iPhone 4S or the Competition for under $100?

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TripleB

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I've got a daughter turning 16 on Sunday (Heaven help me!!!) who wants a new phone...of course an iPhone!

I'm going to spend $100 max (because we've bought her other items and we have to spend $125 to cancel the phone she has now) so I'm trying to decide between an iPhone 4S and the competition.

The quality competition (in that price range) for the 4S seems to be (at least going by reviews):
- Motorola Droid Razr M
- Motorola Droid Razr Maxx
- Samsung Galaxy SIII

Her current phone doesn't have internet access (not sure how much she would use that feature of the phone) so she only uses it for music, to call friends, and send 5000 (or so it seems) texts a month...and of course to check Facebook!

Several concerns I have about the 4S (some mentioned by a Verizon rep today): it seems the 4S isn't "4G" (whatever that means), the cost of downloading Apps or Songs (rep said you could get them free on a Droid, not so on iPhone), durability (rep said iPhone would break easier (especially the screen) than the others mentioned above.

So, is the iPhone 4S my best bet for under $100?

Thanks for your input.

TripleB
 
Galaxy s3 is a much better phone for the money imo. Galaxy s3 can do much more with less and it has better build quality than the iphone. Go with the s3
 
for the new smartphone users out there, 4g is like the new engine or trim update to a vehicle, Its your data carriers way of saying how fast your phone is,If you were to have 2g which is almost not even made anymore, you would have dropped calls and less service.
 
Out of the 4 phones I would and did pick the SIII. Can you get an SIII for under $100 now? Verizon's 4G network is quite large and works well. Android = fee apps o-plenty. Just keep an eye on her data charges as there is no more unlimited data!
 
Looking at Consumer Reports Droid Razr Maxx is 1, Galaxy S3 is 2, Iphone ends up being 9 on Verizon.
 
If you get the RAZR, get the Maxx version. I have the regular and you have to be careful with using the browser and all. But other than that, I love the phone! I have 2GB of data allowance and never have came close to going over it. But having wifi at home does help.
 
Just my $.02. I have an 18 yr old daughter. The inputs and opinions from all of us are great but what does your daughter want to do with the phone? My guess is Facebook, a few tweets and a boat load of texting. Seems about every teenager in the world (especially the female versions) falls into this category. Which phone does she want? Don't read me wrong here! I'm not saying spoil, spoil, spoil....but...I had an HTC I used for work. It was great for sending e-mails, product specs. and WORK RELATED THINGS. My guess is your daughter isn't going to present her 2013 budget report to a teacher anytime soon. If you find out what she wants, it could help ease your search. For the record, my daughter wanted an iPhone because it was the easiest for her to do all the social network stuff and music (what was important to her). Of course, we got the "old" version for $1 when the new one came out. Hasn't slowed her down yet!
 
I would suggest the Samsung S3. It has a great amount of features, big bright screen, lot's of cool stuff that she'll have fun discovering. Plus, it has Gorilla Glass so it won't break as easily as the iPhone and the Android market has most of the same Apps as the Apple Store, but for free.

Sent from my Samsung SIII using AG Online
 
Id say iPhone 4S or galaxy s3. Have her play with both and see which she likes best.

The complexity of the s3 is a good thing and so is the simplicity of the iPhone 4S. It's a matter of preference.
 
Get her what she wants; an iPhone. If she told you she wanted a pair of Paige jeans would you come on here and ask what kind of jeans are better than Paige? I don't have a daughter in HS, but I bet she basically wants what the other kids value. Adhering to trends is way more important than having a faster processor or more RAM.
 
t5er said:
Get her what she wants; an iPhone. If she told you she wanted a pair of Paige jeans would you come on here and ask what kind of jeans are better than Paige? I don't have a daughter in HS, but I bet she basically wants what the other kids value. Adhering to trends is way more important than having a faster processor or more RAM.
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Hi, I work for at&t and his advice is pretty accurate. People could care less about functionality and durability when it comes to cell phones. Kids her age measure their worth based on the cell phone they have. My Nokia lumia and HTC one x will run circles around the 4s and iPhone 5 for that matter but kids don't understand those specs or practicality and affordability for you ( not just the apps but cost of insurance and replacement is way higher on iPhone) . If you want your daughter to be happy don't force her into what you want, but present her with the facts and give her the choice. This will actually reveal more about her character and personality than any therapy session money can buy sadly.

