Topic Wiki

List of Many Flip Phones. (No smartphones)
A lot of the descriptions is my opinion.
Feel free to let me know if you differ, or if there is info missing/wrong.
Please like if this helps you.
Service plans for Flip phones-Click here.

Alcatel/TCL Go Flip (6)
Alcatel TCL Flip 2, From Tracfone or Amazon
TCL Classic 4058C, Sold on TCL
TCL Classic, From Cricket
TCL Flip Go, From UScellular
TCL Flip Go, From T-Mobile

Probably the successor to the LG Classic. $20 for the Tracfone version. Runs very well.
TAG can Kasher, Also @kosher_cellutions kashers, and there are people working on a free filter as well.

Update (9/22/22): A free talk/text filter is available. Filter with Waze (and maybe more) coming soon!

Not to be confused with the tcl 4056 phones which look the same but run KaiOs and are much buggier.

LG Exalt LTE VN220 – Verizon
•   Can be  koshered: Yes

Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)
•   ATT (3g),
•   T-Mobile (2g, bad reception)

One of the most popular flip phones. Well-known Brand. No button lag. Overall decent phone.
 No outside screen, awkward shape, delicate, suffers from durability issues
Not sold anymore. Street price is over $400.

LG Classic Flip L125 – Tracfone (DDF Topic)
•   Can be  koshered: Yes
Decent phone from a well-known manufacturer
Successor to the LG Exalt, this phone added an outside screen (!!!) and an SOS button. Camera was downgraded to 2mp from 5, and lost autofocus (think Kyocera Cadence res).  Screen and body were shrunk a little to make it a little less unwieldly to hold . . The street price of $30 is has jumped and it now hovering at about $150.

Compatible Networks;
•   Tracfone (and all Tracfone sub-carriers, like: Net10, Total Wireless, Wing and possibly more)

Koshering services;
•   http://kosherlgclassic.com/ (Talk Only $24.99 or Custom $29.99, strong)
•   http://filterlg.com/ (free, strong, but has limitation READ INSTRUCTIONS)
•   https://www.apps4flip.com/lgclassicflip/ (Remove apps with ADB, no reset protection)
•   Tag, Geder, and Meshumer locations can install a block as well

Probably the best quality phone from all the cheap (you can get it for like $30) phones, but the big limitation is that it's carrier locked to Tracfone carriers and cannot be used with normal Verizon plans or other Verizon MVNOs, Until it has active service for a year two months.

LG Wine LTE (U.S. Cellular)
Can be  koshered: Yes

Same as the LG Exalt LTE but works with ATT 4g. Not compatible with Verizon (small changes  like different messaging app and fm radio) Also not sold. Replaced by the LG Wine 2 LTE

LG Wine 2 LTE (U.S. Cellular)
Not applicable


Kyocera Cadence LTE S2720 & S2720PP
•   Can be  koshered: Yes

Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)
•   ATT (3g),
•   T-Mobile (2g, bad reception)
PP Version must be unlocked before using with Verizon Postpaid/Other Networks

Overall solid phone by somewhat reputable brand. Has an outer screen to show show who is calling, but lacks video camera & playback. Camera quality could be better. Durability is pretty good. Software update finally fixed some t9 input issues Overall solid kosherable option. Also not sold by Verizon anymore. Street price of about $250

Kyocera DuraXV LTE E-4610
•   Can be  koshered: Yes

Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)
•   ATT (3g),
•   T-Mobile (2g, bad reception)

Similar to Kyocera Cadence above but in a slightly bigger, rugged package. And added video playback capability. Great choice if you can find a good one.

Kyocera DuraXV Extreme E-4810
MSRP: $240

•   Can be  koshered: Yes

Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)
•   ATT (3g),
•   T-Mobile (4g)

Successor to the DuraXV above. More rugged, Thicker, Heavier. Now with USB-C!
Message+ Replaced with a slower clunkier messaging app.

Kazuna eTalk
•   Can be  koshered: Yes

Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)

A cheap prepaid phone made by a company that has a Chinese website. Can be purchased for under $40 but must be activated in the prepaid network to work. Has poor reviews but seems to be an okay phone/operating system. Sluggish response to key presses. Cheap build quality


Alcatel Go Flip V
MSRP: $99

•   Can be  koshered: Yes

Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)

Slow & buggy Verizon phone. Changes back to ABC instead of T9 every time you create a new message, and no way to add words to t9 dictionary. Button presses take a while to register. Poor Quality. Seems to be a bit better than the competition in the "Easy to buy straight from Verizon" category


Orbic Journey V
MSRP: $99

•   Can be  koshered: Yes

Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)

Another no-name brand with a slow buggy phone. Extremely poor quality. Avoid.


Schok Classic Flip
MSRP: $99 Available at Target

•   Can be  koshered: Yes (Tag-No, Meshimer-Yes)

Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)
•   ATT (4g),
•   T-Mobile (4g)

A large, highly compatible flip phone from a company that at least looks like its trying. Finally a viable T-Mobile option. Nice display, Impressive camera, and USB-C  docking/charging. Feels laggy and a bit buggy sometimes. A little bit more smatphone-ish than others as it has a, sometimes convoluted , Google Play store and a Virtual Mouse to input touches on apps. Software updates keep improving the phone so there is hope…

NUU Phone
Compatible Networks;
Verizon (4g)
ATT (4g)
T-Mobile (4g)
Cheap price, cheap quality. Buttons seem to wear out pretty quickly.

