purchase. We suggest you act now as this phone won't be free after this week.

LG Marquee (Sprint)

Click here to Buy It Now from RadioShack

The LG Marquee doesn't deviate from the requisite Android smartphone mold: black candy bar form, four-inch touchscreen, rear- and front-facing cameras (5MP and 2MP, respectively), and Android 2.3 Gingerbread. If you don't need flashy design or features, this may be the model for you.

Samsung Focus Flash 4G (AT&T)

Click here to Buy It Now from Best Buy

When we put the Samsung Focus Flash 4G on our 25 Best Gadgets of 2012 list, it was retailing for $50. That was a steal. Now that it's available for free, it's downright criminal. Solid screen, solid performance, 4G connectivity; what more do you need?

Motorola XPRT (Sprint)

Click here to Buy It Now from Sprint

Similar to the DROID Pro, the Motorola XPRT is a capable handset with a 1GHz processor, responsive touchscreen, worldphone capabilities, and a great physical QWERTY keyboard. It's a bit bulky, and runs Android 2.2, but still a steal.

BlackBerry Torch (AT&T)

Click here to Buy It Now from Best Buy

If you're not one of the many people jumping ship to Android or iPhone, you can treat yourself to a free BlackBerry Torch. Before the new Bold, the Torch was the first BlackBerry with a touchscreen and a keyboard. Though it's a big beast of a handset, it's a solid performer with 4G connectivity, and BlackBerry's well-worn known OS.