Good luck:xyxthumbs:
 
I've never had a phone close to the length of a contract. Having family in the biz didn't help either, I'd get new phones twice a year. Then I got my iPhone4. Getting ready to hit the two year mark and still completely happy. I had a Nexus One for a while, stuff in the Android market is so half baked compared to the mature apps on iOS.
 
I have to agree with yakky. I love my IPhone 4 and my 5 is on its way. I love all Apple products. I have an IMac and a Time Capsule also. I know a lot of people who went Android to Apple, but not vice versa. With Apple you will always have their newest software. In a year with Android the manufacturer will be on to the next phone.
 
Ummmmmm... since when do teens want to make an informed decision???????

Seriously, I am not a die hard apple guy but the iphone wins in this case. 4g or 3g is just the data speed and 3g isn't going anywhere. One of my daughters got an iPhone4 last month. She didnt want to wait for the 5 and didnt want Siri either. She loves it.

If her friends have an iPhone then she can Facetime with them (one example).

Sent from my DROID3 using Tapatalk 2
 
I've had an Android and currently have 4s. I will not argue that you can do more on the Android phones, however for me, I could care less about rooting my phone and having all the nonsense.

IMO iphones are better built quality, yes glass front and back will crack if dropped, but ive seen that happen with galaxys as well (however not as often)

When I had my Galaxy I had to replace it once and restart it 129038023498739479298 times and i take very good care of my belongings.

4g is BS IMO unless youre always on the road and need faster internet access. For me at work and at home I'm always connected to WiFi.

And final argument is if SHE want an iPhone get her an iPhone, shes the one who will be using it not you. Spend the extra few $ and make her happy rather then save few bucks to waste the rest.
 
Lean69 said:
I've had an Android and currently have 4s. I will not argue that you can do more on the Android phones, however for me, I could care less about rooting my phone and having all the nonsense.

IMO iphones are better built quality, yes glass front and back will crack if dropped, but ive seen that happen with galaxys as well (however not as often)

When I had my Galaxy I had to replace it once and restart it 129038023498739479298 times and i take very good care of my belongings.

4g is BS IMO unless youre always on the road and need faster internet access. For me at work and at home I'm always connected to WiFi.

And final argument is if SHE want an iPhone get her an iPhone, shes the one who will be using it not you. Spend the extra few $ and make her happy rather then save few bucks to waste the rest.
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Well put.... as the point about 3g vs. 4g.... when I purchased my Motorola Droid I got the same 3g vs. 4g sales material presented to me. Since I am in IT I probed some more. At the time, I purchased the Droid that ran on 3g because it was faster the the Droid's that were on 4g (due to another factor). That is probably not the case today 1 year later but suffice to say I use my phone mostly around a wireless access point so I hardly use 3g anyway. :-)hh
 
My son turned 16 a couple of weeks ago. His phone contract was up and he wanted the iPhone 5, but he started looking at Android phones. He ended up with Razor Maxx. It was $99 from Wirefly, plus I am going to receive $50 due to my bank rewards with Wirefly. My net costs is $49. The phone lasts at least for 1+ day before needing to be charged. The Razor Maxx has 32g of total memory.
 
t5er said:
Get her what she wants; an iPhone. If she told you she wanted a pair of Paige jeans would you come on here and ask what kind of jeans are better than Paige?

I bet she basically wants what the other kids value. Adhering to trends is way more important than having a faster processor or more RAM.
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I'd agree with the above. I got my son an iPhone and he loves it.

Our iPhones are also grandfathered in under an unlimited data plan and I'm not giving that up anytime soon.


:)
 
You have a tough situation on your hands.

Kids don't want a MP3 player, they want and iPod. They don't want a phone, they want an iPhone. It's all about status and keeping up with everyone else. Personally, I can't stand that. I can't stand the sheep mentality. I've always been that way. I buy things based on functionality, price, etc. I don't do things just because someone else is doing it. I try to get that point across to my nieces and nephews and friend's kids (I don't have kids myself) but it's a hard thing to do.

Good luck.
 
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