Alcatel Go Flip ATT  T-MOBILE
Sorry  don’t have exact models all the iterations of these.
Old version- Horrible. Contacts and calling app broken
New Version Go Flip 3- Big improvement
Has Google maps and assistant, will be removed when koshered though.
There is a cricket version that was advertised on Dansdeals.com already koshered on ebay for $60 seems to be okay.
Many many different iterations of these. Some can be filtered. Some cannot. Most are bad phones.

Coolpad Snap
4g Sprint Flip Phone. Bad Phone. Can’t be koshered

ZTE Cymbal
Different versions for Verizon prepaid and T-Mobile. Phone is Okay, Can’t be koshered, But available to buy already kosher in Lakewood.

Sonim xp3800
Compatible Networks;
Verizon (4g)
ATT (4g)
Unlocked versions available

Great phone, similar to the Kyocera DuraXV series
Can be kashered by TAG

Sunbeam
Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)
•   ATT (4g),
•   T-Mobile (4g)

Can be purchased kashered by TAG
Has a very good voice-to-text option @ $5 a month

Ans F30 Kosher
Offered by meshimer
Compatible Networks;
•   Verizon (4g)

Fig Kosher flip
Sold koshered

Nokia 6300 4G GSM
Sold koshered

Compatible Networks;
•   ATT (4g)
•   T-Mobile (4g)

Other niche options you may want to look into, and up and coming:

Keyphone  https://keyphone.tech
Mindphone  https://greentouchstore.com/pages/mind
Light phone ii $350 E-ink phone   https://www.thelightphone.com]T-Mobile
Punkt MP02    https://www.punkt.ch/en/products/mp02-4g-mobile-phone/

In Short (for most people)

Verizon- Find the Kyocera Cadence or Kyocera DuraXV E-4610
ATT- Schok /Alcatel Go Flip 3/Kyocera Cadence
T-Mobile- Schok /Alcatel Go Flip 3/
Sprint- Get a new service. You’re getting cheap service without a device to use it on

Site that allow you to search based on features and network -
https://dumbphones.pory.app/

Why is there so many garbage phones?
Why are the big brands reluctant to make decent phones?
Why did LG and Kyocera stop making such popular devices? 
Did Verizon ask for cheaper phones to make them more accessible? To make an even bigger profit?
And why can’t we get some normal phones like the old 3g devices? LG Revere, Samsung Gusto, etc. Durable, solid, reliable, NO BUGS! Maybe even… dare I ask for… a qwerty keyboard!
Why do people use sprint if there’s no phones?
What will happen to all the active old sprint 3g devices after T-Mobile/Sprint merger?

Full Disclosure: I currently use an LG OCTANE 3g Verizon Keyboard Phone and I love it. That’s gonna have to change by the end of 2020… but if you put things into perspective, that’s AFTER the November elections. Who knows if Trump will even be president?

I would love if someone knows the answers to some of these questions.

UPDATE: I switched to the Kyocera Cadence and overall, its pretty good.
I also have answers to my questions. To be very brief:
Real operating systems cost $$$$ and no one is willing to put in that much for a basic phone. They all use android (free) Or KaiOS (free and terrible) which dont come readily set up for a flip and have to be "stuffed in". Fulll android+cheapest hardware= Mess
Its hard for small companies to make their own phone due to the massive costs of certification approval and similar.


Author Topic: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE  (Read 470801 times)

Offline sillypainter

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #240 on: October 24, 2018, 10:29:17 PM »
Cymbal is a piece of junk and its built on Android, but it's a stripped down version of Android, don't think you can use any Android app.

Offline Yisroel Tech

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #241 on: October 24, 2018, 10:46:56 PM »
Cymbal is a piece of junk and its built on Android, but it's a stripped down version of Android, don't think you can use any Android app.
There's the Cymbal LTE and the Cymbal-T, 2 completely different devices. The first is a Verizon feature phone based on Android, the 2nd one is a Tracfone full Android filp-phone.

There is the Cymbal LTE:


And this is the Cymbal-T:

Offline US

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #242 on: October 24, 2018, 11:25:17 PM »


Are these the only 2 options for Verizon 4G flip phones?

LG VN220
Kyocera cadence


ZTE. not sure the model

This

There is the Cymbal LTE:



Offline real-brisker

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #243 on: October 25, 2018, 08:25:01 AM »
I never used the Galaxy Folder to compare, but I own - not using much just as a toy... - a Cymbal-T and it is decent.

While the phone is sold as Tracfone Prepaid it seems to be fully compatible with Verizon's network, you gotta understand that Tracfone is just an MVNO using different carriers for different phone models, but you still might have a hard time to got Verizon to activater it (see https://www.frequencycheck.com/carrier-compatibility/7Nj1HV/zte-z353vl-cymbal-t-lte/verizon-wireless-united-states)
did you. Activate yours on vzw? What do you mean they may give a hard time?

