Comments on: Reason Prevails over Spending Temptation

By: Revanche

Revanche — Mon, 27 Jul 2009 23:05:19 +0000

I’m actually coming at this from the opposite end of the spectrum: I was given the original iPhone by my employers almost two years ago, and tried to find every which way around activating it but couldn’t when my existing phone fell apart. I’ve always hated the inflated monthly bills and am trying to plan for my contract’s end in February.

Shall I continue with the phone until it dies, or try to find a comparable phone for a lower monthly bill and better plan? Or can I downgrade to a simpler phone without all the bells and whistles? I have to admit that the mapping function has been invaluable in my latest travels.

My goal is to find a good compromise wherein the phone is modern enough to serve my needs but is not primarily a tech toy.

By: lurker carl

lurker carl — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 02:37:48 +0000

Rick absolutely right. Most techno-gadgets are used by youngsters for showing off to strangers or making friends jealous. Price is not considered until the bill comes due. But when your income depends on a modern communications device, you need to stay in sync with your clients’ expectations. Since my livelyhood does not, I’ll keep my Tracfone.

By: Rick Beagle

Rick Beagle — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 21:59:19 +0000

You know, this is an excellent post, and good for you!

I am constantly startled at how many people purchase technology just for it’s perceived “coolness” factor. Honestly, if you are not fourteen years old, you should buy technology that is appropriate to you.

Good lesson, thank you for sharing.
Rick Beagle

By: Mr. ToughMoneyLove

Mr. ToughMoneyLove — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 19:34:42 +0000

Dangerman: I considered the 3G but it does not have voice commands which I find highly useful as a safety feature when driving. It only has limited memory (8GB) whereas the LG will take microSD cards. It was a close call.

By: Dangerman

Dangerman — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 19:28:21 +0000

Although I agree with your point generally… don’t forget that an iPhone 3G can be had for only $99. The $300 is the very most expensive model. So really you only saved $49 and still got a way worse phone.

By: My Journey

My Journey — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 18:20:03 +0000

The Wife had the exact same situation as you this week. She dropped her phone, which was out of warrarnty but too soon to extend our contract in water. She REALLY wants a blackberry, and being the husband I am I said whatever you want because I know she isn’t crazed with material items.

Well it turns out if she upgraded to a blackberry (bought on ebay) she would have to upgrade her contract from 50 bucks a month to 80 PLUS WHATEVER THE PHONE COST!

Instead she got a refurbished PDA Smart Phone (Moto Q9C – windows based) and gets literally every option of a blackberry for the same monthly price.