Though the 64th independence day was celebrated last Sunday, we still are brimming with a strong sense of patriotism. And this overwhelming feeling and sprouting swadesi spirit makes the one liner, ?Be Indian, Buy Indian?, sound all the more sweeter!

And, what better way would it be to exuberate this ?once a year? palpitation, in the times of ?E? everything, than buying an Indian brand mobile phone!

Why not? These Indian brand handsets are very innovatively designed with attractive looks and excellent built quality. They boast of state-of-the-art technology and smart phone features to suit and satiate the needs of individual users. Moreover, they are rather competitively priced and are bang for the buck!

There are plenty of brands already available in the market and more being launched sporadically. ?Lava International? and ?Intex Technologies? were kind enough to send me their latest models (Lava ?B5 ALFA? and Intex ?IN 6633?) for hands-on review in this column.

Lava ?B5? is a dual SIM, business phone with a very bright and sharp 2.2inch QVGA TFT (16 million colors) display. The silver-gray, all plastic body with a chrome brim on the fascia, well-contoured sides and rounded corners looks very elegant and sturdy. Measuring 107.8mmx 63mm x12.75mm, the phone appears a bit bulky, though it weighs a mere 109 grams.

Besides its smart looks, what intrigued me most is the unique keypad with keys arranged in simple alphabetical (ABCD) order and I have no reservations to admit that this is the only phone I have seen with such a keypad. With this innovation, Lava offers an option to the users who are either not acquainted or are uncomfortable with the Qwerty keypad. With a little getting-used-to, I realised that it?s very convenient to type on this ?alpha? keypad, especially so when using only one hand and in reality it makes keying-in your text messages and e-mails faster.

Lava B5 stacks applications for all social networking portals (Facebook, Orkut, etc) as it comes with support for popular instant messaging services like Nimbuzz and with other phone regulars like SMSs and e-mails.

Though the Lava B5 comes loaded with features like embedded Java games, FM radio, multi-format video and audio player, bluetooth, flash memory card support (up to 8 GB), 3.5mm audio jack, stereo speakers, etc, the 2.0 mega pixel camera did not impress me much.

The powerful 1,400mAh Li-ion battery is worth a mention and also is the MRP of Rs 4,399.

The Intex ?IN 6633? is also a dual SIM, Qwerty phone with a bright and sharp 2.3inch QVGA TFT display. The phone, in matt black plastic exterior with metallic wine-red front bezel and an all-metal back plate, looks a certain dazzler. The killer looks complimented with a fish-scale keypad makes the IN6633 a style statement.

The elegantly designed and measuring 111 mmx 59 mmx11.5 mm (110 grams) Intex phone has a 3.5 mm audio jack on the top, along with a micro USB port on the left for charging the 1,300mAh Li-ion battery and connectivity. The ?netizens? among us will get wooed by the embedded ?Intex Zone? having Nimbuzz, the instant messaging/chat tool, Java, Facebook and games like M-Sudoku, 5- Sudoku, face-to face video chat on a 2G platform, facilitated by a front-facing web camera.

The 2.0 mega pixel main camera with a LED flash on the rear is disappointing. But what I like most about this device is the pullout 9 inch telescopic antenna (which I mistook for a stylus initially) for the built-in FM radio. You can listen, record and schedule radio programmes without connecting the cumbersome hands-free. The rear stereo speakers pumps out great audio, loud enough to party.

The Wi-Fi feature further enhances net surfing, download and chatting experience. Push mail feature allows access to ten mailboxes (on different portals of course) simultaneously. The internal memory of 78 MB is expandable (up to 8 GB) by using a microSD card.

For an MRP of Rs 4,500, you get a handset with motion sensor, answering machine, auto call recorder, four language support (English, Hindi, Urdu, and French) and plethora of other interesting features.