Have you seen ads for the Mode Phone from Current Rewards and wondered if it was legit?
Well in this video, we’re going to take a look at my personal experience with Mode
Phone and whether I’ve actually been able to earn gift cards with it.
Hey everyone, this is Kyle from Money@30.
On this channel we look at personal finance from a Millennial perspective — and today
we’re going to be checking out the Mode Phone.
A few months ago, I came across an ad for something called the Mode Phone, which stated
that you could earn hundreds of dollars worth of gift cards each year just by using the
device.
I was of course skeptical and decided to try out the Current Rewards app on my iPhone before
looking further into Mode.
But, after confirming Current’s legitimacy, I decided to take a chance on Mode Phone and
check it out for myself.
So, how does Mode Phone work and can you really earn rewards with it?
Let’s take a look at a few things to know as well as my initial experience.
The first thing to know about Mode Phone is that you can choose to buy the device outright
or subscribe to their monthly plan
At the time that I’m recording this video, Mode Phone offers two main plans for purchasing
the phone.
The first option is to buy the device via a one-time payment, which currently costs
$119.99.
However, there’s also a World Phone Unlock Upgrade fee of $19.99 - and, if you try to
remove this, then the price of the phone goes to the “retail” price of $239.99.
On top of that, Mode Phone charges $9.99 for shipping, bringing the total cost for my order
to $149.97.
Speaking of shipping, I should note that my device arrived within four business days of
when I ordered it, which is honestly much much faster than I was expecting.
The other option for Mode Phone is their subscription plan.
This one’s a bit more confusing as it’s $9.99 a month but is billed quarterly.
There’s also a $29.99 one-time fee, the $9.99 shipping fee, and $1.67 per month GSM
unlock fee.
However, with this subscription, you apparently get a free Mode Phone upgrade every 12 months.
Still, I’d advise that you buy the device outright if possible.
Next, you can use the Mode Phone with a number of different carriers or use it as a wifi-only
device
According to the Mode Phone site, the device can be used with a long list of mobile carriers
that use GSM networks.
This includes major U.S. carriers like T-Mobile and AT&T as well as smaller ones such as Mint,
Freedompop, and more.
You can check your carrier’s compatibility by visiting the Mode Phone sites.
Meanwhile, if you don’t want cellular service on your Mode Phone, you can also use the device
solely on WiFi.
That’s actually how I’ve been using it and I haven’t had any issues.
With the Mode Phone, there are several ways you can earn points and redeem them through
the Current Rewards app
When I posted my review of the iOS version of Current Rewards, several viewers noted
that the Android edition was a lot better — and they are absolutely right!
In fact, having no experience with the Android version, I’m not 100% sure what point-earning
features are exclusive to the Mode Phone and which are available to all Android Current
users.
In any case, let’s cover some of the key ways you can earn points on the Mode Phone
via the Current app.
As the widget on the Mode Phone’s home screen shows, you can earn points through listening
to music, playing games, referring friends, watching ad videos, and more — some of which
we’ll cover in a moment.
But, the Mode Phone includes three daily bonus opportunities: checking the weather, checking
the news, and opening the surf browser.
Meanwhile, you can also claim a bonus every 2 hours by tapping the link on the widget
as well as earn another bonus every 2 hours for unlocking your phone.
Regarding the widget bonus, though, I will note that claiming this seems to be a bit
finicky, but I’ve found that closing Current, tapping the widget to reopen it, and then
trying it again usually does the trick.
Another rewards option involves charging as you’ll earn fractions of a point at a time
while your Mode Phone is plugged in.
Personally, I like to charge my device overnight, unlocking it in the morning to claim the 140
point maximum offered.
Between these Modes and others, I’ve regularly been able to hit my daily goals, which unlock
even more point bonuses.
If you really want to earn the most points though, make sure to at least check your Mode
Phone every couple of hours to get the unlock and widget bonuses, plus check in on the Current
app as well as claim your weather, news, and surf bonuses daily.
Then, when it comes to turning those points into rewards, the Current app has several
gift card options as well as other offers.
My go-to has been the $10 Amazon gift cards, which cost 19,750 points each.
