Time for a mobile phone upgrade
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@Dashrender said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@WrCombs said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Obsolesce said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@IRJ said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
How about not taking another loan on mobile device. I don't even like taking a loan on a car let alone a phone. I'm not sure how or why people feel like they have to finance it and pay at least 2x for something that doesnt hold value for shit.
Do carriers charge interest? I've not seen that. Typically it's a discounted phone, and at worst you pay regular price divided by 24 months without interest.
That said, I always buy them outright, but my last two have been free.
I want to buy one outright and not pay on it - but pay for the service of the phone. does that make sense?
Why? Time value of money says that's dumb - especially since they are giving you a zero interest loan on that money for the phone. Now, if you want a phone that carrier doesn't have, then you have no choice, you must buy it outright.
And anyone saying - well, I can't move between carriers if I have a payment... to that I say two things 1) BS, yes you can, you just pay off the rest of the phone before making the switch, 2) how often do people actually change carriers.
This is how it works.
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@Dashrender said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@WrCombs said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Obsolesce said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@IRJ said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
How about not taking another loan on mobile device. I don't even like taking a loan on a car let alone a phone. I'm not sure how or why people feel like they have to finance it and pay at least 2x for something that doesnt hold value for shit.
Do carriers charge interest? I've not seen that. Typically it's a discounted phone, and at worst you pay regular price divided by 24 months without interest.
That said, I always buy them outright, but my last two have been free.
I want to buy one outright and not pay on it - but pay for the service of the phone. does that make sense?
Why? Time value of money says that's dumb - especially since they are giving you a zero interest loan on that money for the phone. Now, if you want a phone that carrier doesn't have, then you have no choice, you must buy it outright.
Fair - I've tried every flavor of smart phone - apple products
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@Obsolesce said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@WrCombs said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Obsolesce said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@IRJ said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
How about not taking another loan on mobile device. I don't even like taking a loan on a car let alone a phone. I'm not sure how or why people feel like they have to finance it and pay at least 2x for something that doesnt hold value for shit.
Do carriers charge interest? I've not seen that. Typically it's a discounted phone, and at worst you pay regular price divided by 24 months without interest.
That said, I always buy them outright, but my last two have been free.
I want to buy one outright and not pay on it - but pay for the service of the phone. does that make sense?
Yeah, that's how it works. The phone plan is the same cost whether you have device payments or not. For example, your phone plan costs $100 a month. You choose a $900 phone, now your monthly payment will be $137.50 prior to taxes and/or other fees. Buy that phone outright, immediately, or at any time, payment is then $100 a month again.
That's what I thought as well -
Now I'm looking at phones that aren't held by the carrier so I'll have to buy it outright and get service put on it.
Is what it comes down to . -
@WrCombs said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Obsolesce said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@WrCombs said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Obsolesce said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@IRJ said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
How about not taking another loan on mobile device. I don't even like taking a loan on a car let alone a phone. I'm not sure how or why people feel like they have to finance it and pay at least 2x for something that doesnt hold value for shit.
Do carriers charge interest? I've not seen that. Typically it's a discounted phone, and at worst you pay regular price divided by 24 months without interest.
That said, I always buy them outright, but my last two have been free.
I want to buy one outright and not pay on it - but pay for the service of the phone. does that make sense?
Yeah, that's how it works. The phone plan is the same cost whether you have device payments or not. For example, your phone plan costs $100 a month. You choose a $900 phone, now your monthly payment will be $137.50 prior to taxes and/or other fees. Buy that phone outright, immediately, or at any time, payment is then $100 a month again.
That's what I thought as well -
Now I'm looking at phones that aren't held by the carrier so I'll have to buy it outright and get service put on it.
Is what it comes down to .Yup, we got ours on Amazon in the past, threw in the SIM, and was good to go... had to call the carrier to make some minor radio adjustments once, but that's not really an issue.
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Google has knocked $400 off the Pixel 3 here in Canada if you're buying direct from them, otherwise the Asus Zenfone line is generally good bang for the buck. I've typically bought unlocked and go with Koodo's byod plans for myself and the SO.
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@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
otherwise the Asus Zenfone line is generally good bang for the buck
Right on the verge of impossible to get in the US. Asus refuses to even provide Americans with a clear list of available products that they make!
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@WrCombs said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Obsolesce said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@WrCombs said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Obsolesce said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@IRJ said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
How about not taking another loan on mobile device. I don't even like taking a loan on a car let alone a phone. I'm not sure how or why people feel like they have to finance it and pay at least 2x for something that doesnt hold value for shit.
Do carriers charge interest? I've not seen that. Typically it's a discounted phone, and at worst you pay regular price divided by 24 months without interest.
That said, I always buy them outright, but my last two have been free.
I want to buy one outright and not pay on it - but pay for the service of the phone. does that make sense?
Yeah, that's how it works. The phone plan is the same cost whether you have device payments or not. For example, your phone plan costs $100 a month. You choose a $900 phone, now your monthly payment will be $137.50 prior to taxes and/or other fees. Buy that phone outright, immediately, or at any time, payment is then $100 a month again.
That's what I thought as well -
Now I'm looking at phones that aren't held by the carrier so I'll have to buy it outright and get service put on it.
Is what it comes down to .All phones on TMobile are like that.
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@Dashrender said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
And anyone saying - well, I can't move between carriers if I have a payment... to that I say two things 1) BS, yes you can, you just pay off the rest of the phone before making the switch, 2) how often do people actually change carriers
And if you have a good carrier to begin with, you can move plans without having to pay off the phone!
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@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Dashrender said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
And anyone saying - well, I can't move between carriers if I have a payment... to that I say two things 1) BS, yes you can, you just pay off the rest of the phone before making the switch, 2) how often do people actually change carriers
And if you have a good carrier to begin with, you can move plans without having to pay off the phone!
