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Want a boring phone

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    Want a boring phone

    I want a boring old phone to use as a second phone to receive SMS and maybe calls on my SIM from one country while I am travelling in another country and using that country's SIM in my iphone for all everyday purposes. Does anyone happen to know of one that fills the bill? (BTW I do know how to google but I have not found a phrase that gets me "phones with micro usb charger connector" since a cable with USB A at one end answers that).

    Requirements:
    very long battery life on standby
    charge via micro USB

    Nice to have:
    small and lightweight
    cheap

    (not required: anything whatever other than SMS and receiving calls).

    There are for example small lightweight Nokias with very long battery life but they charge via the Nokia 2mm plug. I want to charge with a non-proprietary cable.

    That's the hardware requirement. The real user requirement is a minimum-hassle way of receiving SMS and calls.
    Examples of need:
    1. An agent calls. I can't tell them all in advance to hang on 45 seconds. Maybe I could just set a message saying please call my Skype Number.
    2. The bank wants to confirm a transaction before allowing it, so they send an SMS.

    I can forward calls to a Skype Number and on from there to my main phone, but that takes 35 seconds or more to transfer and some callers hang up before then.
    I don't know a way of forwarding SMS to another phone, without having a device + app running back home.
    Last edited by expat; 28 July 2015, 08:23.

    #2
    I have a Nokia Lumia 435, ticks all the boxes you say, and I have one for the exact same reason you want, main use is PAYG sim card that I give to pimps and throw away when I get a contract.
    Originally posted by Stevie Wonder Boy
    I can't see any way to do it can you please advise?

    I want my account deleted and all of my information removed, I want to invoke my right to be forgotten.

    Comment


      #3
      Originally posted by SimonMac View Post
      I have a Nokia Lumia 435, ticks all the boxes you say, and I have one for the exact same reason you want, main use is PAYG sim card that I give to pimps and throw away when I get a contract.
      Thanks, I'll have a look at that. I confess that I assumed I was NOT looking at a smartphone because I didn't think that it would get the 5-day+ standby that I am looking for.

      Comment


        #4
        Nokia 6310i, from many moons ago, had a 14 day stand by.

        Ignore that no USB. Sorry
        Never has a man been heard to say on his death bed that he wishes he'd spent more time in the office.

        Comment


          #5
          Originally posted by Scrag Meister View Post
          Nokia 6310i, from many moons ago, had a 14 day stand by.

          Ignore that no USB. Sorry
          Thanks for the thought anyway. Yeah it seems to be common still, that the simplest/cheapest phones have a proprietary charger connection. A Nokia wouldn't be a bad idea, you can probably get a replacement charger cable anywhere in the world if need be, and it is only 1 little extra cable to carry around. But the "if I get my druthers" wish is for no extra cable. Or an iphone that takes 2 SIMs with both active!

          Comment


            #6
            Originally posted by expat View Post
            Examples of need:
            1. An agent calls. I can't tell them all in advance to hang on 45 seconds. Maybe I could just set a message saying please call my Skype Number.
            2. The bank wants to confirm a transaction before allowing it, so they send an SMS.

            I can forward calls to a Skype Number and on from there to my main phone, but that takes 35 seconds or more to transfer and some callers hang up before then.
            I don't know a way of forwarding SMS to another phone, without having a device + app running back home.
            Maybe you really want a dual-SIM smart phone?

            If you still want a non-smart phone then look at dual-SIM anyway because they tend to have a higher battery capacity. Beware the quoted standby times are fanciful. Nokia 112 works for me, single charge per week for light to moderate use.

            Comment


              #7
              Originally posted by Contreras View Post
              Maybe you really want a dual-SIM smart phone?

              If you still want a non-smart phone then look at dual-SIM anyway because they tend to have a higher battery capacity. Beware the quoted standby times are fanciful. Nokia 112 works for me, single charge per week for light to moderate use.
              Good point about the dual-sim phone.

              The main phone will remain an iphone and somehow I don't see dual-SIM iphones soon.

              I might have to step back and do social engineering instead:
              1. Get a VOIP service and redirect it to my main phone wherever I am. I already do that with a Skype Number but Skype's 35 second delay in call divert is just too much.
              2. Tell everybody I know not to text me any more except by arrangement or in reply to a text from me.
              3. If my bank declines a transaction, I call them to check it.

              Comment


                #8
                Originally posted by expat View Post
                Good point about the dual-sim phone.

                The main phone will remain an iphone and somehow I don't see dual-SIM iphones soon.

                I might have to step back and do social engineering instead:
                1. Get a VOIP service and redirect it to my main phone wherever I am. I already do that with a Skype Number but Skype's 35 second delay in call divert is just too much.
                2. Tell everybody I know not to text me any more except by arrangement or in reply to a text from me.
                3. If my bank declines a transaction, I call them to check it.
                Yep, 'proper' VoIP is way better than Skype in my experience. I ditched skype for anything other than basic skype-to-skype due to unreliable Caller ID (incoming & outgoing), call routing, and general call quality, not to mention it is relatively expensive. Been a happy customer of Voipfone since.

                But I think what you are asking for above (1) could be done with an 0845 number. For that I use TTNC. I see that they, and others, also do geographical numbers. From August it's free to forward to any UK mobile.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Originally posted by Contreras View Post
                  Yep, 'proper' VoIP is way better than Skype in my experience. I ditched skype for anything other than basic skype-to-skype due to unreliable Caller ID (incoming & outgoing), call routing, and general call quality, not to mention it is relatively expensive. Been a happy customer of Voipfone since.

                  But I think what you are asking for above (1) could be done with an 0845 number. For that I use TTNC. I see that they, and others, also do geographical numbers. From August it's free to forward to any UK mobile.
                  Yes, a basic VOIP service is actually cheaper than a Skype Number. I get few calls so the forwarding cost is not a big deal.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Originally posted by expat View Post
                    Yes, a basic VOIP service is actually cheaper than a Skype Number. I get few calls so the forwarding cost is not a big deal.
                    I meant the ongoing subscription cost ~£40 pa. for skype number vs £0 for the 0845/VoIP. It would be OK if the service performed but so often it didn't.

                    Comment

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