Best overall Virgin Mobile phone?

[mogelijk]

Hey if I switched to tmobile would you recommend the htc amaze, the galaxy s2 or sensation? Is it really that great??!!

Personally, I'd go for the Google Nexus 4. The T-Mobile version of the S2 is a very good phone, just there is a nice advantage to getting a brand new phone with no bloatware, that will get Android updates as they are released by Google, over the S2. Especially when the two phones are roughly the same price -- S2 is $300, Nexus 4 is $300 for 8GB and $350 for 16GB.

 

[notebooko]

Personally, I'd go for the Google Nexus 4. The T-Mobile version of the S2 is a very good phone, just there is a nice advantage to getting a brand new phone with no bloatware, that will get Android updates as they are released by Google, over the S2. Especially when the two phones are roughly the same price -- S2 is $300, Nexus 4 is $300 for 8GB and $350 for 16GB.

I have to agree with mogelijk on this. The nexus 4 I hear is an excellent device and because of the release dates between the two it has much better specs. If you can get a s2 for a cheaper price on tmobile though like a used one possibly, it wouldn't be a bad route either. You must also take into consideration if you can live without removable battery and expandable storage.

 

[SuperAfnan]

Personally, I'd go for the Google Nexus 4. The T-Mobile version of the S2 is a very good phone, just there is a nice advantage to getting a brand new phone with no bloatware, that will get Android updates as they are released by Google, over the S2. Especially when the two phones are roughly the same price -- S2 is $300, Nexus 4 is $300 for 8GB and $350 for 16GB.

I have to agree with mogelijk on this. The nexus 4 I hear is an excellent device and because of the release dates between the two it has much better specs. If you can get a s2 for a cheaper price on tmobile though like a used one possibly, it wouldn't be a bad route either. You must also take into consideration if you can live without removable battery and expandable storage.

Both are good points. I forgot to mention used
the nexus would also be a good idea but I heard bad claims since it's made by LG. LG isn't bad to me but other people say it sucks. I had the optimus v it was decent. I like the htc build quality and a good camera, does the new nexus have a fast shutter and good quality?

 

[Allaneato]

You will find a much higher % of customers being satisfied with the OpV overall. The $$$/reward ratio is very high and it is a very solid phone. It is NOT a high end phone, but it is definitely one of, if not THE very best budget phone currently around.

I am not saying the Triumph is a bad phone at all. I may even try one out at some point in the future. For me personally the money to reward ratio isn't high enough at the moment to justify the triumph.

That.

I (mistakenly) chose the Triumph over the OV a year ago.

I've suffered through the Triumph learning curve and flashing CM7 was a HUGE improvement. Just do it. Shoulda do it immediately. But the phone is very flakey, lots of bugs, and VM service... it's been 50% "no service", for 6 weeks, and VM confirms it's a "network issue" but bills monthly and 10 times has said "give us 48 hours to fix it" again and again.

It's a ripoff in short. Might work, or not, any day. They might not fix it. This week, or ever. It isn't worth investing in an expensive phone you can't take elsewhere.

 

[mogelijk]

Both are good points. I forgot to mention used
the nexus would also be a good idea but I heard bad claims since it's made by LG. LG isn't bad to me but other people say it sucks. I had the optimus v it was decent. I like the htc build quality and a good camera, does the new nexus have a fast shutter and good quality?

Those who complain about the Nexus 4 being built by LG haven't had the phone in their hands. The reviews have been extremely positive on this phone, with the only real complaint the lack of LTE. Of course, with HSPA+ 42, most people won't notice that it doesn't have LTE.

 

[vmforlife]

That's the problem with choosing the "BEST" of anything.
It's all subjective to what the person telling you THINKS.

All I can say is look at value for price vs features and online reviews. That's the best you can do.

I happen to have used the Optimus V. It was OK, but severely lacking in storage. VM puts a lot of bloatware on their phones, and you could barely put any other apps on the phone and constantly had to watch data storage before the phone maxed out. The data card does not work with all apps, and you can only transfer select few to the card to help with core storage issues.

Upgraded to the LG Elite for $99 and loved it ever since. Plenty of storage for my needs and the processor is much faster. So for ME, the Elite is the best phone for MY needs at present.

If data is your thing, look at the "Beyond Talk" phones, read the online reviews and make your determination.
If talk and text is more important, you may be better off with "Pay-Lo" phones and plans. The "Montage" is a good choice here IMO, as a friend of mine has it and she absolutely loves it. BTW, her favorite color is GREEN!

