I need smart phone advice

[cscigu]

I'm a 54 year old male. By choice I have a simple flip phone, no texting, nothing. I spend little time on the phone, and thats the way I like it. I am very computer literate, but don't like smartphones, and have never been interested in them. I am also cheap.

However, due to a possible side job I may be taking on, I may need to get a smart phone, so I can take and email pictures.

My knee jerk reaction is that an Iphone is the reliable easy way to go. I don't use an Apple computer, though, always IBM style PCs.

I hate to imagine adding this to our current plan. My wife handles all that, and she really goes batty anytime she has to talk to ATT. Is there an affordable way to buy a smart phone, and carry a cheap plan, or is adding it to our current cell phone stuff most logical?

Also, are the android phones as good as/easier than Iphones? I'm not as dumb as all this sounds, phones just turn me off. This is the only forum I really visit.

 

[limited25]

Can get iPhones on eBay reasonably priced, just would advise against getting a 6 ... son switched from a 4S to a 6 and has had more trouble with it in the short amount of time he's had it than all the years he had his 4S. He is quite literate with phones. We still have our 4S and love them. Don't know about the plan part.

Haven't heard anything about the 6S.

 

[cscigu]

Can get iPhones on eBay reasonably priced, just would advise against getting a 6 ... son switched from a 4S to a 6 and has had more trouble with it in the short amount of time he's had it than all the years he had his 4S. He is quite literate with phones. We still have our 4S and love them. Don't know about the plan part.

Haven't heard anything about the 6S.

That is the angle I'd prefer (Ebay, etc). I couldn't care less how new and zing-filled it is. If you can open an internet browser, and easily take and send pics, that would be the only uses I'd have.

I'll admit, it would be nice to be able to look up phone numbers, addresses, etc.

 

[Leigti]

I like iPhones. I use them because they are accessible to me, I am legally blind. I had an iPhone five for years, and just got an iPhone 6SE last weekend. If you're looking for less expensive I would suggest any of the fives, 5S5C etc. they'll be much cheaper then the sixes. You don't have to know anything about Apple computers to run an iPhone. I warn you, they do become addicting. I never knew what the big deal about smart phones was until I got one. Now I absolutely love it.

 

[limited25]

I like to say Suri give me directions to XX, and I get verbal directions with a map. Helps me a lot ... bad sense of direction. LOL

 

[BruceAZ]

i was in a similar boat as you until last black friday.. when i got my nexus 6

amazon had it on sale for $200 (for 32GB) NEW.. they delivered it the same day

*nexus 6 is a pretty big phone though..5.96 in screen so it might not be ideal for some people*

its successor, nexus 6p, is only 5.7 in.

now a day most phones are unlocked which means you can use it with other carriers as well

i got the nexus 6 because it was a google device and you can use it with all 4 major carriers


i avoid apple and samsung phones due to the cut throat price + bloatware+ restrictions+ lack of updates


if you are buying a smart phone.. now a day a 2 year old phone will be considered as antique! so they will not release security update for it anymore

while with google phones you get latest OS and updates..

you heard of android 6.0 ? google phones owners got it way before others

while my family member just got her android 6.0 update on her samsung galaxy s5 a few days ago from t-mobile


there are pros and cons to each phone/company

so just look around and pick the one that is best for your need

a smart phone is pretty handy that is for sure


saw this a couple of days ago.. believe it or not is up to the individual..

9hr a day.. i don't use my phone that often..

there was also a study about men who put their phones in their pocket will lead to the drop in sperm count ?

 

[cscigu]

I'll have to check on those Nexus phones, too. I've been hearing/reading some good things about Motorola Moto G phone. I certainly don't need anything cutting edge. I'm even researching the idea of going with a newer carrier called Ting. It gets good reviews by the tech magazines, and you pay for only what you use. The average user's bill per phone is $23.

I think the major carriers are shooting for the typical younger user that voraciously gobbles up video, test, music, etc. The light users get roped in to pulling the load with them.

