I don’t send these blasts out very often because about 90% of my clients use iPhones and I am heavily invested in that environment just as a matter of business.  I always fondly remember that the Android OS was my first forray into the smartphone world back in Oct 2010. It will always have a special place in my heart.

My wife has been and Android user since 2014 when she got her first smartphone. I’m not calling the 2013 Blackberry a modern smartphone though it  was considered one for its day.  She was drawn to the smartphone world by two apps BBM (blackberry messenger) and shortly after — Whats App.  Her first android phone was a Motorola Droid Ultra.  It was a very functional smartphone that we got for “free” in exchange for a 2 year commitment to Verizon (back when they were still doing contracts and things). 

In early 2016 Samsung announced it’s S7 line of phones and I knew this was the one for her.  Those S phones have always been considered at the top of the Android mountain.  She was very satisfied with that model.  It took crisp photos and frankly better pics than the iPhone I was using at the time.  By early 2018, it began having volume issues with the earpiece / speaker (which could be fixed with headphones, if I recall correctly).  Anyway, the two year payment plan (how phones are now usually financed here in the US) was nearly up and Samsung started to make a big deal out of their new S9 lineup of phones.   I don’t know if it was a Verizon promotion or something behind offered exclusively by Verizon and Best Buy together, but my wife was offered $300 as a Samsung loyalty trade in for her old phone — the S7.   Sammy must have been in on at as well.  We jumped on it.  The S9+ has been a great phone for her.

Now, that we are two years further down the road, my wife was eager to get a new phone once again.  We jumped on the Galaxy S20 5G offering on day 1 of preorders.  One thing that we were a little shocked by was how the cost of the phones had gone up.   The Galaxy S7 was somewhere in the $700’s price range.  With the S9 series, she got the Plus model, so that was $912 @ Verizon prices (I think Samsung was selling it for less directly), but we only paid $612 for due to the trade in.    We were going for the regular S20 5G model and now the Plus this time because the + is really a ++ in terms of size at 6.7 inches.  Her S9+ was 6.2 inches and the regular S20 5G is also that size.  But the price of this “base model” (which is truly anything but basic) is $999.  Wow!  That is iPhone 11 Pro territory.  There are actually two other S20 models this year and the prices go up to about $1400.  

Anyway,  we have been happy T-Mobile customers since March 2019.  They were offering a $500 promo for a trade in on the 2 year old Samsung S9 series phones. About $100 comes in the form of a bill credit and $400 comes in the form of a prepaid Visa card.  I confirmed that the prepaid card can be used to pay down the balance of the phone loan.  So really, it brought the cost down to the same as the previous Galaxy.    Transferring from one Android phone to another is very smooth these days, especially using the Samsung Switch app.  It just took me a little longer because I had to back up 37,000 Whats App pictures and 1500 videos on my wife’s old phone that we were not transferring to the new phone.

My wife can be very picky about technology but with all of her old apps loaded on and Whats App working as great as it ever was, she is very happy.  I sent the S9+ to the trade in department on Friday.  T-Mobile has come through for me on promotions in the past so I don’t worry about being let down this time.   I think the S20 5G will be a solid phone.

It’s made it Vietnam, not China, if that means something to you.