Negotiating for purchase a Used Cellphone,..what minor flaws acceptable ?

[RJSV]

    The local shop has repaired CELLPHONEs, as well as a smattering of laptops for sale.
   As a person in 'poor' income situation, I've grown to accept some disparities.   I think my personal income is down around 1/9th of what has been considered acceptable, (for a typical small family).
   I'm prepared to buy a used cellphone, maybe even a phone that has a minor crack, in back of case, or similar.   That's a good incentive for a small shop owner, (I figure), as they most often see finicky shoppers, that don't want to 'accept' cosmetic type flaws.

   A drop-resilient case might be good, as well.   The phones on display for sale include IPHONE15 which could be a nice change.

   Any comments, on helping me make a good phone switch ?   My current phone suffers from touch-screen partial fail....top of screen does not detect my finger presses.

[thm_w]

iphone 15 has a $600+ used price, not really something I would buy with a low income: https://swappa.com/search?q=iphone%2015

Usually you can get a few year old flagship phone for <$200 that will be more than good enough. But depends on what form factor etc you like.
eg samsung s21 is ~$180, or S23 is ~$250

Don't get anything with USB port damage or poor battery health, if you can.

[ebastler]

Assuming we are talking about smartphones, I would look for models which will receive security updates for a couple more years, if your budget allows.

Apple has always provided updates for an above-average time, but they don't announce that coverage ahead of time and it has varied a lot between models. And of course you pay a premium price for Apple devices, including used ones. Samsung has started to guarantee 4 years of security updates for all their phones from the 2019 generation onwards, to my knowledge -- that includes the affordable "Galaxy A" series. Hence, a Galaxy A model from 2022 should still have two more years of updates coming.

Battery life is another important factor, of course -- with heavy use and fast-charging, capacity may already have dropped quite a bit in a two-year-old device. Most (all?) phones can display information on battery health, i.e. what percentage of the original capacity is still available, somewhere in the settings menu. Ask the seller to show you that info.

[andy3055]

Are you looking for an iPhone specifically or an android? Are you locked to any provider?

[Bicurico]

I used to have flagship smartphones.

I am now on my second Xiaomi Redmi Note. They last for 2-3 years, offer similar performance and my current one charges the phone in like 20 minutes from zero to full charge due to the 120W charger.

The advantage of these phones is the price of 200-300 Euro and the fact that they don't get stolen and you don't have to worry too much if you drop or lose them.

I would not buy a second hand phone. It will come with a worn battery and you will have no clue of what the previous owner did. Heck, you might be buying a criminals phone and end up on police surveillance without having done anything wrong.

[RJSV]

   Currently, using Alcatel that was originally something like $85 at local Walgreens drug store.   The monthly service is $40 ATT Card each month.
   (One little irritation, is the AT&T Service is for some 28 days, which is out of sync with normal calendar and means I've often had to purchase TWO of the $40 gift cards...in order to keep service uninterrupted.)

   The small shop guy said he had a couple of refurbished Iphone15's for about $220.
Shop was clean and also sold accessories, like earbuds.
   Apparently the stereo audio jack is not included in some models, which is a good thing, as my music playing had messed up my Alcatel audio, sometimes cutting out the audio, and so the wireless Bluetooth is the only way.
The current phone has, apparently, ongoing heat damage, screen brightness issues, randomly, and the Chrome driver has misc random bugs.
   And,...only the user facing camera works.
I absolutely hate, the Android updating features that I don't control, and Android book (i.e. for Dummies) does not explain things like how to copy to 'clipboard'.

Nice value, for 3 years, at $85 dollars, but the thing is last legs.   Wireless headphones don't sign-on initialize anymore.

   I hear that iPhone tutorials are on-line.

(Most access goes via the house Comcast satelight server.)

Thanks folks, for replies!

[thm_w]

There is zero chance someone is selling an iphone 15 for 220 so probably misheard or intentionally misled.

