Who still buys a basic phone in 2024?

More people than you'd think. My honest take before we start: this is not a phone for most readers of a tech blog. But for a specific group of people - elderly parents, young kids, people who want a backup device, or anyone who has consciously decided smartphones are doing more harm than good - the Nokia 105 4G is one of the more sensible options I have come across at this price.

I went looking for something after a family member asked for "just a phone that makes calls and doesn't need charging every night." What I found in the sub-$50 range was mostly a graveyard of no-name Android handsets that technically run apps but are slow enough to make the experience miserable. Then this Nokia came up, and I spent time reading through verified buyer reviews - most of them from Israeli buyers who specifically ordered the Hebrew keyboard version - to build a real picture.

What you actually get

The Nokia 105 4G is a straightforward device. Physical keypad, small display, 4G connectivity, FM radio, call recording, Bluetooth 5.0, and a 1450mAh battery. On paper that list sounds modest. In practice, the combination is more thoughtful than it first appears.

The battery number matters more here than on a smartphone. There are no background apps draining it, no high-refresh display, no GPS pinging satellites. Multiple reviewers reported several days of standby on a single charge. That is not a spec sheet claim - that is what you get when you remove the things that drain batteries.

Bluetooth 5.0 is the one spec that genuinely surprised me for this category. It is more relevant than Bluetooth 4.0 for pairing with modern wireless earbuds or a car audio system, and it is not something you typically see on a basic phone at this price point.

Call recording is a practical feature that many people overlook until they need it. FM radio without needing a data connection is genuinely useful in areas with poor coverage or for older users who grew up with radio as a primary medium.

The Hebrew keyboard variant is aimed at the Israeli market and reviews there are consistently positive: fast shipping, well-packaged, and construction quality described as better than expected. Several buyers noted it as a good option for children specifically because it does not connect to social media or app stores.

Worth noting that the Nokia brand here is operated by HMD Global, the Finnish company that licensed the name. Build quality has been consistently solid across their basic range - this is not a generic handset with a brand sticker on it.

What you normally get at this price

At $49, your realistic alternative is a low-end Android smartphone from a second-tier brand. You get a touchscreen, technically access to apps, and a camera of some description. What you also get: 2GB of RAM that struggles with more than two apps open, a battery that lasts a working day if you are lucky, software that will never receive a security update, and a user experience that is consistently frustrating for anyone who is not already comfortable with smartphones.

Nokia 105 4G Review: The Dumb Phone That Actually Makes Sense

The Nokia 105 trades all of that for a different promise: it does fewer things, but does them reliably. That is a real trade-off, not a limitation to apologize for. The question is whether the person using it wants fewer things done reliably, or more things done badly.

In the Israeli market specifically, local retail prices for this same model run considerably higher than the AliExpress listing. That gap is not trivial on a $49 purchase.

Buy it if / Skip it if

Buy it if:

You are buying it for an elderly parent or grandparent who finds smartphones confusing and just wants to make calls.
You want a phone for a young child - no app store, no social media, no way to accidentally spend money on in-app purchases.
You need a reliable backup phone that will still have battery when your main device dies.
Battery life measured in days rather than hours is a genuine priority.
You want a second SIM option with dual SIM support and minimal setup complexity.

Skip it if:

The person receiving it is going to want WhatsApp, even occasionally. This phone cannot run it.
You need a camera you will actually use.
GPS navigation is a requirement.
You are buying it thinking it can serve as a starter smartphone - it cannot and does not try to.

Verdict: The Nokia 105 4G is a well-made phone for a specific use case, sold at a price that makes buying it a low-risk decision. It does not pretend to be a smartphone. If the person using it does not need a smartphone, that is exactly the right call.

Price: $49 (was $112) - the discount makes it worth pulling the trigger without much deliberation.

Check current price and buy here: https://www.ali-ex.com/uDUEJV