Being a firm believer in having a phone to make calls and a computer to send e-mails, my first experience with an Android device was always going to be an interesting one.My first victim was the Samsung Galaxy SII a upgrade on the hugely popular Galaxy Si9000 and I wasn’t to be disappointed.On first impressions it is essentially a sleek but durable device, half way between a phone and a tablet, and with a host of features to boot it was hard to know where to start.Easy enough to slip into your back pocket and with a slide screen function to ensure that you don’t inadvertently turn it on by mistake, the device proved to be a good portable companion.The device’s quick download speeds through its upgraded 4G high-speed data access meant that checking up on e-mails or football scores on the move was a relatively straightforward process, although my podgy fingers ensured that I often hit the wrong the option and my poor eyesight meant that I always had to zoom in to read the text.Another grievance I had was that the device kept turning itself off while not in use after a short period, but rather than going into energy saving mode the battery seemed to run down pretty quickly.Anyway enough of my travails, what it did have going for it was a Google-centric system which requires a Gmail account to operate and access most of the programmes.Sliding open the screen with a flick of the finger I was presented with a number of icons including Gmail for sending e-mails, Talk for connecting with other users and Market which is loaded with lots of fun applications, books and games the latter of which saw the most use thanks to a particularly addictive Fruit Ninja game which involves slicing pieces of pineapple and banana in half.For those who want some advice or are unsure of which option to select, there are Staff Picks and Editor’s Choice categories on hand giving you access to favourite apps such as Facebook, TripAdvisor and Expedia Hotels.The applications icon at the bottom of the screen also provides your standard calculator, calender, clock, memo pad, mini diary and task manager, as well as a camera which takes some pretty sharp images with a gallery to save and view them in and a photo editor make any necessary changes, and an FM radio for tuning into your favourite station as well as a file to store all of your top songs.A lot of the options seem to double up, albeit in slightly different formats, like the Internet and Google search, while the Game Hub offers similar fare to the games included in the Market.Some other neat touches exclusive to Samsung subscribers are AllShare a content sharing service that enables users to search for and play video, photo, and music files, Kies Air which allows PCs running the application to access a smartphone device over Wi-Fi and view call logs, videos, photos, bookmarks, and IMs, as well as send SMS messages from the computer’s browser and Instant Messaging a rival to BlackBerry Messenger.Another quirky feature is Latitude which enables customers to share their location with friends and view the location of friends on a map perfect for checking out who is close enough to meet up for dinner.Delving deeper into the menu of options, presents an array of other fun apps such as the latest News and Weather, a Readers and Social Hub and video and voice command and recording capabilities.Despite measuring up well on most fronts against Apple iPhone 4 with its Google Android 2.3 operating system, faster ARM Cortex A9 dual-core (1GHz) processor, larger 4.3-inch display, sturdier and more scratch-resistant Gorilla Capacative Super Amoled Plus screen and lighter weight, in addition to its eight megapixel camera complete with LED flash, autofocus, geotagging, image stabilisation, face and smile detection, Micro SD card slot for extra memory, and Adobe Flash support, it still left me yearning for a tablet or device with a bigger screen.Added to which, the eye strain of watching football highlights or YouTube downloads through the 1080-pixel video playback can take its toll.Which brings me to the device’s functionality as a phone, offering high quality voice, video and texting the most appealing feature for the younger generation of which is the swipe technology the fastest way of writing messages.All-in-all the Samsung Galaxy SII gets my vote, but I’ll be holding onto the trusted phone and laptop combination just for now.Rating 4 out of 5