I finally decided to say good­bye to my dumbed-down cell phone with large, easy-to-read but­tons, and take a leap into the world of pre­paid cell phones. To my sur­prise, I actu­ally found a phone that fit both my health require­ments and my bud­get require­ments. I ended up choos­ing the Sam­sung m575 PayLo phone from Vir­gin Mobile. If you’re look­ing for an inex­pen­sive phone to use only in emer­gen­cies, which is what I rec­om­mend to any­one who can fea­si­bly do it (because lim­it­ing your expo­sure to this type of microwave radi­a­tion is the best pre­ven­tion against harm­ful health effects such as DNA breaks and cell muta­tion), you can apply these cri­te­ria in your quest to find the right phone.

Here’s a list of tips to help you choose the phone that’s right for you.