Smartphones have almost become a rage these days, with every company engaged in the manufacture of mobile phones, introducing a handset targeted at the business customer. In fact, several companies are making cheap smartphones even targeting the teenager. No wonder, even a first time buyer of a mobile phone, is sporting a smartphone these days.
New smartphones, regardless of whether they are the BlackBerry, Apple iPhone or Android phones, are usually expensive compared to the normal cell phone. Not only is the comprised hardware more expensive, you are also likely to pay a lot more for the tariff plan as well. Many carriers offer unlimited plans with a smartphone but are more likely to add a premium for “data” of at least $10 or so each month, per connection, on the account.
If you intend to purchase a smartphone without paying an arm or leg, then there are two options for you. At present, several carriers offer extreme deals on their phones like a free Android phone or a cheap mobile phone. These are mostly bundled offers. They know that they can lock you in for at least a couple of years once you sign on the dotted lines. Discounts for upgrading a phone after the first year would be minimal with the cost rarely exceeding a few hundreds for buying a new cheap smartphone consisting of the latest features. Even after two years, you’re likely to find that you’re still paying a premium for the hardware. Even in a cheap smartphone, it’s the hardware which remains expensive. Several carriers are even threatening to charge exorbitant fees for termination of an early contract. Its being widely touted that Sprint would charge over $300 for the same.
If you have a carrier which uses a SIM card like AT&T, you can go for an unlocked smartphone and use the same on your plan, sans any hassle. You just have to insert the SIM into the new phone. An unlocked smartphone, however, can be expensive as well. You are unlikely to get a deal on phones that come with the latest technology, but older phones could be cheaper. Demand is high in the market for top smartphones. Sellers are aware about it. Your benefit lies in switching to a newer technology regardless of your carrier’s plans. That would surely lead to some value unlocking.
Latest technology is the moot point here. Each month, if not every day, a newer phone is introduced in the market with incredible features like new capacity, new cameras, a thinner body, faster performance and so on. Manufacturers, especially on the android platform, are constantly upgrading the features and releasing new and improved hardware. To possess the same phone for more than a year, a couple at the most, is a complete annoyance. Buyers, thus, are constantly on the lookout for cheap smartphones as they don’t want to invest in an expensive phone that would become dated within two years. Cheap smartphones could be the order of the day as manufacturers try to outdo each other in an increasingly competitive market.
