Almost new phone time

[Rgarner]

I've just about had it with this piece of junk, but I can't afford much. I'm not that enthusiastic about Coolpad, but I could maybe get a Canvas for about $55. Should I do that and how would I defeat the spyware and any other problems associated with it?

 

[Hadron]

I guess you've a constrained budget, because I know I'd not reward a manufacturer who put spyware on their phones with my business, I'd find something else.

 

[mikedt]

A Canvas, that's a Micromax phone isn't it? Are you in India?

 

[svim]

Just my opinion but when looking for a new phone, basing a search on 'cheapest' only rarely ends up with a viable result. Low-end, budget phones just inherently have limitations, and unless you always lower your expectations when you use your phone on a day-to-day basis you will just get frustrated each time there's a problem with running out of storage space, or performance lags, or whatever. And since you specifically brought up the point of spyware and such, cheap phones won't be receiving regular OTA updates/patches on a long term basis.
But if budgetary reasons just can't be ignored however, maybe buying a solid, previously-owned phone might work out better than a new, cheap one?
https://swappa.com/buy-cheap-android

 

[Rgarner]

Thanks for your answers, but I probably won't be able to afford $100 or more. Trying to get one through the mail probably wouldn't work out very well, either. No, I'm not in India. The Canvas is at Walmart, which is not exactly my favorite store.

 

[lunatic59]

If you act quick you can get an LG G3 (Refurb) from Woot! for $80.00

LG VS985 G3 32GB Verizon Wireless & GSM Unlocked (Scratch & Dent)

I've bought from these guys before and never had any problems with refurb stuff (PC's and Laptops, mostly).

 

[Rgarner]

Thanks, but I had to miss out on that. They probably wouldn't accept cash anyway.

 

[lunatic59]

We'll they run these deals from time to time so you might want to get on their mailing list. They sell a lot of crap, but have good deals too.

For "cash sales" online I've always found it easy to get a pre-paid Visa card from the grocery store. Just sayin'.

 

[Rgarner]

Thanks, I'll have to look into that when I can afford it. I'm hoping it'll be soon. What's a good basic Android with at least 16 gb and a decent camera? I would say big SD capacity but with the way they've got that screwed up now, maybe not.

 

[RMOP]

I've owned high-end and low-end phones, and plenty of each. IMO, the best inexpensive phone is the T-Mobile LG Aristo. It is 4G-capable on ANY GSM network, afaik, goes regularly for about $100 new from well-rated eBay sellers (I paid $70 months ago), and is quite capable. T-Mobile has pushed 3 or 4 firmware updates over the last 6 months or so. Went to Android 7.0 recently. Works well with my 128Gb microSD card, unrooted, minor limitations. NoT a T-Mobile user? There's also a MetroPCS version. Most listings are carrier locked, a few are unlocked.

 

[menco]

Hey, does the Aristo do MHL (HDMI out over USB or mini HDMI)? Can it Mirracast Netflix & Amazon Video shows?

I've owned high-end and low-end phones, and plenty of each. IMO, the best inexpensive phone is the T-Mobile LG Aristo. It is 4G-capable on ANY GSM network, afaik, goes regularly for about $100 new from well-rated eBay sellers (I paid $70 months ago), and is quite capable. T-Mobile has pushed 3 or 4 firmware updates over the last 6 months or so. Went to Android 7.0 recently. Works well with my 128Gb microSD card, unrooted, minor limitations. NoT a T-Mobile user? There's also a MetroPCS version. Most listings are carrier locked, a few are unlocked.

 

[Rgarner]

Is the LG Aristo available for Cricket? That sounds as if it would be a good deal. By the way, could a computer somehow be forced to read an adaptively screwed up SD card? Would it work with Windows, or would it have to be Linux, maybe Ubuntu?

 

[lunatic59]

could a computer somehow be forced to read an adaptively screwed up SD card?

If you mean one that was configured for adoptable storage, no. They are encrypted.

 

[Rgarner]

How do we unencrypt them? It's ridiculous for our SD cards to be encrypted without our permission and not even a back door to get into them. We should be able to use the same card with multiple devices and not have to buy a new one every time we get new phones.

 

[mikedt]

How do we unencrypt them? It's ridiculous for our SD cards to be encrypted without our permission and not even a back door to get into them.

I'm sure the NSA, FBI, GCHQ, MSS(Ministry of State Security of China), and other govt. spooks would like that and be able to decrypt them. It is with your permission anyway, when you choose whether to use them as adoptive(Encrypted EXT) or regular external storage(unencrypted FAT32). I always choose the latter myself, and keep my apps, games and any state secrets internal, and a micro-SD for music, movies, photos,.

We should be able to use the same card with multiple devices and not have to buy a new one every time we get new phones.

Well you can, you just have to re-format them.

 

[psionandy]

How do we unencrypt them? I.

You can't remove the encryption, once its encrypted

It's ridiculous for our SD cards to be encrypted without our permission.

you gave it permission when you told it to be used for adoptable storage... if you just use it as portable storage it isn't encrypted

We should be able to use the same card with multiple devices and not have to buy a new one every time we get new phones.

you can.... nothing is stopping you from using it again.. simply pop it in if its set up as portable storage, or reformat if it was used as adoptable.