[Vantiy] New release: BLU Life ONE X2 Mini ($179)

Amazon ^ | 4/8/17

[markomalley]

I don't typically advertise in a thread, but I will make an exception in this case. Apologies if this offends anybody.

BLU just released an updated version of their Life One X2 phone in a slightly smaller form factor: the BLU Life One X2 Mini.

Please note that this is an UNLOCKED GSM phone (i.e., it is not tied to any particular carrier).

The price of the phone is currently $179. I mention this first because when you see the specs, you will likely think it is far, far more expensive than that.

• 64GB onboard nonvolatile storage
• 4GB RAM
• 8 core 1.4GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon SOC
• 13MP Rear Autofocus canera
• 8MP Front camera
• 5 inch 1920x1080 display
• Gorilla glass
• 3,000 mAH battery
• dual SIM
• accepts microSD storage for additional capacity (up to 64GB)
• Wifi B/G/N (sorry, no 5 GHz)
• Bluetooth version 4
• Fingerprint recognition
• Cellular GSM: 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz; UMTS: 850, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz; LTE: Bands 2, 4, 7, 12, 17

And, remember: this is a $179 phone, not a $600 phone.

[markomalley]

One caveat: I do not own this specific phone, but I have owned the larger version of this same phone for about 6 months and cannot overstate how happy I am with it.

If you have only ever bought your cell phones from your carrier, there are a couple of really huge advantages to buying an unlocked phone:

• First, you are not in debt to your carrier -- that means you can far more easily walk away than if you still owe them hundreds of dollars on your contract.
• Next, if you do ever decide to switch carriers, you don't have to get your old carrier to unlock your phone for you...again, far more freedom.
• In my experience, cell phone providers generally have manufacturers install a ton of "bloatware" on phones, taking up valuable room. I can't speak for all unlocked providers, but any phone I've gotten from BLU ships with a pretty bare-bones distribution of Android -- no bloat at all. That just means that you can install the apps you want and don't have a bunch of junk on the phone that you never use and can't get rid of.

Finally, let me emphasize: I am not saying that this is a $800 Samsung or a $1,000 iPhone. It's not. For example, it doesn't have NFC (which can impact your life if you're into Google Wallet and (I think) Apple Pay). It only has a 2.4GHz WiFi. And so on.

But, OTOH: Neither a Samsung Galaxy S7 nor a Apple iPhone have dual SIMs.

Bottom line: if you're in the market for a new phone and DON'T want to pay the massive prices or have to sign up for a multiyear contract, I highly encourage you to look into this phone. I DON'T say it's the best phone on the market, but I will say it gives you performance [almost] in the same class as the $1,000 phones for an almost burner phone price.

[CGASMIA68]

Mark, Retired from the telecom industry in 02.lived this stuff for 30 plus,
haven’t owned a phone since then.I think it will take another life time to understand all this.

[markomalley]

Retired from the telecom industry in 02

I hope to retire in '22 or so. I look forward to my knowledge becoming obsolete.

The funny thing is that one of my contracts supports a major acquisition agency for a DOD component. The kids working in that office are horrified when I discuss multi-stage external cavity, liquid cooled klystrons with them (the thought of 10KV and ethylene glycol being in close proximity is beyond their comprehension).

An interesting book that will bring back memories for some of us is here (the care and feeding of external cavity klystrons.

[OldSmaj]

Well, all them there fancy specs is well and good...but kin I call home and ask my wife if I need to pick up bread and milk?

[Moonman62]

Will this phone allow me to keep up with the Kardashians?

[markomalley]

Will this phone allow me to keep up with the Kardashians?

Who?

[Hot Tabasco]

I have a Galaxy S6 and I can make phone calls and send text messages with the best of the phones out there........I can even take a picture.

[freedumb2003]

>>Well, all them there fancy specs is well and good...but kin I call home and ask my wife if I need to pick up bread and milk?<<

No.

But you can order them from the ISS.

[bgill]

As long as my free flip phone works, I’ll stick with it.

[markomalley]

As long as my free flip phone works, I’ll stick with it.

Great.

And if your phone meets your needs, by all means, stick with it. Not saying otherwise.

But I see a whole lot of people spending way upwards of $500 for a new phone every couple of years. If you're looking to replace your phone anyway, you might want to look at this as a good alternative.

[Auntie Mame]

Thanks Mark.

Very interesting and helpful.

[VeniVidiVici]

Thanks for the tip!