first smart phone ever

[GizBeat]

if you are out for a cheap phone maybe the timmy is a good choice, but i would strongly disagree that it is in any way comparable to the inew for example.
for around 70 USD more you get:
quad core instead of dual core (big difference, new CPU generation actually performs well)
a decent 13MP F2.2 camera instead of 5MP with probably F2.8 and a crappy lens
a good screen with gorilla glas (720p IPS instead of 854x480 with probably plastic cover LCD)
1GB Ram instead of 512MB (and believe me that makes a world of a difference)
12.5GB of Storage instead of 2.3GB - no need for a microSD card
also the Timmy does not support OTG and NFC (if that is important, otherwise disregard)

coffegirl wanted a quad core phone,
maybe a cheaper alternative would be the Landvo L800 - specs wise comparable to the timmy but with the newer mtk6582 quad core.
also check the w450, its a decent quality quad core phone for cheap.

as coffegirl mentioned she wants to use the camera a lot, and i do not think she will be happy with the cheaper alternatives.

100% agree on all points. Especially regarding RAM. There's no way to excuse going with a 512MB phone in 2014, unless it's for an adolescent. The benefits of 1GB are easily worth an extra $50 or more in frustration saved by having the extra RAM. Whatever you do Coffeegirl, make sure the phone you choose has at least 1GB RAM.

IMO, the best choices mentioned so far are

iOcean X7 HD (720p,OTG, 900MHz could be of benefit depending on provider)
iNew v3 (720p great screen,NFC, OTG)
W450 (Good bargain phone)

THL W100S is worth taking a look at as well