Time for a new cell phone

ursen

ursen

Officer SOE/LoE/Where's "here"?
My old cellphone looks like it is has been through a couple of wars, but works fine. It is over 4 years old and I am eligible for an upgrade here are some choices that are my top ones. Advice would be appreciated, the choice obviously is between Android and Apple. I already own a Kindle Fire HDX. These are all refurbs, which I have no problem with.

Apple iphone4 (8gb) cost 0 plus 40 connection to plan group.
Apple iphone4s (16gb) 24.99 plus 40 connection to plan group.
Apple iphone4s (32gb) 49.99 plus 40 connection to plan group.

Samsung Rugby Pro 49.99 plus 40 connection to plan group. This is what I am leaning toward. It has an excellent review, room for my sd card, can share apps with Kindle, can sync with Kindle, and will survive my klutsy hands. And killer battery life.

Note should be made this will be my first smart phone, and I am being dragged into it kicking and screaming because of the only option on upgrade being smart phone. My current phone I love but it is showing really bad signs of wear and tear, like the back popping off occasionally.
 
Can't comment on the Samsung. I really liked my iPhone 4s and of the ones listed that would be my recommendation. It will be supported longer as it will work with more updates to iOS as they come along. It took me two years, but I filled up my 16gb. Not sure how your usage would be. If you don't use it for music or pictures or play some of the bigger games 16 will probably work for you.
 
Postpaid (2-year contract to upgrade your phone) is a scam, but you may not have the bucks saved up to buy a phone outright then sign up for prepaid.

My wife and I bought one Galaxy Nexus (pure Android, unlocked from the manufacturer, and no cruft pre-installed like every Verizon and AT&T phone I've ever seen) each in 2012 and have been on Straight Talk ever since. But if ST ever gives us reason to drop them, we have the option of kicking them to the curb and going with a different GSM provider. I've been told that the Nexus 5 opens up even more possibilities (AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, and all MVNOs like Straight Talk that use those 3 providers' towers); it's $349 on the Google Play Store. I know it's a painful amount to spend at once, but believe me when I say that you are paying (and paying and paying) for that "free" phone that comes attached to a 2-year leash.

For example: My wife and I pay ~$98 a month for unlimited talk, text, and "web" (Straight Talk's way of saying, "Don't abuse the data and you won't get in trouble"). The closest equivalent at Verizon at the time would have cost ~$190 a month, meaning we would have been paying DOUBLE with Verizon. Sure, their data network is excellent, but not worth paying twice as much. We paid ~$750 total for 2 Galaxy Nexuses (Nexii?) with tax and shipping, but everything past ~8 months was pure savings.

IIRC, the Nexus 5 is capable of 4G LTE speeds on Straight Talk if you get the right SIM card. If my Galaxy Nexus were to croak tomorrow, that would be my pick.

If you don't care about how fancy the phone is and you're feeling particularly brave, you might check craigslist or eBay (especially if you're leaning toward the Rugby Pro), then slap a prepaid SIM card in whatever phone you buy. Remember: Don't think just about the upfront cost for the phone. Think about how much your service is going to cost every month.

Again: Postpaid is a scam. When you finish paying for that "free" phone, the major networks don't suddenly reduce your bill every month if you don't upgrade your phone. And contracts stink, anyway.

You might also find some folks here on the forums willing to sell you a phone for a sweet deal.

Back to the choice of phones: I prefer pure Android over TouchWiz (or whatever Samsung is calling their ugly UI these days) and I wouldn't buy an Apple product new (though I did have the opportunity to buy a very lightly used 4S for $99 over a year ago and I snagged it just for the mobile games; airplane mode on + wifi on + free games = win). I <3 the concept behind the Nexus product line: The phones come unlocked with stock Android and the hardware is quite nice, too.

I won't derail the thread with an "Android vs. Apple" debate because everyone has their preference and some people don't care that Apple is very locked down while Android is much more open. When it comes to ideology, I have both feet firmly planted in the Android camp. When it comes to games, well, as much as I hate to say it, I play more on my iPhone 4S than I do on my Galaxy Nexus (not counting my recent time with the Android version of Puzzle & Dragons).

