Android prepaid phone as a phablet companion

[slackerinabox]

I know, I have a thread about this already but I think there might be other people in a similar boat so I thought I'd share. My original problem was that my huge iphone 6s+ made an awkward gym companion, and since my cheap gym was in the hood I was more than a bit worried about getting stabbed for a shiny apple product (Jamaica, NY gets rough). I wanted something small to just load up with music, and you geniuses recommended a cheapie best buy prepaid phone - the $15 lg optimus exceed 2 won.

Here's what was kinda unexpected - since the iPhone's fat battery allows me to tether all day anyways, I left my prepaid permanently tethered to my iPhone (I toggle on hotspot access on the iphone) and then installed Magic Jack (TWC Phone works as well, and is free as part of my cable bundle). When I'm in a rough hood or at the gym the LG is now 100% useful for most basic tasks, while my shiny new phone is tucked away. For $15, it's a nice way to keep up with gmail/facebook/candy crush make quick calls (skype would work too, i'm sure) while keeping my flagship tucked away. A 3.5" screen cheapie is also so much easier to use one handed on the subway. This is a very city concern so I'm sure some people think it's goofy to carry around 2 phones. I'm not sure if the tethering negates the screen on time reduction on the iphone, but the little lg has really killer battery life - 5% battery loss during my commute (vs 20%+ on my old s6 edge). It goes all day without problem, and I charge my iPhone pretty much as often as before. My next step would be to add bluetooth headphones that allow me to connect to two phones at once.

This is kinda silly for 99% of people, but my wife for example travels through some rough parts of the Bronx and Brooklyn on the subway - a woman whipping out a rose gold phone is basically a "mug me!" sign. I know some people who stick to flip phones because they don't want their flagships to get stolen. I had my cellphone stolen twice in Harlem (blackberrys even, who would steal a blackberry?).

 

[poofyhairguy]

What you want isn't that weird, how you hope to achieve it (tethering) is what I have never heard of before. Most people just make sure the cheap phone can work on the same network as the expensive one and then switch sims as needed.

 

[vi edit]

Stupid question...with the introduction of fingerprint scanners, GPS location services and various other security features what really is the value in stealing iphones any more?

 

[slackerinabox]

Stupid question...with the introduction of fingerprint scanners, GPS location services and various other security features what really is the value in stealing iphones any more?

I hear you, but the type of person who would stab someone for their phone is.. well.. less than rational. I'm also betting there's some ship back to China underground, chop shops and the like. It's more crimes of opportunity. The last time I got a phone stolen I was waiting for a client with my guard down reading email, and a punk on a bike zoomed by and snatched it. I doubt he had time to see the brand, just me in a tie and shiny. My wifes also a teacher in an inner city school. Her kids are great but there's like 4 schools in one complex, and stupid kids from broken homes who don't think things through.

 

[slackerinabox]

What you want isn't that weird, how you hope to achieve it (tethering) is what I have never heard of before. Most people just make sure the cheap phone can work on the same network as the expensive one and then switch sims as needed.

I suppose, but I bought a verizon prepaid (cdma prepaids are significantly cheaper) and didn't want to get into the whole unlocking/sim size conversion/etc. mess. This took 30 seconds to set up and no need to carry around paper clips. it really is so much better than trying to balance a phablet on the subway.