I hate phones. Period. I have an old flip-phone for emergencies..

[TygrBright]

2. Who is your service provider?

I have Consumer Cellular and like them very much. They have several reasonable "entry level" 4G smartphones that won't bust a wallet. Your provider may also have some recommendations.

I finally had to trade in my ancient Nokia-bar-phone-with-actual-keys when all the providers stopped supporting analog-based phones, and got a cheap digital flip phone which I rarely used for several years, then was forced to upgrade again when I got digital hearing aids that needed >gag< an iPhone to manage their functions. However, Consumer had a (comparatively) inexpensive previous-generation 4G iPhone available.

I can't say that I love it, and I deeply resented all the time I had to spend going through various settings menus and turning off all the unwanted privacy-destroying functions and 'helpful' (effing annoying) apps and services. However, I DID eventually get it pared down to essentials and hopefully I won't have to trade it in or update it for several years.

Good luck on your quest!

ruefully,
Bright