I've rambled long enough already, so I'll stop here. If you have any other questions regarding phones, please post and I'll be happy to provide what wisdom I can.

TL;DR: Don't sign a new contract. Ditch your provider (or stick with the same provider but switch to a prepaid plan if they offer that option and the rates are competitive), buy your phone outright, stick a prepaid SIM card in it, and save some money.
 
Tek7 said:
TL;DR: Don't sign a new contract. Ditch your provider (or stick with the same provider but switch to a prepaid plan if they offer that option and the rates are competitive), buy your phone outright, stick a prepaid SIM card in it, and save some money.
Click to expand...

In these parts prepaid is much more costly that a 2 year plan. I pay less than $32 per phone a month and straight talk is $45. your results may vary. Also, after two years, I want a new phone(for free). Although I don't have a real choice in providers(ATT has exclusive towers). Straight talk works, but gets throttled if ATT needs the bandwidth.

I have an Iphone 5(16G)... I don't like its "locked" OS, but meh, keeps me from breaking it.
 
On a special family plan with my brother-in-law that came from being a Lowe's employee. Unlimited talk and text and 10 gb shared data, 6 of us on the plan, I pay 35 for our two cell phones, will pay 40.00 for wifes cell and my smart phone, mainly because I want to pay for what little bit of data I will use. So a plan is not the issue, just the best phone to suit my needs. So go ahead discuss Apple/Android, with it kept in mind that I already have a Kindle Fire HDX, which is really a small android tablet. Playing games on a phone or my Fire is of little interest to me. $50.00 is top price I am willing to pay. No Nexus available sorry.
 
If you can find an iPhone 5 for free i'd roll with that. For being your first "smart" phone its very easy to use, and my very non tech savvy mother-in-law loves it. The 4 series is too old IMO(and very breakable), 5s with its thumb print scares me, and 5c is plastic.

I'm very ignorant on the other OS's

GL mate, please don't read too many reviews that you get sick(like my wife and I did a few months ago)
 
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My 3-year old can navigate between apps on an iPhone 3GS and an iPad 1, so, yes, basic level functions (launch app, switch between apps, switch between app pages, etc.) are very user-friendly in iOS. Advanced level features are more cumbersome than in Android IMO, though.

iOS 7 added features that take some of the wind out of jailbreakers' sails, in part because (it appears) they lifted the UI improvements straight from the most popular jailbreak tweaks like SBSettings.

I'm still opposed to Apple on principle, but I must confess I like my iPhone 4S as a gaming device and iOS is fairly newbie-friendly (once you get past the setup, and I'm sure there are at least a few folks on these forums that can help you out).

I doubt you'll find an iPhone for free with contract, but I haven't looked at postpaid in years so the market may have changed drastically since the last time I shopped plans. I'm confident there are plenty of mid-range Android phones for cheap or free, but then you get stuck with ugly user interfaces like Samsung's TouchWiz or HTC's Sense. If you end up with an Android phone and don't like the UI, please remember that that phone is probably not running stock Android. Please don't judge Android by TouchWiz, Sense, or other ugly UIs!
 
CowRocket said:
If you can find an iPhone 5 for free i'd roll with that. For being your first "smart" phone its very easy to use, and my very non tech savvy mother-in-law loves it. The 4 series is too old IMO(and very breakable), 5s with its thumb print scares me, and 5c is plastic.

I'm very ignorant on the other OS's

GL mate, please don't read too many reviews that you get sick(like my wife and I did a few months ago)
Click to expand...

I recenctly upgraded from an iPhone 4s to 5s. I've heard about people breaking their 4s, I never had an issue with it. I dropped it (4s) several times (nothing major just from the hip and I had a simple case not an Otter Box) and never even cracked the screen. My 5s fell from my lap when I got out of the car and it's screen is nicked already. The 5c is plastic, I didn't like the feel of it (it felt cheep), the 5 or 5s would work if you can get a hold of one. Oh, and the thumb print thing can be turned off easily enough, I don't use it.
 