 

[GoHybrid67]

I should NEVER go to the VM site to see what new phones they're offering lately. NOW I've started thinking about upgrading my VM phone at some point during the holiday sales.

Gone through a few phones with VM since I've been with them, the OV was my first smartphone, which was okay, but then I made the mistake of checking what was new a year or so ago, and ended up with the Motorola Triumph. Which, for the most part, I love, except for the things that I saw other people complain about when I was comparison shopping before I bought it (that I thought "well, how bad could THAT really be?" before I bought it) that I AM running into: the back cover falling off all the time, the "sleep of death", and short battery life. Have also run into a few apps that require 4.0 to work fully, which based on what I've read, the Motorola will never have.

So I popped over to the VM site to see what they had going on NOW. Naturally, gravitated immediately to the EVO and the SII, and compared them side by side along with the Triumph I have now. NO comparison, I WANT!

Based on what I've read here, it sounds like the SII is the better phone, but looking at them side by side, is what you get with the SII really $140 better than the EVO? They seem very similar (although I noticed that the EVO does NOT have an LED flash on the camera? - something I use all the time on my Triumph, and would probably miss if I didn't have it).

And don't know if this makes a difference or not, if one is better for this than the other, but I'm a data user more than a phone plan user. I'd say I probably use the phone as an actual PHONE about 5% of the time, and use the data side of it the remaining 95%.

Anyhoo, knowing what I don't like about what I've got, can I get some feedback what I should get?

Also, as a side note, would installing a different ROM fix what I don't like about the Motorola (other than the back falling off all the time, lol). I've thought about doing that, I'm good with tinkering with my PC, but not so much with my phone, didn't want to risk bricking it. But if I'm thinking about getting a new one anyway, is it worth trying? Especially since as soon as I get a new phone, my rates go up $10/month, I'm still at the $25/month plan but they'll increase me if I get a new phone.

Thanks.

~ Karen ~

 

[mogelijk]

I should NEVER go to the VM site to see what new phones they're offering lately. NOW I've started thinking about upgrading my VM phone at some point during the holiday sales.

Gone through a few phones with VM since I've been with them, the OV was my first smartphone, which was okay, but then I made the mistake of checking what was new a year or so ago, and ended up with the Motorola Triumph. Which, for the most part, I love, except for the things that I saw other people complain about when I was comparison shopping before I bought it (that I thought "well, how bad could THAT really be?" before I bought it) that I AM running into: the back cover falling off all the time, the "sleep of death", and short battery life. Have also run into a few apps that require 4.0 to work fully, which based on what I've read, the Motorola will never have.

So I popped over to the VM site to see what they had going on NOW. Naturally, gravitated immediately to the EVO and the SII, and compared them side by side along with the Triumph I have now. NO comparison, I WANT!

Based on what I've read here, it sounds like the SII is the better phone, but looking at them side by side, is what you get with the SII really $140 better than the EVO? They seem very similar (although I noticed that the EVO does NOT have an LED flash on the camera? - something I use all the time on my Triumph, and would probably miss if I didn't have it).

And don't know if this makes a difference or not, if one is better for this than the other, but I'm a data user more than a phone plan user. I'd say I probably use the phone as an actual PHONE about 5% of the time, and use the data side of it the remaining 95%.

Anyhoo, knowing what I don't like about what I've got, can I get some feedback what I should get?

Also, as a side note, would installing a different ROM fix what I don't like about the Motorola (other than the back falling off all the time, lol). I've thought about doing that, I'm good with tinkering with my PC, but not so much with my phone, didn't want to risk bricking it. But if I'm thinking about getting a new one anyway, is it worth trying? Especially since as soon as I get a new phone, my rates go up $10/month, I'm still at the $25/month plan but they'll increase me if I get a new phone.

Thanks.

~ Karen ~

From what I've seen, rooting and loading a custom ROM will largely fix the problems with the Triumph. Having said that, both the Evo and the SII are far better phones than the Triumph. My personal thought is that the SII is not $100 better than the Evo, YMMV. The one big complaint about the Evo is that some people (not all) seem to have issues with an error, largely when texting. Additionally, the Evo is rather thick and heavy.

The SII has a better camera (8 MP vs. 5 MP) though it isn't 3D, which some people like. Both have much better processors and screens than the Triumph. I don't think you can really go wrong with either phone.

Of course, another option would be to buy a Nexus 4 and move to T-Mobile's $30 plan, similar to what I did. The Nexus 4 is a better phone than the SII, for close to the same price. Faster data speeds, as well as more data before you get throttled. The downside is that only 100 minutes are included per month (additional minutes cost 10 cents each) but, since you mentioned you use data more than talk, you get 5 GB data before being throttled.

