OT - Best NEW SmartPhone?

[DaddyChoc]

besides Apple products

thinking about making the leap from Basic to Smart, trying to avoid the Verizon tiered data plans (currently have unlimted everything on a basic "media" phone).

I hear if I buy my own smartphone (EBay or Amazon) I can stay with my old plan.

suggestions, experiences welcomed

 

[dogpause]

My advice is to buy an unlocked phone, regardless which one you choose, and go with a prepaid plan. You'll pay $500-$600 for the phone, but you can get unlimited everything service for about $50-60/mo. I use Straight Talk (AT&T), available from Wal-Mart. You'll be using the same AT&T network as if you contract with AT&T. Not sure if Verizon offers prepaid plans. ATT and T-Mobile use GSM phones, so you get some competition for your business.

As for phones, consider a Phablet. I've had a Galaxy Note for a while and love it. I'm at the age where a bigger screen makes reading easier. My wife call it "The Pop Tart" because of its shape and size. Takes a day or two to get used to, but believe me, once you Phab, you won't go back. Size does matter.

 

[Huskyjoker]

My advice is to buy an unlocked phone, regardless which one you choose, and go with a prepaid plan. You'll pay $500-$600 for the phone, but you can get unlimited everything service for about $50-60/mo. I use Straight Talk (AT&T), available from Wal-Mart. You'll be using the same AT&T network as if you contract with AT&T. Not sure if Verizon offers prepaid plans. ATT and T-Mobile use GSM phones, so you get some competition for your business.

As for phones, consider a Phablet. I've had a Galaxy Note for a while and love it. I'm at the age where a bigger screen makes reading easier. My wife call it "The Pop Tart" because of its shape and size. Takes a day or two to get used to, but believe me, once you Phab, you won't go back. Size does matter.

Can't go wrong with the Galaxy Note, great phone. If you don't want to go the phablet route, I have the LG G2, as big a phone as you can get get without being a phablet. Beautifulscreen, fast, very good camera and great battery life. The best smartphone I have had yet.

 

[Husky25]

I held out on getting a new phone for about a year, because my wife and I were grandfathered into unlimited data with Verizon. We got Samsung Galaxy S III's last January with 4GB of shared data and we haven't come close to using. I even set up a mobile hotspot so we could watch the Maryland basketball game while tailgating before the Louisville football game. Probably used a 1/2 GB that night, but ended up using less than 2 Gig for the billing period. Remember you only use data if you are not on Wi-Fi. The unlimited minutes and texts are really working out for us too. I didn't think I'd like the touch screen because I like the tactile keyboard. I've gotten use to it and the big screen more than makes up for it. The shared plan also costs less than what we were paying in the aggregate for our separate plans.

I seriously considered the Note II, but it is huge and does not look to fit well in pants' pockets. The Galaxy is slightly smaller but is much more comfortable as a phone. It really depends what you intend as the device's primary use. The Verizon sales associate rattled off all the bells and whistles of the Galaxy (and Note), but not once did he say it makes a clear phone call. We had to ask. Alas it does make a clear call and we haven't looked back.

The only problem in retrospect with my phone is that the Galaxy S IV was introduced just weeks later and we could have either bought that or the S III for substantially less. Oh well. It's still better than the iPhone and I like it better than the Note (My cousin has one).

 

[Dogbreath2U]

I held out on getting a new phone for about a year, because my wife and I were grandfathered into unlimited data with Verizon. We got Samsung Galaxy S III's last January with 4GB of shared data and we haven't come close to using. I even set up a mobile hotspot so we could watch the Maryland basketball game while tailgating before the Louisville football game. Probably used a 1/2 GB that night, but ended up using less than 2 Gig for the billing period. Remember you only use data if you are not on Wi-Fi. The unlimited minutes and texts are really working out for us too. I didn't think I'd like the touch screen because I like the tactile keyboard. I've gotten use to it and the big screen more than makes up for it. The shared plan also costs less than what we were paying in the aggregate for our separate plans.

I seriously considered the Note II, but it is huge and does not look to fit well in pants' pockets. The Galaxy is slightly smaller but is much more comfortable as a phone. It really depends what you intend as the device's primary use. The Verizon sales associate rattled off all the bells and whistles of the Galaxy (and Note), but not once did he say it makes a clear phone call. We had to ask. Alas it does make a clear call and we haven't looked back.

The only problem in retrospect with my phone is that the Galaxy S IV was introduced just weeks later and we could have either bought that or the S III for substantially less. Oh well. It's still better than the iPhone and I like it better than the Note (My cousin has one).

I'm just curious why it is better than an iphone?

 

[Chin Diesel]

Plenty of good options.

Keep in mind that no matter what good, new phone you get now, it's going to be a boring old model within six months.

