New phone advice: Verzion, LTE, removable battery, microSD, FM Radio

[dale2381]

I was hoping to get some advice from the crowd here. My Droid Bionic is not doing too well. The last software update really was poor. I am looking for a new phone. It must be on the Verizon network 4G LTE. I want a removable battery, microSD card slot, and an FM tuner. If anyone knows of a good phone with these specs even if it hasn't been released yet please let me know. I was hoping for the LG G2 but the leaked manual apparently was false.

 

[B. Diddy]

Hard to go wrong with the Samsung Galaxy S3 or S4. The LG Spectrum 2 is another option. These phones have removable batteries, microSD slots, and 4G; however, none of them have FM tuners, which is a pretty rare feature these days. Most people can just use an app like Rdio or IHeartRadio to listen to live streams over the web.

 

[dale2381]

Thanks for the reply. I did know about those phones but the FM radio is very important. I use it at the gym to listen to the TV audio. Also, many sporting events get blacked out when streaming.

 

[B. Diddy]

Unfortunately, I don't think you're going to find FM radios in any of the newer phones. If it's that important to you, and you don't mind a phone that won't have the latest Android OS, check out some of these older phones on sale at DailySteals.com. The sale is only going on for another 2 days. The Droid X has an FM radio, but not sure if the battery is removable.

DailySteals.com

 

[kobe008]

The Droid X does have a removeable battery but it is only 3G. I do not know of any phones that meet your criteria. Most do not have the FM tuner anymore.

 

[garublador]

The Droid X has an FM radio, but not sure if the battery is removable.

It has a removable battery.

The problem is you're either going to sacrifice a lot with what you get for a phone (it won't be much, if any of an improvement over your Bionic) and get an FM radio, or have an awesome phone and have to spend $10 on a separate radio. Sure it's a bit inconvenient, but carrying a small radio to the gym isn't really that big of a deal. You also don't have to worry about accidentily wrecking your phone while working out.

 

[TheLibertarian]

That will be tough finding a device with both LTE and a FM radio.

Have you given those suggested apps a try? Tune In, IHeartRadio, etc. They're quite good.

FM radios have essentially gone the way of the physical keyboards as there's just no point anymore.

 

[B. Diddy]

The problem is you're either going to sacrifice a lot with what you get for a phone (it won't be much, if any of an improvement over your Bionic) and get an FM radio, or have an awesome phone and have to spend $10 on a separate radio. Sure it's a bit inconvenient, but carrying a small radio to the gym isn't really that big of a deal. You also don't have to worry about accidentily wrecking your phone while working out.

I agree. I don't like carrying my phone around in the gym, because (a) I'm afraid I'll drop it or drop something on it, (b) it's relatively bulky, and (c) I hate armbands. I actually prefer working out with my Zune HD (don't laugh, it still sounds great!), which is nice and lightweight, carries all of my music, and has FM radio.