phones

[erilyn]

I'm thinking of finally getting a real phone plan (I've only ever used prepaid) and a decent phone. I'm not looking at spending big amounts per month, so am checking out some of the cheaper caps.

Does anyone have network and/or plan recs (or anti-recs), or tips on things I should be on the lookout for? Ditto for phones, my current one is an el cheapo since I bought it upfront :)

Comments

[musicdiamond.livejournal.com]

I would say you should decide what sort of features you actually care about in plans--that is, what do you want in a phone. Is style and aesthetics important to you? If yes, you might want to hit up some of the local Sprint/Cingular/etc stores in your area and take a look in person at the various phone models they have.

Then there's functionality of the phone: do you want all the bells and whistles, or is all you care about that it makes calls in and out. Do you care if you can access the internet or not? Email sync? Do you want GPS? Google maps? Windows Mobile? Do you want it to be a full service PDA and calendar for you? Do you want a touch screen? Do you want a QWERTY keypad or is the old fashioned set of keys okay for you? Related to that--do you want unlimited texting, or do you not text message at all? Do you want a lot of minutes or do you only use your phone in emergencies? Do you want free nights/weekends, or do you not care?

It's a lot of questions to ask yourself but I think once you have the answers and an idea of exactly what you're looking for, you'll have a much better time of finding a plan that meets your expectations. There are literally a million plans out there that come with a million phone models and features, and you want to make sure that the money you're paying goes towards benefits you actually care about. Or, hey, maybe you don't have much use for a fancy schmancy phone, and if you could buy a plastic foam cup that let you communicate through a string to your friends, that's what you would get.

[erilyn.livejournal.com]

Thanks :) I know there are a lot of things to consider, I've been doing some research into plans, and it's because of the huge amount of choices that I was asking people if they had any advice like "3 is a crap network" or "steer clear of Nokia model xyz phones".

Pssst - I know it's still generally applicable whatever the stores, but "Sprint/Cingular" mention made me lol because so not relevant in Australia.

[musicdiamond.livejournal.com]

Ah, well, as far as specific advice goes--I have the Motorola Q and while I like the features, the battery life is about 3 hours and change. Which is a huge problem for me.

As far as the stores go--I knew there would be a risk with my international friends that neither Sprint nor Cingular would be applicable in a particular country, and I was trying to wrack my brain for more international brands but couldn't up with any. But, y'know, US-centric brands notwithstanding, I think the advice still works ;)