Deciding between Samsung Galaxy s2, s3, and s4

dvlucke · Oct 2, 2013

I've been on Virgin Mobile for about 2 years, on the "Dad's Old Phones" upgrade plan. Right now I'm using a Moto Triumph, an Intercept before that. So I'm not spoiled when it comes to a phone. However, at some point I do plan on spending some good money on a top of the line phone and then sticking with it for as long as possible. But that point could as easily be in one or two years.

Because I don't qualify for the $0 down option from TMo, the s2 would cost me $42, the s3 $80, and the s4 $150. And for that matter, the Note 3 would cost me $180.

So I've really got two decisions: 1)Buy a cheap phone I plan to ditch in a year when I've saved up for the best of 2014. If so, s2, or s3?

2)Go ahead and make the bigger decision about what format phone I want, and buy either the s4 or Note 3 accordingly, planning to keep it for 3 years, and maybe even try to keep it for 4 years.

Which would you choose?

SuperAfnan · Oct 2, 2013

The problem is that technology and especially android phones evolve and get better WAY too fast.

Therefore in my opinion there can't be a correct answer to this question.

But if you want to future proof it for a short while, get an S4. If you decide to get a contract with it, the S6 may come out when your contract expires. I definitely don't recommend getting an S2 or S3 on contract if you want to future proof your phone.

Wait wait...

There's the JUMP deal Tmobile has. (Just upgrade my phone). You can pay 10$ monthly and be able to upgrade to the latest and greatest with no fees, just give them your old phone back. You need to be a member for a few months though if I remember correctly.

mogelijk · Oct 2, 2013

I assume you are wanting a prepaid account and are planning on buying a phone outright? I'd recommend waiting for Google to announce the Nexus 5 (it is expected to occur on Oct. 14) and buy that phone. It is a top of the line phone that (if it follows the previous years models) will sell for $350 from the Play Store.

Rumored specs are a 5" 1080p screen, 2.3 Ghz Snapdragon 800 quad-core processor, 2 GB memory, and 8 MP camera. The model the FCC tested had 16 GB of memory. It will also be the first device with Android 4.4 (KitKat), and will get the newest Android updates direct from Google (with the other Nexus devices).

dvlucke · Oct 2, 2013

Well I would be on a prepaid plan, but would be buying the phone on T Mobile's installment plan. Same price, just spread out, and I can pay it off faster if I want to.

The Nexus 5 could be an option, although I have to say I am thoroughly annoyed at phones that don't have micro SD cards, and would consider 16 GB internal storage to be bare bones. My music collection is larger than 16GB, and it would be nice to have space for some videos. Still, it's not a total deal breaker if every other aspect of the phone is amazing. With the Nexus 4, I could never pull the trigger because of the no LTE. I mean, I'm sure HSPA is plenty fast for me (better than my 3G now), but no LTE and no micro SD just felt like a slap in the face. I think that's too much to ask us to sacrifice just for vanilla android.
But if the Nexus 5 comes in 32 and/or 64GB versions, that might tip the scales.

Perhaps I'm just a little too eager to buy now. My Triumph won't even charge from the port anymore, only charges to 87% in the cradle, and doesn't last 10 hours unless it's in airplane mode. Oh, plus when it is on, it sucks.

mogelijk · Oct 2, 2013

Actually, you can't buy on T-Mobile's installment plan on prepaid. My guess is that you are talking about the no-contract plans, but just to make sure you are aware, they are postpaid and do require a credit check.

The advantage to the Simple Choice plans is you get data roaming (though you get charged for overages roaming), the downside is that you pay the $10-$20 in extra taxes that are included in the prepaid price (and the prepaid and postpaid prices are the same).

As for the Nexus 5, it will be interesting to see if Google offers a version with more storage, as people have kept asking for. Also, the Nexus 5 will have LTE.

dvlucke · Oct 2, 2013

As I understood it, the credit check is for the phone, as the Simple Choice plan advertises no credit check in the same banner ad (if memory serves). This would make sense, as one more delivery of service for 60 days surely doesn't cost them much, but a $400-$700 phone does. My credit rating puts me at neither the best nor worst of down payments, and I'm fine with that. Since the total cost of the phone remains the same, I'd actually prefer to have a higher down payment, while being on a plan allows me to purchase a phone that I couldn't afford outright.

Still, if I could stand the wait, I ought to be able to save up to buy a Nexus 5 outright in a few months, perhaps by December. Still, the Note 3 is an attractive option. Now if only I could spend a decent amount of time with it in my hand, I could decide if a phone that big is for me.

tube517 · Oct 2, 2013

What is your budget? Consider buying a used phone if you are going to eventually upgrade.

mogelijk · Oct 2, 2013

dvlucke said:
As I understood it, the credit check is for the phone, as the Simple Choice plan advertises no credit check in the same banner ad (if memory serves). This would make sense, as one more delivery of service for 60 days surely doesn't cost them much, but a $400-$700 phone does. My credit rating puts me at neither the best nor worst of down payments, and I'm fine with that. Since the total cost of the phone remains the same, I'd actually prefer to have a higher down payment, while being on a plan allows me to purchase a phone that I couldn't afford outright.

Still, if I could stand the wait, I ought to be able to save up to buy a Nexus 5 outright in a few months, perhaps by December. Still, the Note 3 is an attractive option. Now if only I could spend a decent amount of time with it in my hand, I could decide if a phone that big is for me.

Actually, there is an option not to have a credit check though it does require a deposit. And, as you point out, if you want to finance a phone, you must have a credit check.

SEMIJim · Oct 3, 2013

dvlucke · Oct 3, 2013

My budget for right now is about $200, but for that money I was hoping to put a down payment for an s4 or Note 3. I don't mind a total expense of $400-$700 if I'm buying a new, high end phone and I can pay off the phone over time.

But now I'm starting to think it would just be wiser to spend that $200 on a used phone, so I can add what my installment payments would have been to my new phone savings goal. I'm a bit nervous about buying a used phone though. I know that even the best models can have units that act up for one reason or another, and it seems reasonable to assume a disproportionate amount of those end up on ebay and craigslist.

What kind of used phone can I reasonably expect to pay $200 for?

mrsmumbles · Oct 3, 2013

If what you buy right now is only going to be a placeholder for a short time why not get an optimus f3 and root it (or use stock)?

dvlucke · Oct 3, 2013

mrsmumbles said:
If what you buy right now is only going to be a placeholder for a short time why not get an optimus f3 and root it (or use stock)?

In that case, is there any reason not to get the optimus L9? It looks like it might be a better phone for a similar price.

edit: looking closer I don't think either can be said to be better. Looks like you can choose a faster processor and bigger battery with the F3, or a bigger and better screen with the L9. Unless I missed something they are exactly the same other than processor, battery, and screen.

mrsmumbles · Oct 3, 2013

dvlucke said:
In that case, is there any reason not to get the optimus L9? It looks like it might be a better phone for a similar price.

edit: looking closer I don't think either can be said to be better. Looks like you can choose a faster processor and bigger battery with the F3, or a bigger and better screen with the L9. Unless I missed something they are exactly the same other than processor, battery, and screen.

If you're at Virgin (?) do they have the f7? Better screen and battery, maybe slightly faster processor, more internal ROM. And LTE, for what good it does me here (none).

ecarlson · Oct 4, 2013

I like my T-Mobile Optimus L9 a lot. I also switched from a Virgin Mobile Motorola Triumph, and the L9 is everything the Triumph should have been (but wasn't), and more.

Deciding between Samsung Galaxy s2, s3, and s4

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