Cell Phone Help??

[Blue824]

Why is buying a cell phone so difficult?? Is it just me? I bought one I LOVED, which they no longer make, the updated version is ridiculously priced. I need a new one due to an unfortunate accident involving my water bottle spilling in my longchamps purse (plastic coated inside kept all the water in and submerged my phone!). My phoen still works however it holds no charge. A new battery was much more expensive than I thought it''d be, like $80. I figure for $80 I might as well just look for a new phone.

Anyhow, I don''t need carrier recommendations, as I''m canceling my current one unless the new phone I find is with it. Pretty much everything works fine by me. But has anyone had really good luck with any of their cell phones??? I''m partial to flip phones with out cameras.

I''ve been reading reviews on Amazon.com and I feel like everything I find gets horrible reviews.

Does anyone have Motorola Razr? Havent looked at in person yet, online it seems ok.

Honestly, any help, or words of advice, would be great.

 

[IrishEyes]

I had the same problem when I was looking for my cell phone, for every good thing I would hear about a phone or carrier, I would hear 5 bad things!! So I can''t really recommend one. I have a sprint something or other. It''s a camera phone with internet and all the bells and whistles. I like it, but I do lose signal alot in my own home, which is frustrating! My husband has the same phone in a different color and he hates it! He whines like a child about it, unfortunately we won''t be able to upgrade until January, so he''s stuck with it for now.

I feel your pain, buying a cell phone is infuriating! There are too many options, many overpriced. Way too many plans and where you can talk and where you can''t talk crap! Ugh...I hope you find a good one!

 

[Mara]

Try eBay for a replacement for the phone you liked...there are new packaged ones on there all the time. I got one on there a few years ago that Sprint no longer carried, a Motorola I really wanted, and it was awesome.

Also check CraigsList for your area...I got my last cell phone on there 99.9% new (used for one week by someone then they got an upgrade) for $50 and it retailed in the stores for $150!

My next new phone will be in another month...I think I know which one I want..I am driven hugely by looks and weight, I use it alot so it has to have a good battery life....but aesthetics are huge for me and I only want a flip phone. I hate those little Nokias, I feel like I am talking to air since the mocrophone is against my cheek.

I have Sprint and alot of their phones by Samsung and Sanyo do NOT appeal to me at all. Motorola was my fave but oh well!

 

[fire&ice]

This is timely. I need to change services & upgrade my phone. Currently, I have Sprint & the orginal Motorola star something flip phone (yes, I am a dinosaur! - but I''ve had NO problems with it!). I am changing carriers because my Sprint service is no where near as good as my husband Alltel service for the areas we travel.

I''m leaning towards their promotion Audiovox camera flip phone. Like a car, all I need is something small (which is why I sprung the money for one of those star whatevers way back - but all of the phones are small now), reliable & the numbers big enough & spaced enough for my ageing eyes to see. I looked at the Motorola version. I liked the phone better except that the number are tiny and mushed together.

So, I''m stuck to Alltel. But, they don''t offer the best deals or the best plans. Also, they don''t offer anything outside their stores (like Costco has t-mobile, sprint, etc). How can I strike the best deal. They also charge an activation fee. Any coupons or special deals that I can weddle?

 

[MissAva]

What carrier do you have?

 

[MichelleCarmen]

My husband and I also are looking for new phones. DH is really picky, though, so until he picks out a phone HE likes, I''m stuck w/my crappy Kyrocera, since we''re hoping to get 2 for 1.

Our carrier is Verizon and I love their service. . .haven''t had any problems.

 

[Blue824]

Hey, Thanks for the input!

Ugh glad I''m not the only one this frustrates. Remember the days before cellphones?! I sort of want to just rebel and not get a new one.

It sucks because I''m under a time crunch because today is the end of my billing period so i can cancel with out having another month. My phone is totally useless and whats the use of paying if I''m not using the service, right?

Mara, I originally had Sprint, but yeah, none of their current phones appeal to me AT ALL. The one that did was WAY too expensive! My contract expired last August and I never signed a new one, so I"m not stuck with Sprint and can go anywhere I want. I actually loved my Samsung, however, none of their newer ones felt right in my hand. I checked on Craigslist, no luck, on Ebay they were selling my phone, but just the phone with out the battery, so it really didn''t help me out too much, since that''s what I needed!

F&I I''ve never heard of Alltel...maybe it isnt in the Chicago area. I know there''s one here, US Cellular and they are''t out other places.

Michelle, I''m so picky too, so I can understand how frustrating it is for your husband. I like flip phones that do not have cameras, however, I''ve chosen one with a camera.