$40/month may or may not be high depending on what you get. You can easily get 8GB data + unlimited calling for $35/month in US (phonebox), probably can find deals where its less, $20-30/month.

I would not buy a second hand phone. It will come with a worn battery and you will have no clue of what the previous owner did. Heck, you might be buying a criminals phone and end up on police surveillance without having done anything wrong.

You can have the seller to check the battery health, not hard on iphone or recent samsung phones.
Certified refurb phones will give a grade which specifies battery health.
Surveillance is not an issue. Only risk is buying a stolen phone which can later get blacklisted, so only buy from a reputable store or local seller you'd trust.

[Halcyon]

If you're looking for a cheap, yet functional smartphone, go for the Alcatel, Motorola, or even the low end Samsungs (like the Galaxy A55).

You've also got the Chinese-owned brands like Huawei, Oppo, OnePlus, TCL, ZTE, Xiaomi, etc... which I would never ordinarily recommend due to their serious security concerns, but, if that's not a priority for you, go nuts. Just bare in-mind that you'll get an "Android-like" experience with many of those phones, since they are based on Android but have been bastardised heavily.

If you can find something like a Google Pixel 6, you'll continue to receive Android updates until October this year and security updates until October 2026. You'll also get the stock Android experience, without any of the third-party quirks.

[Postal2]

I recently bought a smartphone and I liked it. I'm not sure that it will suit anyone (mostly not), but it will allow you to navigate the price.
https://aliexpress.com/item/1005004929079585.html
I also bought an Orange Pi 3G-IoT-A and am trying to connect it to different screens (screen clock 200MHz).

[NiHaoMike]

Assuming we are talking about smartphones, I would look for models which will receive security updates for a couple more years, if your budget allows.

Look for ones supported by LineageOS, they'll stay supported as long as there's a developer interested in continuing to support it.

[Stray Electron]

My wife just traded in her old I-Phone and bought a new one.  I don't know what model she had but it wasn't very old and the battery and condition was perfect and she had all of the manuals, books and boxes for it but they only gave her about $75 for it.  But the other thing with the I-Phones is that once they get about 6 years old they start slowing to a crawl and the newer versions of apps will no long work on therm (and they "upgrade" the apps to the newer versions without your consent.)  This is about the forth time that she's had to buy a new I-phone so that her apps would continue to work.  A USED phone is probably not a good investment IMO, for several reasons.

  I pay less that $40 per month for service and T-Mobile GAVE me a new Samsung phone when i switched to them so you should be able to do better than your current phone and plan.

[RJSV]

   One question that came up, as I really need to get into an adult-school class:
   The house system here is with 'boxes'. I like to call 'servers', the one here labeled 'DIRECTTV'.

   I'm wondering about the $40 AT&T monthly service, that I enter into cellphone every month.
Does that access actually require the AT&T access, which is accompanied by the 'antenna' symbol, up along the top of phone screen, or is access via the usual WIFI bypassing that ?
   In other words, letting the AT&T Service lapse, a few days, and just operating (as usual) by way of the WIFI house installed DIRECT TV ?
House manager here is often 'gruff' with responses like "I'll let you figure that out, not my responsibility...".
That's why I need to, eventually, get my butt into a night school class, or recreation Dept. class.
Local library had some, but turned out it was for teens.

Thanks for all your contrib.s

[RJSV]

   Ironically, I've just fumbled and dropped the old cellphone, sending it skittering across the cement floor....
   That means less, or no, value for any trade-in, but not a major deal....might be worth $18 on any store trade-in!

    Yesterday, I walked past a Flip phone, sitting on the street there....no, I declined to pick that up...Lol, maybe I should have picked up that unknown phone, maybe got thrown during a domestic argument, (use your imagination).
Lol, I'd rather PAY for a used phone, conventional way, not the 'Breaking Bad' fiction tale!

