It has been 7 years since I bought myself a decent phone.
The last decent phone I had was the Nokia N-72. After the robbery incident in our home, in which my beloved phone sadly got included, I never got myself to buy another phone in that price range and that time the Nokia N72 was around 200USD here in Thailand. And so I bought myself a call and text phone (Nokia 107) and said to myself it’s all I need.
Fast forward to the present, I was persuaded by my husband to get a new phone and keep myself abreast with the present times and also my longtime friend and companion, my trusty Nokia 107, was showing signs of conking out. As we went window shopping I was astounded by the sheer volume of choices. You got Samsung neck and neck with Apple. You got LG, Huwawei, Sony, Nokia, Oppo, and another Chinese manufacturer which I can’t remember the name. I was having difficulty choosing which one to get for myself. So I kept on calling off my purchase date.
To help me with my purchase my hubby asked me a few questions to eliminate some of the selections and narrow down the candidates.
1. How much are you willing to shell out?
2. What do you really intend it for?
3. Any particular designs, color, or quirks you like or hate?
Well, one thing is for sure, I do not want to shell out more than 300USD just for a phone. I need a phone that is big enough for me to check on my blog, Facebook, e-mails and whatnot, without straining my eyes. It also should take very good photos (check them out here) without me trying so hard at it. LOL! A smartphone is certainly a must have for mom blogger on a budget like me. With my budget I have ruled out any kind of i-Phone but I really do love how it looks and of course its quality. The Samsung J7 was our first candidate as it met all of the desired specifications. But after reading the online reviews giving us tons of negative feedback, we backed track a whole lot. After checking it out for ourselves it proved to be true. So we moved on to the next candidate, the “Oppo F1s” I have never used an Oppo phone before but I have heard that it is quite popular amongst the teenagers here in Thailand. They said if you can’t afford the i-Phone get an Oppo.
Now, I am a very skeptical person especially with brand names. I always ask or research about it until I am satisfied with all the information and give me an emphatic sound reassurance. Reading its users review at a very popular phone website gave us mostly positive reviews and opinions. So we checked it out and Lo and Behold. The feel of the Oppo is more premium than what you’d expect from a relatively inexpensive phone. With its metal body it gives you that heft of reassurance in your hand. It’s wide screen gives out crisp and clear images with rich colors. So there… We have narrowed down the specifications I have in mind. A phone within the 300USD price range, big enough to avoid any eye strain, takes good photos, and with the dashing looks of an i-Phone.
What things have you done or acquired recently to jump in the bandwagon?