Smart Phones in Bolivia

by Sara V
(Michigan, USA)

Hello! I'm an American twenty-something planning on moving to Bolivia in a few months (February 2016). I'm wondering what is the best plan for my cell phone? When I visited Bolivia briefly in July 2014, I purchased a cheap "dumb" phone in the states and had it activated locally in La Paz. That seemed to work well for local calling, but I was wondering how much more functionality I could get out of a smart phone. Ideally I'd love to have access to Facebook and Skype on my phone to keep in touch with friends and family back in the states. Is this possible? What's the easiest way to go about it? Is it worth it to go for a smart phone or just downgrade and adapt? Thanks for any advice!