CowRocket said:
Fixed that for ya :-)


/me removes his tin foil hat now
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Heh, true. I don't use it unlock my phone (biometrics are not covered by Constitutional protections like a passcode, but then the Constitution doesn't mean much nowadays) but it is still there and potentially active.
 
After a chaotic and sad month I am starting the process again. The contenders are all refurbs.
Samsung Galaxy S III 9.99
I phone 4s 16 Gb 24.99
I phone 5c 16gb 49.99

An Otter Box will be purchased for any of them.
The thought of a replaceble battery and sd card for the Galaxy is very tempting, as is the larger screen.
A distant contender is
Samsung Galaxy Rugby Pro 49.99
Would like to purchase tonight or tomorrow.
 
Samsung Android vs. iOS comes down to personal preference, though if the articles I read were correct, the S3 is more powerful than the iPhone 5C. My research was fairly brief, though.

Considering the S3 is $10 and the iPhone 5C is $50 and considering you're not that interested in mobile games (correct?), I'd recommend the S3, even though I personally dislike Samsung's user interfaces (which are not the same as stock Android).
 
One last ingorant(that is correct hillbilly spelling)question. Will it make that much difference on the Galaxy 3 if I already have another android device? I own a Kindle Fire HDX (which I am still learning after 4 months).
 
My only opinion on the matter is no iPhones. I hate hate hate them with a passion that surpasses any sun. I've spent the last 6 work days trying to get push notifications working on a hybrid mobile app on iOS. Getting it working on an android device took maybe 15 minutes. So now I'm on a mission to convince anyone choosing a new phone to get something, anything else. The less people buying Apple, the less market share iOS has, and the sooner I'm never going to have to deal with them again. :P


As for the answer to your question, sometimes it can make a difference but not much of one. Your apps will behave in a similar and predictable manner, so you won't have to relearn them.
 
Different manufacturers tack different UIs (user interfaces) on to stock Android. None of them, in my limited experience, improve on stock Android.

I haven't played with a Kindle Fire HDX, but it may have a very different interface than the Galaxy S3. Still, the HDX UI would have to be more like the S3 UI then iOS.

Also, if you purchased apps for your Kindle Fire HDX, chances are you purchased it through the Amazon App Store. You can download and install the Amazon App Store on your S3 as well (I believe; someone correct me if this is not the case), but that's just one more layer underneath your apps. It might not bother you, though. I'm just a minimalist kind of dude. I like things tidy. And stable.
 
We are back on hold. It seems ATT is one step short of unethical. The only free or inexpensive replacement phones are smart phones. If you replace your stock flip phone with that they will tack an extra $40.00 a month on to your bill on a permanent basis, even if you are already part of a plan that includes talk, text, and data. Tek your idea is looking better and better. The problem is my brother-in-law paid extra to get a plan that would allow six of us on it. My better half and I are the only 2 on the plan left with flip phones. The good part is my better half is pretty happy with her old Cingular flip phone she is using.
 
ursen said:
We are back on hold. It seems ATT is one step short of unethical. The only free or inexpensive replacement phones are smart phones. If you replace your stock flip phone with that they will tack an extra $40.00 a month on to your bill on a permanent basis, even if you are already part of a plan that includes talk, text, and data. Tek your idea is looking better and better. The problem is my brother-in-law paid extra to get a plan that would allow six of us on it. My better half and I are the only 2 on the plan left with flip phones. The good part is my better half is pretty happy with her old Cingular flip phone she is using.
Click to expand...

You might look into Sprint if it's available in your area. Their "Framily" plan seems like a good fit for many people on one bill. Also they're not AT&T, so they have that going for them.
 
Bad news. The best coverage where I live, on a hillside in a holler, is ATT.
 
There are exactly 3 flip phones available from ATT. Samsung Rugby III, refurb and nonrefurb, refurb 49.99, Pantech Breeze IV 39.99, LG A380 19.99. All these prices are if you lock into another 2 year contract.
 
......and they are all old tech. I didn't "want" a device(they are not phones) either when we switched, but I found that we actually use them and they are nice to have. Even the stubborn 70 year old man that I work with has a device now, and likes it.
 
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