CNET’s Quick guide has a list of the ten highest radiation cell phones and the ten lowest radiation cell phones. The radiation level is expressed in SAR, Specific Absorption Rate. It is the amount of radiofrequency energy absorbed by the body when using a mobile phone.

Top Ten Highest-Radiation Cell Phones

  1. (SAR: 1.58) Motorola SLVR L6
  2. (SAR: 1.55) Motorola V120c
  3. (SAR: 1.55) Motorola V265
  4. (SAR: 1.54) Motorola V70
  5. (SAR: 1.53) Motorola C290
  6. (SAR: 1.53) Motorola P8767
  7. (SAR: 1.53) Motorola ST7868
  8. (SAR: 1.53) Motorola ST7868W
  9. (SAR: 1.51) Motorola A845
  10. (SAR: 1.51) Palm Treo 650 GSM
  11. (SAR: 1.51) Panasonic Allure

As you can see, Motorola dominates the top ten of the highest-radiation cell phones.

Top Ten Lowest-Radiation Cell Phones

  1. (SAR: 0.120) Audiovox PPC66001
  2. (SAR: 0.200) Motorola MPx200
  3. (SAR: 0.220) Motorola Timeport L7089
  4. (SAR: 0.263) Qualcomm pdQ-1900
  5. (SAR: 0.276) T-Mobile Sidekick
  6. (SAR: 0.296) Samsung SGH-S100
  7. (SAR: 0.296) Samsung SGH-S105
  8. (SAR: 0.310) Sony Ericsson Z600
  9. (SAR: 0.320) Mitsubishi G360
  10. (SAR: 0.330) Siemens S40

It is interesting to see the huge gap in radiations emitted between the two categories. Having a higher SAR level does not mean the phone is unsafe – all phones must pass FCC regulations before being approved in the US.

I looked at reviews of the Audiovox PPC66001, and while it emits very few radiations, the reception appears to be quite poor. On the other hand, reviews of the Motorola SLVR L6 show that the phone’s reception is quite good in general. We could probably establish a direct correlation between emission levels and reception quality.