Author Topic: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?  (Read 2678 times)

jaylbail

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 10
Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« on: May 14, 2019, 01:46:42 AM »
Hi all,

My ancient Samsung S4 is finally on its last legs, and I don't think its worth replacing the battery for such an old phone. I'm looking to replace it, and after getting terrible advice from people I know, I figure I should come to the Moustachians.

I barely need a smartphone, but I do need one for work to install a paging app. I also like looking up maps, but that's about it. The only requirements I have are:

- I want it to last a few years. I'm okay replacing the battery to make this happen.
- Has to have decent battery power. I'd like it to last a day without needing a charge.
- Obviously, value for money!

I live in Australia, if this changes people's calculations.

Any advice / resources for smartphones that won't break the bank is appreciated! I've also been asking around the office about buying someone's old phone. Shall see if I get any bites.

Tester

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 478
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #1 on: May 14, 2019, 02:40:44 AM »
I really like my moto g5+.
Battery life was really good in the beginning, now still at 1 day.
I think I have it for almost 2 years, I am not good at remembering things like these.

the_gastropod

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 470
  • Age: 37
  • Location: RVA
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #2 on: May 14, 2019, 05:06:04 AM »
I’m a big fan of my iPhone SE. It’s a few years old now (still actually sold by Apple, so I expect it to be supported for at least a few more years. They can be had used for ~$100USD.

Alfred J Quack

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 420
  • Location: Netherlands
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #3 on: May 14, 2019, 05:11:44 AM »
Smartphone, still working with S4 and wanting to replace. Looks like you're the kind that uses it effectively rather than because it's newest. Have you looked into Oppo, Xiaomi or Wileyfox, for example? They have great phones for its value. The phones don't get a lot of updates but I think with the Galaxy S4 you haven't seen an update in over 5 years...

Linea_Norway

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8569
  • Location: Norway
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #4 on: May 14, 2019, 05:15:24 AM »
I replaced my Samsung S4 with a Sony ZX1 compact, bought on black friday for a good price (about 330$).
Waterproof, scratch resistant screen, metal back side, decent amount of memory, modern Android version, good battery lifetime.
« Last Edit: May 19, 2019, 11:52:45 PM by Linea_Norway »

11ducks

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 573
  • Location: Duckville, Australia
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #5 on: May 14, 2019, 05:30:01 AM »
Ive bought my last few phones off eBay- you can get refurbished unlocked older gen phones for $60-$200. My last two I got were iPhone 4s, around $80 each time, second one still going strong. I like the 4s, they are unbreakable. (I don't really use apps though). You can get more recent models of course

Linea_Norway

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8569
  • Location: Norway
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #6 on: May 14, 2019, 06:03:26 AM »
Many modern phones have super amoled glass in the front and often also on the back. Samsung phones are known for that at least 50% of the buyers will break the glass on their phone. It costs a fortune to replace. iPhone is like that as well. It can pay off to look for a phone that is not so vulnerable.

AMandM

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1673
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #7 on: May 14, 2019, 06:57:48 AM »
Ebay. We got one for about $100. My son tells me it's a BLU Pureview.

tralfamadorian

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1217
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #8 on: May 14, 2019, 07:13:48 AM »
I have a SE that I bought deadstock off of amazon for $200. It took a couple of tries before I received actual deadstock instead of used. Battery lasts a couple days with moderate use and I prefer the smaller size.

Alfred J Quack

  • Bristles
  • ***
  • Posts: 420
  • Location: Netherlands
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #9 on: May 14, 2019, 08:52:27 AM »
Many modern phones have super amoled glass in the front and often also on the back. Samsung phones are known for that at least 50% of the buyers will break the glass on their phone. It costs a fortune to replace. iPhone is like that as well. It can pay off to look for a phone that is not so vulnerable.
The Samsung's do not break quicker or less quick than the iPhones. And all phone displays are almost criminally expensive to replace due to the fact that the glass plate at the front is glued to the LCD or Amoled behind it. There were some cheaper options but that made the display less so image quality has won from durability and ease of replacement.

tweezers

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 230
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #10 on: May 14, 2019, 09:21:29 AM »
Another vote for iPhone SE.  I love mine.  Apple refurbished ones can be had for for <$200.

topshot

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 155
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #11 on: May 17, 2019, 01:35:05 PM »
I really like my moto g5+.
Battery life was really good in the beginning, now still at 1 day.
I think I have it for almost 2 years, I am not good at remembering things like these.
+1. I've had my Moto G5 Plus since Dec 2017 and still go 3-4 days between charging since I'm not a heavy user. My wife's lasts about a day since she always has Pokemon Go running outside of working hours. :/

