Cell Phone Plans

[Intoodeep80]

I just wanted to see what cell phone providers most people are using out there and how much you pay a month, and for what? Any good deals to pass on?

[Grider]

PLEASE just do not use a KIOSK like at a mall, we had the horror of cell phone experiences from a Co that represented a well known co. and found out they make out thier own rules I took it as far as the ATTY genreal of my state and because of the signed contract we were stuck. I would have filed in my BK-7 but we really sue the phones and other cos neede deposits etc beacuse of the bad credit, good luck.. just go to a real store not an "authorized dealer'

[Intoodeep80]

Alrighty! So thats +1 against a mall kiosk. Anybody else care to add?

[Flamingo]

First, some employers offer discounts to employees on the plan the company uses as long as you remain an employee. I get a 17% discount on my line on my family plan and we are offerred great plan costs due to my employer. If that is not an option for you, there are some great options out there if you take the time to compare. Many hinge now on combining your home phone, internet service, TV and Cell lines and you can get a great package deal. It all depends what you are looking for, how big of a cell phone package you need and if you want to combine with other options. It can be confusing so do an online comparison of what each service is offering as to equipment and costs before a decision is made. What some folks may pay in one area will differ from another due to other costs involved, taxes, etc. but national plan costs as advertised online should all remain the same so it doesn't matter what other folks pay to compare rates you may need.

[Stilltheone]

We are like Flamingo. We receive a 15% discount on Verizon, through my husband's employer. We pay $75/mo for 2 phones, 1000 minutes. We've had it for so long, Verizon no longer offers the 1000 minute plan.

Good luck!

[Intoodeep80]

My At&t contract ended Dec 20, so a few weeks before I started looking around. Sprint and T-Mobile, hands down, have the best plan prices. But I didnt want to pay anything for a new Blackberry and I knew I could find a deal. The Sprint store wanted $179 for the Blackberry Curve 8830. Sams Club wanted $49. Best buy wanted $0.00 I now pay $89 (Before the 15% off!) a month for unlimited text, video, pic messages, unlimited blackberry/data/internet, and 900 minutes. Most everybody I know uses Sprint so I will have a lot of mobile-to-mobile. I was paying $120 with At&t for the same exact thing.

I do get a 15% discount because of my gov't job. I already checked my first bill and they took 15% off. Score!

Just wondering what everybody else does for cell phones out in bk land. Im very happy with my Sprint phone, the internet definately seems faster than At&t's. Not only do I save $40 a month switching to Sprint, but my phone was free!! I cant wait to tell the BK trustee that one Im gonna get brownie points...lol

[Intoodeep80]

Wow...so only 4 Bkforums members have cell phones?! Anybody else care to add?

[magyar123]

AT & T Wireless. Two year plan contract runs out sometime in October - will definitely switch. Purchased international service for $25 extra a month upfront. Went overseas for a month - phone did not work. They refused to credit my account back.

[AngelinaCat]

'Hub and I aren't going to be much help. We use the Boost Mobiles. These phones are made by Motorola and we pay as we go, usually the $20.00 card per phone keeps us set for a month. We use these really for emergency only, but like them because they have the Direct Connect, walkie-talkie feature that we use to stay in contact. Obviously that is not good for trying to really do any long-term talking as far as the minutes go.

'Hub's brother sent him a Verizon cell phone, because our land line was turned off. This phone is a very basic no frills model. I don't know details of the plan, other than to just be careful of the minutes.

Now, as far as the land line, we have invested in a MagicJack unit. You pay $39.00 to get the device, and then $19.00 a year thereafter. You have to have high speed Internet. This is called, 'Voice Over IP'. You connect one end to your USB port, and the other to the phone cord of the land line of a telephone handset. As I said, our phone service was turned off, so the land line does not have to be active in order for it to work. Once plugged in, you download a 'getting started' package that is simple to set up and you are on your way.

We have had this for almost 2 months now and have been pleased so far.

[AngelinaCat]

'Hub and I aren't going to be much help. We use the Boost Mobiles. These phones are made by Motorola and we pay as we go, usually the $20.00 card per phone keeps us set for a month. We use these really for emergency only, but like them because they have the Direct Connect, walkie-talkie feature that we use to stay in contact. Obviously that is not good for trying to really do any long-term talking as far as the minutes go.

