Cheap Used Cell Phones For Sale

Do you want to upgrade your cell phone? Did you break your phone and need a replacement? Did someone steal your phone and leave you incommunicado? Would you just like an extra phone to take to the worksite?

Yes? Well, if you go to the carrier’s cell phone store to get a cheap phone, guess what? The phone may be wireless but it will have lots of strings attached. No way is one of the major carriers just going to hand over an upgrade or replacement phone on the cheap. They’ll put a new contract in front of you and say, “Sign!” Then you get to pick from whatever models they have available.

Don’t want to sign a new contract or you haven’t been on the service long enough to qualify for an upgrade? OK. That just means that you get no deals from the carrier. They’ll ding you full retail price on the phone and it is guaranteed to be an eye-popper. Once you get your breath back, you’ll be happy to sign a new contract, if they even let you, and be thankful you got out of there alive.

Do you find the thought of going through this process revulsive? If so, we’ve got some good news. There’s another place to get cell phones that will work on your current cell phone plan and get them cheap!

What I want to introduce you to is the idea of buying a used cell phone. Don’t think that this necessarily means trolling the auction sites or having to go to somebody’s house to see what they’ve got. I’m talking about an online site that has a huge selection of guaranteed used cell phones ready to use. You get a 100% guarantee that your phone will function perfectly. You also get a free home charger and battery. The phone you pick will be shipped the same day with instructions for how to activate it in minutes. You never have to set foot in the local cell phone store.

Just what kind of shape are these phones in? They are graded into four categories. Refurbished is best. That’s a phone in pristine condition with the manual and box included. It’s almost like a brand new phone but at a deep discount. Excellent phones show very little sign of use. They’re like a new phone once you start carrying it around. Excellent phones come with excellent prices. A Good phone shows normal wear and tear. If your other phone was a bit scratched up or showing wear on the case you may not mind getting another phone in good condition. That’s especially true when the price is so low. Lastly, there are phones in fair condition. These are what you might call beaters. They’ve got a lot of wear showing but they’re still 100% functional. Broken phones just aren’t sold at all.

But just a second. Aren’t used phones just the old dogs nobody wants? Not by a mile. For instance, one used model in excellent condition and available right now to run on your Verizon Wireless service is a Motorola Droid 2 with Bluetooth, WiFi, GPS, and a lot more. The cost? A fraction of what you’d expect to pay. There are other Droids available, too. Or you can choose from a huge selection of pre-owned Blackberry devices if that’s your preference.

You are probably wondering how you put these phones into service without having to get a new service plan. If you have a GSM or IDEN carrier (AT&T, T-Mobile, Boost, Nextel) you simply take the SIM card out of your old phone and pop it into your new phone. Voila! Your service is transferred to your new phone automatically. Because the SIM card is what activates the service, you can have a whole collection of cell phones and just move the card from phone to phone any time you want.

If you have a CDMA carrier (Verizon or Sprint) you probably know that there is no SIM card accessible. Instead, you need to call your service provider and give them the electronic serial number of your new phone. It will be written on the activation guide that comes with the phone. Your provider will then enter that number into their system so that your new phone is the one that works with the service. Not as convenient as a SIM card, but you can certainly get your used phone activated without too much muss and fuss.

Here are the carriers that used phones are available for: Alltel, AT&T Wireless, Boost Mobile, Cingular, MetroPCS, Nextel, Sprint PCS, T-Mobile, US Cellular and Verizon.

How about the brands of phones available in the used selection? You can choose from Apple, Blackberry, Casio, Hitachi, HTC, Huawei, Kyocera, LG, Motorola, Nokia, Palm TREO, Pantech, PCD, Samsung, Sanyo, Sharp, Siemens, Sony, UTStarcom and ZTE.

Interested? If so, take a few minutes right now and browse the current selection of used cell phones. This selection changes continuously, as some phones are sold and other acquisitions take their place. If you see a deal you really like, you best grab it before someone else does. Unlike new phones, there can be only one or a few of any particular model available. First come, first served.

HTC Aria Social Networking Smartphone

Need a friend on the cellular networks? Don’t get a dog. Get FriendStream. It let’s you stay in touch over Facebook, Twitter and Flickr. You’ll be connecting with the HTC Aria, one of the newest and hottest Android smartphones.