 

[GoHybrid67]

Thanks for the input! Looks like the T-Mobile plan would work just fine for me, I rarely go over even 20 minutes a month with the 300 minute plan I have with VM. But they're not showing the Nexus 4 as being an available phone to go with their $30/mo plan. If I were to go that route, could I get one at someplace like WalMart and then just activate that plan through the website?

Although, the important point is that you said you thought that the SII wasn't not THAT much better than the EVO for the bucks, which is kind of how I was thinking too, so may just stick with VM, pay the extra $10 and go that route. Did think I saw somewhere that there IS an LED flash on that model? Will have to check on that, since I do make use of that all the time, for both still and video cams.

The sale is going on a bit longer, so will keep researching before I decide.

Thanks!

From what I've seen, rooting and loading a custom ROM will largely fix the problems with the Triumph. Having said that, both the Evo and the SII are far better phones than the Triumph. My personal thought is that the SII is not $100 better than the Evo, YMMV. The one big complaint about the Evo is that some people (not all) seem to have issues with an error, largely when texting. Additionally, the Evo is rather thick and heavy.

The SII has a better camera (8 MP vs. 5 MP) though it isn't 3D, which some people like. Both have much better processors and screens than the Triumph. I don't think you can really go wrong with either phone.

Of course, another option would be to buy a Nexus 4 and move to T-Mobile's $30 plan, similar to what I did. The Nexus 4 is a better phone than the SII, for close to the same price. Faster data speeds, as well as more data before you get throttled. The downside is that only 100 minutes are included per month (additional minutes cost 10 cents each) but, since you mentioned you use data more than talk, you get 5 GB data before being throttled.

 

[mogelijk]

Thanks for the input! Looks like the T-Mobile plan would work just fine for me, I rarely go over even 20 minutes a month with the 300 minute plan I have with VM. But they're not showing the Nexus 4 as being an available phone to go with their $30/mo plan. If I were to go that route, could I get one at someplace like WalMart and then just activate that plan through the website?

Although, the important point is that you said you thought that the SII wasn't not THAT much better than the EVO for the bucks, which is kind of how I was thinking too, so may just stick with VM, pay the extra $10 and go that route. Did think I saw somewhere that there IS an LED flash on that model? Will have to check on that, since I do make use of that all the time, for both still and video cams.

The sale is going on a bit longer, so will keep researching before I decide.

Thanks!

Sorry, I should have specified. You can bring any GSM phone onto T-Mobile, with the one caveat that it needs to support the proper frequencies to get 3G speeds in all areas.

The Nexus 4 is sold by Google from the Google Play store. While you can buy it from T-Mobile, through their stores, they charge at least $100 more for the phone. To get the Google phone to work on T-Mobile, you merely need to buy a SIM Card Activation Kit from the T-Mobile website for 99 cents (it takes about a week for shipping). You then put the SIM card in your phone, activate it online, and you are set. The Nexus is a pentaband phone; it supports the frequencies for pretty much all GSM carriers worldwide, meaning you can switch the phone to another carrier (merely by swapping the SIM card) if you travel or even if you end up unhappy with T-Mobile.

The one current issue with the Nexus 4 is that it is out of stock until, I believe, until the end of the month. Of the phones sold specifically for T-Mobile Monthly, the Galaxy SII is likely the best ($330 from Walmart with $30 T-Mobile refill card). Though, again, you aren't limited to those phones. For example, you can buy one of the phones at a T-Mobile store, paying full price, and use it on the $30 plan.

 

[GoHybrid67]

Glad I didn't order a phone yet, VM just dropped the price of the EVO by ANOTHER $40, so it's $100 off now, and $180 less than the SII. They might just have suckered me in for that price!

 

[vmforlife]

Holy cow. The Optimus Elite is now $79 on the VM website?
I paid $99 about 4 months ago at a Walmart and thought that was a stellar deal for this phone.

IMO, given this price, it's the best "overall" new Android phone on VM at present. Wow.

 

[dr4sight]

I'm one of the many Optimus V users who likes the phone in every way except its lack of storage. I've been visited many times by the "LOW ON SPACE" warning which drives me batty.
It would seem that the HTC One V and Optimus Elite (both priced in the same ballpark) would be improvements in that area but I am having trouble assessing my how much.
When I go to my App2SD app it reads 178.88MB total/ 22.2MB available

Were I to switch to the One V or the Elite can anyone tell me what the total would read instead of the 178.88 that the OV offers? I would probably buy the phone that offers more.