'Hub's brother sent him a Verizon cell phone, because our land line was turned off. This phone is a very basic no frills model. I don't know details of the plan, other than to just be careful of the minutes.

Now, as far as the land line, we have invested in a MagicJack unit. You pay $39.00 to get the device, and then $19.00 a year thereafter. You have to have high speed Internet. This is called, 'Voice Over IP'. You connect one end to your USB port, and the other to the phone cord of the land line of a telephone handset. As I said, our phone service was turned off, so the land line does not have to be active in order for it to work. Once plugged in, you download a 'getting started' package that is simple to set up and you are on your way.

We have had this for almost 2 months now and have been pleased so far.

[Keebler]

I pay $32.85 per YEAR for my cell service.

There's no free minutes and it's all prepaid.

(Be careful of prepaid phones where the minutes expire every month or two because you'll find you'll need to spend the same $30 or $40 every month that a normal contract requires.)

My service is $0.09 per minute and the minutes NEVER expire.

The only requirement is that I use the phone at least once every several weeks to prove it's still in service and I lose my number if the balance goes negative for more than a couple weeks.

If you want the security of having a cell phone and you are a little bit conservative with how you use it you won't find a lower cost plan anywhere.

[Keebler]

'Hub and I aren't going to be much help. We use the Boost Mobiles. These phones are made by Motorola and we pay as we go, usually the $20.00 card per phone keeps us set for a month. We use these really for emergency only, but like them because they have the Direct Connect, walkie-talkie feature that we use to stay in contact. Obviously that is not good for trying to really do any long-term talking as far as the minutes go.

'Hub's brother sent him a Verizon cell phone, because our land line was turned off. This phone is a very basic no frills model. I don't know details of the plan, other than to just be careful of the minutes.

Now, as far as the land line, we have invested in a MagicJack unit. You pay $39.00 to get the device, and then $19.00 a year thereafter. You have to have high speed Internet. This is called, 'Voice Over IP'. You connect one end to your USB port, and the other to the phone cord of the land line of a telephone handset. As I said, our phone service was turned off, so the land line does not have to be active in order for it to work. Once plugged in, you download a 'getting started' package that is simple to set up and you are on your way.

We have had this for almost 2 months now and have been pleased so far.

We've got VoIP also and it costs nothing. To ring a land-line I pay a couple of cents per minute and $10 lasts an eternity. Originally it was software running on our computer but I went out and spent $60 for an actual telephone with a network connection built in.

We set up a relative with the $10 DSL from AT&T along with the same VoIP phone. For $36 per year we rent a local phone number local to her daughter who's hundreds of miles away. The daughter calls a local phone number and the VoIP phone rings here and they both talk as long as they care to for no charge.

Also at Wal-Mart there were $15 USB phones on clearance that work great with Yahoo Messenger who also does VoIP for a penny or two a minute. I used to call bill collectors through Yahoo Instant Messenger using VoIP and they couldn't figure out the true caller ID.

[AngelinaCatHub]

I have to add to Mrs. about MagicJack. It is portable and you can plug it into a laptop anywhere and as long as you have WIFI available in the motel let's say, you have free phone long distance and all the amenaties. Thier helpdesk is absolutley top notch. I am impressed with this company.

We use Boost cell phones because it is up front payment, easy to use and the peeper is all we really need. It will not expire your minutes for 90 days and we certainly refresh more than 90 days.

[Never_Again]

I use a tracphone now. I bought a phone from their website for $9.95, and it came with the double minute feature, which means that I pay about $18.00 for 120 minutes. I also found a promo code online. I activated the phone with a 60 minute card and 3 months, and ended up with 200 minutes and five months of service.

Keep in mind, I do not walk around with the phone stuck to my ear talking about what color somebody is wearing. I use it for what I would call, emergency plus. Of course, for an emergency, but also in cases of convenience, just watching the conversation length. Most conversations are under one minute.

I did have Verizon, but use it much less now, so I don't need 800 minutes on two phones for $89.95 per month. I won't pay that for a year now! If I go on vacation, and will be using the phone more, I have no problem buying one of the higher minute cards, and figuring the price in my vacation budget.

I use vonage at home for $29.95 per month, unlimited, anywhere in the US. If I go on vacation and the hotel has a network jack, I can take my home phone with me.

[heyu]

If you really want a cheap plan, go METRO PCS.