Replacement on Telus: KRZR k1m
My on-contract mobile died the other week and I had to consider my options. I’ve been using a Nokia 6265i with Telus for the past two years. It was pretty good phone, if not way too bulky. Then it started doing strange things. The phone would reboot for no reason, drop calls for no reason and it would forget the theme it was supposed to use. Then it started to take longer to boot up. That problem grew exponentially worse until one day on a trip to the US the phone stopped working completely. Apparently this a common problem with the phone; it just decides to drop dead on a whim.
Telus told me that, because I was already on contract and out-of-warranty, I would have to pay $250 for a “software fix”. I was also welcomed to pay the unsubsidized price (about $350+ for anything from this century) for a new phone, plus a $10 new activation/transfer fee. I understand that Telus is a business and needs to make money, but since I’ve been a customer for several years, and have three lines on my account, I figure they could have offered me something a little nicer. Tough luck.
Anyways, I wasn’t about to pay hundreds to get my old broken phone fixed. I settled on a getting a new phone. Since I plan on getting an iPhone with Fido after my contract expires next spring, it didn’t have to be that flashy. I stumbled upon the prepaid phones available from Futureshop and Bestbuy. They are brand-new phone from a couple years ago. I groaned, but settled on a KRZR k1m for only $79CDN.
Its actually a really good phone, and I’m liking it quite a lot. I never got into hacking my Nokia, but this little Moto is very hackable and I’ve made a number of adjustments. Its also pretty thin, and I like the external music controls. The cool thing about this (and probably other Motorola phones) is that a USB cable and software are included.
My only complaints about the phone are the horrible Telus music player, and the disparaging lack of Mac support. I’m happier with this phone than I ever was with my Nokia.
So there you have it. If you’re phone dies, or is lost or stolen, you have a cheaper option. Its not as nice as being able to swap a sim card like you can on GSM networks, but its better than shelling out $400 for a so-so kind of phone.
i just did the same… also planning to switch to fido for the same reasons next summer or earlier, picked up a cheap telus prepaid as my phone just went down. (also had it for two years)