the agony of buying a new phone

[bigsallysmom]

I admit the only reason i quit using my razr phone is because there might have been an issue with a goat waterer. i loved the flip style.  Kept me from butt dialing anyone.  Always felt a little like Capn Kirk.  From there I went to a used nonflip phone where the screen is slowly disappearing under thin horizontal lines. 
It's slowly forcing me to think about getting a new phone.  I'm on at7t and am eligible for an upgrade.  I yearn for a smart phone.  However, I almost swallowed my tongue when I see it would be around $137/mo. 
Reediculous.  Then I get angry because I feel like I'm being taken advantage of.
It's taking a long time to compare plans because of a medical issue.  About five minutes into looking at phones and plans and such I get a splitting headache and acquire the urge to take a butter knife to an artery.
Am I the only soul in the universe who is having trouble leaping the great electronic divide?

 

[Queen]

I've been with AT&T forever but am very tired of the price. I'll be switching phones in November and will be going with Consumer Cellular, very good prices and super easy site, and when you call them you talk to a real person in the US.

 

[rvwandering]

Your post made me laugh. We are also long time AT&T customers and have a flip phone. Sometimes I think that we must be the only people in the world who don't have a smart phone. We also only have one phone that we share so we're really on the low tech side of the electronic divide!

Every so often I look at the AT&T website and get confused and decide that it's not worth the money. Eventually our phone will die and we'll have to get a new one so keep us updated on your decision.

 

[cdiggy]

Most companies factor in the cost of the phone into the plan which is why you can do straight talk (or whatever) for about $40 per month instead of the $80+ that AT&T, Verizon, sprint charge. Once your contract is up your phone is paid for and that extra $40+/month is pure profit for the company. Once my contract was up with verizon I switched to straight talk and continued to use my Verizon iPhone, this away I don't have to pay the extra which goes into their pockets or lock into another two year agreement and pay for another phone I don't need.

 

[george warner]

Don't know what your phone needs are, but you can check out ..Pure Talk USA. for phone plans .. i have there 29.00 a month plan ... and for A new phone look at Amazon BLU Phones i have one of these also. quite a few to choose from starting at $52.00 to 0ver $300.00 gms unlocked smart phones , with duel sim slots . ..

 

[minimotos95]

I compromised getting a phone with a larger screen than I wanted, no SD card slot, 1 SIM slot and a non-removable battery. And of course it wasn't on the verizon network so I gave up my unlimited data plan. Oh well, I got the closest thing to what I wanted that was available, and still is as far as I know.

 

[WriterMs]

Much of your decision will depend on what you use your phone for.... do you use it almost exclusively as a phone or to text? Or do you use it as your main link to the Internet?

Most folks who boondock or travel the country (and end up in very out of the way spots) agree that Verizon's network is by far the best. I'm sure some on here will correct me if my info is outdated.

But there is a way around using Verizon (as I did for years). There are a few other companies that pay Verizon to piggy back on the Verizon (and other) cell towers. One of those companies is Straight Talk (Walmart).

I am not a fan of their customer service at all (I had problems with my hotspot usage not showing up and such). But, for the smartphone I got plus the low (relatively) monthly fee of $45 (plus some tax,etc.), I get unlimited talk and text and 5 GB of data transfer (internet usage). And all of it is via Verizon towers. You may need to specify when you look at which model of Straight Talk phones to buy that you want it to work on the Verizon network. You do buy a StraighTalk phone as a separate purchase, but that lets you choose the model you want.

If you need only regular phone service, I have heard good things about Consumer Cellular as another member posted.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Verizon still sells simple flip phones.  There's a Samsung Gusto 3 online for only $71.  And their new pricing structure shows their cheapest plan at $30 a month.  That's for a smartphone with 1 gig of data a month, so a basic, no data plan is probably cheaper.

Instead of giving yourself headaches online, why don't you just drop by a Verizon store and see what they have?

Regards
John

 

[bigsallysmom]

Thanks for all y'alls information.
I'll be making actual phone calls and text so don't think i need a data plan at all.

 

[B and C]

Verizon has an over 65 plan that may work if you qualify (no saying anything about your age) :angel:

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Verizon has an over 65 plan that may work if you qualify (no saying anything about your age) :angel:

Actually, it looks like they discontinued offering that in July when their new pricing plans went into effect. 

