That’s exactly what it is. They had to find a way to keep their customers from defecting. If you get an unlocked phone, all you needed is a SIM card to use it. Otherwise any phone you bought were locked to that network.
We had the government step in and reduce the the stranglehold of the service providers. Worse still, there wasn’t the wide open competition up here that was available in the US.
As far as I’m concerned, make the cell towers public property and then let the service providers fight for service. As it stands, they use the stranglehold of putting up towers to control areas.
Capitalism never works if there is some element of exclusivity. Worse still if governments won’t let anybody and everybody compete for market share.
Last November, I got the 4gig/64gig Moto X4 for what works out to be ~150 USD. I think this is the last in the style of phones I like: small (around 5”), full HD screen, fingerprint sensor up front, headphone jack, and IPX-8 waterproofing. Love Moto Actions as well. A cousin got the 6gig/64gig version for about USD 130 last month. Really dissatisfied with newer phones growing larger by the day and moving fingerprint sensors to the back and skipping headphone jacks.
That’s the way the industry is headed. There are very few phones with under 5.5” screens and headphone jacks. It’s even harder to find pvi res with styluses (Samsung Note or LG Stylo). They are still out there, but that are usually lower end models.
Y’know just how annoying that is? Ie, you see some chickie with a nice round bum, bounded only by sheer stretchy material of her pants, nigh perfection… except for what looks like a clipboard wedged in her back pocket. :person_facepalming:
I never hold the cell to my ear. Now instead of holding a clipboard to my ear…….I’m talking to it near my chin.
That’s why I always think those follks have a sandwich phone. Bite! Yum yum…
Anyways, my Sony XZ1Compact still works well. No need for full hd on a 4.6” screen, that would only drain the battery faster.
I only wish they added the silicone case right to it as the alu back is quite slipperey, the one I gotfrom bearguest is close to perfect for my needs.
It’s what I always do. I bought the best phone from two or three years ago. The smartphones have very little change between one year and another, it’s basically marketing hype so you can change yours. They are always in good condition and I do not make an initial investment of more than 500 bucks. I will never pay more than 200 bucks for a phone.
Any old flagship is usually better than any chinese budget phone.
When I was shopping for phones in 2016 I was looking for a Samsung Note 5, I noticed a couple of things. 1, even after a year on the market, they were still over $400 for a new in box 64 GB (you had to get that capacity… no micro sd). Too expensive! So, I looked for Note 4’s and from the reviews, there wasn’t much difference between them, a slightly better camera, 1 GB more RAM, improved S Pen and a faster CPU. You gave up expandable storage, removable battery, and a more durable phone. I got a near-new Note 4 on auction for $225 shipped. When my Note 4 was dying this year, the Note 8 was out but was still $500-600 for a new in box. Then the Note 9 came out and the Note 8 pretty much depreciates by $150 even $200 overnight. I got a factory unlocked Note 8 in box for $385. It just got patched to Pi too. It’s amazing. I wonder how the Note 9 will depreciate when the Note 10 is launched in 4 months?
just got the oneplus 6 and I am super happy with it. really nice phone.
Honestly though, the best budget phone is the one you do not buy.
Update on my Moto E5 Play:
The phone is good enough for me, but it doesn't vibrate very hard.
I have it on a flat desk, and when it vibrates, I barely notice it.
That's the only problem I have so far, and I like it a lot more than my Moto E2.
I’m really happy with my Moto G5S Plus that I’ve had since November 2017. It has everything I want; great battery life (Iused to get 8-10 hours screen time when it was new, after a year and a half its down to 6-8 hours).The Snapdragon 625 is no powerhouse but has a reputation for being extremely effecient, 3GB RAM is fine, SD card slot, headphone jack, nice screen (5.5” is the largest I’ll ever go for). None of these stupid extra gimmicks or the lame “headphone jack is outdated” excuse. The camera was just okay… Until I installed gcam with HDR+ and now I get pixel-esque shots. My only complaint is the GPS sucks but I don’t use it anyway.
i got tired of trying to figure out all the android makers, models, years, versions, bugs, fixes…
what i did was get a 2016 iphone 6
it works well and was like $150 on amazon
wle
As always:
The best budget phone is the one you don’t buy.
What to do if your phone gets slow:
1. Empty your phone storage by backing up your photos/videos/files to your computer, and then erasing them on your phone.
2. Put your photos/vids on your microSD card.
Reason: The more your flash storage inside of your phone is filled, the slower that storage is, the slower the phone feels.
3. Replace your battery. Can cost between 20$-90$, but are 100% worth it.
4. Get rid of apps like Facebook, or Twitter.
Replace them with lighter apps like Swipe.
5. Uninstall apps you don’t need, or disable them.
6. Install this:
This for Youtube:
No ads, downloads possible. Perfect for mobile. Extremely fast too.
Just search for alternative apps here.
Last option: Buy a used phone, and replace its battery!
Easiest way is to focus on Android One devices or google pixel phones.
Then choose
A long time ago I bought a Leagoo M8 Pro, after rooting it and getting rid of all pre-installed apps and services it is a great budget phone. I think I paid about 40$ US 2 years back.
Swappa can be an option for bargains. I’m posting this via a really nice 8gb/128gb carrier unlocked oneplus 6 I got via swappa for a bit more than half of the original price. Nice upgrade from my 4+ year old 64gb oneplus one but the a/b partition scheme can be a pain to flash/recovery/root. Currently running havoc.
edit: some may not consider a $300 decrease in the price of a like-new phone a ‘budget’ option, I don’t consider a $100+ flashlight a ‘budget’ option. To each their own. My phone is my only internet access after at&t failure to provide reliable landline service (over a ten year period on average a month per year with no phone or dsl with no discount, paying for service not received due to water infiltration in the wires), and considering I have relied on my oneplus one for over four years after having it survive drops up to five feet to a concrete floor (in a hybrid case) I consider the op6 i’m using now, purchased for what I paid for my opo a bargain. Both the opo and op6 were rooted to give me options. I like being able to use my device as I choose. I use substratum, currently with swift black, and screen on time is excellent.
To me a budget phone would be an Android under 50 dollars. Medium price level would be 80-250, high at 300-550 and anything above is something I would probably not purchase. 1K for a phone in 2019 is unrealistic to me (but I do understand the appeal to own the latest and greatest).