We buy Otterbox cases, so dropping on the ground has not (yet) been a problem. There's probably no warranty for "I left it on the bus"!

I just bought an iPhone SE from Wal-Mart for $159, to use with a no contract Straight Talk plan that costs $35 a month. That's as cheap as I've seen available for an iPhone.

flea, certain credit cards have lost or stolen goods coverage, if you pay for the item with that card. You may want to investigate if any of your cards offer it as a perk. It's not super long--90-120 days I think, but it may prevent at least 1 hit to your wallet.

The free phone promos have gone the way of the dodo bird. The trade-off is that plans are (theoretically) cheaper. Used phones are certainly an option, but as Teppy said, make sure they're compatible with your carrier. The $15 per month for 2 years on a new phone is essentially a no-interest payment plan. You're paying the same price as you would upfront, which puts the U.S. in line with the rest of the world. (My Italian family was amazed that we could get free phones, but then they saw how much we paid per month for service and laughed.) iPhones are unfortunately the most expensive phones out there.

edit: What Matt did may work for you. Don't activate it on Straight Talk though; take the phone into Verizon and have them activate it on your plan.

I got my iPhone used from a local fix it guy. He takes trades in and does refurb work. Worth asking around.

I survived the doctor! We negotiated which referrals I would go for and settled on about a 3rd of what he wanted. He was pretty funny, said he wouldn't bother with one of the tests because I would just refuse to take statins anyway. Guess he is learning. I'll see what my blood looks like later, probably before he does since I have access to the system and will check often.

Depending on how strongly you feel about staying with Verizon, T-Mobile's Jump insurance does cover lost and stolen as well as broken. You might want to see if it's feasible, especially since they get way cheap with multiple lines (grumble, grumble, no special plans for single with no kids. Jerks).

Timelies all!

Serious thunderstorms here. Of course the heaviest rain was when I was trying to get to my car.(in a parking structure, but on the top level)

The closest thing I have to a vacation is planning to go to my Aunt's memorial service in NJ in two weeks. I have a feeling no relative is going to offer (or be able to -- full houses) to put me up, so I'd better start looking at Motel 6s.

My business lines are all T-Mobiles. 11 lines all unlimited everything for about $300/MO. The jump plan provides AppleCare coverage for iPhones and regular phone upgrades.

Also vacation in Northern Ireland in 5 weeks.

Insurance is not the be all end all. My boss' kid can no longer get insurance for his phone because he has had so many claims (including one where his friend said "oh, your phone is waterproof?" and threw it into a pool)