handicapped need phone

Don't you think I already tried Consumer Cellular first? They just pushed their own merchanse and suggested a flip phone.

So big button flip phones are as close as it gets.

I don't get why it must be unlocked. That is, I do encounter folk that demand unlocked and sure, for a price you can do that but this usually means GSM phones and a long conversation why this is.

Some of them get upset over the entire cell phone business and claim the business is not addressing some segments but I see big button easy to use models so how is that not meeting the need?

-> As to unlocked, that's expensive as you have to pay for the non-subsidized models. Why break your bank for unlocked when you can get it cheap?
Bob

We dropped Verizon at $70+ per month for Consumer Cellular at $20+ per month. Consumer Cellular was top rated by Consumer Reports. Consumer Cellular doesn't locked anyone into a multiyear contract.
Why would anyone stayed with Verizon, ATT, etc?

Around here we have Ting, Virgin Mobile and others. No multi-year contract either.

Still don't get why you want to pay for the phone that well, could have you screaming later about the usual.
Bob

...the idea of being 'locked into a contract' is really irrelevant. This is a notion that always seems to be something people complain about w/o actually thinking about what they are saying/posting.

I don't know about you but I have encountered many folk that pay dearly for unlocked for what I have been guessing "is the principle" of the unlock debate. I make no debate about it but here we have a member mixing accessibility and unlocked. It's unclear to me if they are willing to pay the price.

As to Dragon Dictate and voice commands, the ADA seems to step in and squash such. That is, decades ago ATT wanted to make phone booths without a dial plate (OK, how many remember what that is?) ADA went against that as deaf folk could not use them.

File this under some title here. The moment you create a solution for one group, the other wants it stopped.
Bob

Can oloy get Consumer Cellular service, the top rated company by Consumer Reports, with an unlocked phone.

Don't understand why you want us to abandon our new Consumer Cellular service for one of the legacy monopolies.

So no more comments about getting a locked phone from anyone. You are not helping.

Now that we can drop the unlocked phone can you find ANY phone made today that works for you?

What do you suggest? That was my original Q.

1. Flip phone.
2. iPhone.
3. Android phone.

Again, what phone came close to what you needed?
Bob

That was unhelpful. I asked for suggestions for what to buy. You haven't given me any assistence at all. Stop sending messages. They just waste my time!

Which feature is most important, mobility or big button. As far as I have seen, big button only comes with home base phone. So if big button is the object then take a look at "wireless cellular home phone".

https://www.consumercellular.com/info/phones

By the way, I tend to agreed with you on the unluck phone especially you are already using their service.

Rubbish. To use the top rated company, Consumer Cellular, they instructed us to purchase an unlocked phone. Don't be so patronizing.

Do you work for ATT, Verizon or one of the other high priced alternatives?

Just two examples of why I stay. I need free mobile to mobile calling for my extended family who is national & global. Using Skype, Google Voice & Facetime only works in certain situations vs the comforts of plan dialing

W/o the free M2M calling I would definitely switch my retired parents to CC. Highly rated by AARP, etc.

...an unlocked GSM phone is necessary as a baseline, since Consumer Cellular is basically an MVNO that utilizes ATT's GSM (and perhaps also UMTS) network. Anything you bring in for CC must not be locked to another (non-ATT) GSM carrier, such s T-Mobile. Most Americans do not unlock their GSM handsets, so that's always a possibility if someone bought one via ebay, etc.

Why would you suggest we leave Consumer Cellular which is top rated by the impartial Consumer Reports testers? They require an unlocked phone. Can't have one without the other.

We need Internet access with our Cosnumer Cellular phone service. That's not a need met by flip phones.

Is anyone really happy with their contracts with ATT, TMobile, Sprint? I've never heard of a happy consumer locked into a contract with any of them.

Consumer Cellular and Jitterbug get mostly positive reviews.

They didn't meet your needs. Period. Why stick with any company that does not deliver the goods?
Bob

You must work for Verizon or ATT or another one of those companies to take this position.

I never said or even implied that Consumer Cellular didn't meet our needs.

I am trying to buy a phone that is easy to use, that is unlocked so that I can begin to use Consumer Cellular, the top rated service according to Consumer Reports.

What company do you recommend?

Get off your *** and do whatever you like ! This is beginning to sound like spam, you asked for input, you got it !

Digger

You come here asking for advice, then clearly miss the boat entirely <sigh>. Use old school logic, amiga. Why doesn't CC provide the phone you require? If they don't, it's not unreasonable to state that they are not meeting your needs.

BTW, you are incorrect in your assertion that the phone has to be unlocked. It doesn't. That's merely an option to obtain/use a non-ATT or non-cc issued phone w/o a contract. Since CC uses the ATT post-paid network, you could also obtain any GSM/UMTS handset locked to ATT.

Keep in mind that in your very first post above you don't state that you are needing a smartphone or internet, you only say 'a phone', hence the discussion about flip phones.

We don't get a phone from Consumer Cellular because they get poor ratings from YOU and cost more than the same from Amazon.

Honey, I don't rate phones for CNET.

No you don't. Someone else does. Look at the Web site. It shows the pros and cons of dozens of different phones.

Their directions were to buy an unlcoked phone. Period.

...going with a used or new smartphone that is locked to the ATT network. Since CC uses ATT's network, all their phones will work. That's how GSM service/handsets w/ SIM cards function.

It's no huge surprise that CC would prefer you buy from them, and keep you in the dark about your other options.

Don't you think I've talked to Consumer Cellular multiple times? They only want to sell their own phones which are poorly rated by CNET.That is not a solution.

CNET rates the iPhone quite highly, and it *is* offered by CC.

Time to rethink your strategy of asking for help in a public forum maybe? You clearly have issues playing nice in the sandbox.

Just looked at the CC site.