Should I buy a 3GS?

[friskies64]

I have a Palm Pre 2 right now and like it a lot, but my friend gave me an iPhone 3G for free and I jailbroke and unlocked it to use it as my main phone on T-Mobile for a week. I like having more applications available, but the iPhone 3G is soooooooooooooo slow. I have to wait 20 seconds to type a tweet sometimes or other basic tasks. I was considering buying a faster iPhone, but don't want to pay a lot (my goal is under $200, I'm kind of cheap). I watched some videos and saw a relatively small difference between the 3GS and the 4, but a large difference between the 3G and 3GS. My question is if I should buy a 3GS now or wait for the 4 to drop in price (they are going for upwards of $300 now). Also, I was wondering if anybody has any experience with the quality of the Gamestop refurbished iPhones. I can get a refurbished 8GB 3GS for $143.99 there. My concerns are scratches, dents, and cracks (I absolutely hate those). Is that a good option or should I look elsewhere?

Thanks for any help!

 

[Garz]

The 3GS doesn't run well on iOS 5 due to the lack of RAM. At least get a i4 but would recommend a 4S.

 

[Eileen89]

My old 3GS that my daughter is now using got slightly slower after we updated to iOS 5. As was mentioned above, I would skip the 3GS and go for the iPhone 4.


Sent from my iPhone 4S using Tapatalk.

 

[friskies64]

Is the speed of the 3GS on iOS 5 horrendous? Is it as slow as the 3G on 4.2.1? I would like something that is at least usable in terms of speed and can multitask without slowing down. If it is still a lot faster than the 3G on 4.2.1, I'm fine with it.

 

[Eileen89]

Is the speed of the 3GS on iOS 5 horrendous? Is it as slow as the 3G on 4.2.1? I would like something that is at least usable in terms of speed and can multitask without slowing down. If it is still a lot faster than the 3G on 4.2.1, I'm fine with it.

I wouldn't say it is horrendous, however, I definitely noticed a lag after the update compared to my iPhone 4.


Sent from my iPhone 4S using Tapatalk.

 

[Garz]

Is the speed of the 3GS on iOS 5 horrendous? Is it as slow as the 3G on 4.2.1? I would like something that is at least usable in terms of speed and can multitask without slowing down. If it is still a lot faster than the 3G on 4.2.1, I'm fine with it.

I would say yes or if not close. The 256 RAM the 3GS has is not enough to power iOS 5.

 

[friskies64]

I wouldn't say it is horrendous, however, I definitely noticed a lag after the update compared to my iPhone 4.


Sent from my iPhone 4S using Tapatalk.

I found a Youtube video comparing iOS 5 on both the 3GS and 4 and there was minimal difference: iPhone 3Gs iOS 5 vs iPhone 4 iOS 5 - YouTube

This is why I was wondering if it's worth the wait for the iPhone 4 to drop in price on eBay or Craigslist. The screen doesn't bother me on the 3GS.

 

[daf1892]

3gs is my first iPhone (running iOS5)

Have to say since moving over from BB I am very happy with it, if you're not that bothered about having the latest all singing and dancing tech then it's a great phone to use.

Haven't really noticed any lag on it, though haven't played with a 4 or 4s to notice the difference. Everything I have purchased runs fine on it and haven't come across any issues or shutdown's etc..

 

[Eileen89]

I found a Youtube video comparing iOS 5 on both the 3GS and 4 and there was minimal difference: iPhone 3Gs iOS 5 vs iPhone 4 iOS 5 - YouTube

This is why I was wondering if it's worth the wait for the iPhone 4 to drop in price on eBay or Craigslist. The screen doesn't bother me on the 3GS.

I suppose every iPhone is different. The lag isn't terrible, I just noticed that it ran a little slower after the update compared to my iPhone 4. If you're not bothered by it then go for the 3GS.


Sent from my iPhone 4S using Tapatalk.

 

[friskies64]

3gs is my first iPhone (running iOS5)

Have to say since moving over from BB I am very happy with it, if you're not that bothered about having the latest all singing and dancing tech then it's a great phone to use.

Haven't really noticed any lag on it, though haven't played with a 4 or 4s to notice the difference. Everything I have purchased runs fine on it and haven't come across any issues or shutdown's etc..

How do some games that you downloaded run? Temple Run on my 3G is practically unplayable (it lags a lot).

 

[daf1892]

Temple run plays fine for me, 2.5m score with no real lag

Played things like galaxy on fire, GTA, Fifa, Real Football etc... and can't say I've noticed any lag during gameplay, from time to time it does take a few seconds extra to load the game initially to load but once you start playing its fine.

Personally I haven't noticed anything lacking to justify upgrading to the 4/4s at the moment

 

[friskies64]

Well, I think I'll go with a 3GS, but what are the chances that I'll get one with an unlockable baseband from Gamestop?

 

[Phil DeLong]

Well, I think I'll go with a 3GS, but what are the chances that I'll get one with an unlockable baseband from Gamestop?

Gamestop is just a reseller, it's a crapshoot.

 

[friskies64]

I got my 3GS in the mail yesterday from Fleabay and it is nice. It is so much faster than the 3G was, even on iOS 5. I get a couple momentary lags, but I did on my Pre 2 as well, so it isn't a big deal.

 

[friskies64]

Can you describe more about your 3GS, I would like to buy it next week.

What would you like to know?

 

[Tony the Tiger]

I bought an iPhone 3GS from GameStop for my brother. It had no visible scratches and it works perfectly on iOS 5 and it seems on par with the speed of my iPhone 4.

 

[friskies64]

I bought an iPhone 3GS from GameStop for my brother. It had no visible scratches and it works perfectly on iOS 5 and it seems on par with the speed of my iPhone 4.

I think the 3GS runs iOS 5 just fine. The only thing I would want the iPhone 4 for would be the better battery. But the 3GS battery is fine as long as I don't play games (not much of a set back).

 

[Tony the Tiger]

The battery on my brother's 3GS is a little lacking though, but not really that bad.

 

[friskies64]

The battery on my brother's 3GS is a little lacking though, but not really that bad.

I just ordered a Zagg Sparq since I got it relatively cheap and it can charge the iPhone 4 times on a single charge supposedly. It should come in the mail really soon. Hopefully it helps since the battery in my 3GS is kind of old.

 

[Eskemo30]

How do some games that you downloaded run? Temple Run on my 3G is practically unplayable (it lags a lot).

Temple run works fine on my 3GS. I run iOS 5.1.1