"The Low-End Thread" ...love it!

As for a low-end but great phone, look for the CLIQ/DEXT.
'Twas my first Android device and it was craptaculor. Motoblur, Cupcake, 480p video, blurry 5MP shots, no led flash, no front facing camera. Then the Froyo-Roms got out (there was never too much community interest in these phones) and I accidentally soft-bricked it. Which is why I bought an N900 off ebay (more reliable).

I found myself using the N900 for everything, and the DEXT just for Android apps. And before I could give it to my lil bro, it drowned

I now have the N900 as a hobby-device, and the SGS i9000 as my main powerhouse. But I'm looking to buy another DEXT, I narrowly missed one on ebay auction for $85.

Why?
It's got a really really good qwerty, the slide mechanism is perfect, the materials used, and in-general it feels great. And now theres plenty of roms for it (CM7 anyone?), overclocking to 750MHz, and is fast responding. It plays pretty much all Android Apps (exc. HD versions) and plays all emulators fullspeed (except dosbox,psx,n64,nds,dreamcast).

I'm looking to snatch one for my lil bro, its better than the $10 Nokia he has and probably more entertaining than his gameless-DSi.