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General discussion

Verizon Phone with a Planner...NO Data plan

by reggieb03 Dec 29, 2010 1:43AM PST

I am aware of the Verizon policy that basically mandates a data plan for any smart phone. My question is, are there any phones out there on the market that have a Planner/Organizer feature that do not require a data plan?

All I really need is an outlook type calendar, not even necessarily with sync capability to organize my daily life. Most of the non-smart phones that I have checked out have only a "tasks" calendar that doesn't show entire days...hour by hour (ie outlook) and thats not cutting it.

Any advice?

Discussion is locked

2 Posts
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we have the same need!
by shopkitt Mar 17, 2011 11:45PM PDT

I was searching for the same thing. I am w/ Sprint now, but can switch. Hope to see some info soon!! We have Palm Centro now, but it's old & the phone is not working well anymore. Sprint ran diagnostics on it & it's OK...just old. I was told maybe it was time for a new phone.

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T-Mobile or ATT can work for that
by Pepe7 Mar 18, 2011 2:25AM PDT

You needed to do some more legwork. It's been covered pretty well in this forum on at least one significant thread I am aware of Wink>.

Bringing in your own smartphone is still an option with T-Mobile & ATT, although less restrictive w/ T-Mobile. If you require ATT's coverage though, that might be your best choice. FWIW, I currently use an ATT branded Tilt to sync with my PC via USB, or over wifi. I do not currently have a data plan on my line. Since I am grandfathered they do not force a data plan on me. OTOH you would be required to have a non-ATT branded smartphone to do the same.

Basically, you would purchase an unlocked GSM handset from a third party and buy SIM only (post-paid) service from the carrier you need. Most of the smartphones have built-in or downloadable apps you can use as an organizer. To reiterate, ATT won't require a data plan on a smartphone they do not sell (e.g. lacks their branding and software), with some exceptions being any iPhone & the Nexus- there may be a couple more of late. Anyway, for any handset you choose, just make certain it has the 850/1900 GSM frequency bands for use on ATT, 850/1900/1700 for T-Mobile as a starting point. Having additional UMTS frequency capabilities for use on ATT & T-Mobile's 3G networks is also a nice feature for better call quality.

Amazon carries two or three decent Nokias, with one being a touch screen model. They would suffice as basic smartphones with organizers, although perhaps the interface might not be quite as customizable as a newer phone w/ the Android OS. The following would work on ATT, but not as well on T-Mobile since they lack the 1700MHz frequency band. Let me know if you have any questions on how you can proceed.

Examples-

Nokia C6
http://www.amazon.com/Nokia-Unlocked-Side-Sliding-Touchscreen-Navigation/dp/B003VNKLES/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1300465368&sr=8-6

Nokia C3-00
http://www.amazon.com/Nokia-Unlocked-Dedicated-Slot--U-S-Warranty/dp/B003V4AJSU/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1300465368&sr=8-3

Nokia E5
http://www.amazon.com/Nokia-Unlocked-QWERTY-Camera-Navigation/dp/B003X26SLC/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1300465368&sr=8-7

Nokia C5-03
http://www.amazon.com/Nokia-C5-03-Unlocked-Phone-US-Warranty/dp/B004P8JL7G/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1300465368&sr=8-8

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