Shopping for 1st smart phone this afternoon

MrTrolleyguy

MrTrolleyguy

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I'd like to have a little back ground information before I walk into the T-mobile store this afternoon.

Iam going to T-m because I have heard that they have the best phone plan available right now.

My needs: A larger display, sturdy keypad would be hi on the list. To be honest I would be using it 85 to 90% of the time at home. Updateable. Good to very good access to apps. Good warranty. If I drop it and crack some thing a warranty that covers tht type thing would be great if it does exist. Able to connect wirelessly to lap top, smart tv, pc etc.

I am not asking much am I! :rolleyes:

EDIT: Has anyone tried using the SCSW from Google Books. It really be helpful to use at the lgs to check it before making a purchase. If you could do that with an app it would be even better.
 
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Most smartphones these days have touch screens rather than keypads. And voice recognition pretty much replaces most touch type anyway.

Samsung Galaxy4 is probably the most popular larger screen phone

I use Sprint because I wanted unlimited data. Data ain't cheap. Talk time and texting is getting very cheap. I think ATT has plans for around $45/mo with unlimited talk and text with only just a few hundred mb of data. If you are going to use your phone 90% on your home network then you won't need much of a data plan. But for home use I'd get a tablet.
 
An iPhone is easily best but it doesn't have a keyboard. The app is called and you just search for the smith & wesson forum and then you can set up notifications for whichever thread/topic you want.


Sent from my iPod touch using Tapatalk
 
"SMART PHONE"

Please do not be in a hurry, there are likely great deals but there are considerations that over ride the cost. An example is: My wife's family is scattered in North Dakota, South Dakota and Arizona, our former provider was not reliable in the Dakotas unless she was near a larger city. She insisted we had complete coverage and I agreed but she wanted a "Smart Phone" at the same time so we found a place where we obtained two Smart Phones for the normal cost of one, I did not need or want one but since it wasn't costing an arm and a leg, we made the deal, kept the numbers from our old provider and now have two phones that are much smarter than I need or can use. She does fine with the added attractions but I only use the basic phone & text. It costs close to $170.00/month for this and its way too much for my small brain, oh yes, the unlimited Data Plan was no longer offered so we pay an additional $10.00/month for ONE Extra Gigabyte for data. This isn't naming providers for a reason but if you are an educated buyer you may be able to do better negotiating than I could. Good luck in your quest!
 
Hold your horses if you can, being an iPhone fan I would make the recommendation to wait for the iPhone 6 due out any minute now, well maybe sometime in the next few months.
 
In our area T mobile is ok but not the best in reception. If you stick around Philadelphia you shouldn't have a problem but if you go out into the sticks that phone is just dead weight. Up in the Pocono my Verizon gets 2 bars, my friends t mobile is good for target practice

Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk
 
But how will you be able to find the store or compare the gazillion models with a Smart Phone??

I still have my Star Trek flip phone, I considered a Smart Phone but to confusing. I don't text, I can read road signs, no twit, or face book stuff. Only thing I would use is they have great cameras now:)
 
It's worth it for the camera alone but there are a few apps that are well worth having, built in flashlight, compass, magnifier and one of my favorites, a digital level. Good stuff the iPhone.
 
Rule3 said:
But how will you be able to find the store or compare the gazillion models with a Smart Phone??

I still have my Star Trek flip phone, I considered a Smart Phone but to confusing. I don't text, I can read road signs, no twit, or face book stuff. Only thing I would use is they have great cameras now:)
Click to expand...

Yeah I'm with ya there.Got a 5 year old Boulder,came with 2 batteries,the big one lasts almost a week.No land line just cell now.Waterproof and been bulletproof so far.My wife on the other hand just had to have an I Phone.She can barely use the desk top I'm typing from.So after months of dropping hints and being reminded that I get every thing I want I said "Okay honey whatever you want,okay by me."So now I'm paying about another thirty dollars a month to watch her try to use this thing.I can only compare it to a chimp with a laptop.Oh yeah it needs charged daily.She has no face book,no twitter and she can't figure out how to get on the internet.I'm of no help and have no desire to waste time to figure it out.Oh yeah
one of the arguments was the great pictures it took.My reply was we have a Nikon for pictures its a phone.Oh well happy wife happy life right.
 
