Recently my wife’s old LG Nexus 5 is experiencing a boot loop where the phone keeps on rebooting out of the blue. This seems to be a common problem with this phone. I’ve watched a few videos on YouTube on how to fix the problem so I replaced the battery hoping this was the problem but it reboots after the replacement. It seems like the start button could be the issue.
She has had the phone for sometime and is happy with this phone but I was thinking of having it replaced. She mainly used it for calls, texting, googling and using a few apps. Her plan is grandfathered plan for $35 for 5 gb in Canada (this is considered cheap plan in Canada). All new plans here are expensive so she doesn’t want anything too expensive (<$75) or fancy. We are both retired so we are on a limited budget.
I know BlackBerry phones are slowing dying but I was looking at the Blackberry Z30 for around the $75 range but reading the Blackberry forum (Crackberry forum), in 2020 there maybe no 10 OS updates for the Z30. There other complaint is the lack of apps and problems installing the apps. BlackBerry claims that they will continue with updates to this phone.
Should I go ahead and get the Blackberry Z30 and BYOD on her current plan? I am open for suggestions on other phones available within the price range.
Another in-budget option is a used Moto G4 Plus, G5S or G5 plus. I’m not sure which versions were sold in Canada.
My previous phone was a G4 Plus. In some ways the G4 Plus was a better phone than any G5 even though it is slightly older. I would likely still be using my G4 plus if it hadn’t died after an accidental submersion.
The biggest downside is the G4 and G5 are at end of life for firmware updates. The final upgrade was to Android 8.1 / Oreo.
If you care about security updates, and you should, have a look at Android One phones.
My current phone is a Nokia 7 Plus. I like it even more than my old Moto. The 7 Plus has been out over a year and is semi-discontinued. You might be able to find a used one in budget. There is also the newer but less expensive Nokia 7.1.
They are both Android One phones, which means it has at least two years of OS updates and three years of security patches.
If they are out of budget, have a look at some of the less expensive Android One phones like the Nokia 5.1 or 4.2.
Too bad, i had the bootloop issue as well on my Nexus.
Now i own a pixel 2, but the pixel 3 can be bought for about 450, which is really worth it (personally, i’m not a big fan of (complete) Samsung products)
You can maximize your budget by buying used. A quick ebay search found a iPhone6 for $73.55 and free shipping. It says 100% working, so Paypal has you covered. There’s not even all that much difference between a iphone6 and the latest model. used iPhone 6 for $74
As can be expected from me, I also tend to prefer budget options in smartphones. I would recommend a Xiaomi, they have everything from very inexpensive to high end devices, and they all punch well above their weight.
Thanks all, I will look into all your suggestions. Before retirement, my work phone was the iPhone 7S. I am use to the Apple phones but my wife prefers android phones for some reason.
Iphone SE can be had for about $90 to $120. Best Iphone I have ever had. I won’t part with it.
Some folks hate iPhones because they can’t play with software or whatever. Some people don’t like the Androids because a high number of them come shipped with Malware already on them or are not secure enough when they ship and are immediately vulnerable. So to each their own. Matters none to me.
I would recommend a Xiaomi, they have everything from very inexpensive to high end devices, and they all punch well above their weight.