It starts with a single block of jet black aluminum that forms the smooth and seamless case of the Aria. Small enough to fit in your shirt pocket. Powerful enough to use for both business and personal needs. Its large 3.2 inch touchscreen features pinch-to-zoom, which automatically reflows text for easy reading as you zoom in and out of websites.

Yes, this is an Android smartphone. It runs Google’s Android 2.1 operating system and HTC Sense user interface. You can create and save multiple customized home screen layouts. You’ll be able to access thousands of apps and widgets on the Android Market. The Aria comes to you preloaded with Google Maps, Gmail, Google Talk, search and YouTube video access. Being on the AT&T 3G network, you’ll be able to surf and talk at the same time. That’s not true on all cellular networks.

The HTC Aria is set-up for messaging. The Email client accesses and syncs your corporate Email, Push Gmail and POP/IMAP regular email accounts. Or use your Web-based email account. There’s an HTML Web browser that gives you PC-like viewing and navigating of the Web with pinch and zoom capability. Multimedia messaging lets you send and receive picture and video messages. You’ll take some nice ones with the built-in 5 Megapixel autofocus digital camera that doubles as a camcorder.

The Aria is loaded with connectivity. It works on the worldwide GSM standard networks at 850, 900, 1800 and 1900 MHz. It also supports UMTS on 850 and 1900 MHz. You’ll be downloading at 3G speed over the AT&T HSDPA network. Want even more speed or to save your data plan? Use the WiFI capability with AT&T HotSpot support.

Mind you, this is a small phone that weighs-in at just 3.9 ounces. Dimensions are 4.1 x 2.3 x 0.5 inches. Yet it sports 384 MB of RAM and expandable to 32 GB using plug-in microSD memory cards.

Like Music? you can stream stereo music to and from A2DP compatible Bluetooth devices. The MP3 player supports AAC, MP3 and WAV formats. It’s also a high performance streaming multimedia phone. Watch full length TV shows with AT&T Mobile TV and stream music and videos.

Does this sound like the kind of high performance phone you’ve been looking for but not sure you can afford? Relax. You can get the HTC Aria for AT&T for FREE when you order it with new cellular service online.

Of course, there are many more free and low cost cell phones available to you right now. Check out the current specials and see what meets your needs. You’ll probably have a hard time picking just one.

Free Cell Phones Galore

I’m looking at two Web pages full of cell phones, 26 of them in all. They’re supported by wireless service from the major cellular carriers, including AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon. These phones are of all different types and retail prices, but they have one important thing in common. They’re free of charge.



Oh, sure. Every cell phone store has a few dog phones that they can’t move, so they offer them free to get shoppers in the place. They’re usually something that went obsolete last year. How is this any different?

Well, let’s take look and see what kind of free phones you can get. Do you like BlackBerry phones? I see a BlackBerry Bold 9700 Black, a BlackBerry Curve 8520 Black and a BlackBerry Curve 8900 Silver. Take your pick. You can get them free when you order your phone with AT&T wireless service at the same price you’d pay anywhere else. Oh, they won’t give you a free BlackBerry? Then you better come to Cell Phone Plan Finder and check out the Free Phones page.

Here are some more BlackBerry deals. Get the BlackBerry 8530 in black or violet with Verizon Wireless service. Or choose the BlackBerry Storm 9530 Black, the BlackBerry Storm2 9550 Black or BlackBerry Tour 9630 Black. They’re all free when you order them with Verizon Wireless service.

The DROID ERIS by HTC is a popular smartphone. It’s free. So’s the Motorola DEVOUR Silver, the Nokia Nuron 5230, The T-Mobile Sidekick LX Brown, the Motorola Cliq XT with MOTOBLUR and the Motorola BACKFLIP with MOTOBLUR. All free.

Some other favorites include the LG Neon Blue, LG Xenon Red, Samsung Strive in black or purple, LG Rumor 2 in black titanium, vibrant blue or orange. How about a Samsung M330 Silver, Nokia 2720 Black, Samsung M240 Silver or Nokia 2720 Blue. They all have one thing in common. They’re free if you know where to get them. Here’s a hint: Cell Phone Plan Finder.

