I thought I'd write a short phone review and a quick update on Boost Mobile locking my phone. I guess, sometimes it pays to be a pain in the ass and a bit of a Karen. 😆 A few weeks ago I wrote about Boost Mobile locking my phone after being a customer for close to 4 years. Three weeks later they finally straightened out the issue.
@the-bitcoin-dood/boost-mobile-locked-my-phone-and-other-customer-service-nightmares
If you don't feel like reading an entire article, the X version goes like this. "Was a customer for almost 4 years. Had a short 3 day lapse in service 10 months ago due to an expired credit card. When I went to change my phone service I couldn't because of a time constraint set by Boost."
So because of that short 3 day lapse, they claimed I needed 12 straight months of uninterrupted service to unlock my phone. Apparently, it didn't matter that I had 3 years of uninterrupted service prior to my credit card expiring.
I did an AI prompt on Google and it suggested I notify the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and also file a claim with the FCC. Apparently this phone locking business is common with these companies and they're trying to crack down on it.
So I did just that. This morning I got a message from the BBB saying to turn on the phone and it would be unlocked in the next 72 hours. When I checked later in the day, it was already unlocked.
I guess all is well that ends well, but what a way to end a business relationship after close to 4 years. I still wouldn't refer anyone to them now. Sadly, I was really happy with the service up until that point. The whole thing just rubbed me the wrong way.
The other reason I was so upset, was it was the first time I bought an expense mobile phone. Even though it was almost 4 years old, it's still a really great device. Thinking that I couldn't use it anymore, I ordered a cheaper Motorola 5G 2023 refurbished phone. I used that for the last 3 weeks. It was an Amazon order, and to my delight, I discovered, it was still within the return time frame! So, I popped the sim card in my old phone. It worked fine, then I did a factory reset on the new phone and sent it back.
I actually felt bad about returning this device. Had it been better than what I already had, I would have kept it. The bottom line was the old phone had 3x the amount of storage, twice as much memory, and much better camera. So the Motorola got sent back.
With that said, here's a quick review for anyone thinking about buying one of these.
I'll start with, I really didn't want another Motorola phone after my experience with the Moto Z2. This is the second Motorola phone I've purchased. I wasn't super crazy about the first one I bought. I hated the camera on the Z2 and I had serious issues with over-heating. I'm happy to report that wasn't the case this time around. The only reason I went with the Moto 5G was because it had good reviews and it was the cheapest phone I could find with decent reviews.
I'm happy to report that I didn't have as bad of heat issues as I had with the Z2. The Moto 5G ran a little warm with heavy use, but for the most part stayed cool. I'd have to take the Z2 out of my pocket because it would get so hot. So there wasn't a heat issue this time around.
The camera on the Moto 5G is a huge improvement from the Z2 as well. It wasn't as nice as the camera on the phone it replaced though. Again, another reason why I returned it. Heavy camera use and video also seemed to make the phone run a little warm.
The battery on the 5G was surprisingly strong, especially for a refurbished phone. The charge time was a little slow but the battery lasted throughout the day. Sometimes I'd go 2 or 3 days without charging it. If Motorola could just straighten out the heat issues. The batteries are great as far as longevity.
Software ran decent. It came pre-packaged with some games. I'd play a Tetris style knockoff game on it from time to time. Besides that, the usual 2FA software, contacts, gmail, shopping apps. Everything ran fine on it. Occasionally it would seem a little clunky and slow loading. Again, for the price nothing to bothersome. It was actually a really decent phone for the price.
Still, I had over-heating paranoia from my first Motorola experience. The Z2 literally died the same day my new phone arrived. A day later and it would have been a proper mess.
The other thing was that it seemed slow compared to my expensive phone. Apps took time to load, web pages loaded slow. I'd go to the same web pages with the 5G as I did with my expensive phone and the load time was really noticeable. Especially when visiting CoinMarketCap or loading crypto charts.
For the price, I'd recommend the Moto 5G refurbished. It was a decent phone, with a decent camera, at a decent price. Like I said at the start, had I not had an expensive phone with three times the storage and twice the memory. I would have had no problem, keeping this one. The camera isn't as nice as the camera on my expensive phone, but it still took really nice pictures.
For a basic smart phone in the under $100 category, I really don't think you could find anything better. Had I not had something better already, I would have kept this one for sure. Motorola really needs to work on the heat issues though. Whenever I did any basic gaming or video work, the phone would get warm, not hot, but noticeably warm.
With that said, I'm sad to see it go, but I'm delighted I got my old phone back. Shame on you Boost Mobile for giving me such a hard time. Thank you BBB and FCC for handling the issue for me. Thank you Amazon for having an awesome return policy!
If you ever have a phone locked by the network provider, file a complaint with the BBB and FCC. Apparently this is common practice with these phone companies and the FCC is trying to put an end to it!
For security reasons I kept the name of the old phone private. It's a crypto thing. When I finish with it, I'll post a short review about it. That is all and thanks for reading :)
