De când am telefon nou, vorbesc mai mult cu familia.

Here de când means since or ever since.

So De când am telefon nou means something like Since I have a new phone / Ever since I got a new phone.

A useful thing to know: de când can also appear in a question:

• De când ai telefon nou? = Since when have you had a new phone?

So the same words can be either:

• part of a statement, or
• a question phrase,

depending on context and intonation.

Romanian often uses the present tense here because the situation is still true now.

• am telefon nou = I have a new phone
• vorbesc mai mult = I talk more

The idea is: from the moment this new situation started, it is still continuing.

English often shifts toward Ever since I got a new phone..., which focuses on the starting point as a past event. Romanian can express that idea with the present:

• De când am telefon nou, ...

It highlights the ongoing state: now I have a new phone, and as a result I talk more with my family.

Romanian usually drops subject pronouns when they are not needed, because the verb ending already shows the person.

• am = I have
• vorbesc = I speak / I talk

So eu is not necessary.

You could say:

• De când eu am telefon nou, eu vorbesc mai mult cu familia.

But that sounds unnatural unless you want strong emphasis or contrast. Normally Romanian prefers:

• De când am telefon nou, vorbesc mai mult cu familia.

Both are possible, but they are not exactly the same in feel.

• am telefon nou = I have a new phone
• am un telefon nou = I have a new phone

The version without un can sound a bit more natural or more matter-of-fact in Romanian, especially when you are talking about what kind of thing you have or your current situation.

So:

• De când am telefon nou... = natural, compact
• De când am un telefon nou... = also correct, a little more explicit

English almost always needs a here, but Romanian does not always need un/o in the same way.

Usually not in the same way.

• telefon nou = a new phone / new phone
• telefonul nou = the new phone

telefonul nou refers to a specific phone already identified in the conversation, for example:

• Telefonul nou e pe masă. = The new phone is on the table.

In your sentence, the point is not the specific phone as a previously established object. The point is the speaker’s new situation: they now have a new phone. That is why telefon nou works better.

In Romanian, adjectives usually come after the noun.

• telefon nou = new phone
• casă mare = big house
• frate mai mic = younger brother

So the normal order is:

• noun + adjective

Sometimes adjectives can come before the noun for stylistic or emphatic reasons, but the ordinary neutral pattern is telefon nou, not nou telefon.

Here mai mult means more, and in context it often has the sense of more often or to a greater extent.

• vorbesc mai mult cu familia = I talk more with my family

That can imply:

• I talk to them more often,
• I spend more time talking to them,
• I communicate with them more than before.

Romanian leaves that slightly open, just like English often does.

That is the normal word order.

• vorbesc mai mult = I talk more

The adverb phrase mai mult modifies the verb vorbesc, so it naturally comes after it.

Romanian word order is fairly flexible, but this neutral order is the most common one here.

The verb a vorbi commonly uses cu when it means to speak/talk with someone.

• vorbesc cu mama = I talk with my mother
• vorbesc cu prietenii = I talk with friends
• vorbesc cu familia = I talk with my family

So cu is the normal preposition here.

You may also see a vorbi cu cineva very often in everyday Romanian.

Romanian often uses the definite form familia where English would say my family, especially when possession is obvious from context.

So:

• vorbesc mai mult cu familia = I talk more with my family

Because it is clearly the speaker’s family, Romanian does not need to say mea.

Of course, cu familia mea is also possible. It is just a bit more explicit.

Compare:

• Vorbesc cu familia. = I’m talking with my family.
• Vorbesc cu familia mea. = I’m talking with my family. (extra emphasis on my)

After the preposition cu, Romanian uses the form that corresponds to the accusative.

So in:

• cu familia

familia is in the accusative form. For this noun, the form looks the same as the nominative/accusative definite singular.

A learner does not need to overthink it here: the important pattern is simply:

• cu + noun/pronoun
• cu familia, cu mama, cu ei

The comma separates the introductory clause from the main clause.

Structure:

• De când am telefon nou, = subordinate clause
• vorbesc mai mult cu familia. = main clause

This is very common in Romanian, just as in English:

• Since I have a new phone, I talk more with my family.

So the comma helps show the sentence structure clearly.

Not literally, but it is very close in meaning.

Literally, it is more like:

• Since I have a new phone

But in natural English, the best translation is often:

• Ever since I got a new phone, I talk to my family more.

So the Romanian sentence focuses on the present state (I have a new phone now), while English often prefers to refer to the starting event (I got a new phone). The practical meaning is the same.

Yes, absolutely.

• De când mi-am luat un telefon nou, vorbesc mai mult cu familia.

This means more literally:

• Ever since I got/bought myself a new phone, I talk more with my family.

Difference in nuance:

• De când am telefon nou... focuses on the current situation: I have a new phone now
• De când mi-am luat un telefon nou... focuses on the event of getting it

Both are natural, but your original sentence is a little more compact and state-focused.

It is the comparative form built with mai.

• mult = much / a lot
• mai mult = more

Romanian forms many comparatives with mai:

• mare → mai mare = big → bigger
• bun → mai bun = good → better (though Romanian still uses mai)
• mult → mai mult = much/more

So here:

• vorbesc mai mult = I speak more / I talk more

It can correspond to either speak or talk, depending on translation style.

• a vorbi = to speak / to talk

In this sentence, talk sounds more natural in English:

• I talk more with my family

But grammatically, Romanian is just using the common verb a vorbi.

Yes, it is natural and understandable everyday Romanian.

A native speaker might also say slightly different versions, such as:

• De când am telefon nou, vorbesc mai mult cu familia mea.
• De când mi-am luat telefon nou, vorbesc mai mult cu familia.
• De când mi-am luat un telefon nou, vorbesc mai des cu familia.

But your sentence is perfectly normal.