Sony Xperia L2 drops to $220 in all colors

We have the first discount on another entry-to-midrange phone, the Sony Xperia L2 is now down to $220 with free shipping at amazon.com in three color options. Its starting price was $250.

We have wall to wall coverage on this phone, with more to come! It works on Project FI using the “Data SIM”, however, phone calls and messages must be routed over IP using the Google Hangouts app, not the Phone and Messanging apps.

Blu Vivo XL3 Oreo 18:9 smartphone for $110

If you want an Oreo smartphone without breaking the bank, and the previous kerfuffles of the Blu brand of Florida do not scare you away, for a very limited time only, you can get the brand new Blu Vivo XL3 for $110 with free shipping with up to two sets per customer at the sale price by Amazon actual.

This is new condition with a USA warranty, factory unlocked and works with GSM networks. As usual, check bands and such to make sure it will work to your satisfaction on your GSM carrier(s) of choice.

The other specs:

  • 5.5 inch 18:9 display (that’s right, a tall budget phone!)
  • Android Oreo 8.0 out of the box (take them more expensive phones still waiting for the over-promised and under-delivered Oreo update)
  • 3GB RAM, 32GB on-board, microSD slot
  • MediaTek quad-core 1.3GHz processor with Mali T720
  • 13mp back and front cameras with LED flash
  • 3000 mah battery

ProjectFI offering BOGO (via Service Credit) on Moto X4 phones as long as they get activated

Project FI has a new temptation! They are offering essentially a BOGO on the $249 Motorola Moto X4 Android One phone IF you buy and activate these two phones on two different users on the same Project FI group plan. The “BOGO” is via a service credit. You will get a $249 Project FI service credit, while paying $249 for each of the two Moto X4 phones. Better yet, you can do this in multiples of 2, if you have more users/lines in your FI account.

The promotion just got send via email to existing customers…

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10pk of colorful Nexus 6 cases for $9 total

If you are committed to the Motorola Nexus 6 smartphone [you can use it to sign-up for Project FI, so that’s one reason to hold on to it and then take advantage of the free Data SIM P-FI feature to trojan-horse many GSM/T-Mobile compatible phones].

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Friday: refurb Nexus 6P for $240+ or Nexus 5X for $140+

Project FI is a great way to have cellular service without breaking the bank. Especially if you like to use or switch between various smartphones. However, to get into Project FI, the guardian at the gate requires a Nexus or a Pixel phone or the new Moto X4. If you want in, but don’t want to pay the big bucks for Pixels, and you have a soft spot for the Nexus phones, you have until Saturday at 3am eastern to decide!

Because among the daily deals at Amazon for Friday is a sale on a handful of certified refurbished Nexus 6P and Nexus 5X phones. Prices vary by phone color and storage option. The Huawei Nexus 6P models range from $240 to 4260, while the LG Nexus 5X range from $140 to $150.

Once you are in Project FI, you can order from Project FI what they call “Data SIMs”. These can be used for data service only, no voice. However, you can use the Google Hangouts and Hangouts Dialer combination (or Google Voice if you want a different phone number) and then you can make/receive calls and send/receive texts with the “Data SIM” only phones. Google sends these to you for FREE. You can have up to nine of them per Google account, great for developers, testers, reviewers and smartphone/tablet aficionados. I just did this with the Sony Xperia L2, I will finish the blog-post during the weekend if you are curious!

Prepaid Carriers offer Galaxy S9 for $660, S9+ for $760

If you are looking to get the brand new Samsung Galaxy S9 flagships at a reasonable outright price, and you want to use it with these prepaid carriers, you are in luck! A couple of them, “Simple Mobile” and “Total Wireless” are offering them for $660 (S9) and $760 (S9+) outright on Amazon! You have to use a SIM card for one of those two carriers if you want service, which, of course, you can find on Amazon!

Carrier $660 $760
Simple Mobile Galaxy S9 Galaxy S9+
Total Wireless Galaxy S9 Galaxy S9+

And that’s it. You buy it, you pay for it, and it’s yours! No monthly payments, no requirement to have or maintain service with a carrier and such!

Refurbished LG G4 (Verizon) for $85 [UPDATED]

UPDATE 3/1/18 at 10pm ET: the price has dropped from $100 to $85. Same seller and shipping situation…

If you are looking for a former flagship that is running on the Verizon network, and $100 is all you are willing to pay, then head on over to Amazon where marketplace seller Kanga Supply is offering certified refurbished LG G4 (Verizon) smartphones for $100 with free shipping.

[Read more…]

Buy $9 T-Mobile SIM card, Activate It and Get $25 Amazon Gift Card

IF (and that’s a big IF) you are planning to activate new T-Mobile service in the near future, Amazon has a “money maker deal” for you! You pay $9 for a T-Mobile SIM starter kit (with free shipping for Prime members) and upon activation of the SIM/service, you will receive a $25 Amazon gift card. That’s a $16 money maker assuming you have no problem spending a $25 Amazon gift card 🙂

This is a Nano SIM and the kit includes adapters for the other two larger sizes, Micro and Standard. Since you are getting the smallest SIM card, you don’t have to worry about it not fitting into your phone. Hopefully we will soon move to e-SIM technology and not have to deal with this nonsense 🙂

PS: make sure Amazon actual is the seller, and NOT marketplace sellers, otherwise you won’t get the $25 Amazon gift card! The link above points to Amazon’s own listing.

