Help a luddite buy a cell phone
 

I have never had a cell. I have resisted, because I refuse to be always on call. I have a phone at my desk at work, and one at home. Other that that, you can't reach me, which is exactly how I like it.

But the all-in-one package from Time Warner (cable, phone, internet) is getting out of hand. Yet another rate increase; we're spending close to $200 a month for all three. And that doesn't include premium channels, either.

So in order to cut the cord, I need an alternative phone service. Since the local landlines suck (one reason I switched), going back to one isn't very reasonable. The other alternative is a cell.

I know next to nothing about them. I do NOT want any Apple products. Sorry, but I just don't buy into the "pay more for the same thing" mindset. I do think I want a smart phone, and suggestions for different provider plans will be gratefully accepted. I certainly do not need the latest whiz-bang gadget out there, but I also don't want to start out too far behind the curve.

Also, when online shopping for plans, I run into the quandary as to how much to get, minutes/data wise. What is a typical middle aged male using for data per month?

Suggestions? Products or providers to avoid? Pitfalls to watch out for? Buy online or go to BestBuy/RadioShack/Walmart to get one and sign up for a plan?

I have an iPhone 4s and I hate it. I have hated it since the year and a half that I've owned it. I recommend a Galaxy S4.

I have an HTC One and use T-Mobile (fam plan) for both my wife and I. Happy with phone + service + cost.

While it's very hard to do, and all of the coverage maps lie unless you actually drill down to the lowest level, you need to check coverage I.E. data speed in the places you'll use it.

If you don't want a cell phone then go to the BasicTalk VOIP service.... $9.99/month and damn fine quality.

I have an HTC Sensation 4G that I can sell you uber cheap and I'll load whatever the latest Android flavor on it (prob 4.3). I just have it sitting in a drawer as a backup. PM me if interested.

iPhone isn't that expensive...I've never had to touch it software/hardware wise, and it's no more expensive than any other smart phone. $199 for the newest and greatest 5s (although some [not apple] are starting at $299) and $99 for a (barely) downgraded 5c. Very user friendly.

That being said the features are getting a little boring, and in terms of smart watches, OSs, remote controls, cameras, etc, they're falling being the times. It'll most likely be the last apple phone I buy. imessaging is really nice, but I think others have them. Uses wifi to send texts, not data/messaging plans. Something to consider for you.

If you avoid using data when not on your home or work wifi, I'd think a minimal data plan is fine. If you start listening to pandora or streaming a video on data, it'll really increase your data usage. Browsing A forum isn't too bad. I'm spoiled with unlimited data though from AT&T.

You need to goto the local Verizon and AT&T store and spend about an hour in each playing with different phones. This way you can get a feel of what the differences are between brands on operating systems on them.

Anyone use Ting? Suggested by a friend, and seems pretty decent.

just go to ting.com and get the best phone you can for the money (htc one). you pay 500 up front but come out ahead in 6 months i bet.

Looking at phones on CL. Lots of them say "clean". How do I know that is the case before I buy?

Just get this one.. and then activate on t-mobile unlimited everything for $60/month. Works on ATT as well.

https://play.google.com/store/device...s_5_black_32gb

I would say almost this exact same thing. The phone may seem a little more expensive to begin with, but you get great options as far as plans go.

First I would recommend that phone. Second I would recommend you get a free simcard from T Mobile with one of these plans, preferable the $30 plan to test out the reception for where you live/work/etc.

http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/p...FWUV7AodxmsA3Q

Then I would could call up Time Warner and tell them to go fuck themselves. I recently cut my TimeWarner bill from over $100 to $14.95+tax. I bought my own modem and now just have the most basic cable internet, 2Mb DL/1Mb UL and it works just fine for watching Netflix, streaming football and ABC/CBS/whatever .com station for shows.

Worst case scenario, you hate the whole cell phone experience, you're out $30 for the month of cell service and you sell the phone to someone for a few bucks less than you bought it. Also if T Mobile doesn't work for you, AT&T offers pre or post paid options that will probably have better overall reception and will work perfectly with the nexus 5.

I'm on Cricket, using an HTC V One. Low end of the spectrum smartphone that I bought on sale for $90 through Cricket. My service is $55/mo for unlimited talk, text, and data. No contract, and autopaying your bill saves $5/mo. I've been on their service for about 2 years and see no reason to change over to another service. The only place I don't have cell service is up in the high country here in CO, where a lot of other carriers don't have coverage either.

My gf is on it, too, but does not like smartphones. Her basic flip phone was $25 new, and is $35/mo for service.

