Need new phone...so confused!!

[TxRabbit]

We went to a free concert at the Kemah Boardwalk. We decided to ride the Bullet afterward, a roller coaster. Dh's wallet AND phone went FLYING out of his pockets on the coaster!

We recovered the wallet. Cancelled the cards for good measure. But the phone is absolute and complete and total toast. Our cell phones are our only phones and a necessity for his work besides.

So we are looking at the phones available. We are eligible for new every 2 so there are choices of free phones and inexpensive phones. And some phone are BOGO so I could even get one on the cheap too.

The problem is that there are so many features! Do you seriously use these features on your phone? Are there ones that are really helpful for your everyday life? I'm swimming in choices and feel lost. Any advice?

Currently we had LG eNV2 phones and are Verizon customers.

 

[DawnM]

Phones follow carriers....which carrier do you have? That will narrow the suggestions down.

 

[su_A_ve]

Things to conside first to narrow down your options. "new every 2" is a verizon slogan so I assume this is your case...

* Do you text a keyboard? Most touch screen or keyboard ones are considered 3G phones and require a data plan ($15)

* Do you need a data plan? Consider smartphones as these will give you more options than 3G phones. Most (if not all) require higher priced data plans however ($30)

* Get a used one from eBay, local swap meet, friends, etc. As long as they were verizon phones, you'll have no problem activating them on your account, without a contract extension. This will give you some time to see if you want to upgrade to a nicer phone down the road.

 

[hffmnheidi]

I just have a basic cell phone that has a camera on it and I don't text, so a keyboard isn't a neccessity for me nor are the other 'fancy' options. I am one of those people that uses it for only calls.

 

[TxRabbit]

Things to conside first to narrow down your options. "new every 2" is a verizon slogan so I assume this is your case...

* Do you text a keyboard? Most touch screen or keyboard ones are considered 3G phones and require a data plan ($15)

* Do you need a data plan? Consider smartphones as these will give you more options than 3G phones. Most (if not all) require higher priced data plans however ($30)

* Get a used one from eBay, local swap meet, friends, etc. As long as they were verizon phones, you'll have no problem activating them on your account, without a contract extension. This will give you some time to see if you want to upgrade to a nicer phone down the road.

We do have the new every two. We were eligible in January, but didn't have a need, so we didn't opt for that.

I don't mind being in contract with Verizon, so the 2-yr contract doesn't bother me.

What I wonder about the Smartphones is their usefulness for a normal person. They are so complicated. Sometimes there can be something that is actually very useful. Like somehow, the feature can be used to make grocery shopping easier. I don't know. Is there such a thing?

We do text. Our current phones have a Qwerty keyboard. They are a rectangular flip phone that open to a bigger keyboard and bigger screen.

The smartphones are saying they are compatible with our current plan, so I think they should work fine without having to make major changes there. I see certain people using their phones and it is like they have a tool, they use them much more than I currently use my phone, and I just wonder what it is they use their phones for that is so helpful.

 

[PrincessSuzanne]

My Dh only uses his phone for calls, so he just had a basic phone, and I got something a little more fancy, because I text. We have T-mobile and I also wanted something that I could get my e-mail to, so I got their Tap and it sucked, 4 months later I upgraded again to a BlackBerry and I love it. Dh now has my Tap and I just added the web feature for him at $10/month, it isn't the same access I have, but he likes it.

I love having the full keyboard, access to my 3 e-mail accounts and web capability,as well as the apps from Blackberry App World, most of which are free. I use the weather channel app, AP mobile, Flixter for movies, Pandora and Slacker radios and one option called Poynt that uses GPS to find restaurants, gas stations, movies, & businesses when we are traveling. I have access to Facebook and can google anything necessary. It is great on road trips, it is like having a mini computer.

I have gotten to where I don't have to get out moy computer at home if I just need to google something simple.

With our 2 mobile lines and T-mobile at home, my bills run about $150/month, so worth it.

Suzanne

 

[Cindyrellablue]

I love my HTC Droid Incredible!

It is super fast when you need to get online and the keyboard is very easy to work as a touch screen. Before this phone, I never had a smart phone and now don't know how I'd get along without it.

I always have access to my emails, text messages, a very good built in camera, a great voice recorder (wonderful for remembering where you park and what groceries you need for later), it also takes video (used it for a car accident my mother was involved in to document the crash and weather conditions). Also voice dials, so you can use it while driving and recognizes speech so that you can send texts and write emails without actually typing.

I don't have a separate navigation system, don't need it now...this phone has it built in...works great.

Also, unlike the old iphones, you can run more than one application at a time so for working it's great. My husband has one too and while talking to a client, he can review an email and send a follow-up...great multitasking tool.

I have also used the phone to check movie times and other events.

Just one thing...The Verizon Disney app does NOT work with this phone. The Droid platform is not exclusive to Verizon so they don't offer it. You can, however, download other free apps that can do a few of the same things.

Hope this helps.