Motorola Moto X and $80 Project FI credit for $250

On the other hand, if you don’t need an ECHO, and you are determined to start a new Project FI service, then ignore our previous Moto X + ECHO offer, and instead take advantage of a new limited time promotion at Google’s Project FI that gets you the new condition Motorola Moto X4 in the “Android One” version for $250 but that’s not all. You also get an $80 Project FI service credit if you make a purchase and activate the phone by March 17 in 2018. The $80 service credit is only good for NEW FI customers.

This is a pretty good deal, since ProjectFI only charges you data “by the pound”. So you are essentially getting the phone for $170, assuming you will like the Project-FI service and stay with them long enough for the promotional credits to be applied to your account. Regardless, the Moto X4 is an “all carrier” phone so you can use it with other carriers in the future.

I am currently using Project FI with a Nexus 6 [yes, I am on the cutting edge!] and to setup a second Data-SIM only phone as an actual backup to the line. More on that in future blog-posts.

Motorola Moto X4 + Amazon ECHO (2nd Gen) for $350

If you happen to want an unlocked smartphone that will work with all major US carriers, and you also want a second generation Amazon ECHO device, and you are a Prime member, $350 will get you the aforementioned ECHO device along with the new condition Motorola Moto X4 smartphone from Amazon actual. This is an unlocked smartphone with a USA warranty, and it will work all four major US carriers, and also Google’s Project-FI, currently the only non-Google phone that is compatible with the service.

This is a limited time offer, but they don’t mention when it expires.

PS: speaking of unlocked smartphones, I just posted an unboxing of the Sony Xperia L2, with more posts and review action coming up in the next few days.

Trianimum Atomic PRO Powered Case (Samsung Galaxy S8) for $33 with free shipping

If you like to use a case on your smartphone, why not make it a power-case? For a limited time, the Trianium Atomic PRO case for the Samsung Galaxy S8 (the 5.8-inch model, not the Plus/XL) is on sale, in the black color scheme, for $33 with free shipping by the company, with the orders fulfilled by Amazon, so you get free 2-day shipping if you are a member. The white color scheme is NOT on sale.

These hold 4400 mah, and average 4.4 out of 5 based on 145 customer reviews, and they have 29 answered questions. With today’s flagship smartphones being power hungry, more power available is better than running out of it or running around like a zombie begging for charging cables or portable chargers 🙂

2pk iPhone Glass Screen Protectors for $5.84

This item is trending at the moment at Amazon, it is a two-pack of AMfilm iPhone Glass Screen Protectors going for the very specific price of $5.84. They are sold and shipped by Amazon actual, so as a Prime member you get free 2-day shipping on them [or select the $1 no-rush credit).

These are not an add-on item, so you don’t have to worry about the hard $25+ requirement. This is model number “2pkGL.iPH-6” and it averages 4.2 out of 5 based on over 31,000 customer reviews.

Tuesday: LG Stylo 3 (Boost Mobile) for $95

For Tuesday, until 11:59pm pacific time, NewEGG is offering the new condition LG Stylo 3 smartphone for $95 with free shipping. This is a no-contract phone but it is locked to Boost Mobile. You can always use it as a Wifi-only device without any Boost mobile account or service. Limit two units per customer during this sale.

I don’t have this model, but I have the previous model, the LG Stylo 2 (for Virgin) which uses a similar Pen technology (nowhere near as good as Samsung’s S-Pen). We have here a useful text and pictures unboxing of the Stylo 2, along with tips on how to deal with the pestery activation process. I do not know if Boost Mobile uses the same activation process, as far as I can recall, I never had a Boost Mobile locked phone.

Suensan LG V30 Black Case for $8 [Prime shipping]

If you are 99.9% certain you are going to buy an LG V30 when you find it available for purchase, and you want to have a case waiting for it before it arrives, and you like receiving things quickly with free 2-day shipping as a Prime member, then you may be interested in this $8 Suensan case for the LG V30 from ShunShiSheng, on sale at the moment.

You can buy as many as you like. There are seven pictures of the case, but obviously, since the phone is not out yet, there are no customer reviews.

The LG V30 is of course one of the most interesting phones of 2017. At least LG is trying to innovate unless some others *cough* Samsung, Pixel, iPhone *cough* that are just milking their popularity 🙂

Factory Unlocked Phone Deal: Huawei Honor 6X for $180

Factory unlocked phones are a great idea, especially if you are not planning to be a cost prohibitive flagship where an installment plan makes the price spread out over time more agreeable (eg, Note 8, latest iPhones, etc).

If you are looking at the budget side of things, but still want some interesting features, such as a dual camera, the new condition Huaweii Honor 6X is currently on sale, factory unlocked, and without any carrier obligations, for $180 with free S&H at amazon.com. Three different colors of this are available and on sale!

This is not a lightning deal, so I don’t know when the sale ends. Here’s a brief intro to the phone with our brand new “fact boxes” 🙂

Phone Huawei Honor 6X (Android)
Screen Size 5.5-inch 1080p
RAM 3GB RAM
Storage 32GB plus microSD
Processor Kirin 655 Octa-Core
Battery 3340 mAh
Connector micro USB 2.0
Carrier GSM, Unlocked
Weight 5.6 ounces
Notes dual camera, dual SIM (nano)