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The cloud-friendly NextBit Robin smartphone is on sale again for $300, in new condition, with a USA warranty and without any contractual obligations, in two different colors, at Amazon by Amazon actual. Limit three per color per customer.
It averages 3.9 out of 5 based on 80+ customer reviews so far, its hype is more inner-circle of Android fans than the general mythical average consumer. This was a phone born out of Kickstarter after it brought it over $1 million in pledges.
If you like budget no-contract Android phones but want to avoid the super basic models, two of the reasonable trade-off type models are on sale for double figures at Virgin Mobile. The HTC Desire 626s (the “s” is part of the model name, it’s not plural) goes for $80 with free shipping, while the entry-level version of the Motorola Moto G (3rd generation) with 1GB RAM and 8GB on-board (but it has microSD) goes for $90.
There’s also the recently released LG Stylo 2 dropping to $150, however, LG just announced a newer version of this with 3GB RAM and 1080p screen and 32GB on-board storage and fingerprint support that will eventually come to North America but does not specify which carriers or when. See Phone Area for a spec comparison of the two models. I have no clue what the price of the new Plus will be though.
You can see these and other eligible phones on sale at the Virgin Mobile website. Many of the budget phones can be purchased with Account Balance, although after their website remodeling, you may have to call-in if you want to pay with account balance. It doesn’t seem to have an option when you order with the new website. Note however that some phones are not eligible for Account Balance pay. All the iPhones are excluded, and flagship-type phones (eg the Galaxy flagships of each year) are also excluded.
This is a nice deal, especially if you have available Virgin Mobile balance to pay for it, the third generation of the Motorola Moto G is on sale for $85 with free shipping, in new condition, without contract requirements, at Virgin Mobile. Please note however that this is the lower end model with 1GB RAM and 8GB on-board storage, so if you are reading reviews, make sure you pay attention to the distinctions. Motorola makes a 2GB RAM with 16GB on-board storage model, unfortunately that’s not available at Virgin Mobile.
While there, they have a couple of other prepaid phones on sale as well:
Note that these are locked to Virgin Mobile which runs on the Sprint network, so if you are fond of the more open GSM systems, these won’t work there. You may or may not be able to run them on other Sprint systems, check the various Android phones to see what else you can do with them. Do not assume they will work anywhere else unless you find out for sure.
But if you don’t want to use the cellular part, these definitely make good budget Wifi-only device for lightweight use at the home, eg a remote control of different media and internet of things products.
Mid-range is the new flagship in the world of smartphones these days as technology has advanced to the point where you can have a nice phone without breaking the bank on a flagship (unless you want to or it has must have features or performance).
If you are in the former category, the official NewEgg eBay store is offering the new condition, unlocked with USA warranty, Huawei Honor 5X Metal smartphone (formal name KIW-L24) for $160 with free shipping. You have three colors to pick from (gray, silver or gold) and up to five devices per eBay buyer (NewEgg enforces the limits). Already nearly 900 units got sold as of posting time.
I should preface this by saying that this is a phone with many trade-offs, so be sure to read up on the various reviews before buying it. Don’t buy it just because the price is low! If you are comfortable with its trade-offs, then it’s not a bad deal.
For $90, you can get the new condition LG G Stylo prepaid (no contract) smartphone running in either the Boost or Virgin Mobile network, both of which are “living” on Sprint’s network. The sale is by a marketplace seller but the order is fulfilled by Amazon, so you get some extra protection by dealing with Amazon’s shipment facilities and customer service.
You don’t have to sign up for any service with this phone, you can simply use it as a Wifi-only device. Size is not everything, just because it has a 5.7-inch screen it doesn’t mean it’s a flagship. It has only 1GB of RAM but comes with a built-in stylus, which is its main draw ~ eg if you want a note-taking type of a phone.
If you like the idea, but you find this too under-powered, a second generation is rolling out, out of the gate going for twice as much (perhaps the sale price is not a coincidence).
After the holidays ended, the prices jumped up at Virgin Mobile, but of course in the fast-paced world of smartphones, that wouldn’t last long. And indeed, there is a new sale now, headlined by the iPhone 5S (16GB) going for $150, and the 3rd-generation Motorola Moto G for $100. This is the latest model, however, this is the entry-level model with 1GB RAM and 8GB on-board storage. There’s also a model with 2GB RAM and 16GB on-board but unfortunately Virgin Mobile does not carry that one.
Also on sale is the Huawei Union for $30, while Windows Phone fans have their Lumia 635 down to $50 (it had gone as low as $40 at some point in the year).
These are no-contract phones, you own them, however, they are locked to the Virgin Mobile network, which is part of the Sprint 4G LTE infrastructure. Check the various phone forums to see which one of these phones can be hacked away to work on other Sprint MVNOs.
The new year came (2016) and with it, all the Virgin Mobile USA phone discounts got washed away… But I’m sure they’ll have more sales in the next few days… CES is already underway and more phones are getting announced, so it’s natural for the existing models to eventually go through the discounting and clearance cycle…
We have yet another discount on the big screen LG Stylo. You can get in the Boost Mobile (part of the Sprint family) version for $100 with a limit of three per customer at Amazon by Amazon actual. You don’t have to sign up for a plan or contract, just add to cart and checkout. You can use it as a Wifi-only (perhaps as a note-taking?) device. It comes with a stylus, but please note this is not as advanced of a stylus technology like the Galaxy S-Pen or the ones used by MSFT’s Surface tablets. Despite its size and features, this is a mid-tier phone, it only has 1GB RAM and 8GB on-board storage.
