cell phones
abx
of a cell phone that will sell me a cell phone and let me pay for only
the calls that I make (even though it would be at a relatively high
price)? Thank you very much.
Usene...@the-domain-in.sig
37b3c1...@i29g2000prf.googlegroups.com>, abf...@yahoo.com
says...
Try a google search on "prepaid cell phones" or something like
that. There are a number of deals available, depending on your
location.
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SMS 斯蒂文• 夏
Yes. See "http://www.emergencycellphones.com" and you buy minutes from
"http://www.americanroaming.com/buyprepaid.php". There may be other
sources for these unregistered phones as well. I used to see other
companies selling these phones.
You need a CDMA/AMPS phone that is unregistered to a specific carrier,
you can't just use a phone that used to be on Verizon or Sprint but is
out of contract, because you won't get connected to ARN because the
phone is still registered to the carrier, "ARN works from most
unregistered CDMA, TDMA and AMPS mobile phones." Well most TDMA and most
metropolitan area AMPS will be gone in 2008, so make that just CDMA.
You buy a $10 (minimum) card which lasts for two years, so it's $5/year.
You used to also be able to pay at the time of the call with your credit
card at $2/minute plus a $3 set-up fee, and I suspect that this still
works as well, but probably you don't want to do that since the first
minute would cost $5 per call!
Remember, you'll have no phone number, and can only make outgoing calls.
Monthly Fee: None.
Minimum cost: 21¢ Month ($10 every two years).
Per-minute cost: 25¢-$1.
Re-upping: $10 (minimum) every 2 years.
Handsets: You must use an unregistered CDMA or CDMA/AMPS handset. You
cannot use a handset that was previously registered to a specific
carrier unless you can get it unregistered.
Pros: Low start-up cost, extremely low minimum cost per month, excellent
coverage.
Cons: No incoming calls, high per-minute cost.
Prepaid May Be Better
---------------------
There are also some very inexpensive prepaid plans that may be a better
option than the American Roaming Network. There are basically three
choices for very low-monthly cost cellular, T-Mobile To Go, PagePlus,
and 7-11 SpeakOut. Each one has pros and cons, which I have outlined below.
Overview
--------
You can keep an account active on T-Mobile for $10/year (after spending
an initial $100) so 83¢/month isn't bad. PagePlus is much better in
terms of coverage and would cost $30/year minimum ($2.50/month), and
7-11 would cost $25/year minimum ($2.08/month) and uses AT&T's GSM
network which is better than T-Mobile's network but worse than Verizon's
network.
T-Mobile
--------
The cheapest per month cost is on T-Mobile which will be 83¢ per month
after the first year (the first year will be $100, or $8.33/month
because you need to purchase a $100 card to achieve "Gold" status).
After you go "Gold" by spending $100, all future minutes are good for a
year, even on the $10 card.
Unfortunately T-Mobile's prepaid coverage leaves a lot to be desired.
Monthly Fee: None.
Minimum cost: First year: $100, subsequent years: $10.
Per-minute cost: 10-33¢.
Re-upping: $10 (minimum) every 365 days once you achieve "Gold" status.
Handsets: You can use any unlocked or T-Mobile locked GSM phone (or
they'll sell you a phone fairly cheaply with the $100 card).
Pros: Very low monthly cost (after first year at $8.33/month it drops to
83c/month), no monthly charge.
Cons: Poor coverage.
PagePlus
--------
For $2.50/month you can get Page Plus Cellular
("http://www.pagepluscellular.com/"). You can use any old phone that was
previously on Verizon (try e-Bay or craigslist or freecycle), or they'll
sell you a used phone for $40-50). You have to add $10 every four months
to keep the phone active (so it would cost you $2.50/month minimum). The
good thing about PagePlus is that the coverage is excellent because they
use Verizon's network (see the January 2008 Consumer Reports). Per
minute cost ranges from 5.7¢ to 12.0¢ depending on the amount of refill
card. PagePlus uses the Verizon network, so Verizon must have a network
in your area, or you'll get charged extra for roaming. They have a
50¢/month fee. If you obtain an old Verizon phone that is out of
contract (easy to find cheaply or for free) you can activate it with 100
minutes for about $6 (see "http://www.uglyeric.com/activation.html").
