Learn Me : Cell Phone Plans

In reply to rotard:

I really don't need it and would rather save the money. On an average day I am on WIFI 92% of the time. The few times I do need data (need to look up a phone number or something), I usually can figure it out by my cars GPS or someone's phone near me (usually my g/f's). If I can save $20 a month its worth it to me.

rotard wrote: What's the point of having an android or iPhone without a data plan?

An Android w/o data is comparable to having a standard flip phone in one pocket and an iPod touch in the other pocket. For many people, this is fine.

I have been using a droidx2 verizon phone that has been flashed to work with cricket. Everything on the phone works perfectly, unlimited everything is $55/month. And I can view/modify microsoft office files on the android OS, that was my biggest complaint about iphones I have owned. I need to be able to access office files for work.

My girlfriend was paying almost $100 for a smartphone on ATT&T, we switched her over to Boost and now we are paying $50(she has some plan where it drops $5 a month for timely payment or something like that) a month for unlimited everything. Quite a steep discount.

My biggest complaint with these carriers is the internet service can be rather slow at times, but most of the time I can just turn on the Wifi and link up to the nearest network. Crickets network is WAY better than it used to be, but coverage is still not the greatest.

My experience is that if you live in a major metro area, plans like straight talk are fine. If you live in the boonies or want your phone to work while you visit the boonies, you need one of the big nationwide carriers. Even AT&T gets flaky when you get away from the freeways. In Wisconsin, you can be on US Cellular (works great, slow data and comparably low end phones), Sprint (good phones and data, sketchy service) or Verizon (works awesome everywhere, 4G LTE is really that awesome, but you pay for it)

I am on Verizon and wouldnt go anywhere else, and this is after being on just about every carrier in 10 years. I like having a phone and data that works everywhere. Worth every penny.

For those who want Verizon towers but at prepaid rates, take a look at Page Plus. 100% of everything Page Plus does is on Verizon.
http://www.pagepluscellular.com/
Visit a Page Plus retailer in your area and they can make any used or existing Verizon or Sprint phone (except iPhone) work for you on PagePlus

ThePhranc wrote: I use Virgin and pay $35 a month for 300 min, unlimited text and data. I use an LG phone with slider because I suck at screen typing. They have newer and more fancy phones at good prices.

This, and as of today, you can buy an iPhone for Virgin. But you'll pay...

8GB iPhone 4 $550 16GB iPhone 4S

jrw1621 wrote: For those who want Verizon towers but at prepaid rates, take a look at Page Plus. 100% of everything Page Plus does is on Verizon. http://www.pagepluscellular.com/ Visit a Page Plus retailer in your area and they can make any used or existing Verizon or Sprint phone (except iPhone) work for you on PagePlus

Wow i'm on virgin now and this coverage map looks amazing i may have to check it out

if you can stay on the family plan do it... as long as the family has no intentions of going to another carrier upgrade your phone and add data... we're on the in-laws plan (pay our portion) and it's a lot cheaper then if it was just us 2 on our own...

we recently moved to a new area though and the coverage sux so we're talking about changing carriers... no matter what we do we'll be paying more if we stick to a traditional carrier... after looking I think virgin (prepay) is going to be our best bet, neither of us talk much but txt and use data)... and the coverage is supposed to be pretty good (there is a tower 1 building from our house)

I was with straight talk for a few years, but my usage didn't justify the $30/month plan, a good deal for 1000 minutes and 300 MB a month. Smart phones can only use the $45/month for "unlimited" voice and data. Still, with Straight talk's $30/mo plan, we saved $60 per month over the old family plan from ATT.

if you all don't need Over The Air data, then pay as you go can be even cheaper. Typically, my usage is very low. Less than 60 minutes a month. Less than 50 text msgs a month. I happened to have an unlocked GSM feature phone. I bought a $8 sim off of Amazon, and signed up for ATT's pay as ya go plan. I'm gonna see how long $15 will last me at 10 cents a minute and 20 cents a text msg. Just finished week 2 and have 9 dollars left. Might be able to do $15/mo.

I am using an AT&T iPhone 4S with a trimmed down gophone card and the unlockit apn settings to get data. It works great for my needs since I am on wireless networks most of the time. Most months I am <$25/ month with 200mb and 200 text messages.

In reply to rollinchicane:

Do tell more, I though iphones didn't work on the go phone network?

There are a few hoops to jump through. Lots of good tutorials out there. For a 3G style http://appadvice.com/appnn/2011/05/convert-unused-iphone-pay-phone-jailbreaking-unlocking-required

For 4G style you need to trim the sim card to fit or buy a cut one off of amazon. But the steps above are still the same.

I know visual voicemail will not work with att go phone but does it work with the other carriers like simple mobile?

I just bought a Virgin iPhone knock-off (Optimus Elite) for $160 and got the $35/month plan (300 minutes, unlimited text and no data throttling until 2.5GB). Just turned my back on Verizon, which was much more expensive. So far, I am mostly pleased: it's a perfectly serviceable, cheap smartphone that does all the stuff that smartphones are supposed to go, pretty well. I live in an urban area, so reception seems decent enough. Customer service has been mediocre, though.

I have gmail email and calendar, so that was stupid simple to set up; my non-gmail email was pretty easy to get going, too.

Last night I had a beer with a friend who's got an iPhone. He's paying ~$100/mth for his plan. The two phones held together have nearly an identical shape (3GS, not 4).

$100 - $35 = Virgin Mobile

(VM does 1200 minutes for $45/mth. Oh, and $5 off for auto-pay set-up.)

0.02, YCCMV (your cell coverage may vary)

So would you say that in general most pre-pay plans a more reasonably priced than contract plans?

I'm in need of a new phone, and I've debated buying a pre-pay Verizon phone (I'm on Verizon now, but outside my contract) or just ditching Verizon and going to Straight Talk.

