Is there a single GSM cellphone under $200 that meets the bare minimum specs?

Question

In another thread, we established bare-minimum specs for a starter Android phone (for a kid) to be the following:

BARE MINIMUM SPECS:

Carrier = (your personal choice)
OS = Android 4.0 or better (for app compatibility)
CPU = 1GHz single core
Internal memory = 1 GB (is this the same thing as ROM?)
RAM = 512 MB
Screen = 800x480 pixels
Connectivity = WiFi, Bluetooth, & microUSB
Price < 0 (your personal choice)

My personal choices on #0 and #8 above are that I'm on a T-Mobile family "Value Plan"; and, I don't want data for my kid (so WiFi is important since she will only be using the Internet at home).

I had bought a T-Mobile Android phone for my grade-school kid, but it turned out to be woefully inadequate for some of the first things we tried to do with it: a. We couldn't install Talkatone (Google Play refused to upload it) b. We couldn't install Temple Run 2 (Google Play wouldn't do it) c. We couldn't upgrade the Android OS (no upgrades are available)

So, we definitely *know* these specs are inadequate:

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Carrier = T-Mobile (this is, of course, your personal choice)
OS = Android 2.3
CPU = 823 MHz Broadcom BCM21553
Internal memory = 512 MB (why don't people just call this ROM?)
RAM = 512 MB
Screen = 480x320 pixels
Connectivity = WiFi, Bluetooth, & microUSB
Price = (this is, of course, your personal choice)

I created a T-Mobile account, and looked at EVERY phone they sell for those on the family "Value Plan", and NONE (so far) seem to meet these minimum specs above!

I originally had a price point of $100, but, I've had to double that, just to have 3 phones to consider.

Here are the dozen Android phones T-Mobile will sell me as of today: (priced low-to-high, with only "Android" checked as a filter): a. Samsung Dart id $72 + ~$7 CA tax & fees ~= $80 b. T-Mobile Prism II is $116 + ~$12 CA tax & fees = ~$130 c. Samsung Gravity Q is $154 + ~$15 CA tax & fees ~= ~$170 d. LG Optimus L9 is $240.00 + ~$24 CA tax & fees ~= $265 e. Samsung Galaxy Exhibit is $236 + ~$23 CA tax & fees ~= $260 f. T-Mobile myTouch Q is $260 +~$26 CA tax & fees ~= $285 g. Samsung Galaxy SII is $336.00 + ~$33 CA tax & fees ~= $370 h. Nexus 4 is $428 + ~$42 CA tax ~= $470 i. Samsung Galaxy SIII LTE is $530 +~$53 CA tax & fees ~= $580 j. Samsung Galaxy S4 is $580 +~$58 CA tax & fees ~= $630 k. HTC One is $580 +~$58 CA tax & fees ~= $630 l. Samsung Galaxy Note II is $650 +~$65 CA tax & fees ~= $715

Unfortunately, NONE of them meet the bare minimum specs until you get way past the $200 price point!

Samsung Dart

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Carrier = T-Mobile
OS = Android 2.2

Eddie Powalski · Accepted Answer

Here's how the next three of the dozen phones from T-Mobile stack up against the bare-minimum specs we've established in a prior thread:

Samsung Galaxy Exhibit

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Carrier = T-Mobile (my choice)
OS = Android 4.1.2

Cary · Answer

I like the Samsung Galaxy Exhibit better than the LG Optimus L9 mainly because it has a much better screen and better Wi-Fi and usability is better with the later Android phone os.

nobody · Answer

The L9 screen is larger and has higher resolution. How is the Wi-Fi better?

And the L9 is available with a hefty discount. I don't see the Exhibit at anything but list price. The reviews I find rate the L9 higher than the Exhibit.

Cary · Answer

The Exhibit is newer. So it must be better since the L9 is old by now.

Bert · Answer

Now, that's interesting. --  	St. Paul, MN

nobody · Answer

Great logic.  Is a new Is a new Kia better than a year old Mercedes? Must be. It's newer. Or maybe you ought o consider what you are getting interms of function. And again, how is the Wi-Fi better?

Is there a single GSM cellphone under $200 that meets the bare minimum specs?

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