Question Looking for a phone for my mother in law…

[bob4432]

Looking for a phone for my mil. I need one that is a dumb phone but with a qwerty keyboard so she can text as she does that a lot, either out all the time or a slider. No smart phone, she is 80 so the simpler the better. Please advise

 

[BoomerD]

Looking for a phone for my mil. I need one that is a dumb phone but with a qwerty keyboard so she can text as she does that a lot, either out all the time or a slider. No smart phone, she is 80 so the simpler the better. Please advise

At 80, how's her dexterity with the tiny keyboards?

 

[bob4432]

She does good.

 

[lxskllr]

What about a smart phone with a simplified launcher? Samsung used to have the option on older phones. Dunno if they still do. There's 3rd party launchers also.

 

[bob4432]

It has to be a dumb phone, she doesn’t need the abilities of a smart phone - Gambling issues…

 

[manly]

I thought they don't exist now, but apparently Unihertz (whoever that is) makes something for around $300 lol.

Jomo | Top Dumb Phones with a QWERTY Keyboard

Discover the best dumb phones with QWERTY keyboards for texting and productivity without distractions. Perfect for a simpler, more focused lifestyle!

jomo.so

 

[bob4432]

Thanks, I picked her up a Nokia C3-00. Hopefully she will like it as it covers the basics and then some.

 

[manly]

Thanks, I picked her up a Nokia C3-00. Hopefully she will like it as it covers the basics and then some.

Sorry, I didn't mention those Nokias look quite ancient and may not even support LTE???
Please double check, and cancel the order if necessary.

 

[skriefal]

Thanks, I picked her up a Nokia C3-00. Hopefully she will like it as it covers the basics and then some.

The Nokia C3-00 is a 2G phone. It won't work in USA on a cellular network.

 

[bob4432]

What about the E72?

 

[skriefal]

The E72 is 2G & 3G. Unlikely to work in USA.

GSM Arena shows 20 4G-capable phones with QWERTY keyboards:

Phone Finder results - GSMArena.com

www.gsmarena.com

All are discontinued models. Physical QWERTY keyboards are pretty much non-existent these days, other than maybe that Unihertz model mentioned above.

As always, be careful of phones with batteries that aren't consumer-replacable. Most may be old enough that the battery also couldn't be replaced by phone repair places.

All of those are also "smart" to some degree. And would need to be locked down, given your statements above.

You'd also need to find one of those that supports VoLTE (voice over 4G). Some early 4G phones needed to drop back to 2G or 3G for phone calls, and you don't want that.

 

[skriefal]

Also there are mini bluetooth keyboards like this:

https://www.amazon.com/LILYGO-T-Keyboad-Low-Power-Bluetooth-Development/dp/B0CWP559HH/

But there's a fair chance that it would be forgotten / left behind quickly.

 

[bob4432]

I have an E72 inbound so hopefully it will work. My mil likes these phones and my wife and I like her on them because of what I mentioned previously, plus she is 80, teaching her a smartphone now is, well, you know. I thought 3g still worked in the US.

Thanks for the suggestion about the mini keyboard but it may last a week tops

 

[bob4432]

Thanks for all the help, looks like full keyboard is not in the cards, now off to look for a 4G Nokia with 1-0 keyboard….

 

[skriefal]

I thought 3g still worked in the US.

The three primary cell providers have all shut down their 3G equipment. All but T-Mobile have also shut down their 2G equipment, with T-Mobile shutting down their remaining bits of 2G "any day now."

There may be a few small regional carriers who still have 2G or 3G equipment active. Like Union Wireless (Wyoming) or other small-guy operations. But they may no longer allow 2G or 3G phones to be activated. And even if they do allow it, expect that equipment to be shut down in the next year or two. Or for those small carriers to die in a similar timeline.

 

[bob4432]

I have a Nokia E72 US Version inbound, hopefully it will work 🤞