Any other smartphone holdouts?

**disneysteve** · 08-14-2015, 08:07 AM

Sorry. Can't help you. I've said numerous times that my iPhone 5 is the single best piece of technology I have ever had the pleasure of owning or working with. The iPhone 3 was okay but didn't have the power to live up to the potential but the 5 absolutely did and does. It is worth every penny IMO.

**John Doe** · 08-29-2015, 02:02 PM

I envy you. I have an iPhone 6 with Siri. Sound good? It's not. It's a complete waste of societal and environmental resources. My wife got it for me. My large fingers are too big to use the tiny keyboard. I almost never surf the web with my phone when I'm out and about; it's slow and clumsy and expensive and hard-to-see and the battery seems to last about 2 seconds when the screen brightness is cranked up to be visible outdoors in daylight. The glass screen will crack at the drop of a hat. The gadget has more processing power than all the computers that powered the Apollo missions...yet most folks are using it for Instagram. Or Tinder. (Yes, Tinder is a way to find people in a 5-minute radius that want to date you in the next 15 minutes.) I wish I didn't have a smartphone at all. The smartest thing of all would be to not have a smartphone. Unplug. Live real life. Gain an attention span longer than 2 seconds. Learn to communicate in whole sentences. Cure your porn addiction AND save money at the same time! Think of all the benefits!

**Thrif-t** · 08-29-2015, 02:12 PM

I don't have a smart phone, mostly because I'd need to wear glasses to see it. Now if they were like an ipad mini then maybe. But I too can't type on a touchscreen so that is a big reason I don't want one. I do see myself getting one in the future if the size gets bigger. My kids have tracfone smart phones and can do everything over wifi, so the cost isn't whats holding me back, its my dang old eyes!

**disneysteve** · 08-29-2015, 04:15 PM

Originally posted by John Doe View Post

I have an iPhone 6... I almost never surf the web with my phone when I'm out and about; it's slow and clumsy

I haven't used a 6 but I can't believe it is worse than the 5 and that is absolutely not slow or clumsy for web surfing. Even when I'm at home and the desktop is close by, I'm more likely to pull out my iPhone when I need something rather than go to the desktop.

The smartest thing of all would be to not have a smartphone. Unplug. Live real life. Gain an attention span longer than 2 seconds. Learn to communicate in whole sentences. Cure your porn addiction AND save money at the same time! Think of all the benefits!

If people are using smartphones for stupid stuff, that isn't the phone's fault. I use my phone daily for things that I think are very worthwhile and important. I just got back from exercising during which time I used it to track my mileage and pace. I use it as my camera. I use it as my GPS when I'm traveling. I use it at work to access medical info to benefit my patients. I use it to participate in professional activities that I earn money for doing. Sure I use it for entertainment too, but I see nothing wrong with that either as long as it's done in an appropriate manner.

**John Doe** · 09-01-2015, 12:08 AM

I'm 6'3" and all the smartphones are too small to be usable by me. I try to press one letter and end up pressing several. The battery will die in what feels like half an hour so never-ending recharging with various adapters at every possible outlet in car or building can dominate one's day. I try to be out in nature so there rarely are outlets anywhere. The tiny screens don't exactly hold a lot of information and I have to crank the brightness way up when out in public and that sucks the battery juice down rapidly. I can't tell you how many times I've sat and waited for slow-loading pages out in public. Maybe it's because reception is hindered by the metal roofs of buildings. I do use it a lot as a camera and notepad on-the-go but both those things are possible with an old flip phone. But most of all, I don't want to be one of those folks constantly staring at their phones while out in public. Many folks like me spend a ton of time on computers all day for both work and leisure, so when I want to get out and breathe fresh air and experience reality and see other people, I don't want to be chained to a phone. These little machines can easily rule our lives. There comes a time when we all must unplug. They're nice to have. But most of us must make an effort to unplug more.

**marvholly** · 09-01-2015, 02:29 AM

Holdout here. I see NO reason/advantage to paying out the wahzoo for the phone and again for the plan. I am on my 2nd flip phone since Dec 2004.

I see my cell phone as predominantly for emergency use + a rare long distance or toll call. I can make all the calls/do all the texts I need to with my current system. this may be because I am old at 69. My adult kids (36 & 40) live on their cells. One does not even have a landline.

