Smartphones

[ivinsfan]

When I quit my job in Sept. I lost my employer paid IPHONE 6S Plus that was on Verizon.

I headed over to Walmart and purchased an IPHONE SE for $135 and singed up with Straight Talk Unlimited for $45 per month. They use Verizon towers, but also switch towers when necessary. Works great everywhere.

Was a great, inexpensive option and my SE does everything the 6S plus did, except it is smaller in size- like the 5- but performs like the 7.


Because it is smaller it fits great in any pocket and is very light. Can't ask for anything better especially at the price point!


Got a nice inexpensive wallet case for it on Amazon. I am golden.

I'm glad that option works for you, but as for "works great everywhere" it can be very location dependent.

 

[meleana]

Well- all I know is everywhere I have gone- out of state, etc., it has worked.

In fact- just the fact that it works in our house is a miracle because my other cell phone did not!

Sure there are some spots that are low bars, but honestly I have had no issues. Works just as great as my IPhone 6S plus that was on Verizon- in fact- better.

My 31 year old son uses Straight Talk also for many years. You know how the younger folks are with their phones. He prefers it to anything else. He has had it since his senior year in high school and he went to college and lives in a rural area in northern New Hampshire.

We also live in a rural area, but in NY.

 

[jimbee]

Almost every cellular carrier allows roaming on other networks, so he must have a very unusual contract. In a few cases there is a small charge while roaming, but most companies have dropped that.

As far as I know, most mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) cell phone accounts do not roam. That includes a lot of prepaid accounts.

 

[bUU]

I've checked Verizon's website for refurbs, and the only Android phone in that price range is an original Google Pixel. That might do the trick. It has NFC, fingerprint, GPS. But it only has 32 GB and no expansion slot, so it won't work as a media player. Its battery seems anemic as well.

So that's a no-go. Too many inadequacies. We're still hoping someone can suggest a $250 Android phone that supports NFC, tethering, and the ability to slide in a 64 GB expansion card, and that'll work on Verizon's network.

 

[ivinsfan]

So that's a no-go. Too many inadequacies. We're still hoping someone can suggest a $250 Android phone that supports NFC, tethering, and the ability to slide in a 64 GB expansion card, and that'll work on Verizon's network.

As they say on House Hunters you might need to up your budget

 

[Jerry1]

Yes, you can plug extra storage into your iPhone or iPad. This capability has been available for more than 5 years.

Isn't this 'extra storage' an external plug in or cloud based, not an internal SD memory card like can be added to Android devices?

And from everything I’ve read, it’s not really memory like one would think. All it does is allow for picture memory management. It doesn’t really increase the memory of the phone the way it would if you bout a phone with more memory included. Given OP, I don’t think an iPhone meets criteria.

 

[Al18]

To expand the memory in an iPhone or an iPad, you plug in a special thumb drive where you can store pictures, video's or documents. These special thumb drives are slightly more expensive than a SD or micro SD card.

 

[braumeister]

To expand the memory in an iPhone or an iPad, you plug in a special thumb drive where you can store pictures, video's or documents. These special thumb drives are slightly more expensive than a SD or micro SD card.

Or you can simply use cloud storage and download them as desired. Many options there: iCloud, Dropbox, etc.

 

[Qs Laptop]

So that's a no-go. Too many inadequacies. We're still hoping someone can suggest a $250 Android phone that supports NFC, tethering, and the ability to slide in a 64 GB expansion card, and that'll work on Verizon's network.

Already been suggested. Moto G6.

 

[dd564]

Feel free to check out MVNO's for lower cost solutions.

I use ting. We have 4 phones with light usage. Bill is about $60-80 per month. I buy used phones on swappa that work with ting. ($100-150 a piece).

Kids don't mind a use Iphone 6. It's good enough for them. I have an old LG G5.

I don't store much on my phone. Prefer cloud.

 

[Chuckanut]

BTW, I still use my 5 to listen to podcasts because I download them from my home WiFi. When I'm walking in crappy weather, we have l lot of it this winter, I don't have to subject my new phone to the cold and wet.
Old phones still work except for phone calls and texting.

+1 Same here. I use an old iPhone 4s as a glorified iPod. The only issues I am having is very slow response time. But, like an old reliable car, it's paid for.

 

[bloom2708]

You can find a used Samsung Galaxy S8/Galaxy S8 Plus your sub $250 category.

That phone is already 2+ years old. If you are willing to come up a bit, the Galaxy S9 is two versions old (S10 releasing).

Use Swappa to get an idea what $250 will buy you on Verizon. You can search by manufacturer, carrier. Prices are pretty solid based on condition.

https://swappa.com/

It takes some $ to stay within 1-3 versions from the "tip" of smartphones. No requirement to do so, but the longer you wait, the farther from the tip you get.

 

[Qs Laptop]

You can find a used Samsung Galaxy S8/Galaxy S8 Plus your sub $250 category.

With 2 years of battery charge cycle fatigue on the battery.

 

[bloom2708]

With 2 years of battery charge cycle fatigue on the battery.

Are you saying "buy new"?

I am good with that. You set your price point and then live with it.

$250 will only get you an entry level Android or one of the Moto series.

Or a used flagship. Trade-offs aplenty in the phone space.

Easiest thing to do is spend more and buy a new/better phone.

 

[Qs Laptop]

Are you saying "buy new"?

I got the vibe the original poster wanted something new:

Verizon seems to have very few choices available from them directly

$250 will only get you an entry level Android or one of the Moto series.

Or a used flagship. Trade-offs aplenty in the phone space.