Amazon also offers the Virgin Mobile version for $110, with no commitment and no contract. Or you can get that for $100 from VM’s own website as part of their holiday sales.
This sale ENDED in 2015…
Phone discounts left and right! If you are using Virgin Mobile or if you simply need another Wifi-only device as an in-home remote control or media player, the no-contract HTC Desire 626s (the “s” is part of the name, it is newer than the 626) is currently on sale for around $90 at Amazon.com. This price is a by a marketplace seller fulfilled by Amazon (eligible for 2-day Prime), while Amazon’s own price is around $93. You own the phone immediately and you are under no obligation to sign up for a Virgin Mobile plan.
But keep in mind, this runs on the Sprint network (which is what Virgin uses), so you can’t use it with other providers as a cellphone. You can of course use it as a Wifi device anywhere.
IF you are suffering from smartphone hoarding, this is a very good/bad time, because there are so many specials and so many phones to have and try and compare and such 🙂 One more temptation is in right now, Virgin Mobile’s Cyber Monday offering is the new condition LG G Stylo for $100. No contract. You can only use it on Virgin Mobile (or any other compatible sister MVNO carriers) if you want a cellular plan. But if you only plan to use it as a Wifi device or mooch off your hotspot or other phones, then you can’t go wrong, especially if you like having a stylus.
Granted, the stylus is not at the level of the Samsung S-Pen or the Surface Pen, so you don’t have advanced features. But you can still scribble on that big 5.7-inch screen.
If you are part of the Virgin Mobile network or if you are looking for a cheap Android phone, the Huawei Union 4G LTE phone, with no contract requirement, is on sale for just $30, in new condition at the Virgin Mobile USA store. This is part of Huawei’s attempt to make progress in the USA market, hot on the heels of their Nexus high-profile selection.
It comes with Android 5.1 out of the box, 4.5-inch screen, 1.1 GHz quad-core processor, 1GB RAM, 8GB on-board storage, Bluetooth, and things like that. Check the internets for more specs and reviews on this. No contract, but this is locked to Virgin Mobile, which is part of the Spring 4G LTE network.
PS: remember, do not buy any Sprint WiMax phones, sometimes called “Spring 4G” without the LTE part of their name. WiMax is going down.
Things move fast in the world of smartphones, which means you can get previous flagships for less a couple of years later. But they also rarely run the latest version of Android, so you have a tug-of-war of trade-offs to make. Be that as it may, among the latest offers on eBay you can get the new condition unlocked 32GB HTC One M7 for $150 with free shipping, in either the black or silver color schemes. The seller of record is QualityCellz (99.2%).
This is the last HTC flagship before they re-embraced microSD cards with the M8. So if 32GB is enough for you, and you don’t care for a microSD slot, keep on reading. The listing describes it as “factory unlocked” but it says multiples times this is “AT&T unlocked”. So if you are planning to use it with other GSM carriers that do not operate in the AT&T universe, you may want to check the bands or your favorite Android phones first.
As a quick refresher, this is powered by Snapdragon 600 processor with 2GB RAM, a 1920 x 1080 Gorilla Glass 2 screen, and such. It originally came out during the reign of Android 4.1.2 (Jelly Bean).
The 16GB Nexus 5 (made by LG) Android phone that is part of the Marshmallow wave is available in “certified refurbished” condition for $170 [was $150] with free shipping by two different sellers “BuySPRY” and “Magic Mobile Partners” with the order fulfilled by Amazon, so you get free Prime shipping (if a member) and you get to deal with the Amazon customer service in case of problems. This “certified refurbished” comes with a minimum 90-day warranty and testing/inspection according to the product listing over there… UPDATE 11/19/15: the price jumped from $150 to $170 🙁
From the same seller with similar terms you can get the 32GB version for $180. This does not have a microSD slot, so it’s a trade-off to consider. On the other hand, this is a 4G LTE phone, so if you have a fast connection and access to reliable Wifi, you may not need more than 16GB – at least for media purposes.
I haven’t yet bought any items that are part of Amazon’s Certified Refurbished category, so I can’t tell you what to expect. I am tempted by this Nexus 5 price though because I don’t currently have an officially sanctioned Marshmallow phone.
There are no customer reviews of either one of these listings, so perhaps this is for the more brave shoppers who don’t mind taking a risk.
If today’s Uncarrier X announcements got you excited about T-Mobile, but you don’t want to pay the big bucks for a new phone and you don’t want to sign up for those monthly plans, among the latest offers on eBay you can get the seller-refurbished Samsung Galaxy S5 (T-Mobile, but unlocked now) for $210 with free shipping by eBay seller “chubbiestech” (98.7%). This is available in either black or white, with a limit of 50 per customer. The gold color is sold-out.
The description over there states “phone in fair to good condition, Unit will have scuffs or scratches on body and screen. Comes packaged in after market box with compatible charger & battery”. If you are comfortable with the higher risk of seller-refurbished items, and you are not a perfectionist in terms of the cosmetic product condition, you may get a great deal out of this.
Since this is a T-Mobile unlocked phone, it should work great with T-Mobile. For other GSM carriers, check the bands to make sure it’s a good match. Of particular interest if you are a fan of microSD cards and removable batteries since Samsung yanked both of those features out of the Galaxy S6 🙁
No contract, you own the phone right away. You can always use it as a Wifi-only media device, or use it for development purposes or other experiments, or have it “eat” data from your mobile hotspot or other phones.
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