• 🇰 🌀 🇱 🇦 🇳 🇦 🇰 🇮 @pawb.social
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    1
    arrow-down
    1
    ·
    13 days ago

    IDK about them, but I can’t just buy an unlocked phone because that requires dropping like a grand all at once. If I get it through my carrier, it’s either entirely free or I can pay it off $30 a month.

    • Buffalox@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      10
      arrow-down
      1
      ·
      edit-2
      13 days ago

      So you could, you just choose not to.
      I personally never bought a phone though my service provider, I don’t care for that kind of bullshit tie in.

      • Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        5
        ·
        13 days ago

        This is why I buy a used phone 1 or 2 model years behind.

        You’d be surprised how much of a discount you can get when someone upgrades.

        I’m currently running Pixel 5, and I own three of them for less than any new phone. This gives me the ability to have a hot spare/test device.

      • cm0002@lemmy.worldOP
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        3
        arrow-down
        1
        ·
        13 days ago

        I’m in the same boat as @[email protected], even if just getting a regular phone id need to be able to drop 700-1k$

        And ofc the shit consumer protection laws here in the US, at least through my carrier I can have really forgiving insurance LMAO

        • Buffalox@lemmy.world
          link
          fedilink
          English
          arrow-up
          4
          ·
          13 days ago

          Or you could buy a $200 phone like the Nokia G42, and then go with a cheaper service provider.
          My wife chose that because she doesn’t use her phone much, and it’s built for home repair.
          Turned out it is a way better phone than we expected. Mine cost about $800,- and there is no way I can say it’s that much better.
          I use a small service provider, that has their services through one of the biggest, but it costs less than half per month.
          And when I buy a phone, I have complete freedom to choose whichever phone I want, disregarding limited service provider discounts.
          And buying from free competition dealers, also gives a nice rebate.

          • Onomatopoeia@lemmy.cafe
            link
            fedilink
            English
            arrow-up
            3
            ·
            edit-2
            13 days ago

            Yep.

            I went from Verizon ($200/mo for 2 lines) to Xfinity ($80/mo for 2 lines) to JMP.chat ($7/mo for 2 lines) to US Mobile (still about $18/mo for 2 lines). I still have JMP as my cell provider for the SMS-to-XMPP bridge (my sms comes through XMPP), and just have US Mobile for data. My current monthly is still about $20/mo for 2 lines with 10gb of data. Additional data is $4 for 2gig if I go over.

            Frankly in the US now US Mobile is hard to beat. Their unlimited plan is $45/mo,and they have coverage on every carrier (my phone will switch to the dominant local carrier wherever I go, and it’s usually 5G).