You’ve been craving a new cell phone. Why pay when you can get it free. Plus by ordering online there’s no standing in line or waiting around while your phone is activated. These phones are shipped free to your door, ready to be used. So what are you waiting for? Shop and compare free cell phones now, because free is soooo much better than paying.

Cyber Monday Cell Phone Deals

Where’s the best place to find special offers on cell phones? Online, of course. If you are searching for Cyber Monday deals or just generally in the market for a new cell phone, you’ll save a bundle with these free and discounted cell phone specials. Take note that the offers I’m quoting are only good for the Black Friday weekend sale that ends at Midnight, today, Monday.

How about a free cell phone after an instant online discount? You have your choice of the BlackBerry Bold 9700 in black for AT&T. It’s not only one hot smartphone, it comes with a special bonus of free activation on up to five new or upgrade lines. Wow, you could order a family plan and get free BlackBerry Bolds for everyone. That’s one bill per month and you all share one bucket of minutes.

You like BlackBerry devices, but want a different model? How about the BlackBerry Curve in Titanium or silver? Or treat yourself to the advanced technology BlackBerry Storm2 Black for Verizon Wireless. I know, this phone comes with the hefty price of almost $600. But you’re not going to pay that. No way. Your price for this sale is just $9.99. You also get free standard shipping via FedEx and a bonus of no activation fee on the lines you order.

That’s right, a BlackBerry Storm2 for under ten bucks. Can you believe it? Well, don’t rub your eyes too long or this offer will disappear. Order the phone and plan you want now while this incredible sale is still in progress. By the way, the BlackBerry Storm 9530 Black is also available and it’s free after instant discount.

Wow! Are there any other good deals through Cyber Monday? You bet there are. On the Sprint PCS network you can get the Samsung Exclaim M550 Berry, the Sanyo SCP-2700 Blue, The BlackBerry Curve 8330 Red or the LG Rumor 2 Black in titanium, all for free after the instant online discount. You’ve seen these phones and priced them in the stores. You have your choice of the same service plans at the same prices as you would get in a cellular store or a big box retailer. But are they offering these phones to you for free? I’ll bet not. But shop for cell phones online and they are, indeed, free.

We just ran a review of the Samsung Solstice for AT&T. It’s one great smartphone. For you - free. How about a Samsung Highlight Blue for the T-Mobile wireless network? You guessed it - free.

Are you considering a netbook for work or personal use? You have your choice of netbooks with connectivity on the Verizon Wireless or AT&T networks. They’re under $200 when you order them online. These are serious computers with 1GB of RAM and large capacity hard drives. They’re just a bit smaller and lighter than your standard laptop computer. With both WiFi and 3G wireless connectivity, you’ll have Internet connectivity wherever you happen to be.

This is a terrific opportunity to get what you and your family really want for holiday gifts. It’s the good stuff. And now it’s well within your budget at these huge discounts and even free smartphones. Shop by carrier or just check out all the today’s special deals through Cell Phone Plans Finder. Even if you find this too late to catch the Black Friday Weekend through Cyber Monday sale, you may still be delighted by the variety of free and low cost wireless devices available.

4G Wireless Quietly Encroaching on 3G

To hear the cellular carriers describe it, the mobile world is going 3G wireless as the defined cutting edge technology available today. Meanwhile, a competing and faster technology is being slowly deployed, city by city, across the country. What's really going on?

It's actually little more than the usual pattern of technological improvement. It starts with an invention, in this case wireless data service, followed by steady improvements as time goes on. We saw this with the personal computer. Today's PC shares a lot of commonality with the one's of decades ago. You still have a CPU, disk drive, RAM, ROM, monitor, keyboard and mouse. But the speed and capacity of today's machines are orders of magnitude above the best you could buy years ago.

Mobile data is on a similar growth curve. WiFi hotspots are something of a unique product with a very limited coverage area, which is unlikely to change. Wide area mobile service is really the domain of the cellular carriers. By building an extensive network of towers and transmitting stations, they have wide footprint of wireless coverage for telephone calls. Piggybacking a data service on this same infrastructure is a logical and cost effective move.