It all comes down to what you plan on doing with you phone. I use mine for calling, texting, social media and internet. So all I need is a 4G phone and I'm happier than the Pillsbury Dough Boy going to a baking convention.

 

[dandar]

What network are you with? Motorola Moto G is available unlocked for less than $200 off contract but it won't work on Verizon. If you're on Verizon get something used off ebay or prepare to spend $500+

 

[Goat]

One of my sons has a Samsung and it is nice. I have an HTC1 and love it. You will be happy with the decision to go smart phone. Good luck.

 

[dandar]

I'm just curious why it is better than an iphone?

It has a larger screen and google app store (play store) has more free useful apps. Iphone has a slightly better camera and is smaller and probably easier to use for beginners. My wife has SGS4, I have Razr Maxx HD and we also have the apple ipad 2 so I have some experience with both platforms.

 

[Husky25]

I'm just curious why it is better than an iphone?

It's merely my opinion but since you asked:

1. The Screen on my Galaxy is as big as the iPhone, but the device is still the size of a phone.
2. The bigger screen makes reading, texting, and watching multimedia easier.
3. Near Field Communication was not available for the iPhone at that time. NFC makes file sharing very easy between our two devices.
4. It charges via a mini-USB connector, which so many devices are going toward and are therefore interchangeable. For instance I have a Galaxy S III charger, but I can also charge my phone with my old Blackberry charger. I can also connect the phone to my computer using the old Blackberry USB cord. Since I don't have many other Apple devices (I have an old iPod that hasn't been charged in years), I don't have the Apple connector, which is only good for Apple products.

There are only two negatives for the S III. Battery life is about a day under moderate use. I have a tendency to charge my phone every night so it is not a big deal to me. Also the screen is somewhat hard to see in the direct sunlight, which make it tough to read the Boneyard during early season football games .

 

[uconndoit]

Check out the Nexus 5. Cheap, unlocked, big 5" screen with a form factor as small as possible.

 

[tykurez]

Check out the Nexus 5. Cheap, unlocked, big 5" screen with a form factor as small as possible.

Not available on Verizon

 

[DaddyChoc]

thanks for all the replies... I don't talk much, text a lot and surf FB a lot (only site I can get with a basic phone, and ESPN mobile). I have WiFi everywhere I go so data isn't a huge issue but the ability to be unlimited is wonderful. my daughter is on my plan and she uses 15-25 gigs a month easily.

 

[uconndoit]

Not available on Verizon

By golly ur right.

 

[brasssbonanzaa]

Not available on Verizon

If you're looking for the Nexus experience on Verizon, go with the Moto X, it's a pretty darn close replica of it, especially with Motorola now being owned by Google.

 

[progrocks]

Nexus 5 seems to be the best deal.

 

[Fishy]

Nexus 5 is a bit on the flimsy side, but it won't work with Verizon, so it doesn't matter.

Go to a Verizon store and see what floats your boat.

 

[rariggidy]

Nexus 5 is one of the best options right now in terms of price ($350 for unlocked 16gb). However the Moto X has been getting better reviews because of how similar it is with a few extra features. Moto G might be a good option as well, haven't looked into it too much.

 

[Hans Sprungfeld]

If you're looking for the Nexus experience on Verizon, go with the Moto X, it's a pretty darn close replica of it, especially with Motorola now being owned by Google.

Yes. I like everything about the Moto X: size, performance, battery.
It is more nearly like the iPhone is to iOS than any other Android OS-telephone pairing.

 

[minidarren]

S4, knock it off with the other crap.

 

[John]

In the same boat, looking to make the big upgrade from a flip phone to smart phone. I'm a Verizon customer, but well out of contract so I could easily tell them goodbye. I keep looking at the Motorola Droids, are they good phones? I'm mainly going to be talking/texting and using GPS/maps.

 

[jleves]

Probably best to wait a few weeks - the S5 may ship in January or February.
S5 News

 

[DaddyChoc]

it would be nice to not be locked into a damn contract! how is Sprint service?

 

[iam76]

love my htc one

phones i would love to try. the bamboo moto lol and the nexus 5..

i have a nexus 7 so i am not into phablets

 

[Fishy]

I think the new cheap Motorola (G?) isn't compatible with Verizon's system. (Perhaps they'll release a version of it down the road.) It's pretty darned cheap for an off-contract phone.

The benefit to the Motorola and Nexus phones is that you're really getting what Google intends stripped of most of the nonsense. The phones get updates faster. They might be a step behind HTC's build quality, but they're a full step ahead of Samsung. (I have a Nexus 5 which is a little plasticky, but feels like a Rolex compared to an S4.)

I have a one-off discount code for $150 off of a Moto X - it might have expired yesterday, but if anyone wants to try it, send me a message.