I''ve decided on the Motorola Razr. At first people were scaring me saying its so big as in wide and tall, but I went and it really isnt that bad. Its so thin, perfect for fitting in my going out purses. We''ll see...I mean, it has all the bells and whistles, so I''m hoping it''ll last me through out my contract period. Also means I have to switch to Cingular, which isn''t horrible, because my bf and family are on it and I believe I get free calls between those people, just something different. We''ll see how it goes....

 

[Erin]

I''ve been a satisfied Nextel customer for years. I''m looking at this as good news.

http://sprintnextel.mergerannouncement.com/?refurl=uhp_globalnav_merger

 

[eks6426]

My husband owns a Nextel dealership. If you are interested in Nextel I can get more details for you. The unfortunate thing is each cell carrier has pretty much an exclusive on certain phones. Motorola makes most of the Nextel phones. I have the i830 which is a small flip phone. It''s not a camera phone, but I don''t like the camera phone because it is thicker and this one is thin enough to fit in my jean pockets. Besides the camera phones don''t have good resolution and cost a bit to send the pictures around.

Unfortunately the i830 is being discontinued and I don''t like the replacement. My husband has a spare for me so when this one dies, I''ll have a spare to use until they come out with one I like.

Hopefully the Sprint-Nextel merger will give more options, but it''s at least 5 years off as the 2 companies operate on entirely different systems so there are a lot of technical issues to work through.

Good luck in your search!

 

[Mara]

Date: 7/25/2005 4:42:04 PM
Author: IslandDreams

Hopefully the Sprint-Nextel merger will give more options, but it''s at least 5 years off as the 2 companies operate on entirely different systems so there are a lot of technical issues to work through.

I hope this means Sprint will offer Motorola phones again. In terms of aesthetics, I like their stuff the best! So guess I shouldn''t hold out waiting for that to happen in the next 2 years? I''m due for a new phone next month!

 

[Blue824]

Yeah I think I heard that meant that Sprint would be carrying motorola again. Well, I probably heard it from my tech-nut brother a few months ago, so I dont know if that is true.

IslandDreams - thanks so much for offering your husbands help. I ended up canceling my Sprint contract and I decided to order the Motorola Razr and sign up with Cingular. Except I''ve been exceptionally lazy and havent really ordered it yet

To be honest, its bothered me twice in the past couple week but I''m sort of enjoying not being able to be tracked down and contacted 24/7.

 

[cutes814]

Blue,

My bf owns the Razr in black. It''s very user-friendly (like all Motorola phones) and the design of it is extremely appealing! I was orginally supposed to get the Razr too, but decided I wanted a much smaller phone. Although the Razr is very thin, it is a little bit wide for my taste and some of my purses! I got the Motorola V878 in white. It''s 3 inches high, 1.5 inches wide and 3/4 inch thick.

 

[onedrop]

Blue this is VERY timely. I am also looking to upgrade my phone. Milly beat me to it, but the Razr is really a nice phone. I know two people that have this very phone and I am fascinated everytime I see them. They are so thin!! Cingular has great equipment! I am with Cingular and the service is...okay. I thought that with the merger with them and At &T things would be better but actually are worse for me. I had few dropped calls with AT & T and I could get great reception in my house. Now I can't use my phone at all in my house. But I am hoping that this is because of the phone that I currently have and not because of Cingular cell service. I stay with them only for the fancy gadgets they have! Hopefully your experience will be better.

 

[MissAva]

I had Cingular in tuscaloosa but my cell didnt work in my APT and then I cam ehome and the phone didnt ring barely at all in Morris and Somerset couties. Out of Sprint Cingular and Verizion (I have had all three). Only Verizion works in AL, NY, NJ and GA.

 

[Blue824]

Matatora, yeah, it can be super hard to find a phone that works everywhere especially when you''re going between school and home. Thankfully I never really had that problem between DC and Chicago. However, I can NEVER get a phone to work at my house. *Sometimes* in the winter, never in the summer once the trees fill in!

Onedrop, a bunch of people at work love the razr and that sort of solidified my decision. It is a little wider, but when I actually looked at the measurements it was barely any different against the other motorola phones. I''ve played around with theirs and seem to like the way things are organized, it obviously takes a little while to get a new one. Maybe I''ll head out and order it tonight, but I just realized its up for free on amazon.com!

Milly, you''ll probably laugh, but your comment worried me about the phone and my purses! So I brought my smallest purse into work yesterday and I was like Dan!! I need your phone and I put everything in and it all fit fine haha. He was so confused. But usually all I put in at night is a compact, credit card, phone and camera. If my purse can''t fit that stuff, its no good to me!

 

[ame]

Of all the companies I have used I think Cingular/Att are about as bad as they get. You might as well not have a phone. heh. I have Sprint personally and Verizon for work and frankly I like em both the same. I too am a chronic phone upgrader but I have had zero problems with most Sanyo/Samsungs Ive had, Motorola has been much more hit or miss for me. My big frustration is the lack of bluetooth on either system.