Motorola E5 Play works with Public

[KamWest]

I bought the Motorola E5 Play from Chatr at Best Buy for $139 and Loblaws (Zehrs) has it for $129.

I was told the phone would be locked to chatr but that was not the case, I inserted the SIM card and it worked perfectly. I bought the phone for my son for Christmas but was shocked how nice it was. Fingerprint sensor and all the toys and no lag whatsoever. The Android One means it has no bloatware other than a couple of Motorola apps.

This phone is insanely good for the price and I own a Pixel 3 XL and I had no qualms trying the E5 for a days tesat drive.

In my opinion (and that of several review sites) the Motorola E5 Play is the best bang for the buck and will work flawlessly on Public Mobile.

[RobertQc]

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@KamWest wrote:

I bought two of these phones now, one for my mom and one for my 12 year old.

I cannot believe how nice this phone is for under $150 bucks.

It really makes me second guess spending over a thousand for a flagship again.

A mid range of some sort will probably be in my future moving forward, when you se what you can get for $150 it makes you second guess spending $1000+

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@KamWestFor your mom and 12 year old its probably the best phone in the world.For someone that has customized the phone with background processes and use extensions in the browser and play games etc the phone has only a Cortext A53, snapdragon 425/427 and adreno 308 with 2gb. It would be terribly slow. Almost unusable.But for a normal user this is a great phone and is more than sufficient.

[KamWest]

I bought two of these phones now, one for my mom and one for my 12 year old.

I cannot believe how nice this phone is for under $150 bucks.

It really makes me second guess spending over a thousand for a flagship again.

A mid range of some sort will probably be in my future moving forward, when you se what you can get for $150 it makes you second guess spending $1000+

[Yoasha]

Thanks for  valuble info.

[computergeek541]

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@KamWest wrote:

Yes but the E5 is $129 on sale and the one you mention will come over $235 after exchange. I figure my 12 year old will beat this phone up really fast and its easier to replace a $129 phone than one approaching $250.

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Feature-wise, cpu speed, ram, storage space. camera, you name it, the Nokia 6.1 is a much, much better phone than the Moto E5 Play.  For what you're able to do with the Moto E5 Play, it probably is better value for the money.  I'm just trying to give another option if you're willing to spending another $110-$120.

It's too bad the the E5 Play isn't being priced agressively as the $50 Moto E2 in 2015, the $60-$70 G4 Play in 2016, and the roughly $50 Moto E4 (Verizon model) from last year.

[Dunkgirl]

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@KamWest wrote:

Yes but the E5 is $129 on sale and the one you mention will come over $235 after exchange. I figure my 12 year old will beat this phone up really fast and its easier to replace a $129 phone than one approaching $250.

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@KamWestBuy a good rugged armor case and tempered glass screen protector, then the chances of your 12yr old breaking it are reduced greatly.

There are various different types, but a hybrid case, with a rubber inner liner then a hard outer shell are nearly indestrictible, the same design as the otter box but for less than $5 canadian https://www.ebay.ca/itm/163177637632

Tempered glass screen protectors are $1.99cad for 2 pack, shipped to your door.

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/372303947576

I drop every phone i ever had, and all the time I am so clumsy but never had a scratch on them, day 1 when I get a phone I make my own case (out of hot glue, youtube it) and leave the factory plastic film as the screen protector but cut off the peel edge. When my shipment comes from eBay I replace them but never had a mark on any of my phones even tho they get beat on pretty hard.

[KamWest]

Yes but the E5 is $129 on sale and the one you mention will come over $235 after exchange. I figure my 12 year old will beat this phone up really fast and its easier to replace a $129 phone than one approaching $250.

[computergeek541]

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@Carld123 wrote:

Good info..Im sure there are alot of others picking up phones for xmas...decent specs for a decent price..

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A Nokia 6.1 would also have good performance for the price, with some more higher-end specs and Android One as well.  It's more expensive than an E5 play, but right now, a Nokia 6.1 can be imported from the U.S. for $179 USD +Canadian GST/PST/HST.  https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1404213-REG/nokia_11pl2b11a07_6_1_2018_32gb_smartphone.html

[computergeek541]

The fact that the phone is already unlocked shouldn't be a surprise.  The Moto E5 Play is a model that was released this year.  Pretty much all phones manufactured this year to be sold by Canadain carriers are unlocked. This is because upon purchase, carriers would otherwise need to have to unlock it for you anyway.

Bell Mobility wants to start locking phones again and they say it's an anti-theft measure.  I'm not sure I beleive that because that's what the national blacklist is for.  I suspect it could be a ways for Bell to try to force activation on a plan.  Carriers really don't want a customer to be able to purchase a prepaid phone and then just take it to use at a different carrier.

[KamWest]

The Moto E5 updated to Android Pie almost immediately so the stock android is a great added benefit to assure fast software and security upgrades. 

[Psygineer]

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@will13am wrote:

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I am aware of that list which actually is outdated.  There is an LG G7 and Xiaomi Mi A2 which are android one, possibly more, but list is still short given the merits of the program.

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Both of those are actually listed on there, but I know what you mean as lists tends to lag until someone updates them. I'm still trying to figure out which is the better option, the current gen of the mainstream Android which I believe is still Android 9.0 or the Android One O/S variant. If you are looking at phone running stock of both O/S which would ultimately be better? It's been difficult to find comparisons because Android 1.0 keeps showing. Additionally, most of the articles I have read ultimately say very little other than saying that One is better than mainstream because LG, Samsung, etc. put bloatware/redundant apps/skins over it and then also may not bother to release updates when the O/S receives a version update/upgrade. If I am understanding it correctly, One is purer stock experience and therefore doesn't need the O/S customized by the phone manufacturer to suit their phones, but something like a Pixel 2/3 is running stock without all that so not sure if mainstream or One is ultimately the better user experience. I know One was meant as an entry level O/S for low-end phones, but that isn't the case anymore. 

[will13am]

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@KamWest wrote:

The guy at walmart that signed me up said the phone is easily unlocked by calling chatr but he was wrong. It is exactly as you said, the phone was unlocked from the get go.

As far as more phones go.... go to 

https://www.android.com/one/

Lots of great phones there with no bloatware.

That said, my son is going to love the Moto E5

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I am aware of that list which actually is outdated.  There is an LG G7 and Xiaomi Mi A2 which are android one, possibly more, but list is still short given the merits of the program.

[KamWest]

The guy at walmart that signed me up said the phone is easily unlocked by calling chatr but he was wrong. It is exactly as you said, the phone was unlocked from the get go.

As far as more phones go.... go to 

https://www.android.com/one/

Lots of great phones there with no bloatware.

That said, my son is going to love the Moto E5

[will13am]

@KamWest, there's no such thing as SIM locked phones anymore in Canada.  Android one phones are great for OS and update support.  Too bad there aren't more android one phones available.

[Carld123]

Good info..Im sure there are alot of others picking up phones for xmas...decent specs for a decent price..