Moto E | Unlocked | Made for

2 reviews for Moto E | Unlocked | Made for

1. 

   P. C (verified owner) – 11 January 2022

   – Battery life a little subpar, overall good value for money

2. 

   Rated 4 out of 5

   T. T (verified owner) – 29 January 2022

   Moto E (2020) Best Senior budget phone/ Detailed GSM & CDMA compatibility review/Dual VoLTE – Personally I wasn’t ready to buy a new smart phone. My 2016 Samsung J series phone as far as I was concerned continued to meet my needs as my basic everyday cell phone. However, my cell phone provider informed me that my older 3G version CDMA phone was no longer to be supported by T-Mobile/Sprint and I was left with no choice but to find a replacement. I use Tello which is an MVNO cell phone service . I pay around 12.00 a month for unlimited call/text service and 1 GB’s of fast data. The rest of the data I get free via WIFI or Hotspots. Consequently, paying much more than $100.00 for an unlocked phone seemed out of the question for me. I’m so grateful that I selected this Moto E (2020) phone and I think you will too. This budget phone came the closest to meeting all of the objectives I laid out and still kept me within my overall $100 price range. Maybe off by just a little bit… LOL. As you will soon see I’m a researcher by profession. It literally took months for me to evaluate budget cell phones as I didn’t want to switch my cell phone provider. However, If I did switch providers the Moto E (2020) gave me the most choices in choosing a new phone service versus any other budget phone sold out there in the market.. Basically I needed a phone that was VoLTE friendly and this phone is DUAL VoLTE friendly. I needed a phone that supported bands 66 and 71. Only this budget phone met that category in (GSM) and yet offered full (CDMA) compatibility as well. Budget phones for Samsung, One Plus, TCL , LG, Nokia, BLU, Oukitel etc… all of them failed miserably at the $100 price range let alone not offering the same number of frequency bands as the Moto E. Why then only 4 stars ? Sadly, this Moto E phone has an antiquated slow charging Micro USB adapter. ( SEE PIC ) This phone uses an LCD screen and the resolution display is adequate but not exceptional. Any senior whose used to pressing front and back arrows instead of swiping to change pages will find that difference annoying . Overall, it just takes some time getting used to it. However, on the positive side the phone is BIG. The screen is Easy to Read. It has a modern slim bezel more like an expensive upper scale smart phone. (SEE PIC) Although the phone is big , it’s still easy to hold in your hand. I’d strongly recommend though getting a phone case because of all the plastic components comprised in it. (SEE PIC ) Most importantly, and I can’t stress this enough is that the Moto E meets ALL the band requirements for GSM and CDMA compatibility when choosing most phone carriers. This includes all the Major Carriers – EXCEPT IN RARE INSTANCES MAYBE VERIZON AND THE MVNO’s LINKED TO THEM. For instance, the Verizon website by entering the IMEI/MEID # cites compatibility by saying ” it looks like your device the MOTO E Unlocked XT2052-1 is compatible.” However, it also states in smaller print “some devices may not support all features and services.” The Motorola corporate website confirms the Moto E (2020) is compatibility using Verizon including their MVNO’s. My research has uncovered that the Moto E phone also does work with most low cost MVNO’s including many cheaper upstarts out there like Red Pocket using only (GSM). Many of you out there I see like Cricket Wireless through AT&T. I put my IMEI # in with their checker tool and it came back with a Yes. Unfortunately Cricket thinks this device is a GIN Lite phone. Whatever that means? The Motorola corporate website states US Cellular which uses a CDMA network won’t work but yet the US Cellular compatibility tool asking only for my IMEI # says YES. A similar scenario applies to BOOST Mobile. The Motorola site says NO but when I enter the requested IMEI # in the Boost checker tool it says YES. I agree very confusing. I did figure out that the ” Pre Paid” plans are the only ones that seem to be the most restrictive when using the Moto E unlocked. This is likely the case for Boost which offers many Pre paid plan services. Such plans do differ from a “Pay as you Go” plan or an “MVNO.” They also seem to be the plans with no phone compatibility checker to confirm BYOP. Most negative reviews you’ll see here online center around services with these Prepaid plans. Lastly, make sure that any phone service you’re considering supports a Nano SIM card for your phone to operate. Just know that If you’re using an older cell phone with a Micro SIM card it will not fit. However, this alone shouldn’t be a problem. Most carriers provide a free SIM card or a new one at a very nominal cost. My phone didn’t come with a SIM tool so I easily used a paper clip to open the SIM door on the phone to enter mine. I know I threw a lot of information out there to digest in only a single review. However, I believe knowledge is the key in selecting the right phone and carrier service. I hate it when I make a wrong decision due to lack of information. I encourage all Seniors out there to ditch your flip phones and get yourself the Moto E (2020). It’s overall user friendly especially with Google Assistant. It’s 100 % compatible with MOST EVERY cell phone service carrier out there in the US. Soooo….. I guess if I go on any further I’m just beating a dead horse here… huh? LOL How can a Senior on a fixed budget go wrong with this purchase. It’s top rated by PC Magazine and Digital Trends. Check out their great reviews online. Heck, even a tightwad and proud of it, like consumer warrior Clark Howard loves Motorola phones. What’s that I hear ? Yes of course, AARP members can also take this phone to Consumer Cellular with no problem. That’s about it friends. I hope everyone enjoys their new phone. No matter which one you choose to buy 🙂

3. 

   J. M (verified owner) – 25 October 2022

   – Love it

4. 

   Rated 4 out of 5

   D. O (verified owner) – 21 November 2022

   Great First Phone! – This is an awesome first phone for kids!