Cloudship

I just had a long meeting and need a break - so I am thinking about phones.

I currently carry an HTC Evo 4g LTE (sprint network). It is work issued, and I am pretty happy with it except for that stupid camera button on the side. I like it much better than the Samsung Galaxy III I tried for a bit. However, I am finally moving to a position where I don't need to have this on me 24-7 and can finally get my own phone for travel.

I use email and calendar a lot on this phone, some phone use, some text messaging. That is pretty much standard I suppose. The things that I really am concerned over, that I use a lot when traveling: GPS; camera (though I dont need super high resolution); battery life; thinness/weight; and decent 3G data. I also want to start using this as an mp3 player, too, I know that will affect battery life.

So I have two questions. First, what kind of phone should I get? I am not against refurbs or used, and have a budget of about $250 (preferably cheaper).

Secondly, what do I need to get to be able to use this both in the US as well as in England/Europe? I really like the idea of using prepaid SIM cards, but I am still confused s to how that all works especially if I want both data AND phone. I really would like to stick with an unlocked phone and not be stuck to a contract carrier.

So what do you recommend?

sonofzeus

This works well for me in the USA, UK, Italy, Greece, Turkey, and Germany.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/HTC-Amaze-4G...p2054897.l4276

I have two inexpensive backup batteries.

It's unlocked and rooted and running stock ICS.

With certain SIMs/providers, it provides acceptable wireless tethering.

I'm in no hurry to replace it with newer units which lack swappable batteries and microSD slots.

Good hunting.

vletnguyen

Google nexus 4 is dropping in price since the nexus 5 is coming out soon(sold out on the play store). I currently have the nexus 4 as a back up phone. It's unlocked pentaband with LTE

msb0b

If you were in the market 2 months ago, Nexus 4 is the clear answer. Google Play Store was clearing them out at $199 for 8 GB model and $249 for 16 GB model. They sold out within 2 weeks. You might still be able to find some leftover phones from third party sellers that cost close to the original Nexus 4 price of $299/$349 after the seller's' markup.

First, get a phone that supports as many 3G bands as possible. Something like the Nexus 4, which supports 850/1900/1700 in the Americas and 900/1800/2100 in the rest of the world.

There are two carriers (AT&T and T-Mobile) and many MVNO that you can choose. Most of them offer an unlimited talk + some data at $40 to $60 per month. Since I don't make many phone calls, I use T-Mobile's 100 minutes + 5 GB data for $30 per month.

boerne

A good condition google nexus is very good and is/has been my primary phone for international prepaid standard sims so no trimming needed. used recently in the EU, Australia, China, Japan, NZ, and Tahiti most often averaging 5 mbs down data and it has tethering built in. You can swap the battery. Native Android with no carrier trash. Unlocked.

The Nexus 4 is a great phone and my wife uses that, but it uses a microsim so cutting might be needed and you cannot swap the battery. An external battery may be needed for extended use. It also has a built in mobile hotspot capability and a better camera. Native android and no carrier trash. unlocked.

I recently got a Blu dash 4.5 dual sim for $100 new and I am testing it now with the T MO $30 plan. You can swap the battery, the GPS takes a little longer to boot than the google phones, it takes 2 standard sims (the second one is only 2g) and I have gotten 10 mbs down HSPA+ in the US in refarmed T MO areas in the sim 1 slot. It also has native android 4.2.2 but it will never have its OS upgraded like the Google phones will. It feels pretty good in the hand, has good call quality, has a native mobile hotspot built in and a tiny bit of Blu extras but nothing like an ATT bloat. Unlocked.

JTMurdock

I picked up one of these for my international trips. Roots very easily.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008DJ4HT0/

l3arefoot

https://www.att.com/deviceunlock/cli...msAndCondition ATT will unlock your phone for you to use abroad. Unless it's a new iPhone 5s. I just upgraded, having always gotten my old iPhone's unlocked so you can just land and pick up a cheap prepaid sim card, now I'm told the new policy on 5s is they won't unlock it until you're out of contract...

Cloudship

I have been poking around a bit on phones. I seem to be coming to a decision between two choices: the Blu Quattro 5.7hd, and a Nexus 4.

The Blu Quattro is a nice large size, great for GPS usage. Performance leaves a bit to be desired, but as I can find one at $250, the price looks good. The Nexus seems to have fantastic performance, but I am struggling with the idea that right now I have to shell out $350 or more for one. Not sure if that is worth it or not - I still will have to carry around my work phone for work related calls,and I don't do much private calling except while traveling.

dtsm

Depending on your location, check out CL. In the tri-state NY area, quite a few available for under $300. I almost pulled the trigger on brand new 16gb for $280 after buying one for my son before google ran out of stock but decided to wait for Nexus 5.

Cloudship

CL?

I am in the New England area so we may have them here, just not sure who CL is.

msb0b

Craig's List

Another Nexus benefit is the ongoing software support. You can always count on Nexus getting the newest Android version first for several years. Other makers seem to only offer only 1 and rarely 2 major updates plus minor security fixes for their phones.

I also prefer the no-frills original Android interface, vs the customized ones provided by each phone maker.

dtsm

Craigslist

Not sure where you are in NE but here's Boston area listing and nearby CT: http://boston.craigslist.org/search/...sk=&srchType=T

AnalogMan

If you are willing to pay close to 299/349 for a Nexus 4, might as well wait for a Nexus 5, which should be coming in a few weeks at the most and cost just a little bit more. Used Nexus 4 prices should also come down a bit once Nexus 5 is introduced, from early adopters unloading 'old' gear.

Nexus 4 does not officially support LTE, and because it's not FCC certified for LTE, I think it would be against the law to use LTE on it. Pentaband 3G is definitely good enough for me.

Blu support is not all that great, My VIVO 4.3 had an issue and they did not reply to my emails requesting information on repair costs, etc. They did, however, release a ROM update from ICS to JB If you get a Blu phone, be prepared for limited availability of accessories and replacement batteries.

Cloudship

Replacement batteries? You mean that you can replace batteries in a phone?

$350 is really pushing it for me, I have to have a good reason to spend that much. LTE would be nice, but I suppose not critical. I use Nova anyways, so I am not too concerned with what they put on it.

I need to make a decision soon, so hopefully the prices will come down. The 5 is being launched Thursday, right?

glob99

@:-) How about an unlocked Motorola Atrix 2 or Atrix HD? Look on eBay. < $200.

I picked up a used Atrix 2 for $85.