Pre paid phones

[Metspitzer]

I would like to get a phone for emergency and short important calls. Any agreement on what the cheapest cost option is?

[RBM]

Find out which carrier provides the best cell coverage in the area you plan to use the phone. If it turns out to be Verizon, you can get really nice rates with pageplus. You buy just about any phone you like, that was built for Verizon, except ones that were built for Verizon pre pay plans, or you can buy new or used phones from pageplus. The cheapest plan is a $10 card, which I believe is for 100 minutes, and it lasts for I believe 120 days. As long as you get at least another $10 card before the first one expires, whatever minutes you had left, rolls over.

[Metspitzer]

10 bucks at 100 min for 120 days is perfect. I have yet to find a package like that. I have found a couple 10 bucks for 100 min for 30 days.

Thanks

[notbob]

I've been using a Tracfon for over 3 yrs with no probs. Any Walmart has the cheapest flip phone fer around $12. With 1 hr time, about $25-30. Anything under a couple hrs prepaid time is about $.35-.50 /min. I live in very rural CO Rockies, 8K ft elev, the closest

1-traf-signal town 10 miles away, yet have no probs getting a connection, even indoors. Cheap, but good enough for emergency, but mostly jes cheap. ;)

nb

[Art Todesco]

Living in western NC, Verizon, unfortunately, is the only game in town. There are other carriers, however, their coverage is very spotty here. We have one prepaid phone and one contract phone. The prepaid one is a small flip phone. We have been fueling it up every 3 months where we basically put $30. If you re-up before the 3 months are over, the leftover dollars roll over. If you fuel up with a year, the price per month is a bit cheaper. So, if you add money like we do, it costs up $10 per month to maintain the number. This plan charges $1 each day you use the phone, plus $ .10/minute. Because we have and use 2 phones, the are quite a few dollars on the prepaid phone. Here's how the Verizon prepaid plan works:

Scroll down about 2/3 of the way under payments. I don't know why anyone would want to put $75 for 180 days, 1/2 year, when you can get it for 2 payments of $30 for each group of 3 months. My last refuel was for a whole year, which is the best deal, if you are looking at minimum usage, like mine ... actually, my wife's.

[RBM]

It's been about two years that I've been with PP, having switched from a Verizon wireless family share plan. Unlike Verizon, this has been nothing but a pleasure, and an inexpensive one at that. The variety of plans are so flexible, you can set up automatic bill pay, so your credit card is charged, prior to running out of time, and essentially buy almost any phone, that's made to use on Verizon, including smart phones. Here's their site:

[NotMe]

Depends on where you live/travel.

We use pagepluscellular.com which is a reseller on the Verizon back bone. (not 100% coverage everywhere Verizon goes). You can also get 2000 min per year for $80 bucks.

You can buy $10 (100 min.) every 120 days (not 4 months but 120 days) and roll over the min.

Wife and I have one each and our service cost run ~ $15/ month. We also have one phone in each vehicle ($10 ever 120days) just incase of emergency or if we have the grand kids and need to track them when we're out and about.

Page plus will use almost any Verizon phone. Can be had on freecycle.org or craigslist for cheap.

[Pavel314]

agreement on what the cheapest cost option is?

I have the AT&T pay as you go plan. I pre-pay $100 for a year's service. Wh= en I use the phone, there's a fixed $1.00 daily connect fee which covers th= e entire day, plus I pay $0.10 per minute of call time. If I don't use the = phone on a given day, I don't pay anything.=20

If I pay another $100 at the end of the year, I keep the same number for th= e next year plus any unused prepayments are rolled over. I currently have a= bout $350 in prepayment credit because I don't use the phone very often.=20

Voice mail is included.

[Fat-Dumb and Happy]

I got a Net10 phone three or four years ago. A straight 10 cents a minute and piggy backs on ATT's system, at least mine does. 15/month for 200 minutes auto pay plan. The unused minutes roll over, I've see I now have 1800 minutes to use.

wally world has them it's the same company as straight talk and trackphone... I think Carlos Slim owns the company. and interesting one, Republicwireless.com 19/month runs off Sprint network. Uses VOIP when it can via wifi and the sprint network when it has to.