What started as dial-up speed data service for mobile phones has been steadily improved down two paralleled paths, mirroring the two most popular types of cellular service. CDMA, used by Verizon Wireless, Sprint and Alltel, offers EV-DO and EV-DO Rev. A cellular broadband. GSM, used by AT&T and T-Mobile, offers EDGE and HSPA broadband. The latest incarnations are considered third generation or 3G. Access is now available through many if not most cell phones, wireless aircards used as adaptors for laptop computers, and built into the latest netbook computers.

The 3G services aren't done evolving, but they soon will be. AT&T wants to double it's current 3 Mbps peak speed over the next couple of years. Verizon and Sprint are on a similar upgrade path, perhaps a little faster at deployment.

But one carrier isn't waiting for the 3G marketplace to mature. They're already moving ahead to 4G. That carrier is Sprint, in combination with Clearwire. Since the company carries the Clearwire name, those not watching this closely might not realize that it's related to the competitive cellular business.

The 4G technology is WiMAX, which stands for Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access. It doesn't interfere with current cellular operations or use the same transmission frequencies. It's being launched in parallel with today's 3G networks. In a few cities you can have your choice of 3G or 4G. Download speeds for the 4G WiMAX service are typically 4 to 6 Mbps with bursts beyond 15 Mbps.

WiMAX also isn't being touted as a cellular technology. There's no cellphone service or handsets. Instead, WiMAX is being offered as a broadband Internet service for home or business, with a mobile service available through plug-in aircards like those used for 3G cellular. You can also get VoIP telephone service bundled, similar to what is offered by cable and telephone companies.

Where is WiMAX 4G service available? It's been deployed in Baltimore, Portland OR, and just recently Atlanta. The plan is also to launch service in Chicago, Charlotte, Dallas / Ft. Worth, Honolulu, Philadelphia and Seattle this year. By the end of 2010, Clearwire expects to be service 80 major cities in the U.S.

AT&T's 4G service will be based on LTE or Long Term Evolution technology. Verizon is planning a similar approach. LTE won't get started for a year or so, but it will follow a similar approach to WiMAX in that it will use different channels than those in use for 3G, so that both 3G and 4G services can exist simultaneously.

There is some thought that once 4G technologies mature, 3G will be phased out. Perhaps the current cell phone technologies will follow suit. The trend is toward converged IP networks for everything. That suggests that VoIP running on 4G networks along with data service on the same channels will be the new wireless communications technology.

No AT&T Wireless Activation Fee This Week

Here's a deal that comes along once in a blue-tooth moon. AT&T is waiving the activation fee for new wireless customers through Midnight on Sunday, March 22, 2009. If you've got your eye on a new AT&T BlackBerry or other smartphone or cell phone along with new service, here's your incentive to act now. It's $36 you get to keep in your pocket. You should also know that you can get many popular AT&T cellphone models free or even with cash back on top of this special bonus.

Please Note: This is an exclusive offer available ONLY through Sunday, March 22, 2009. Have a look at the collection of 67 AT&T cell phones, including BlackBerry and Palm models available for your perusal. Then Compare AT&T Cell Phones and Wireless Service Plans and get an excellent deal on your choice.

There are all sorts of cell phone specials available every day. Before you go shopping in a bricks and mortar enterprise, take a few minutes to see how you can do online. You may be astounded.

Media Flos to Mobile TV

Television is pervasive. Once limited to high power over-the-air broadcasting, TV has been glomping onto other delivery mediums as fast as it can find them. First came cable channels that had no over the air equivalents. Then satellite, with its almost universal reach. Next, the Internet with clips on YouTube and IPTV feeds from network owned Websites. Now the move is to cell phones and other wireless devices for truly mobile TV.

The original approach to mobile video was downloadable clips using the cellular broadband networks, such as EV-DO for Verizon and Sprint. But cell phone network operators are running into the same limitations as Internet content delivery. The available bandwidth isn't high enough for really good real-time video presentation, and the sheer volume of packets threatens to bring down the whole network if the service truly catches on. What's been needed is a new delivery network designed for video from the ground up.

