5 Mistakes I Didn’t Repeat When Buying My Cell Phone

My phone is broken. I’ve managed to smash the glass cover for the camera lens and the battery won’t stay charged. I’m plugging it in nearly once a day now, and it beeps angrily at me when I try to make phone calls. The juice is gone - it has been since July.

I have a saving grace: according to Verizon it’s time to upgrade my phone. We all know what that means - deep, deep discounts on new phones to bait me into renewing my two year contract. And I took the bait - but I didn’t make the same mistakes this time around.

Just a little refresher - here are the five mistakes I made when buying my last phone:

1. Not asking myself “Do I need a new phone?”
2. Not carefully evaluating what features I needed and wanted.
3. Rushing in.
4. Not checking reviews.
5. Charging it on a credit card that I couldn’t pay off.

Did I end up totally screwed last time? No, but those mistakes did hurt me. I ended up with a phone that soon went out of production, and was never able to find a replacement battery for it. And I could have had a cute LG Chocolate for the exact same price.

Determined not to be a silly goose this time around, I deliberately avoided all five mistakes. Sort of.

Ok Steph, do you need a new phone?
Yes! A bit. Well, “need” is an interesting thing. I do need my phone for work and in order to keep using it I need either a new battery, or to switch to a different phone. In the end I got a new phone - but only because it was free.

Features!
The sole reason I upgraded last time was that I was sick of being the only person without a camera phone. Dumb reason, right? Especially since I’d just bought a new digital camera a few weeks earlier. But having that phone for a year an a half taught me what I do (and don’t) use in a phone. All I really need is a phone that calls and texts, and I like to have the camera function, but it’s not necessary.

Rush In!
Opps. Failed this one. I spent less than day and a half debating phones, and never stepped foot in a store - I did it all online. What can I say? I’m impetuous.

Reviews!
I checked the reviews on CNet this time. In fact, they’re the reason I picked the Samsung Juke (free) over the Motorola Krzr K1m ($20). The Juke has far better reviews (and did I mention the free part?).

Credit card? We don’t need no stinking credit card!
Free, with free shipping. My mom decided to get me the $5 belt clip as a gift. Booyah.

Bonus: Declined the insurance plan. Because it’s basically a scam.
$5 a month and a $50 deductible on a phone that retails for $80? No thanks. Not when I have two old backup phones sitting around.

Oh Mr. FedEx guy, I can’t wait till you bring me my new phone tomorrow!