[Metspitzer]

In picking out a phone, I do plan on spending a little more money. Being able to take pictures and save them over a USB cable would be nice but not completely necessary. The Sprint phone I was using made you upload the pictures and pay for each one.

I do also want a phone that will play mp3s.

[Hell Toupee]

I use Virgin's pay as you go. Cheap/free phones, and I think it's now

20 cents/minute on their pay as you go plans. Basically, you are required to purchase $20 of time every ninety days. If you don't use it, the money rolls forward and accumulates. You can even use the accumulated funds to upgrade to a newer phone.

Virgin has also been very, very good about replacing my mom's lost phones. Twice she lost her phone (she's old); twice they Fed-Ex'd replacement phones - for free.

I expect there are even cheaper plans out there, but if they don't provide coverage in your area and Virgin does, you may want to check them out.

[HeyBub]

Whatever you do, avoid buying a 'phone from the carrier (or a battery). Get your 'phone from Craigslist or Ebay. I bought a Blackberry for $54 via Ebay and activated it at Verizon. Verizon's model was $254 with a two-year contract. Batteries for my Blackberry are three dollars and change from Ebay, vs. thirty-something dollars at the Verizon store.

That said, virtually ANY phone, activated, subscribed, or not is capable of reaching 911.

[gregz]

Thread from electronics showed this.

Greg

[RBM]

Then you're in luck. That covers about every phone made this century.(lol) When I need a new phone, I go on Ebay and search Verizon cell phones, new, no contract, then examine all the models to find the features I want.

[Dean Hoffman]

Some info here >

well.

[Bob(but not THAT Bob)]

Tracfone - seven bucks and change per month.

You can pick up a refurbed phone with a year's minutes on eBay for a pittance.

And the unused minutes just add up.

[bob haller]

assuming someone talks on a phone and only needs a cell phone for emergencies.....

why have a land line at all?

with unlimited phone and text 50 bucks a month for major carriers like verizon, and as low as 19 bucks a month for republic wireless, with lots of options in the middle f that price range.

why not ditch the land line totally, and go all cell?

[notbob]

Yep.

I remember when I first got one, about 4 yrs ago, they would subtract mins after a certain amount of time passed if you didn't use them. That's no longer the case. I've accumutlated up to 5 hrs of time by only buying minimum time cards over a couple yrs.

I recently upgraded to an entry level smart phone fer a mere $20. Texting, pictures, qwerty keyboard, etc. It will even send pics to my email and access the internet!! I was amazed. We then had a power outaged during the big fires in CO and I hadda use the tracfone to call family in CA. 4 hrs gone. So, I bought double time mins --10 hrs-- fer $60. That's 10¢ min.

More retirees around here --who have no interest in yakkin' on a cellphone all day-- have a cheapo tracfon for emergency, than any other brand of cellphone. And you can get time cards in almost every store on the planet. I think it's much easier to jes call 'em and order more time on the phone. Less hassle and works quicker. I rarely use my cell phone, but it's good to have, jes in case. Plus, tracfon has had plenty of time to work out the bugs. It's a very reliable product.

I realize this sounds like a huge plug for a cellphone product, but that's cuz it is. I seldom shill for a anything, but I recommend tracfon unreservedly. 'nuff said.

nb

[krw]

and as low as 19 bucks a month for republic wireless, with lots of options in the middle f that price range.

I did that seven years ago and have never regretted it.

[Metspitzer]

verizon, and as low as 19 bucks a month for republic wireless, with lots of options in the middle f that price range.

I have read that lots of people are doing that. I don't do it for two reasons. The first is that I get the land line for 22 bucks per month, and I do need more talk mins at home.

The second and most important reason is that I don't want to have to tote my phone around at home. I have 6 wireless phones throughout the house to use when it rings. I even have one in the bathroom. I actually use the one in the bathroom to call out on the most. I leave my mail in the bathroom and go through it there. It really is a good place for procrastinators to keep up with business mail.