I am finally ready to upgrade from my flip-phone, so it is time to make a purchasing decision
I have heard that geeks prefer the android system, but less technically astute people (like me) would find an iphone more user-friendly. Then other people say, “No, no, that’s not true. You won’t have any problem with an android, and you’ll love it!”
That leaves me paralyzed, unable to come to a decision. I would be very interested in the persepctive of ibrattleboro participants.
Land ho!
My favorite phone is still the old fashion land line. It has buttons for dialing phone numbers, a cord connecting the phone to the base, and both a mouthpiece and an earpiece -allowing for both talking and listening!
No upgrade fees, it doesn’t go out of date, and it doesn’t get lost. I don’t need to replace it very few years at a cost of multiple hundreds, nor do I ever pay roaming charges or go over my allotted minutes.
There is an optional add-on that allows calls to be recorded if I’m busy doing something else.
….
More seriously, before buying any technology, ask some questions and set some rules.
– What specifically do you need to be able to do?
– What, optionally, would you might be interested in?
– What features don’t you need at all?
– If you feel technology-challenged, What device do my friends who will help me use? (If everyone you know uses X and you choose Y, you might be on your own for basic tips, tricks, and troubleshooting.)
– What’s the budget – to get the device, to purchase add-ons (apps), to pay for a monthly service, etc.?
One trick to saving a bit of money is to get last year’s model, refurbished. Sometimes there are attractive first-time startup plans where a phone is provided if you sign up for a duration of service.
I’d buy an iPhone if I got a cellphone. But, I don’t ever plan to get a cellphone. I’m not a fan of video-less phones. I like to see people when I talk to them, preferably in person. (My sister gave me an old iPhone of hers – I can use it for everything except making calls – with one phone exception. If I need to dial 911, the phone will connect to make that call. Otherwise, it’s a camera, video camera, note taker, web surfer, music library, animation creator device that fits in my pocket.)
I love my iPhone
It’s really very intuitive to use, what you see is what you get.
Most cell carriers offer good discounts on refurbished phones, as do some electronics places (Best Buy comes to mind). You probably don’t need the latest model with the biggest memory.
Cell data plans come in a wide range of options, too, depending on how much you think you’ll text, surf the internet, check email, use apps, etc. Also, you can buy the phone outright or make monthly payments.
Do some comparison shopping, including going to your cell provider’s store and actually holding phones and playing with them if possible. Ask to play with friends’ phones.
Personally, I prefer the smaller iPhone, but some like the bigger models especially if you might have trouble reading the small screen.
Big phones
iPads can also be phones, if you want to get even bigger.
iPads
appear to be excellent at presenting information.
There’s a reason why there’s a gaggle of iPads on both sidelines in every NFL game. They’re also replacing traditional (paper) sheet music, a minor revolution in the history of music performance. (The second time my opus magnum fifteen minute clarinet quartet was performed, there was about 30-60 seconds of silence as one of the performers had the score pagination out of order, causing serious distress in the audience and myself backstage. That can’t happen if the performer is reading sheet music on an iPad.)
Landlines have their advantages, but if you’re owner-operator of a business as the poster is, you need a mobile or you’re out of business quickly.
Your new phone
Something that not many people think about is that Android is an Operating System, not a phone. The hardware to run Android will be different and be different to use. Apple’s OS and phone are both produced by the same company.
That being said, for ease of use, get an iPhone. You can usually find really great deals on the outgoing models.
Excellent points
Especially that Android is an OS not a phone.
I’m still clinging to my flip phone because it does the job, Apple’s OS-and-machine monopoly has caused significant grief since the 1980s to people who must upgrade, and Android is known to have significant security flaws (some of which I believe cannot be corrected for technical reasons beyond the scope of this thread).
The iPhone users I know love the product despite its premium price, take and present good-to-great photos, and learn to surf the web on it rather quickly.
Kindly reply to the earlier post that essentially says “more specifics please” and it’ll take me under 15 minutes to research and post recommendations while listening to loud hard rock, as is my custom.