Not even sure what this means? are you saying that the carrier will continue to allow you to simply make the no interest payments on the device while not having service with them?
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@Dashrender said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Dashrender said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
And anyone saying - well, I can't move between carriers if I have a payment... to that I say two things 1) BS, yes you can, you just pay off the rest of the phone before making the switch, 2) how often do people actually change carriers
And if you have a good carrier to begin with, you can move plans without having to pay off the phone!
Not even sure what this means? are you saying that the carrier will continue to allow you to simply make the no interest payments on the device while not having service with them?
No. He said change plan. Not change carrier. He’s discussing something that none of the rest of us are.
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@JaredBusch said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Dashrender said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@Dashrender said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
And anyone saying - well, I can't move between carriers if I have a payment... to that I say two things 1) BS, yes you can, you just pay off the rest of the phone before making the switch, 2) how often do people actually change carriers
And if you have a good carrier to begin with, you can move plans without having to pay off the phone!
Not even sure what this means? are you saying that the carrier will continue to allow you to simply make the no interest payments on the device while not having service with them?
No. He said change plan. Not change carrier. He’s discussing something that none of the rest of us are.
Oh okay, I misunderstood.
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@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
otherwise the Asus Zenfone line is generally good bang for the buck
Right on the verge of impossible to get in the US. Asus refuses to even provide Americans with a clear list of available products that they make!
Really? They aren't super popular or well known north of the 49th parallel but I can usually find unlocked versions through staples, amazon or best buy....
https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=zenfone&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
Maybe an excuse for some cross-border shopping?
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@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
otherwise the Asus Zenfone line is generally good bang for the buck
Right on the verge of impossible to get in the US. Asus refuses to even provide Americans with a clear list of available products that they make!
Really? They aren't super popular or well known north of the 49th parallel but I can usually find unlocked versions through staples, amazon or best buy....
https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=zenfone&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
Maybe an excuse for some cross-border shopping?
We can generally find them, yes, but it takes a lot of effort and knowing what you are getting is extremely hard. The US is an odd market in that we get tons of things that no one else gets, but tons of things that are widely available elsewhere is effectively impossible to get in the US. Not totally impossible, just absurdly difficult and obscure.
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For something like a phone, Mexico and Panama are generally the best options for Americans due to their large supply chains that are generally disassociated from our own. Canadian supply chains tend to be "filtered" out of American ones - Canadians get just "less" than we get in the US, at higher prices.
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@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
otherwise the Asus Zenfone line is generally good bang for the buck
Right on the verge of impossible to get in the US. Asus refuses to even provide Americans with a clear list of available products that they make!
Really? They aren't super popular or well known north of the 49th parallel but I can usually find unlocked versions through staples, amazon or best buy....
https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=zenfone&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
Maybe an excuse for some cross-border shopping?
We can generally find them, yes, but it takes a lot of effort and knowing what you are getting is extremely hard. The US is an odd market in that we get tons of things that no one else gets, but tons of things that are widely available elsewhere is effectively impossible to get in the US. Not totally impossible, just absurdly difficult and obscure.
Yeah, like a standard transmission in a Mazda3.... I got worried when reading reviews before the equipment specs were revealed, you guys can only get the stick in the top of the line version, here in the great white north it's available across the board. </thread hijack>
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@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
For something like a phone, Mexico and Panama are generally the best options for Americans due to their large supply chains that are generally disassociated from our own. Canadian supply chains tend to be "filtered" out of American ones - Canadians get just "less" than we get in the US, at higher prices.
Don't I know it.... but I didn't have to re-mortgage the house to cover the hospital bills when the kids were born. Advantage to where I live is that I can go to the states to get gas for the car. Typically about $0.30/L cheaper in Maine than here in town.
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@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
For something like a phone, Mexico and Panama are generally the best options for Americans due to their large supply chains that are generally disassociated from our own. Canadian supply chains tend to be "filtered" out of American ones - Canadians get just "less" than we get in the US, at higher prices.
Don't I know it.... but I didn't have to re-mortgage the house to cover the hospital bills when the kids were born. Advantage to where I live is that I can go to the states to get gas for the car. Typically about $0.30/L cheaper in Maine than here in town.
Those places have free, public healthcare too, just like Canada. Mexico is so good that Americans generally prefer to go there, rather than Canada, when we need actual doctors.
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@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
@notverypunny said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
otherwise the Asus Zenfone line is generally good bang for the buck
Right on the verge of impossible to get in the US. Asus refuses to even provide Americans with a clear list of available products that they make!
Really? They aren't super popular or well known north of the 49th parallel but I can usually find unlocked versions through staples, amazon or best buy....
https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=zenfone&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
Maybe an excuse for some cross-border shopping?
We can generally find them, yes, but it takes a lot of effort and knowing what you are getting is extremely hard. The US is an odd market in that we get tons of things that no one else gets, but tons of things that are widely available elsewhere is effectively impossible to get in the US. Not totally impossible, just absurdly difficult and obscure.
Yeah, like a standard transmission in a Mazda3.... I got worried when reading reviews before the equipment specs were revealed, you guys can only get the stick in the top of the line version, here in the great white north it's available across the board. </thread hijack>
Well, that's because no one here knows how to drive stick. The "American anti-theft device" as every European jokes.
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@scottalanmiller said in Time for a mobile phone upgrade:
For something like a phone, Mexico and Panama are generally the best options for Americans due to their large supply chains that are generally disassociated from our own. Canadian supply chains tend to be "filtered" out of American ones - Canadians get just "less" than we get in the US, at higher prices.
How can the best option involve wasting time to potentially drive for days to buy a cell phone for less than the gas it costs to get it?