**John Doe** · 09-01-2015, 03:04 PM

Don't get me started on teenagers and smartphones. They desperately need to unplug and experience reality. Even more than I do.

**ExcuseMyIgnorance** · 09-02-2015, 06:36 AM

Thanks for making me feel normal, guys! The only annoyance I'm having right now is I'm taking a business trip and would prefer to use Uber or Lyft for leaving the airport. Hopefully there's a bus route nearby because I don't want to pay $$$ for a yellow cab!!! It'll cost as much as one night at my airbnb.

**disneysteve** · 09-02-2015, 08:01 AM

Originally posted by ExcuseMyIgnorance View Post

Thanks for making me feel normal, guys! The only annoyance I'm having right now is I'm taking a business trip and would prefer to use Uber or Lyft for leaving the airport. Hopefully there's a bus route nearby because I don't want to pay $$$ for a yellow cab!!! It'll cost as much as one night at my airbnb.

There's just one example of how much money can be saved when you have a smartphone. I've used mine many times to save hundreds of dollars. Some of the things could be done on my home computer but not nearly as conveniently and definitely not on the spot wherever I happen to be. Heck, the Amazon app alone has saved me hundreds.

**Jluke** · 09-02-2015, 08:18 AM

Originally posted by marvholly View Post

Holdout here. I see NO reason/advantage to paying out the wahzoo for the phone and again for the plan. I am on my 2nd flip phone since Dec 2004.

I paid out the "whazoo" ($400 maybe) for my iPhone in November 2012, but the plan only costs 32.80/month.

Plans are changing now with the big carriers, but they'll either get you on the price of the phone or the price of the plan. Don't let them get you on both and then you can enjoy the savings that smartphone apps can bring you (Retail me Not, GeoCoupons, etc)., the conveniences (shopping list, google maps, etc).

if you're at store A and see something you like, you can comparison shop at that exact moment to see if it is cheaper elsewhere (i.e. Amazon).

**disneysteve** · 09-02-2015, 08:44 AM

Originally posted by Jluke View Post

I paid out the "whazoo" ($400 maybe) for my iPhone in November 2012, but the plan only costs 32.80/month.

It's been a while but I think I paid $199 for my iPhone. Then it's $30/month for the plan since I'm still grandfathered into unlimited data. (For my wife and daughter, it's only $15/month.)

The money I save by having the phone more than makes up for the cost.

**marvholly** · 09-03-2015, 12:43 AM

Originally posted by disneysteve View Post

It's been a while but I think I paid $199 for my iPhone. Then it's $30/month for the plan since I'm still grandfathered into unlimited data. (For my wife and daughter, it's only $15/month.)

The money I save by having the phone more than makes up for the cost.

Sorry guys but my current plann is <$10/month even with taxes & my phone taxes here total 25%.

The ONLY thing I do miss is being able to do some of the shopping rebates BUT that would NOT yeild enogh to counterweigh the monthly usage charges let alone the cost of the phone.

**JulieAlbright** · 09-03-2015, 04:58 AM

It's really not accurate to assume smartphones always equal higher cost.

Republic Wireless reports over 1/2 their users opt for the $10 a month, no cellular data plan. So like many out there, I'm carrying a smartphone, but I'm not paying high monthly charges. The only time I'm really ever out of WiFi range is when I'm in my car, and I have a FreedomPop hotspot device which gives me 1GB a month of free data for that. I've had a couple of times where I've gone on vacation or a trip, and I'll activate Cellular data for a week or so for that, and then I'll turn it off again and I only pay for the days I use.

http://pwk.republicwireless.com/perfect-10s-life-without-cellular-data-on-republics-10-plan/

**FLA** · 09-03-2015, 08:50 AM

Originally posted by disneysteve View Post

Sorry. Can't help you. I've said numerous times that my iPhone 5 is the single best piece of technology I have ever had the pleasure of owning or working with. The iPhone 3 was okay but didn't have the power to live up to the potential but the 5 absolutely did and does. It is worth every penny IMO.

would you mind sharing your fav apps or what you do with it that is so helpful? I have a 5s, know I could do more and should if I am lucky enough to have one.

Any other smartphone holdouts?