Best budget smartphone?

Yep. Problem is storage can fail. Be sure to do regular backups :innocent:

Not sure if it is a good budget smart phone but I got for my wife a free Samsung Galaxy A5 2017 brand new.. Seems to be pretty decent after I removed all the bloatware, turned off mobile data, turned off all notifications except for incoming calls etc. The only thing I don't like is that the phone is the Canadian version and they disabled the FM tuner. Would have been nice to have it working without using any data. Searched around and not convinced installing a new global rom would fix it as I have read never ending issues with this phone trying to do that.

After years of having a smart phone, I thought I would call up Consumer Cellular and set up my voice mail.

The man on the phone tried to call my mom's phone, and he couldn't, so he told me to do a factory reset on both phones.

I did, and after doing so, I lost just about all the data on my phone, and my mom lost just about all of her pics on her phone and all of her texts.

I don't know who I was talking to at Consumer Cellular, but he gave very bad advice.

Now I know that you have to backup your data first, and you'll still lose all of your texts.

I didn't have a lot on my phone, but having to start over again is annoying to say the least.

My voice mail is set up, and Consumer Cellular can now call my mom's phone, but it was still horrible advice.

If someone tells you to do a factory reset on your phone, do some research first, and take the necessary precautions to limit data loss.

I.m.o. a decent 2nd hand Samsung S5 is perhaps the best deal.
Make sure to do a factory reset BEFORE you start using it.
Lord knows what mess is on there when you buy a used one.
A micro SD card is a good idea too. For me 32 GB is more than enough.

The only draw back is the age and wear of the battery, but you can get a new one if necessary.

among much else, turns up

[quote]
Secret Back Door in Some U.S. Phones Sent Data to China …

Nov 16, 2016 The Chinese company that wrote the software, Shanghai Adups Technology Company, says its code runs on more than 700 million phones, cars and other smart devices….

How to Stay Safe from Adups Spyware on Budget Android Phones …

Aug 1, 2017Chinese Android software transmitted personal data including text messages, call details, and contacts from tens of thousands of phones.,

Yes, i’ve heard similar things… Laptops, even military equipment…

Reminds me of what happened to me a couple of days ago.

I was petting the (my mom’s) dog, saying “hey, doggie”.
And her phone was close by, and the phone said: “He’s a good boy.” and played a dog barking….

My mom thought it was hilarious,
i was a little freaked out by it…
I guess it must have been some stupid app that caused this, but who knows?

Since then i turn off the Wifi on my phone (and of course the data transmission via the cellphone network) when i don’t need it.
But guess what happens when i turn it on?
It’s busy transmitting a bunch of data back an forth, making it next to impossible to do anything else until it’s finished.

You know the slogan:
“Make 1984 fiction again!”

Recently purchased a 1 year old 64 gb Samsung Galaxy S8 on Craigslist for $60 with a cracked screen. Had the screen replaced at $75 and added a 128 gb micro SD card.

Looks like Samsung will not issue any updates to the S8 but I think $125 for a S8 seems to be a good deal.

I purchased a used Samsung S10E 128GB for $130. It has almost nothing visually wrong with it, and I decided to get one for mom. I forgot how much bloat Samsung devices have after using Moto for a number of years. But it’s big improvement in performance over my last phone. Hoping to have it a good number of years.

Whatever the current iPhone that has the lowest cost, such as an iPhone 7, iPhone SE 2, or iPhone XR depending on vendor. For Android why not Nokia or Alcatel?

My kids got new Samsung tablets at xmas so I could finally have my own tablet computer (phone and PC is usually enough for me but some android games are nicer on the big screen).
So I used this guide and this list to clean the rubbish. Took me one hour around midnight to reinstall the keyboard thoudg, so DON’T remove or disable anything with keyboard or honeyboard in its name.
If I was to de-bloat an S10E (my wife owns one, maybe I’d inherit it soon if my Sony XZ1c would die someday) I’d check this post.
Cheers.

The best new brand budget phone in cca 200Eur range is Xiaomi Poco X4 Pro but soon new version will be released (Poco X5), and of corse Redmi Note Series 11 and 12.

You would trust this phone with your personal information and connect it to your home wifi?

:question: :slight_smile: Of course :+1: I haven’t been robbed, and I have some important company and personal bank accounts apps installed :+1:

Xiaomi is not no name brand…

They have a history of collecting data off your browsing habits, though…

Always use a privacy-oriented, 3rd-party web browser at least

If you worry about privacy just get a used laptop and run a European VPN with Tor on free open Wifi.

Necrobump!
I had to choose a budget smartphone for one my mom’s friends.
The first one I chose was the Samsung Galaxy A03s.
It seemed to be a great phone, but the power button is recessed, and my mom’s friend has a lot of trouble turning it on or off.
(Her hands are in terrible shape.)
We’re returning that one.
The second one I chose was the Motorola Moto G Power (2022).
We’re going to pick it up later today.
I know that neither of these two phones are perfect, but hopefully the second one will be good enough.
I was thinking about getting a Moto G Power (2022) for myself as well, but my old phone suits my needs fine.
I was also thinking about getting a Xiaomi smartphone for myself, but I’m not sure if it’ll work with my carrier (Consumer Cellular).
There’s a compatibility list here, but it’s over a year old, and the Xiaomi phone that appeals to me was released in 2023, so I don’t know if it would be compatible or not. :thinking:
https://www.consumercellular.com/api/assets/custom-content/asset-tool/ConsumerCellular-HandsetCompatibility.pdf

EDIT:
After studying that list for a while, I’m pretty sure that the Xiaomi phone I want is not compatible.
The one that looks good to me is the Xiaomi Redmi Note 12.
The last Xiaomi Redmi Note that was compatible is the Xiaomi Redmi Note 8 (or Note 8T.) :man_facepalming:
So, if I really want to get a new phone, I’d probably go with a Motorola. :+1:

I just picked up a Samsung A14 5g. Locked it cost $120. I like it except it is big.

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I think I’m going to order a Samsung A14 for myself as well.
The one I’m looking at doesn’t have 5G, but that’s not a problem for me because I almost never use mobile data. :+1:

What makes consumer cellular so special, i.e., what rules the Xiaomi Redmi out?

Consumer Cellular is only about $15-$20/month for me because I’m on my mom’s account.
That’s pretty cheap in the U.S.