[Guide] Buying phones for r/beermoney programs
There have been a few posts lately asking about which phones to buy, so I figured I'd make a post. This post is specifically for buying phones for r/beermoney purposes and not as a main device! I am only going to cover Android phones in this post since I'm not familiar with IOS. Many offers are Android only, so it's a good idea to have one. I'm also in the USA, so my advice might not be as relevant for people from other countries. And of course, this post is going to be filled with my opinions. Other people are bound to think differently.
What to buy
New vs Used
I always recommend buying new devices. Yes, you can use used devices, but you will generally not get the same performance out of them. I've had hundreds of phones as beermoney devices over the years. Trust me when I say there's a notable difference between a new device and a 1 year old device that has been running non-stop. Reconditioned devices can be hit or miss, but I find Tracfone's to work nearly as well as a new one.
Buying a used device is only a good idea if you are buying a much higher end phone that was likely only used normally.
Specs
What specs you need depend on what you're planning to do with it. If you're planning on just running videos or other passive apps, something as low as a dual core on Android 4.4 might be sufficient, but I would look for at least 6.0 with a quad core since you can get them for about the same price. Expect to spend at least $15-20.
If you're planning on doing game offers on GPT sites - get something with AT LEAST Android 9.0, Quad core, and 2GB of ram. Many offers nowadays require at least Android 9.0, and having decent specs will let you finish the games faster. Expect to spend $30-50 per phone. If you are using an app that just requires you to run the game and not play it, you could probably get away with a lower Android version; but since you can easily find Android 9.0+ devices in the same price range, I recommend just going with a better device.
This is my priority when choosing a device
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Android 9.0 or above.
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Removable battery
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More Ram
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Android 11.0
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Better CPU
Brand
Which brands you buy is mostly up to preference. I generally prefer LG and ZTE phones, although I did not care for the LG Rebel series. LG and ZTE tends to have average performance that stays relatively consistent, and the devices last forever. Moto and Samsung devices usually perform better at the start in my experience, but that performance drops fairly quickly. Their high end phones can be good, but I avoid anything worth under a few $100 for them. I don't like Alcatel. They last forever, but the performance deteriorates rapidly. They also are usually slow, and I have had more issues with offers crediting with these devices than any others.
Where to buy devices
Be wary about black friday sales. Many electronics are replaced with cheaper parts, so they may not last as long. There are tons of places that sell phones, but these have been the most consistent for me.
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Tracfone - They frequently have good priced phones. Watch out for ones that require a plan purchase though! You can always sell the plan afterwards, but it's just an extra step. I frequently find good devices for $30-35. They have free shipping, and sometimes you can get discount codes as well.
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Straight Talk - They don't have good deals often on new devices, but they often have cheap reconditioned phones which may have better specs.
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Amazon - Amazon often has some of the same devices that Tracfone and Straight talk do. Sometimes the price is the same, other times it's significantly more.
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Ebay - Ebay can be hit or miss. You can sometimes get a practically brand new phone at a steep discount. However, with used devices, you never really know the quality of the device or what abuse it's been put through. You also don't know if they've done beermoney offers on them before, and you might risk your account being banned or offers not crediting. I've gotten burned many times buying cheap devices on ebay, so I no longer purchase used devices off ebay for beermoney purposes. Be especially wary of phone lots - they're usually someone selling off an old farm after their devices have already slowed down.
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Best Buy - You can get some really good sales from here, but they are few and far between.
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Walmart - Their online selection can be limited, but you can sometimes snag good deals when they're marked down on clearance at the store.
I've also heard of people snagging really good deals from the various Dollar stores like Family Dollar and Dollar General.
Devices I recently purchased
I recently bought three new devices. Each one was $30 on Tracfone. Don't forget to use a cash back site if you're going to make a purchase! I haven't had these devices long, so I can't speak for how they age, but these are my initial impressions.
BLU® VIEW 2
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Android 10
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2 GB Ram
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2GHz quad core
This phone uses a type C plug, and I'm not sure whether I'd consider that a pro or a con. I do prefer type C, but since all of my other beermoney devices are micro B, I keep accidently trying to plug it in with the wrong cables. This device has been running apps great, but higher end games can lag a little. Overall, not a bad device.
LG Journey
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Android 9.0
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2 GB Ram
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1.1 GHz Quad Core
This was my least favorite out of the three phones, and I don't really recommend getting this one if there are better alternatives. The battery is non-removable, which is a big problem for r/beermoney devices - you should be regularly checking the batteries for bloat! I also found this phone to be notably laggy even after removing the bloatware, and it half-froze a few times when I was in the settings. Uninstalling apps is a weird. If you "remove" the app, you have to go in and delete it afterwards or wait 24 hours. Also, when I was trying to uninstall multiple apps, the screen kept going all the way back up to the top so I had to scroll back down to find the next app.
I do like that you are able to set it so that the screen won't turn off without having to go into the developer options though. It also had the best hand-feel out of the three. It's fairly lightweight and feels smooth.
TCL A3
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Android 11
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3 GB Ram
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2 GHz 8-core
This phone feels bulky and it's quite heavy. It reminds me a lot of my old ZTE devices. Those things lasted forever and were practically tanks. It also has the best specs out of the bunch. It's easy to uninstall apps - just hold the app down and drag it to the "uninstall". It also allows you to set the screen to never turn off without going into the developer options. There is a slight lag with high end games, but that's nothing abnormal. Overall this was my favorite device out of the three.
Honorable Mention: Google Pixel 2
I've seen a few different people mention that you can get a Pixel 2 off of eBay for around $50. I still do not recommend buying used devices for the reasons mentioned above, but I do use a Pixel 2 as my main phone and it certainly is a good device. It can upgrade to Android 11.0, and it has 4GB of RAM, a 8-core core cpu, and 64GB of storage. However, it has a non-removable battery, and it uses a micro C end. I've heard the Pixel 2 tends to last forever, but they are known to have battery trouble after a while (a year in and my battery drains super fast, and if I'm not using a good charging cable it may shut down while playing games). It also has glass on the back of the phone, so I recommend buying a cheap cover so you don't break it like I did. It's very delicate. If you're looking for a higher end device for running games and you don't want to deal with lag, then this could be a decent beermoney phone.
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source https://www.reddit.com/r/beermoney/comments/oqp7p5/guide_buying_phones_for_rbeermoney_programs/
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