[RJSV]

   andy3055, Halcyon, Xiaomi thanks for help:
   I might be more inclined towards iPhone this time, I've seen a lot of YouTube tutorials for using iPhone.
  The surveillance factor is, sadly, already present, so I wouldn't stress, either way !
Halcyon suggests Galaxy A55 which might work best...(we will see, I'll let you know, as things go.)

[IanB]

Apple is pretty good at keeping their products working. I am currently running an iPhone 12, and it is giving me no reason to upgrade it at this point. It is perfectly fast and responsive, with a battery health reported at 98%, and runs every app I need. It would be perfectly acceptable to anyone as a used/refurbished phone. You can look online for which older model iPhones are still worthwhile today. I think you can go back further than the 12 to get a still usable phone.

[Postal2]

I like cheap phones, not smartphones. They are cheap, small and hold a charge for a long time. Not noticeable in your pocket. There are 2 requirements for them, mandatory support for 3G voice for communication in the city and a decent camera for a quick photo.
I was once very upset when, in the cold, I could not answer the call by swiping up. The call was very important, and the person called back 3 times.

[Halcyon]

The surveillance factor is, sadly, already present, so I wouldn't stress, either way !

At least with Android and iOS, it's just the five-eyes spying on you (if you're a specific target) but you can still control and limit what information is captured/stored.

When it's a company under the direct or indirect command of the CCP, all control and privacy is out the window.

[RJSV]

   I could not recite back much, if someone were to ask what do I know about the CCP, thanks for comment !
   I'd probably start by saying it's in Russia, but stop myself there, even.   Run off to WIKIPEDIA, and check what they have.  But I have seen more than normal share of odd developments, such as court and judge assignments (US federal judge Breyer, and the, other judge, Breyer...two brothers.
Humorously, a couple of court cases that had 'strangenous' factors were 'countered' by defense teams that, adopted unconventional tactics in partial reflection of the setting.   

   But today I wanted to note that, in 1999 there were no common 'cellular' hand-held phones, and so (I'm guessing) if things move into body implanted communication, that we might remember these times, having hand-held things, rather than 'implanted' RF links.

   Lol, I wonder if people will complain about implant 'batterey life' !    ....only took a few years for cellphones to emerge, world-wide !

[IanB]

But today I wanted to note that, in 1999 there were no common 'cellular' hand-held phones,

Actually, there were, lots of them. But the USA took a long time to catch up with the rest of the world.

[Halcyon]

But today I wanted to note that, in 1999 there were no common 'cellular' hand-held phones,

Actually, there were, lots of them. But the USA took a long time to catch up with the rest of the world.

That's surprising to hear. In 1997 I had my first mobile phone. I was still in school at the time. By about 1998/1999, I'd say a significant amount of the kids had a phone. Not "most" but a good chunk. My parents had a phone well before this, albeit it was analog. I think GSM had just emerged about that time.

[nctnico]

But today I wanted to note that, in 1999 there were no common 'cellular' hand-held phones,

Actually, there were, lots of them. But the USA took a long time to catch up with the rest of the world.

That's surprising to hear. In 1997 I had my first mobile phone. I was still in school at the time. By about 1998/1999, I'd say a significant amount of the kids had a phone. Not "most" but a good chunk. My parents had a phone well before this, albeit it was analog. I think GSM had just emerged about that time.

Yup. For example the Motorola Microtac: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Motorola_MicroTAC originating from 1989. A relative of mine used to have a mobile phone shop in the 90's buying & selling new & used mobile phones.

[themadhippy]

I remember being surprised by the lack of mobile phones in the states when i was there in the early 2000's when they were getting common in the uk, it was explained that it was due to  the call receiver having to pay part of the call charge.Guess thats changed now?

[Halcyon]

I remember being surprised by the lack of mobile phones in the states when i was there in the early 2000's when they were getting common in the uk, it was explained that it was due to  the call receiver having to pay part of the call charge.Guess thats changed now?