The leading candidate for that new network is Qualcomm's MediaFLO. Verizon Wireless started adopting it about a year ago and AT&T has just announced that it will begin service too. What's special about MediaFLO? First, it delivers its content using a different over-the-air channel than the cellular frequencies. Second, it's designed for real-time viewing at 30 frames per second to give a true live television experience. A typical screen size is QVGA (Quarter Video Graphics Array) at 240x320 pixels. Since mobile devices aren't likely to tote around living room sized video displays, a lower bandwidth is acceptable to provide a good viewing experience. MediaFLO needs just 300 Kbps per live channel.

The MediaFLO specification supports many possible deployment schemes, but the one that is winning out is the former UHF TV channel 55 at 716-722 MHz. It is part of the lower 700 MHz band sold to Wireless companies by an earlier FCC auction and offers licensed high power transmission with large coverage areas. With 50 KW of effective radiated power and a 6 MHz bandwidth, MediaFLO transmitters can provide up to 20 live mobile TV channels with stereo sound over a substantial service area.

Another advantage over IP and cellular broadband delivery is that FLO TV service is multicast, like regular television. That means that the same bandwidth is used regardless of how many viewers there are. Internet based services usually need a certain amount of bandwidth for each user, especially for last-mile delivery. The FLO in MediaFLO stands for Forward Link Only to designate that this is a one-way transmission system.

A typical MediaFLO enabled cell phone is the one being sold by Verizon. It's 320x240 pixel high resolution color display (262,000 colors) rotates from portrait style when used as a cell phone to a landscape mode for TV viewing. You pull up a 5 inch TV whip antenna when needed to get a strong signal. This phone also supports Verizon's V Cast video services using the EV-DO cellular broadband system with up to 700 KHz download speed.

Another MediaFLO phone for Verizon is the Samsung SCH-U620, the first one offered by Verizon for mobile television. This is a slider phone with a similar screen size and V Cast capabilities. Plus all the usual niceties such as streaming Bluetooth and a Megapixel camera.

AT&T is planning to offer two cell phones of its own that will be MediaFLO enabled. They are the LG Vu and Samsung Access.

MediaFLO is aggressively marketing its technology and adding content that now includes CBS, Comedy Central, ESPN, FOX, MTV, NBC and Nickelodeon. Coverage is still limited to major metropolitan areas, but the fierce competition that will no doubt ensue between AT&T and Verizon will likely result in additional transmission sites as cell phone users get comfortable with bringing their TV programs with them. Mobile television seems like an idea whose time has come, much like iPOD music on the go and cell phones themselves. With the completion of the 700 MHz spectrum auction, it will be interesting to see what other video and TV options become available using MediaFLO and competing technologies.

Palm Treo 680 Crimson Smartphone

You love the Palm Treo line. Now get ready for the new Treo 680 Crimson smartphone. It runs the Palm OS 5.4.9 on an Intel 312 MHz PAXA270 processor. You get a 320 x 320 pixel TFT touch screen display with stylus and a backlit QWERTY keyboard. Why settle for a non-PDA smartphone when you can have a real Palm?

This Treo is designed for productivity. It will sync to your computer tethered by cable, by infrared or Bluetooth. Microsoft ActiveSync syncs your corporate email. You'll be able to both read and edit Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents. You can also read PDFs.

In addition to VersaMail Email software that supports conventional Email and VPNs, you can browse the Web using the Blazer Web browser that supports full HTML, SSL, JavaScript, cookies, bookmarks and frames. It's like a desktop browser, only a bit smaller. Of course both text and instant messaging are also supported.

The Palm Treo 680 Crimson includes a VGA quality digital camera with 2x digital zoom. Just what you need to grab those impromptu photo opportunities. The camera will also work in video capture mode with movie length limited only by the available memory. The Treo 680 comes with 64 MB built-in but expandable via MMC SD and SDI card formats.

Don't forget that this Palm is more than a PDA. It's also a full capability cell phone running on the AT&T Cingular network with quad GSM network compatibility. Data download supports EDGE cellular broadband for up to 144 Kbps download speed. You get speakerphone, voice memo, picture Caller ID and Bluetooth wireless headset support.

As a final sweetener, this Palm includes an MP3 player. The included PocketTunes software lets you listen to Mp3 music and podcasts in rich stereo.

What are the hottest cell phone deals available right now, including free cell phones? Use the Cell Phone Plan Finder to check out the top phones and associated wireless service plans.