The Samsung Galaxy Phone Purchase Saga reaches its climax. I've made my choice and made the purchase, spending £450 less than I'd originally set aside. I'll have the new phone in my hands on Tuesday 19th January, only a few days ahead.
I had asked myself why was I looking at a super-expensive 2021 phone, when a reduced-priced one from last year would meet all my needs?
Why not the Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus from eleven months ago? It could take a micro-SD card up to 1TB, for oodles of extra storage. I could choose a really nice colour too. It would still be a 5G phone. It would still have a big screen and a big battery.
All boxes ticked then. And being last year's phone, the price had dropped significantly to £800. That's still a lot to pay, even for a very good phone. But much less than I might have paid.
I hadn't seriously considered buying the S20 Plus last year because, having finally repaid those irritating bank loans, I wanted to build up my savings. Which ruled out big tech purchases for a while. And in any case, it was too soon to replace my still-very-capable Galaxy S8 Plus from 2017. But the money was now in place, and Replacement Year had arrived.
I studied the online reviews and videos afresh. This looked like a very good bet. I could have it in Cloud Blue - that was a light iridescent blue, a summer hue, most attractive. Much nicer than the dull winter colours of early 2021.
Where to buy it from? Well, I did the obvious thing. I logged into Amazon, and bought it there. I enjoyed a quick and easy buying experience. Whatever else you might say about Amazon, they are user-friendly and efficient. I ignored the exhortations to join Amazon Prime and get free and almost-immediate delivery. I was happy to pay £5-odd and wait a few days.
So all the fun of unpacking and setting-up a new phone awaits me next week. Perfect lockdown amusement.
Will I still name the new phone Prudence? I might be inspired to use another name when I see the thing unpacked on the 19th. We'll see.