After submitting my redemptions, my digital gift card typically arrives the next business
day, and applying the balance to my Amazon account is as easy as copying the code and
pasting it in the redeem gift card section of Amazon.
As I mentioned, the Current Rewards app for Android is a lot better to use than the iOS
version for a few reasons, but I’ve been impressed by upgrades to the music and gaming
aspects
In my Current Rewards iOS review, I lamented the lack of a search function for finding
music.
Well, the Android version has such a feature, and it not only shows you what stations regularly
play the artist you’re looking for but also leads to streams playing that artist at the
moment you search.
Also different in the Android version is that the number of points you’re earning per
minute are clearly displayed, with Super Boosts managing to push those figures higher.
For as much as I’ve enjoyed this music mode-related upgrade in the Android app, my favorite way
to earn points has been with games.
In addition to Installs that reward you just for downloading apps and to Megas Offers that
reward you for completing certain tasks with apps, the Games mode is much more straightforward
and allows you to earn points just for spending time playing.
Typically, your first reward will arrive within 1 minute of playing the game, while subsequent
rewards will increase but will also require longer play times.
What’s also cool is that these point earnings will unlock Super Boosts, so you can increase
the points you earn from listening to music while racking up points from gaming.
Now that we’ve covered the Mode aspect of Mode Phone, let’s talk about the Phone part
of the equation
The Mode Phone has a 6.52 inch display, a 13 MP main camera, a 4000 mah battery, Face
ID unlock, and other standard smartphone features while running Android 10.
So let’s look at the good and bad of those specs — although I’m by no means a tech
reviewer.
Starting with the screen, I think it’s actually pretty decent, fairly large, and looks good
with some of the brightly colored apps I’ve been trying.
I also happen to like the almost matte feel it has.
As for the camera, the main one is unremarkable but not horrible in good light, whereas the
others including the selfie camera are pretty much useless.
Elsewhere, the Face ID unlock works well enough and the battery holds up for my usage needs.
One question I had about the Mode Phone but couldn’t find the answer to before ordering
was whether it had Bluetooth.
Luckily, it does — and also has a headphone jack.
On that note, in addition to a charging brick, microUSB cable, a 32 GB micro SD card, and
clear case, the Mode Phone also includes a pair of headphones… which may be the worst
I’ve ever heard.
In fact, I wish I could send them Dank Pods to blow up with Scarlet Fire.
So, in other words, I’d recommend using your own wired or wireless pair with this
device.
Finally, I need to point out that the performance of the Mode Phone isn’t always the greatest.
Although the games I’ve downloaded on the phone work well most of the time, there have
been instances where they do freeze up a bit.
Similarly, the Current app itself can be a bit glitchy, requiring me to exit and return
later.
Furthermore, when I first got the phone, I was worried because Current kept crashing
— although this was remedied by heading to the Google Play store and updating the
app.
Still, after navigating these quirks, they haven’t really hindered me from earning
points - they can just be a bit annoying at times.
Overall, while I was skeptical about the earning potential of the Current app for iOS, it’s
a different story with the Mode Phone as I’m well on my way to already covering the cost
of the device and could easily see earning more than that in the long run
Since getting my Mode Phone in June 2021, I’ve already managed to earn $50 in Amazon
gift cards and am on the verge of claiming another $10.
Granted, a good number of these points were earned by playing just one game, but it’s
impressive nonetheless.
Because of this experience, I’m much more inclined to believe that the stated potential
$900 a year in rewards could actually be attainable, even if that’s still likely ambitious.
As someone who’s never had an Android phone before, being able to purchase one for $150,
connect it only to WiFi, and use it to earn gift cards for playing games is admittedly
kind of cool.
However, if I were to try to use the Mode Phone as a daily driver or primary device,
I think I’d get pretty frustrated with it pretty quickly.
But, if you’re willing to put in a little effort to maximize your point earnings, then
the Mode Phone just may pay off — or at least pay for itself
Hopefully this gives you a better idea of what the Mode Phone from Current Rewards is
all about but for much more on the device and my thoughts, I’ll have a link to my
full written review in the description box down below.
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So thanks again for watching and I’ll see you next time here on Money@30.