our last two phones (one flip, one slab) were bought at retail, and at a reasonable price--same or less than verizon's "payments" would have totaled, as unlocked 'universal' (works on any carrier) devices. all future ones will be the same.
we're also eyeing an mvno that offers service on all three major carrier networks and lets you mix-and-match and switch between them.
i had the spindle adapter to put on a stack of 45s, and also a simple disc that fit down it and just allowed one to sit on the turntable at a time. i didnt' need to use these snap-in adapters.
mint does have an upgrade path from one major version to the next. the upgrade tool might not be available immediately upon the release of the next version, but in your case it has been around awhile.
in my rural part of the u.s., the telco only sells dsl to a max of 10 mbps (and as slow as 384kbps if you're at the end of the signal's reach--at which point they also charge you more for the shit-tier speeds).. even if you're literally next door to their central office.. and even if they don't have fiber down your street (which is their reasoning for the artificial limit--to push people towards fiber so they can pull the copper).
when i worked for an 'authorized agent', our payments from the carrier were based on number of signups or contracts, and not at all on the cost of phones associated with them.
i know that big magic box in the food room has more.