Help me get my first phone!

C

caw

New member
I never had a cell phone and don't know anything about cell phones. Come help me select a phone!

I'm quite determined to get a prepaid plan.

My budget: $50-70

What I wish my phone can provide!
1. Can support SIM card b/c I'm planning to use prepaid.
2. Durability, simplicity and ease of use
3. Loud and clear speakers so that I can hear someone without going "huh?!!"
4. Battery life of at least one full day

A couple of things that I DON'T need but is okay to have as long as it stays within my budget constraint:
1. Colored screen
2. Mp3 player
3. Bluetooth
4. Most of the fancy features like games, looks, style and dam di dam di dam

**I also don't mind getting a second hand phone on ebay to satisfy my budget.
 
OK, if you want a GSM provider you are for the most part limited to Cingular and T-Mobile in the US. There are a handful of regional GSM providers but you have to look those up based on your area.

If you are going prepaid, you are more or less stuck with the phones that the providers have to offer. The really cheap or free phones are usually offered with a contract. The cheapest unlocked phones (Like a moto L6) that have an 850MHz band which is important in North America will run you around $110 to $120 depending on where you look.

http://www.t-mobile.com/shop/Phones/Prepaid.aspx

http://onlinestorez.cingular.com/cell-phone-service/cell-phones/cell-phones.jsp?q_isPrepaid=true&q_targeter=All&q_categoryId=all&WT.svl=scm1

Probably the best thing you can do is check off all the phones that are within your budget and then do a comparison of the features to see which is the best fit. If you can narrow it down to a few choices each provider then maybe we can help you find the best fit for you.
 
It seems the nokia 6030 fits what you are looking for pretty well. One could be had very cheap from cingulars site.
 
For $50 -$70 I suggest going on Craigslist and buying a decent used phone from somebody. That price range can probally get you a decent VGA camera phone with bluetooth.

Look for motos. Like the v400 & up.
 
You are in the US, right? Can you use eBay? This one seems good- http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330023735280&ih=014&category=101828&ssPageName=WDVW&rd=1 but the abundance of question marks seems strange. From what I can tell, it's the Japanese equivalent of the Sharp TM150.
 
u can buy my z500 for $65
it works fine and battery is like new
it has web browser
it has camera/video recording
it is with cingular and is on prepaid already and supports sim cards
CONSIDER!!!
 
u can buy my z500 for $65
it works fine and battery is like new
it has web browser
it has camera/video recording
it is with cingular and is on prepaid already and supports sim cards
STILL HAVE BOX & USERMANUAL!!!
CONSIDER!!!
 
Well, before you pick the phone, you need to find out which provider you want to go with. You need to check the coverage areas for where you live, work, play, travel, etc. and then look at the phones that work with that carrier. If the phone doesn't have a good signal, it won't work, no matter how much it costs.

You didn't say where you live, so its hard to give you good advice, other than in general terms.

Keep in mind that you always get what you pay for. Cheap and/or free will probably work like cheap and/or free.
 
T-Mobile also offers a Nokia 6030 T-Mobile To Go(pre-paid) Kit.At the Wal-Mart by my house they are on sale for $39.99.The 6030 has recieved good reviews.If you are open to used phones then eBay is your best bet.Make sure the seller has excellent feedback(95-100%).For your budget you probably won't be able to have an mp3 player since you'll need a memory card equipped phone for it to hold songs.Everything else is possible to have.Look on Phonescoop.com.Phonescoop will have a very extensive list of phones,complete with their features and reviews.Also consider unlocked and/or 850mhz band GSM phones,they'll give you the greatest flexablity for use.Take a look at a used SonyEricsson T637.A little more than your budget allows but offers almost everything you were looking for(except mp3 player).Good Luck & tell us what you picked.
 
Well- having an MP3 player is certainly possible- look at the eBay posting I had earlier. Of course, figuring out what's behind those question marks is the issue (seems to be a page error in eBay's system)
 
This listing is a TOTAL FRAUD. Besides the inability to actually READ the listing take a look at the actual feedback comments.The only legitimate ones are negative.To the OP,if your going to buy used off eBay read EVERYTHING about the listing very carefully.You'll probably be safer to buy your phone from a seller in the US or Canada.
 
Oh- I'm so sorry- it's my fault for posting that listing (the eBay listing wasn't mine). I haven't actually bought anything off of eBay yet because I was worried about fraud. I now feel really bad about almost causing someone else to fall victim to the thing that I try so hard to avoid.
 
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