Has anybody traded down from a smart phone?

[JoyNChrist]

DH and I are trying to trim some fat from our budget to save for some expected expenses in a couple years.

We each have an iPhone 4 and an unlimited talk/text/data plan from AT&T. I feel like our phone bill is too expensive. We enjoy our phones (I'm typing this on mine right now), but we don't actually NEED them. Neither of us has a job where a smart phone is a necessity. We could get by with much less expensive phones/plans.

So anyway, I need to see how much it would cost to get out of our contract (or how long is left...I honestly don't know) to see if it's even feasible. But I have a few questions:

- Did you really miss your smart phone? We use ours a lot for fun stuff - Internet, apps, etc. I'm wondering if I'll regret not having them.

- What companies should I be looking into for cheaper phones/plans. We would want unlimited talk, and texting would be nice (not completely necessary, but two of the girls who baby-sit for me do text me, and DH texts some too). What is reasonable to expect to pay?

I'm just really starting to hate paying our cell bill every month. It feels excessive and a little ridiculous.

[kochh2]

we never got a smartphone to start with, though i reaaallllly want one LOL. maybe we can trade ;) I have a touch screen samsung solstice that can access email, facebook, and the internet, though not through wifi. it does help to have the itnernet for looking up phone numbers, etc... but i know it's no where near the ease of an iphone.

maybe we'll buy them from you :) DH just went into the ocean and forgot to take his phone outta his pocket.... ugghhhh.....so he's using my OLD pink razor until we decide on new phones :rotflmao:

[peanut520]

no a btdt but do you really need unlimited talk and text? with at&t you can take a look at your usage pattern including talk, text and internet to evaluate if there isnt a cheaper plan to downgrade to without completely getting rid of the internet. do you use your phone to surf at home? you could just connect via wifi if you have internet at home and use the 3g cellular data when you are out. if you can do that maybe try for a month and see if the low usage data plan works for you guys and you would cut your data plan costs in half.

[ha98ed14]

I did. I had a Samsung Moment Android on Sprint. It was the hot thing when I got it. I used an upgrade credit to buy it, but I took it off my plan after 2-3 months because the monthy fee was just more than I could afford every month. I sold the fone on CL and used the money to buy myself an iPod Touch 4 . I had never owned any kind of iPod before, so it was all new to me. I can say now, after 6 months without a smart phone but using my iPod Touch for most of the same stuff that I don't miss the Andriod too much. Almost anywhere I go, there is wifi. Or of not there (post office for example), I am on my way to one. I have been known just to go through the drive thru at Strbx to pick up their wifi and check email real quick ;). Obviously it's not a reliable cell phone; I still have a dumb phone. But I can send text msgs via the google voice app and make VOIP calls using Talkatone. All of it ties into my google voice account, so nothing is lost. All the apps that I had on my Android I found the same app in Apple App Store, even angry birds. If you are trying to cut back, an iPod Touch is a great alternative.

[AnnieW625]

I haven't upgraded to smart phone at all. I am always thinking about it, but honestly unless the Iphone 5 for Verizon is the perfect phone I can't see myself doing it. I am thinking I will most likely wait for the next gen. Itouch to come out and get that to use as a planner instead. I have access to the net all day, and at home so really I am not sure I need another computer with net access, but they are soo cool!


we never got a smartphone to start with, though i reaaallllly want one LOL. maybe we can trade ;) I have a touch screen samsung solstice that can access email, facebook, and the internet, though not through wifi. it does help to have the itnernet for looking up phone numbers, etc... but i know it's no where near the ease of an iphone.

maybe we'll buy them from you :) DH just went into the ocean and forgot to take his phone outta his pocket.... ugghhhh.....so he's using my OLD pink razor until we decide on new phones :rotflmao:

But that would be considered a smart phone, wouldn't it? You have to pay for internet access to have the email, facebook, and data even if you don't have your phone as a Wifi hot spot.

[Kungjo]

Depending on how much you have left on your contract, it may be better to stick with it till the end of the period and then switch providers. If not, then even under contract, you can downgrade your plan with ATT. We've done it before. Get the minimum of what is required for the iphones and then downgrade your minutes for your plan. That will save you some and prevent you from paying the termination fee for ATT.

[niccig]

I have a normal phone and an iPod touch. Neither AT&T nor Verizon work in our house. Yes, I have to carry two things, but it's not that much of an issue for me. I have apps, calendar etc on the touch.