ThePhranc wrote: I use Virgin and pay $35 a month for 300 min, unlimited text and data. I use an LG phone with slider because I suck at screen typing. They have newer and more fancy phones at good prices.

I have the same plan with the Samsung. We all text so much that I haven't even gotten close to 300min.

PHeller wrote: So would you say that in general most pre-pay plans a more reasonably priced than contract plans? I'm in need of a new phone, and I've debated buying a pre-pay Verizon phone (I'm on Verizon now, but outside my contract) or just ditching Verizon and going to Straight Talk.

For starters, you may not want VZ's prepaid plan. $50 for unlimited talk and text but no data incl. which can only be done on feature phones (which means "not smart" phones)
With VZ, if you want a smart phone it will be $80 and gives 1gb.

If VZ style coverage is what you like and you are willing to stay with your current handset then www.pagepluscelluar.com is where I would go for unlimited talk text and 2gb all on VZ towers for $55.
With PagePlus you typically have to bring a used VZ phone or buy a used phone off the retailer or CL.

Virgin Mobile (VM) is also a good choice but be sure to look at the coverage maps to be sure it meets your needs. Personally, I carry the VM OptimusV which is the value leader of their handset offerings. It is not the most loaded but rather a good value compromise.

Boost Mobile may also be a good choice for you. Both VM and Boost are 100% owned by Sprint and only run over Sprint towers. The Boost benefit is that your bill shrinks by $5 for every month you stay on.

If you go with Straight Talk, know the following:
If the handset model you choose ends with the letter G (for GSM) you calls will be routed across T-Mobile and AT&T. If the handest you choose ends with C (for CDMA) your calls will be routed over VZ and Sprint.) If you go with a Straight Talk Android, you calls will be routed over Sprint and Sprint Only. This will limit you coverage area to being exactly the same size as VM and Boost.
I mentioned above that the Boost plan shrinks by $5 for every 6 months but you will find that the Straight Talk Android plan starts out $10 cheaper than Boost immediately. The coverage is the same!
http://www.straighttalk.com/Coverage

Some more comment...

If you want Android data with little talk, VM is a great deal.
(Check Coverage)
$35 for 300 minutes. If you need a little more, the $45 for 1200 minutes.

If you are likely to choose the $45 plan then go for the Staight Talk Android option. This will give you the same coverage as VM but Unlimited talk (if you are the type that talks a lot.)

If coverage challenges are your thing then Page Plus for Android is $55. Bring your own or used VZ handset.

More savings:
If you are familiar with the contract world your $69 plan may really be a $79 bill once the invoice comes. That is because of not only tax but things like $1.50 for Universal Access Fee and $3 for enhanced 911 fee, etc.
In the prepaid world, these telecom fees still get paid but get paid after the money is collected from you. In other words, the phone carrier pays those fees out of the $55 or $45 you give them.
Said otherwise, the price you see with prepaid is really the price you pay which results in at least $6 in savings per month.

(Note: in some states you may be charged sales tax for prepaid rate plans but it is nominal making a $55 plan cost you a real $58-ish.)

So what your saying is,

Prepaid is almost always cheaper, and 9/10 your coverage will not change.

I'd like to know if your still able to use a VZW pre-paid phone on a contract. If so, I'll probably just get a pre-paid phone to use until I make the switch to something cheaper.

Yes, Prepaid is cheaper to use but more expensive to get started.
The biggest difference of Prepaid is that you have to buy the handset outright.
In the contract world, they will give you the handset for "free".
Keep in mind that "free' means you will typically commit to a minimum of $70 per month for 2 years or $1,680. It seems easy with that much money coming in to spot you a $200 handset.

Of course, if you have noticed, many handsets seem to only last one year on a two year commitment. You typically have to pay extra if the handset dies before the two years is up and/or extend the contract.

The VZ pre-paid handsets can not be used for contract service.
VZ would rather have you come in and resign a contract in exchange for a reduced price handset.
My guess is that you were hoping you could go into WalMart and buy a VZ $19.99 handset to use on your contract service. You can not.

You can however bring your own VZ handset and have VZ switch it so your calls are routed there. That is, hit up CL and find a used handset that works with VZ. If you are spending a lot, have the seller meet you at a VZ store so you can confirm the handset is swappable before paying.
The thing that would make the handset not swappable would be if it was reported lost or stolen and the store will be able to tell you that.

$60: http://erie.craigslist.org/mob/3130166481.html#.UAQ8EZEU1yI
$10: http://erie.craigslist.org/mob/3130069894.html#.UAQ8UZEU1yI
$80: http://erie.craigslist.org/mob/3108669325.html#.UAQ8j5EU1yI

Boo.

Looks like I'm going prepaid then.

Can I use my old phone number somehow? Or does Verizon own that?

You own your number if your account is in good standing with VZ.
This switching of number to another carrier is known as porting.
The most important thing to know is that you must switch to the new carrier first before cancelling with VZ.

Good to know JRW, your quite helpful in understanding all of this.

My grandmother and I split a contract. We pay about $80 for 800 minutes between the two of us. She rarely uses all of her minutes, and I really don't either. I think she'd like to reduce her costs, so she may be interested in switching as well.

But we'd both want to keep our numbers and contacts.

Let say that I port my number to my new pre-paid carrier...will Verizon then cancel my contract, leaving grandmother with a funny bill?

I would check with VZ but I bet you are $60 for the first phone and $20 for the second.
When one handset leaves, the other will still pay the $60. In other words, grandmas bill goes up.

Are you free to leave VZ? Will you get hit with a early termination fee? Check with VZ.

If you are free to leave and grandma likes her handset, port grandma over to PagePlus.

We're both out of contract now.