Regards
John

 

[B and C]

Their website is still up though :huh:
http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/plan/nationwide-65-plus

Brian

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

Their website is still up though :huh:
http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/plan/nationwide-65-plus

Brian

That's odd.  When I did a search on it recently, I got this:
http://www.verizonwireless.com/support/nationwide-65-plus-plans/

Regards
John

 

[B and C]

That is odd :huh: :huh:  
No dates on either page either.  Guess you would have chat, call or visit a store to find out for sure.

 

[Theadyn]

I feel your pain. Back in March I dropped my so-called smart phone, Samsung III, and the screen shattered. Not so smart, eh? lol Anyways, since it still worked, I keep using it. But now it's having issues. It is pure torture to think of having to go look for another phone. I just NOW got used to this one!! And I've had it almost 3 years, haha. Luckily, I have my previous one, the Samsung II, still in my possession. I'm with AT&T, so it's just a matter of actually going into the store to have them switch it over. Even that feels like torture to me though, I must admit, haha.

There's not a darn thing wrong with my previous phone, only the screens smaller, it's smaller over all (which isn't necessarily a bad thing).

I do miss the flip phones though. You just seemed so much cooler when you flipped open that sucker! And when you wanted to angrily hang up the phone, you could flip it closed with firm closure, it felt almost as good as slamming down a regular phone. So much more animated. Now... you can't really get that feeling by hitting a dang 'End Call' button... it just doesn't give the same feeling. *sigh*

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

I feel your pain.  Back in March I dropped my so-called smart phone, Samsung III, and the screen shattered. 

I used to only half-jokingly tell people that I was trying to make the Guinness Book of Records by being the last person on the planet who didn't have a cell phone.  Now that I'm getting ready to hit the road, I've decided that I would have to break down and buy one.  I'm looking at the Kyocera Brigadier on Verizon because it meets all kinds of mil-specs for waterproof, drop resistant, etc.  Do a google search on "toughest cell phones"  and you'll find articles on several models that can "take a licking and keep on ticking" . . .

BTW, flip phones are still available, and some of them are also mil-spec . . .

Regards
John

 

[Canine]

I went to an Iphone a couple years ago. Had it for several months then decided it wasn't for me. Yes, it was nice to have the Internet for road reports and severe weather alerts, but I have lived for decades without that and have done just fine. I played games and had cool apps on it, but it was frivolous- not something I wanted to spend $100/month on. I also don't do Facebook, Twitter, or other social media sites, so there was no compelling reason for me to frequently check those sites. I paid the early cancellation fee and have saved approximately $1200 since then. I don't miss it.

I went back to a flip phone, or as I like to call it, a dumb phone. I don't text a bunch, so it isn't much of an inconvenience. The portability factor is huge for me. I can easily slide my phone into my pocket, but can't do that with a smartphone. Battery life is longer. Less likely to be stolen. Smartphones are easy to crack, but they are surprisingly durable for what they are. If my phone gets ruined, the cost of a new one is about $60 compared to a $300+ smartphone.

I do Straighttalk, but I've heard tons of nightmare stories about that. I tried talking to them via phone, but that is a complete and utter joke. I do online or refills via the flip phone itself. I tried to do a prepaid plan with Verizon, but they wanted my social security number. I told them there is no reason for me to give out that number; I value my security too much to take unreasonable risks like that. With the cash in my hand I told them I would gladly sign up for their prepaid plan, but to leave out the SSN. They said the computer wouldn't let me sign up without the SSN, so I declined. That was a bummer because they have much nicer phones than Straighttalk.

I remember Will Ferrel doing a skit on Saturday Night Live. He had the best, coolest cell phone. It was a flip phone that was about an inch long. This was a joke on how the phones kept getting smaller and smaller. Now the phones are getting bigger- many are the size of a thin brick. Soon the phones will become so big, a belt holster won't suffice. We will need to have small back packs to holster our phones. If it comes to that, a llama or some kind of pack animal may be an option.

 

[bigsallysmom]

I do miss the flip phones though.  You just seemed so much cooler when you flipped open that sucker!  And when you wanted to angrily hang up the phone, you could flip it closed with firm closure, it felt almost as good as slamming down a regular phone.  So much more animated.   Now...  you can't really get that feeling by hitting a dang 'End Call' button... it just doesn't give the same feeling.   *sigh*

I also liked it because I knew for sure the call ended with I heard the slap.