Thanks

 

[riggerman0421]

HTC OneV, .94 GB.

 

[vmforlife]

I'm one of the many Optimus V users who likes the phone in every way except its lack of storage. I've been visited many times by the "LOW ON SPACE" warning which drives me batty.
It would seem that the HTC One V and Optimus Elite (both priced in the same ballpark) would be improvements in that area but I am having trouble assessing my how much.
When I go to my App2SD app it reads 178.88MB total/ 22.2MB available

Were I to switch to the One V or the Elite can anyone tell me what the total would read instead of the 178.88 that the OV offers? I would probably buy the phone that offers more.

Thanks

Yes, my Optimus Elite reads: 889.77 MB Total, 365.75 available via APP 2 SD.

Direct Storage via menus says: 1.93 G Total, 715 MB available

I have a lot of apps loaded.

I'm sure you would be happy with either phone. I came off of an Optimus V and went with the Elite. I am really pleased. Much faster processor and plenty of storage.

For $79 bucks, I can't see how you could go wrong upgrading, and Virgin honored my $25 plan as the Elite was manufactured before the cut-off date on "Grandfathered Plans".

Good luck.

 

[dr4sight]

Thanks. Especially for that point about the $25 plan.
I was sure that I would have to forfeit that in order to move from the OV to the Elite.

Which brings still another question. What about paid for apps.? I use SwiftKey 3. Would I have to buy again?

 

[mogelijk]

Thanks. Especially for that point about the $25 plan.
I was sure that I would have to forfeit that in order to move from the OV to the Elite.

Which brings still another question. What about paid for apps.? I use SwiftKey 3. Would I have to buy again?

No, you don't need to purchase apps again. Apps purchased through the Play Store are tied to your Google account and not to your phone.

 

[vmforlife]

If concern that you would lose apps and your grandfathered $25 plan were keeping you from upgrading to the Optimus Elite, you can put them aside - as you have just read. I can't imagine you would not be happy with the upgrade. The Elite is a nice step up from the V. You'll notice a big difference in performance and storage. The Elite is also lighter and thinner. All around, a nice upgrade.

 

[ilcavallo]

so the elite can be used with a grandfathered $25 plan? would anybody recommend the elite over triumph? i'm sick of the triumph.

 

[landonh12]

That's all true and don't forget that the S II has text and multimedia messaging whereas the Evo V has radio resource erroring (I'm not sure why this is better than reliably receiving your text messages, but apparently HTC thought we would like it.)

This is fixable.

 

[thebryceee]

Oh believe me, the Nexus 4 is well built by LG. I really have nothing bad to say about it other than not being able to use an extended battery.

Can't really compare phones just because of the manufacturer, look at the difference between the Samsung Intercept and S3.

 

[tcomotcom]

This is fixable.

Why would HTC want to fix such a helpful feature? Thanks to the Radio Resource Error feature, you can honestly tell people you don't want to deal with "Sorry, I didn't get your text." There's nothing to "fix".

 

[tcomotcom]

Oh believe me, the Nexus 4 is well built by LG. I really have nothing bad to say about it other than not being able to use an extended battery.

They build it incredibly well! So well that they can hardly make any at all! You can't rush quality!

The N4 is one of the most cost effective devices on the market today! Because it is constantly out of stock, the N4 has an effective price of $zero, saving you almost $300! I'm glad a manufacturer has finally found a way to make an awesome phone that everyone recommends and no one can buy. We're finally free of the endless cycle of phone upgrades! Don't buy one today!

 

[kfisher]

After trying the EVO V 4G (I previously had the supposedly same EVO 3D on Sprint), I couldn't handle the never delivered text messages and phone calls. I purchased my phone as it is, and don't intend to alter it to make it work. Wanted the One V, but it was unavailable locally, so I purchased the Samsung Reverb at BB with a price match from VM. I am so glad I had to make the switch. I absolutely love everything about this phone. I'd like to see a more durable case be available for it, but can't get everything.

 

[thebryceee]

They build it incredibly well! So well that they can hardly make any at all! You can't rush quality!

The N4 is one of the most cost effective devices on the market today! Because it is constantly out of stock, the N4 has an effective price of $zero, saving you almost $300! I'm glad a manufacturer has finally found a way to make an awesome phone that everyone recommends and no one can buy. We're finally free of the endless cycle of phone upgrades! Don't buy one today!

Lol