Mobile phones are fairly advanced pieces of kit, and while we have become used to their ubiquity, if one pauses to think about what their phones can actually do, they might be quite staggered. For not only are most mobiles now able to make standard calls and texts, the main motive in buying one is to take advantage of the great incorporated gadgets. A major selling point – and reason why you'd want a particular model – is the built in camera. With social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter, you are able to upload photos taken on your mobile directly to the website without even being connected to a computer.

Moving from the actual phone itself, if you browse any online mobile phone site or go into a high street mobile phone store, you will find all sorts of additional gadgets that can be used with the phone. Not only that but you'll find essential replacement items like batteries and chargers both for use in the UK and abroad. The range of stuff you can get for use with your mobile is bewildering and it is worth considering a selection just to get an idea – especially if you are keen on technology and gadgets. Vodafone's mobile phones site offers a great selection of phones and accessories and is a good place to start.

One of the more essential mobile phone accessories would have to be a hands free kit, and this can be both physically connected to the phone via a lead or remotely connected via Bluetooth. As it is illegal to drive whilst holding a mobile, this is the sensible option to take, especially if you can link the phone up to your car's communication system.

You can also buy accessories like phone stands, that enable you to connect the phone to a sound system – remember that many mobiles can also hold a great deal of MP3 tracks, either downloaded through mobile browsing or shared with friends via Bluetooth. With this in mind, you may want to increase the storage capacity of your mobile phone and this can be done by buying removable data cards (that can also be used with your laptop). Photos and music files can often take up a lot of space, and this is the wise thing to do if it is likely you will be taking a lot of photos or movies with your mobile camera phone. And finally, you might wish to consider a phone flash – while most camera phones are adequate for taking pictures in good lighting conditions, at night or in the pub you might not get such great quality images without an extra light source.