Easiest thing to do is spend more and buy a new/better phone.

As you suggest, I would spend more and get a new/better phone. But I value flagship phones and I use mine a lot. It's a matter of priority.

If I were the OP I'd probably pick up a new flagship model from a previous year, maybe with the S10 coming out, a Samsung Galaxy S9. Surely they will be going on sale. Or a Pixel 2 XL. I see that a new Pixel 3 XL with 128 GB (built-in) can be had for $539. That's not removable memory, though.

 

[statsman]

You can find a used Samsung Galaxy S8/Galaxy S8 Plus your sub $250 category.

With 2 years of battery charge cycle fatigue on the battery.

Yeah, battery life seems to be the bane of most smartphones. We're using Gakaxy S5 Actives that we purchased 18 months ago (new old stock) that are approaching 5 years from initial release.

My wife and I are not heavy smartphone users, but the batteries are starting to show signs of losing their charge faster. I've actually disabled more in recent months to try and spare the batteries, but there wasn't much to disable since my wife has zero apps added and I have only one.

The good news with these smartphones is the batteries are replaceable (back cover snaps off). The bad news is most OEM batteries appear to be manufactured 4+ years ago, and by sitting idle in a box that long they likely won't perform well. Lots of reports of people buying these batteries (and confirming they are original Samsung batteries), only to find they don't perform as well as their current batteries.

I'm annoyed that AT&T won't update the S5 Actives to the latest Android 6 patches, which includes the fix for BlueBorne. We don't use our Smartphones for account access, so we've lived with this limitation (anyone waving their smartphones over a debit payer are just dying for trouble). The chipset in the S5 Active isn't capable of Android 7.

But the area we moved to has incredibly poor cell reception on the AT&T/T-Mobile network. The S5 Actives are Wi-Fi Calling capable, but despite numerous attempts, AT&T either is unable to activate this feature for us or they are refusing to do it without telling us (since we purchased them outside of AT&T).

Time for a new smartphone and service.

 

[Pellice]

I am buying a new smartphone next month. I was looking at the Pixel 3. But I see some very negative comments about it in reviews. Also - "unlocked" means I can take it to my current provider and ask them to activate it within their system, correct? (I have not bought a new phone in 4 or 5 years.)

 

[Qs Laptop]

I am buying a new smartphone next month. I was looking at the Pixel 3. But I see some very negative comments about it in reviews.

What kind of negative reviews? I've been extremely happy with my Pixel 2 XL.

Also - "unlocked" means I can take it to my current provider and ask them to activate it within their system, correct? (I have not bought a new phone in 4 or 5 years.)

I believe you buy an unlocked Pixel 3 XL from a non-Verizon store, like Best Buy or the Google store and you put your current phone's SIM card in it and activate the Pixel 3 XL.

 

[Pellice]

What kind of negative reviews? I've been extremely happy with my Pixel 2 XL.

The CNET review was very favorable, but the comments talked about its breaking down and poor reception quality. It may be that comments often are either very favorable and very negative. So, you've had a good experience?

 

[bloom2708]

https://www.cricketwireless.com/cell-phones/smartphones/samsung-galaxy-s9.html

Brand new S9 on Cricket $349. Pretty solid deal. Requires port in.

We have 5 Unlimited lines on Cricket for $125/month with all taxes and fees included. Hard to beat with 4 or 5 lines.

 

[Qs Laptop]

The CNET review was very favorable, but the comments talked about its breaking down and poor reception quality. It may be that comments often are either very favorable and very negative. So, you've had a good experience?

I wonder about comment sections because people with bad experiences are likely more motivated to post something than people that have good experiences. I'd rather rely on reviews.

I know that the Pixel phones have a track record of outstanding reviews. I see that CNET named the Pixel 3 the Android phone of the year. I've also seen websites like Droid Life and Android Central name the Pixels as best Android phones in the past.

The Pixel 2 XL is hands down the best phone I've ever had. My previous phones were Moto Droid Turbo, Droid Razr Maxx HD, and Droid 2 Global. I loved the Turbo, but the Pixel 2 XL is miles better. I opted for the XL version of the Pixel 2 because I wanted the bigger battery. I thought the battery in the Droid Turbo was fabulous (and it was) but the 2 XL's battery is a beast.

 

[target2019]

I am buying a new smartphone next month. I was looking at the Pixel 3. But I see some very negative comments about it in reviews. Also - "unlocked" means I can take it to my current provider and ask them to activate it within their system, correct? (I have not bought a new phone in 4 or 5 years.)

It's the most expensive phone I've ever used (Pixel 3). But after years of "cheap" I decided it was time to blow that dough. I upgraded from iPhone 4s, which was a bit constraining, as most will understand.

 

[bUU]

As they say on House Hunters you might need to up your budget

Looks that way. I've decided to stay with what I know will work, grabbing a refurb'ed, unlocked S8 to replace my S6 from a retailer I know won't give me a hassle if it doesn't work. It has everything I have now, plus the expansion slot. I hope getting it working is as simple as booting it up, swapping the SIM card from my S6 into it, and tying it to my Google account.

 

[bUU]

Already been suggested. Moto G6.

The US model of the Moto G6 doesn't support NFC.

https://www.motorola.com/us/products/moto-g-gen-6

I was also worried about all the reviews I read about how fragile it is compared to the Samsung S-series.

 

[bUU]

If I were the OP I'd probably pick up a new flagship model from a previous year, maybe with the S10 coming out, a Samsung Galaxy S9. Surely they will be going on sale.

I couldn't wait that long. My battery is bulging, popping out the back of my S6. I'm out of time.