Well I took everything I heard here and added a review or two from Cnet and took a buddy with me to the phone store.

Apple or Android is the first Big Question. Do I get the 28-2 or 27-2? Somebody is going to say, "Get both!" So that is what I did. Whole hog. I got a Samsung Note phone. That is a big transitional device 'twix a phone and a Ipad like device. Then I got an IpadAir. I binged on electronics.

Thanks for each member's input. It is appreciated.

Now I start the learning curve :D




 
Comrad said:
Hold your horses if you can, being an iPhone fan I would make the recommendation to wait for the iPhone 6 due out any minute now, well maybe sometime in the next few months.
Click to expand...

They have something called "jump" that lets you upgrade devices...for a fee, I think.
 
I vote for the iPhone but I am biased. I may be old, but I can use the iPhone with ease. It has a great camera, if you don't like the touch screen keyboard, you can get a Bluetooth physical keyboard, a million or two apps, a great screen, NO virus or malware. I do love the built in flashlight, I use runkeeper, another free app, to keep track of har far and long I walk, the built in weather app that always knows where I am so I always know what temp it is, Siri is great to work with, and I could go on and on and on.
 
If you have any friends who are under contract with at&t or T-Mobile who have recently upgraded, you may be able to buy/trade whatever for their old phone. I'd recommend that you take a look at straighttalk/net10 from Walmart. I use straight talk and am using the at&t side. A phone that will work with at&t can also be used on T-Mobile straighttalk/net10. All you have to do is have a phone that uses sim cards. If you want to purchase a new phone for T-Mobile - I highly recommend you look at the Motorola moto G. You can outright purchase it for $179 from amazon. You may be able to purchase some sort of protection plan for it, but you could just put a very good case on it and it could take a little abuse. I use the moto G on at&t side of straight talk and am satisfied. My plan is $45/month unlimited talk/text/data but they do throttle above 2.5gb - which I never reach. I also use an iPod touch for WiFi calling and other stuff and can vouch for how good the Apple stuff is too. You really can't go wrong with Apple or android. If your looking to keep cost down, don't discount the value of someone's "old" phone. I used a buddies 1st generation droid for a long time and it served me well. Its amazes me at how folks get these new phones all the time when what they have is perfectly fine.

Sent from my XT1034 using Tapatalk
 
I feel for you. I'm not an Apple guy, so I went with the Android system. I'm getting a little long in the tooth so I wanted a 5" screen, but I didn't want to pay $200 for the Droid Maxx. The Droid Multi is a free upgrade. With an Otter case it still fits in a standard shirt pocket (but won't fall out when you lean over). I live just outside the suburbs, and coverage was an issue, AT&T and T-Mobil were spotty at best, Sprint promised coverage, but I had ZERO bars at home at anytime! That leaves Verizon. I have coverage at all the gun ranges within 110 miles of my house. When the guys and I go shooting, they leave my # as a contact because nobody else has any reception. I don't need a land line anymore. I have a G3 modem for the computer and a G4 smart phone, that could be a wi-fi hotspot if i wanted. The wife has a flip phone all on the same plan. The only marketing calls I get are from were I left my number with a cruse line a few years ago, so about 3 times a week I get a "Free Cruise" call, but otherwise I don't get bothered with political candidates or buy my junk calls. I had a AT&T number years ago and still have it, so when I change companies my friends didn't have to learn a new number. After the winter we had, maybe a not so free cruise isn't such a bad idea! By the way, the friends that have iPhones are changing to Droids as fast as their plans expire. Ivan
 
Galaxy 5 comes out at the end of this month.

The galaxy 6 will be released at the end of the year. Thanksgiving time most likely.
 
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