"Clean" mostly only refers to either Verizon or Sprint Phones. On those carriers, lost or stolen phones can be marked as such and will not have a clean ESN. Those phones will then not be able to be activated on the carrier it was marked dirty for. Also almost all phones in the US are carrier locked. So if you by chance bought a phone on CL originally used on T mobile and tried to activate it on ATT, there's a chance it wouldn't work without some hacking. Same thing with pretty much all carriers and phones.

Just another reason why buying the Nexus 5 would be a good idea. Works out of box on ATT, T Mobile, and the newer Sprint frequencies.

But if you live in BFE and end up needing Verizon, good luck finding a cheap plan.

if you get an android based phone you can run shadowdash ms on it and datalog as well as have gauges. of course you'll have to get the serial to bluetooth adapter.

As for plans.. I'm moving to virgin mobile once my verizon contact runs out. Prepaid Unlimited Cell Phones - No Contract Phones & Plans | Virgin Mobile (they are piggybacking off sprints network)

I ditched our land line and have Vonage for the home phone. Vonage is great for international calling. I use Virgin mobile for my phone $35 for 300 minutes and unlimited text and data. I have Ting for the wife's phone. Ting.com is a pay as you use service provider. Buy a (Sprint-compatible) used Samsung Galaxy S3 or S4, register on Ting, profit.

Big fan of T-Mobile prepaid here. Wife has a Nexus 4 and is on the $30 a month plan for unlimited data and 100 minutes of talk. Just keep a some extra cash on your T-Mobile account and it will automatically deduct at $0.10 a minute. Just make sure you get good coverage in your area.

Also have an Obi box for free home phone use through Google Voice, but that's going away in May of 2014 (the free Google Voice hookup, not Obi). Still, it's not hard to find a good VOIP provider for a couple bucks a month.

I honestly do this professionally.

1. How many talk minutes to you use on average per month? Round up.

2. Are you looking for more then one device? If so question #1 for every additional line.

3. Generally I asked about your location but being that I am from Buffalo and I know Rochester pretty well I can say AT&T and Verizon should both serve you fine, T-mobile IDK about and Sprint probably not.

From my experience most people use less then 2gb of data per month. Obviously that changed significantly if you plan on using your phone for Netflix or Hulu.

Friend offered me a HTC EVO for 60 bucks, with charger, case and holster. Only works on Virgin, which uses the Sprint network. Will not work on Ting, which also uses the Sprint network. Dammit, I want to use Ting. But $35 a month for unlimited data from Virgin is tempting.

My problem right now is not having any idea how much data I'd need. Texting: 0. Minutes: less than 50 a month. Data: no clue.

Oh, and while that Nexus 5 looks nice, I'm not paying $400 for my first phone. Maybe as an upgrade, but I need some experience first.

Ive done the iphone thing. They ARE user friendly, but they get boring. AND, they are extremely fragile. I broke 3 of them... but i am rough as hell on phones. Ive had nothing but HTC phones with Gorilla glass ever since, and they are pretty tough. Havent broken one yet. (knock on wood) AND, they never cease to amaze me. They are JUST as user friendly, but Are VERY powerful, the newer ones are anyways, you would be amazed at what these things can do. My current phone is the HTC DNA, Has a SnapDragon Quad Core, and of course, gorilla glass. lol (I DONT like however the fact that THIS phone doesnt have expandable memory, or a removable battery...) Dont get the DNA. lol
Im picking up the Galaxy Note 3 in 2 weeks though. My first SmartPhone outside of the HTC family.

I'm using Virgin (in the Rochester area; live in Naples, work in Victor.) Actually, I've been on the Sprint network for years. It works fine....

And $35/month is nice.

Pick the network 1st, then the phone...
 

There are some great suggestions in this thread. I would frame the decision as follows:

1. If you just want a land line, drop everything but internet from TW and use a VOIP product. This assumes your TW Internet is stable and relatively low latency. I use OOMA here, primarily because the wired phone service was so unreliable. The mountains of Colorado are brutal on outdoor wiring. Another decent VOIP solution is to pair Google Voice (free) with a OBI 100:


2. If you still want to go Cell, look at the providers network at your house. At my home, any of the GSM based services won't fly (Tmobile and ATT) due to mountains between me and the towers. Once you have a carrier, the advice about which phone above is solid. Personally, I refuse to pay the Apple tax anymore, and I think the Google Nexus devices directly from Google are the best value.

Good luck, and let us know what you decide and how it works out!