A solid, compact body and great call quality make the gunmetal gray Gusto 2 a good choice for seekers of Verizon's simpler cell phones.
Jessica Dolcourt
Jessica is a passionate content strategist and team leader across the CNET family of brands. She leads a number of teams, including commerce, performance optimization and the copy desk. Her CNET career began in 2006, testing desktop and mobile software for Download.com and CNET, including the first iPhone and Android apps and operating systems. She continued to review, report on and write a wide range of commentary and analysis on all things phones, with an emphasis on the iPhone and Samsung devices. Jessica was one of the first people in the world to test, review and report on foldable phones and 5G wireless speeds.
Jessica began her leadership role managing CNET's How To section for tips and FAQs in 2019, guiding coverage of topics ranging from personal finance to phones to home. She holds an MA with Distinction from the University of Warwick in the UK.
Leagues ahead of its predecessor, the Samsung Gusto 2 does a lot of things right. Most importantly, it looks and feels good and makes great calls.
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Insides count
Of course, there's more to even a simple phone than just calls and body. There's also the screen quality, the keypad, navigation, and the external keys. Luckily, the keypad here is large and comfortable, but the screen suffers from low resolution. For a full rundown of the phone's features, check out the full review.
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Right side
The 2.5mm headset jack is a bummer because 3.5mm is the standard. The physical buttons to trigger the camera and the speakerphone are nice, but could feel small for some hands.
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Left side
The volume rocker and Micro-USB charging port are on the left.
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Total package
Verizon will begin selling the Gusto 2 for $79.99. The call quality goes far to recommend the phone for people who want to keep on the simple side of things.