People still get billed for calls?

Unlimited national calls/SMS have been a feature for most post-paid plans in Australia. You're mostly just paying for data allowance (and even after then, it's typically uncapped, just shaped). Of course on pre-paid, you still pay for call "minutes".

[IanB]

People still get billed for calls?

Unlimited national calls/SMS have been a feature for most post-paid plans in Australia. You're mostly just paying for data allowance (and even after then, it's typically uncapped, just shaped). Of course on pre-paid, you still pay for call "minutes".

Not any more, but cellphone service is still very expensive in the USA. In the UK I could get a basic monthly plan with unlimited calls and texts and 20 GB of data for about £10/month, no upfront payment. A bare bones plan with 2 GB could be as little as £6/month.

A cursory check shows that in the USA you would be paying 2-3x as much, with a significant pre-payment for the best deals, and often it's a new customer offer that won't last.

[Halcyon]

People still get billed for calls?

Unlimited national calls/SMS have been a feature for most post-paid plans in Australia. You're mostly just paying for data allowance (and even after then, it's typically uncapped, just shaped). Of course on pre-paid, you still pay for call "minutes".

Not any more, but cellphone service is still very expensive in the USA. In the UK I could get a basic monthly plan with unlimited calls and texts and 20 GB of data for about £10/month, no upfront payment. A bare bones plan with 2 GB could be as little as £6/month.

A cursory check shows that in the USA you would be paying 2-3x as much, with a significant pre-payment for the best deals, and often it's a new customer offer that won't last.

I know we are straying off-topic here a little bit, but since we're sharing (and for those playing along at home).

Cellular plans in Australia vary quite a lot. Essentially, it comes down to: You get what you pay for.

Nationally, we have only 3 carriers: Telstra, Optus (Singtel) and Vodafone, and all of them provide coverage across the country. There is no such thing as "roaming" in Australia (which to my understanding still exists in the US depending on state you're in as not all carrier operate in all states?). There are many MVNO's (Mobile Virtual Network Operators) which resell one of the three carrier's products. MVNO's handle the billing, support etc... but don't own or operate any of their infrastructure (I'm assuming MVNO's exist in most parts of the world).

Telstra is arguably Australia's top-tier carrier. They provide the widest coverage both on land and out to sea (typically 20-70 kilometers from the coast for 4G/LTE coverage). Telstra also offers some of the fastest speeds, but the other two aren't far behind, and in some cases, you'll find their service to be faster in some areas, albeit with a reduced coverage footprint.

That being said, the cheapest post-paid monthly plan you'll get on Telstra is AUD$65/month for which you get:

• 50 GB of data (unlimited, but shaped to 1.5 Mbps after your quota)
• Unlimited national calls and SMS/MMS
• Unlimited international SMS/MMS
• 30 minutes of international calls (charged per minute thereafter)

You also have the option of paying $10/month extra if you want to further prioritise your TCP or UDP traffic, over other users, on the same network.

The advantage with going directly with the carrier is you get access to their full network and bands, without traffic prioritisation that typically occurs with MVNO's. (There is still QoS applied, but the carrier's own traffic takes priority over resellers.)

Of course if you don't care about the frills and just want a basic, cheap service, you can get plans down to about $10/month with varying data limits (it's usually limited to 4G/LTE only). There are MVNO's like "Felix" that offer pre-paid unlimited 5G data on Vodafone's network for an initial $20 for the first month, then $40/month after that. Then there is everything in between.

2G cellular doesn't exist anymore; 2G shutdown commenced in 2016 and the last service went offline in 2018.
3G is not far behind with the last of those services due to be decommissioned by September 2024.
The existing 3G bands will then be re-farmed to expand 4G and 5G services.

For the most part (unless you pay for an enterprise plan), you'll be on Carrier Grade NAT (CG-NAT) for your IPv4 address. Most will however use IPv6 (Telstra only issues IPv6 for cellular customers these days).