Offline Yisroel Tech

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #244 on: October 25, 2018, 08:28:25 AM »
did you. Activate yours on vzw? What do you mean they may give a hard time?
I did not.

Taken from online info and experience in the past with different devices. If the device is not officially a VZW device (the IMEI is probably registered for Tracfone) VZW might not activate - or at least not easily - the phone. Since this device uses a SIM, if you can get the SIM active in another phone you might be able to switch it to this.

Offline bznt

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #245 on: October 25, 2018, 08:31:04 AM »
The cymbal LTE is a very slow responding phone. If you have a few hundred contacts, it will take at least 30 seconds every time you open the contacts in order for you to be able to search.
When you want to make a call, you can’t just start typing the phone number. You have to open the dialer app and then dial and call it’s very annoying

Offline mgarfin

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #246 on: October 25, 2018, 09:15:04 AM »
I never used the Galaxy Folder to compare, but I own - not using much just as a toy... - a Cymbal-T and it is decent.

While the phone is sold as Tracfone Prepaid it seems to be fully compatible with Verizon's network, you gotta understand that Tracfone is just an MVNO using different carriers for different phone models, but you still might have a hard time to got Verizon to activater it (see https://www.frequencycheck.com/carrier-compatibility/7Nj1HV/zte-z353vl-cymbal-t-lte/verizon-wireless-united-states)

Other Verizon MVNOs should be good, correct?

Offline real-brisker

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #247 on: October 25, 2018, 09:21:13 AM »
The cymbal LTE is a very slow responding phone. If you have a few hundred contacts, it will take at least 30 seconds every time you open the contacts in order for you to be able to search.
When you want to make a call, you can’t just start typing the phone number. You have to open the dialer app and then dial and call it’s very annoying
which cymbal are you talking about?

Offline bznt

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #248 on: October 25, 2018, 09:24:25 AM »
which cymbal are you talking about?
The Cymbal LTE. The one that looks like a feature phone
Not the cymbal -T

Offline Yisroel Tech

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #249 on: October 25, 2018, 10:28:10 AM »
Other Verizon MVNOs should be good, correct?
In regard to supported bands, certainly. But might be the same problem with actually getting them to give you service for this IMEI

Offline ilherman

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #250 on: October 25, 2018, 11:07:46 AM »
It seems that Tracfone doesn't offer unlimited talk plans. Does that make sense?
You can say what you think when you think what you say.

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #251 on: October 25, 2018, 11:35:54 AM »
It seems that Tracfone doesn't offer unlimited talk plans. Does that make sense?
Correct

Offline ilherman

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #252 on: October 25, 2018, 11:58:45 AM »
Seems like you can get in vie Total Wireless as well. And they do offer unlimited plans.
You can say what you think when you think what you say.

Offline Yisroel Tech

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #253 on: October 25, 2018, 02:22:43 PM »
Seems like you can get in vie Total Wireless as well. And they do offer unlimited plans.
Total Wireless, which BTW is a TracFone company, and so is Page Plus, so you might get it to work on them as well...

Offline ilherman

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #254 on: October 25, 2018, 02:56:06 PM »
Total Wireless, which BTW is a TracFone company, and so is Page Plus, so you might get it to work on them as well...
Im saying that the phone is actually sold with total wireless prepaid service.
You can say what you think when you think what you say.

Offline herb

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #255 on: November 18, 2018, 10:39:46 PM »
lg exalt or Kyocera cadence from verizon? anyone have any experience with either one or how they compare?

Offline ilherman

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #256 on: November 25, 2018, 03:47:54 AM »
There's the Cymbal LTE and the Cymbal-T, 2 completely different devices. The first is a Verizon feature phone based on Android, the 2nd one is a Tracfone full Android filp-phone.

There is the Cymbal LTE:


And this is the Cymbal-T:

So I got the Cymbal-T.

It's indeed running on the 4G network, but there's no option as far as I can tell to activate VoLTE.

In this case does it mean that in regards to phone calls, the phone will run on the 3G network? (which sucks...)
You can say what you think when you think what you say.

Offline real-brisker

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #257 on: November 25, 2018, 08:52:24 AM »
I tried activating cymbal t too on Verizon. Only outbound voice worked. But inbound didn't work.

Offline real-brisker

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #258 on: November 25, 2018, 08:53:22 AM »
So I got the Cymbal-T.

It's indeed running on the 4G network, but there's no option as far as I can tell to activate VoLTE.

In this case does it mean that in regards to phone calls, the phone will run on the 3G network? (which sucks...)
were you able to get inbound voice over 3g to work?

Offline ilherman

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Re: REVIVE THE FLIP PHONE
« Reply #259 on: November 25, 2018, 10:29:45 AM »
were you able to get inbound voice over 3g to work?
I activated it over total wireless.

Have you activated it on this phone or you just took a working sim from other Verizon phone and inserted it into this phone?
You can say what you think when you think what you say.