Please help me find a decent smartphone

[PauletteG]

We have a featurephone and my spouse is eager to switch to T-Mobile.
I like everything about Motorola's Moto G EXCEPT that it does NOT have support for Band 12 LTE.
I have read that T-Mobile's band 12 makes phone calls over LTE only, meaning Voice over LTE must be supported by the end handset if that band 12 connection is to be able to complete calls.

So I would like to find a phone comparable to Motorola's Moto G, only it has support for Band 12 LTE, and can be used to send and receive calls and text messages to and from Canada. 

I went in one T-Mobile store today and heard loud, atrocious dance music. I couldn't make the connection between loud music & ideal environment for deciding on and paying for an electronic device I'd be committing the next five-plus years of my life to. Does that mean there is something wrong with me, or is it a corporate signal to customers: "if you don't notice the volume of the music, you won't care about the poor-to-average sound quality." Has anyone visited more than one cellular provider's retail storefront and can tell me if loud music is standard? 

As you can probably tell, I am a cranky geezer, but a Smart Spender which is why I am here. What are recommended reviews websites I can quietly, with only the hum of my furnace, research for phones under $200 that we can bring to (or if we have to, buy from) T-Mobile? Do you have a phone you purchased for under $200 that meets your needs?

(I am interested in Ting mobile service but I don't know that I can use a Ting phone in Canada.)

[Knee Deep in Water Chloe]

Sorry, I cannot help. We've been with Sprint for years and have had iPhones for the last four years. 
Good luck!

[Shooby]

I have an LG Stylo from Boost Mobile.  It works great.  I dumped Verizon and i previously had a Samsung Galaxy Note 2.  So, i am very pleased with it.  I also got DD one and she used to have a Samsung S4.

[andi9899]

I have a Samsung Galaxy something. It's not a number. I have owned Samsungs for years and love them. Thing 1 just got a new one and likes it.

[Anne_in_VA]

We have Galaxy 3's and really like them. We've had them for a couple of years now and I know they have newer versions, so you may want to look into the Samsung Galaxy phones. I don't know if they'll work in Canada though.

[The Walk of the Penguin Mich]

Nov 23, 2015 17:52:14 GMT -5 PauletteG said:

We have a featurephone and my spouse is eager to switch to T-Mobile.
I like everything about Motorola's Moto G EXCEPT that it does NOT have support for Band 12 LTE.
I have read that T-Mobile's band 12 makes phone calls over LTE only, meaning Voice over LTE must be supported by the end handset if that band 12 connection is to be able to complete calls.

So I would like to find a phone comparable to Motorola's Moto G, only it has support for Band 12 LTE, and can be used to send and receive calls and text messages to and from Canada. 

I went in one T-Mobile store today and heard loud, atrocious dance music. I couldn't make the connection between loud music & ideal environment for deciding on and paying for an electronic device I'd be committing the next five-plus years of my life to. Does that mean there is something wrong with me, or is it a corporate signal to customers: "if you don't notice the volume of the music, you won't care about the poor-to-average sound quality." Has anyone visited more than one cellular provider's retail storefront and can tell me if loud music is standard? 

As you can probably tell, I am a cranky geezer, but a Smart Spender which is why I am here. What are recommended reviews websites I can quietly, with only the hum of my furnace, research for phones under $200 that we can bring to (or if we have to, buy from) T-Mobile? Do you have a phone you purchased for under $200 that meets your needs?

(I am interested in Ting mobile service but I don't know that I can use a Ting phone in Canada.)

You can.  We did last summer, but not really sure how much extra the surcharge was for Canada.  Both TD and I have iPhone 6.