 

[MeepBeep]

I won't use anything but Android phones, as I like being able to make it mine and customize the heck out of it, but for the computer illiterate the iPhones can't be beat since they are locked down so tight it's almost impossible to fubar them, and since they are all near identical instructions on how to do things is straight forward and plentiful... Plus Apple customer support is pretty much the best in the industry, for those that lean on it or need it...

Just remember that if you are a newbie and only doing basic stuff you don't need top of the line, a legacy generation smart phone will still do the basics without a problem...

For example I still use a 6 year old Samsung Epic as a backup phone at the house, it's on a bare minimum $1.99/month plan... Hardly top of the line but I can access the web, get text, send email and run many apps on it just fine if I need to... But, mostly it just sits on the counter collecting dust as an emergency backup phone at the house...

 

[BruceAZ]

I'll have to check on those Nexus phones, too. I've been hearing/reading some good things about Motorola Moto G phone. I certainly don't need anything cutting edge. I'm even researching the idea of going with a newer carrier called Ting. It gets good reviews by the tech magazines, and you pay for only what you use. The average user's bill per phone is $23.

I think the major carriers are shooting for the typical younger user that voraciously gobbles up video, test, music, etc. The light users get roped in to pulling the load with them.

you heard of Blu phones ?

to me they are like Vizio for tvs

they are a CA based company who will design their phones here in the US and have them made oversea (china)(100% imported parts)

the phones are cheap and but functional

this is the phone i got a few months ago for $100
http://www.amazon.com/BLU-Life-Unlocked-Smartphone-Black/dp/B0189RMNTG

i bought it when it was on sale and sell it back on craiglist for $145.. i like to buy/sell back phones + fixing up broken phones

which is a reason why i would advise you to AVOID EBAY when buying NEW phones..

if you go through the reviews you will notice people who got STOLEN or USED phones sold as new phones to them.. i bought phones parts so i had my fair share with these ebay sellers as well..

apparently to them NEW means that they can take it from some other phones and put it together and call it new.. i bought new digitizer for the galaxy s3 on ebay.. they sent me a used one (it has SBI- Screen burn images)

so unless you want to deal with the hassles of going back and forth (emails, going to the post office, delays)..i would avoid Ebay for buying new phones

there are fake/counterfeit phones as well -- unless you saw the official phone and knows what default apps/os are on it it's hard to tell it apart! so unless you are knowledgeable about phones to buy from ebay or craiglist.. if not i would suggest choose a creditable seller (phone carrier, retail stores,etc..)

*wal-mart.com also sell used phones as new. so be careful when buying from wal-mart.com


also if you are buying from amazon.. make sure that it's from amazon.com.. there are some shady merchants on amazon as well make sure it's from amazon.com (direct from amazon)

for example





also, be sure to check that the phone you will buy will be compatible with the phone carrier you will be signing up with

T-mobile an AT&T use GSM
Sprint and Verizon use CDMA

unlocked phones are compatible to all 4 carriers.. but there are minor details you need to know

you heard of bands? some carriers will support certain bands.. and if the phone you have will not support those bands then it will restrict the features you can fully use on the phone



if you need a site for phone specs--this is what i use-- you can compare phones and tablets size by size like this

http://www.gsmarena.com/compare.php3?idPhone1=6033&idPhone2=6604&idPhone3=6434


as for carriers.

i tried cricket in the past it was a horrible service-- since i can not stay on a call for more than 5-10 minutes :/

so price should not be the main factor when picking a phone carrier

there are other sites that will compare phone carriers
http://www.consumerreports.org/cell...ne-carriers-small-providers-top-the-big-four/

 

[MeepBeep]

as for carriers.

i tried cricket in the past it was a horrible service-- since i can not stay on a call for more than 5-10 minutes :/

so price should not be the main factor when picking a phone carrier

When you are using one of the 're-seller' carriers it's best to research who's towers and service they use... Cricket initially was using Sprint's network, but now that AT&T owns them all their 'new' phones are on AT&Ts network and they are in the stages of phasing out the phones that are still using Sprint's towers...

So right now, Cricket's coverage should be equal to AT&Ts coverage in your area...

For our family Sprint is the no brainier carrier, we use way too much mobile data for any other carrier...