Which phone for my birthday?

I was looking at which phone to get for my birthday, I'm thinking either the Samsung Galaxy S II or the HTC Sensation? But on contract or payg? I have seen the Galaxy instore at O2 for �400 but not the HTC, I know the Galaxy has the better spec, but what advantages are there with HTC Sense interface? Do either or these phones have NFC? Is it better to wait until the Galaxy with NFC has been released? And is NFC available to use in any shops? And which banks are using it?