YK-Phil

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1173
  • Location: Nayarit (Mexico)
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #12 on: May 17, 2019, 01:43:53 PM »
I really like my moto g5+.
Battery life was really good in the beginning, now still at 1 day.
I think I have it for almost 2 years, I am not good at remembering things like these.
+1. I've had my Moto G5 Plus since Dec 2017 and still go 3-4 days between charging since I'm not a heavy user. My wife's lasts about a day since she always has Pokemon Go running outside of working hours. :/

Another recommendation for the G5. My wife got it for under $200 (CDN) last December, to replace her old 1st generation G which she had bought when it first came out in December 2013. The phone still works fine but lacks memory, so we keep it as our travel phone. Hopefully the G5 will be as reliable as the previous generations.

edit: sorry my wife got the G6 which was at the same price as the G5 at Costco Canada.
« Last Edit: May 17, 2019, 01:49:01 PM by yyc-phil »

dcheesi

  • Handlebar Stache
  • *****
  • Posts: 1309
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #13 on: May 17, 2019, 01:50:55 PM »
Not saying it's the best way, but I personally went from an S3 to a J7, which is a stripped-down Samsung model. Kind of like the iPhone SE of the Samsung world. You sacrifice a bunch of bells & whistles, and even a few fairly basic sensors, but it's otherwise a perfectly functional Samsung phone.

Laserjet3051

  • Pencil Stache
  • ****
  • Posts: 904
  • Age: 95
  • Location: Upper Peninsula (MI)
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #14 on: May 17, 2019, 02:37:32 PM »
if you are really looking for the frugal way then do as i did with my Samsung Galaxy S4 and.............REPLACE THE BATTERY! Seriously, a battery is fucking dirt cheap.

Or are you really just trying to justify a phone upgrade? Be honest.

gliderpilot567

  • Stubble
  • **
  • Posts: 178
  • Location: US
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #15 on: May 17, 2019, 02:42:22 PM »
Samsung J3 or J7. Does everything you need and pretty indestructible. A refurbished last years or previous years J3 can be had for about $100.

grobinski

  • 5 O'Clock Shadow
  • *
  • Posts: 43
  • Age: 56
  • Location: Minneapolis, MN
  • FIREd - 02.03.20!
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #16 on: May 18, 2019, 12:16:54 PM »
Huawei Honor phones are highly rated and offer high value for $. Just replaced a 6x that was 3 years old with a 7x for $180usd

Linea_Norway

  • Walrus Stache
  • *******
  • Posts: 8569
  • Location: Norway
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #17 on: May 18, 2019, 12:25:37 PM »
if you are really looking for the frugal way then do as i did with my Samsung Galaxy S4 and.............REPLACE THE BATTERY! Seriously, a battery is fucking dirt cheap.

Or are you really just trying to justify a phone upgrade? Be honest.

Indeed. We do this with all our phones once or twice, until we need/want an upgrade. The upgrade is usually because modern apps no longer support the ancient operative system on the phone.

But for some stupid reason, many modern phones have made it very difficult to change the battery by yourself. At least, you risk breaking the fancy glass on both front and back.
« Last Edit: May 19, 2019, 11:54:26 PM by Linea_Norway »

alsoknownasDean

  • Magnum Stache
  • ******
  • Posts: 2843
  • Age: 39
  • Location: Melbourne, Australia
Re: Replacing my smartphone the frugal way?
« Reply #18 on: May 19, 2019, 04:54:04 AM »
What's your budget? $300 should get you a half-decent new midrange unit or a refurbished older flagship.

Which carrier are you with?

The Motorola or Nokia handsets are pretty reasonable value for lower-end units, and if you're prepared to grey import (and don't need 4G B28 700MHz coverage), you can pick up Xiaomi phones or other brands (Umidigi etc) for quite low prices online.

There's always the cheapo phones from Coles/Woolies, but they're often a bit too low end.

Would something like this do?

https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/motorola-moto-g6-play-32gb-unlocked-smartphone-deep-indigo-motog6pybu

Or this:

https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/nokia-5-1-plus-32gb-unlocked-smartphone-black-imnok51pbk

Or this:

https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/samsung-galaxy-a30-32gb-black-brsama30bk

Or this:

https://www.officeworks.com.au/shop/officeworks/p/samsung-galaxy-a20-32gb-blue-brsama20bl

Or even this:

https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B07LGT3M3T/ref=s9_acsd_top_hd_bw_b5KbYrr_c_x_w?pf_rd_m=AMMK0LS9EDNM8&pf_rd_s=merchandised-search-11&pf_rd_r=H7SYDCDCZCP8APPKQFS1&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=84f5e349-b9a5-5f55-897b-b9dae56cb71a&pf_rd_i=4885143051

Plenty of phones around at all price points.