PagePlus really wants you to go through dealers, either on-line or brick
and mortar. I just did an ESN change (changed phones) and I had to go
through a dealer and pay $5.99 (took only 15 minutes). They are a very
small operation but have been around a long time.
Monthly Fee: 50¢.
Minimum cost: $2.50 Month ($10 every four months).
Per-minute cost: 5.7-12.0¢.
Re-upping: $10 (minimum) every 120 days.
Handsets: You can use any out-of-contract Verizon handset, or they'll
sell you a used handset for $40-50.
Pros: Low per minute cost, low start-up costs, excellent coverage.
Cons: 3x the monthly cost of T-Mobile ($2.50 versus 83¢ (after the first
year of T-Mobile)), 50¢/month fee, Must add minutes three times per year
as opposed to one year on PagePlus and SpeakOut.
7-11 SpeakOut
-------------
7-11 SpeakOut service is 15¢/minute, and the minutes are good for a
year. AT&T network. They have a 1.25/month fee. $25/year minimum. No web
site, you have to buy a phone at a 7-11 store, so this means that you
need a store in your area. If you buy it a store outside your area then
it'll still work as long as you have AT&T in your area, but you'll have
a non-local phone number which some people don't like. There are a lot
of AT&T areas where 7-11 doesn't have any stores.
Monthly Fee: $1.25.
Minimum Cost: $2.08/month ($25/year).
Per-minute cost: 15¢.
Re-upping: $25 (minimum) every 365 days.
Handsets: They only sell the service with a handset. You can also move
the SIM card to any unlocked or AT&T handset.
Pros: Adequate coverage. One year expiration of minutes.
Cons: High monthly fee deducted from your account ($1.25). Poorer
coverage than PagePlus, 2.5x the minimum monthly cost of T-Mobile. Must
make a call every 120 days to keep account active. Per minute cost
doesn't go down with larger refills, it's always 15¢/minute so not a
good plan for heavy users.
Web Site to Compare Prepaid
---------------------------
The best web site to compare costs is
"http://www.cellguru.net/prepaid_compare.htm". Look at the fourth row,
"Lowest Monthly Cost."
Cost is only part of the picture
--------------------------------
I wanted phones that will work when I'm away from metro areas, and
that's why I went with PagePlus for my kids. The only issue is that my
daughter's friends with Sprint & T-Mobile often borrow her PagePlus
phone to make calls when their own phones have no coverage because in my
area Sprint and T-Mobile have big coverage problems.
For me, the $2.50/month on PagePlus versus 83¢/month on T-Mobile is
inconsequential, especially because I have no T-Mobile coverage at my
house (they've been trying to put in a tower for a long time but have
been stymied by NIMBYs).
I do find it a hassle to have to remember to add money to PagePlus every
four months. Once I let the account lapse and thought I'd lost $50, but
I called them and they restored the account for me. Very nice people.
© 2007, The Nordic Group
rick++
is a rack of 4-6 prepaid options. They cost about 25 cents a minute
for low usage and under 10 cents for volume.
I got one for traveling because payphones are very rare now.
The phone cost $20 and minimum refill of $15 per quarter.
That gets me about 20 minutes a month which about what I use
for travel. You can always buy more.
SMS 斯蒂文• 夏
You just want to watch out for prepaid plans with relatively high
monthly minimums, such as Net10 ($15/month), Verizon InPulse
($30/month), AT&T Go Phone ($8.33/month), Virgin ($5/month), and
Tracfone ($5/month).
Stick with T-Mobile prepaid (83¢/month after the first year), 7-11
SpeakOut ($2.08/month), and PagePlus ($2.50/month).
SMS 斯蒂文• 夏
> Yes. See "http://www.emergencycellphones.com" and you buy minutes from
> "http://www.americanroaming.com/buyprepaid.php". There may be other
> sources for these unregistered phones as well. I used to see other
> companies selling these phones.
<snip>
I put all this information on a web site "http://prepaiduswireless.com/".