NBR: Prepaid vs Contract Cell Phones?

[bunnnnnnie!]

I’m trying to reduce my monthly bills as much as possible, and I’m thinking of switching my cell phone from a monthly contract to a prepaid phone.  I’m needing a new phone anyways, so I figure now is a good time!  I’m planning on getting a very simple flip-phone with no data plan.

I really don’t make many calls at all, but I do text a lot.  So unlimited texting will be neccessary.   I was hoping to hear from someone who has a prepaid phone, and what they think of it?  Is it cheaper?  Pros and cons of a prepaid phone versus a contract phone?

Thanks in advance!

[RabbitPam]

Hi, there. I did the same thing a couple of months ago. I tried tracfone because I wanted a really simple flip phone also. The first one I tried was their plan but not a flip phone, and it didn’t even start to work. So, after shopping for a simpler, cheaper phone they offered with a double minutes plan I settled on the LG 440g.
I like it.

First Con: it does NOT come with a photo card slot that you can load and unload to transfer pix to your computer or whatever for printing. It has a decent built in camera, but you need to email your pix to yourself. Hard for me to break the pix memory card habit.
Con (maybe): I don’t like to text. So, while I’ve texted about 3 times without any trouble, I can’t compare it to a good phone for texting. It’s not a con, more of an I-don’t-know.

Pro: the sound quality is sooooooooo much better than my previous cell phones. Something about a simple flip phone that’s newer, and maybe cause it’s an LG, gives it more attention to the sound quality and I can actually hear again like a land line phone.
Pro: Yes, it’s cheap!!! I signed on to a plan with unlimited double minutes, so I have minutes left for a very, very long time. And you can always find a card in any drugstore or other places to renew your minutes and time, with specials and other cost savings. I do not use it as much as most people, because I rely on my laptop at home and my Kindle for anything else while on the move, so I don’t want a loaded up phone. I just want it for calls or occasional texts. I believe it’s costing me about $12 a month. Paid in one lump every several months, since I didn’t opt to renew it monthly, though I think you can do that, too.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By RabbitPam on 03/05/2013 09:43 AM
Hi, there. I did the same thing a couple of months ago. I tried tracfone because I wanted a really simple flip phone also. The first one I tried was their plan but not a flip phone, and it didn’t even start to work. So, after shopping for a simpler, cheaper phone they offered with a double minutes plan I settled on the LG 440g.
I like it.

First Con: it does NOT come with a photo card slot that you can load and unload to transfer pix to your computer or whatever for printing. It has a decent built in camera, but you need to email your pix to yourself. Hard for me to break the pix memory card habit.
Con (maybe): I don’t like to text. So, while I’ve texted about 3 times without any trouble, I can’t compare it to a good phone for texting. It’s not a con, more of an I-don’t-know.

Pro: the sound quality is sooooooooo much better than my previous cell phones. Something about a simple flip phone that’s newer, and maybe cause it’s an LG, gives it more attention to the sound quality and I can actually hear again like a land line phone.
Pro: Yes, it’s cheap!!! I signed on to a plan with unlimited double minutes, so I have minutes left for a very, very long time. And you can always find a card in any drugstore or other places to renew your minutes and time, with specials and other cost savings. I do not use it as much as most people, because I rely on my laptop at home and my Kindle for anything else while on the move, so I don’t want a loaded up phone. I just want it for calls or occasional texts. I believe it’s costing me about $12 a month. Paid in one lump every several months, since I didn’t opt to renew it monthly, though I think you can do that, too.

Wow, $12 is amazing!  So is it still through Tracfone?  I’ve always just had a contract with AT&T so I have no idea how prepaid stuff works.

[Jennifer H.]

I have a month-to-month no-contract plan with Virgin Mobile (one of their “Beyond Talk” plans). Mine has unlimited data and messaging plus 300 minutes. I like their service. Their customer service is very helpful. The signal is pretty decent since it runs off the Sprint network towers. You can make your payments (your balance or your monthly payment if you are month-to-month) via credit card or even Paypal.

Just remember that the no-contract and prepaid phone plans require you to pay the full price of the phone, so if you want an iPhone, you’ll have to pay $500+ for it.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Jennifer H. on 03/05/2013 09:56 AM
I have a month-to-month no-contract plan with Virgin Mobile (one of their “Beyond Talk” plans). Mine has unlimited data and messaging plus 300 minutes. I like their service. Their customer service is very helpful. The signal is pretty decent since it runs off the Sprint network towers. You can make your payments (your balance or your monthly payment if you are month-to-month) via credit card or even Paypal.

Just remember that the no-contract and prepaid phone plans require you to pay the full price of the phone, so if you want an iPhone, you’ll have to pay $500+ for it.

Luckily I just want a super-basic phone, the fewer the features the better.  As long as I can text and make phone calls that’s pretty much all I need.

[LBJ10]

I have Sprint right now. I have thought about switching to their Pre-Paid company, Boost Mobile. It uses the Sprint network. You can get unlimited talk and text starting at $45/mo. After 18 months, your bill will shrink to $30/mo. It actually isn’t that much cheaper than the unlimited everything, so if I ever did switch then it would probably be that. I haven’t switched yet because that is per line and we have 3 lines. Anyway this would only be if I decide to take the plunge and actually get a data plan. Otherwise, it is more expensive than what I am paying now (no data plan).

[longhairmike]

when shana got a smartphone,, i downgraded my verizon plan to a prepaid $100/year
it takes crappy little pics and spends most of its time in my bike bag.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Wow, $100 per year, that’s a pretty amazing price.

I’m going to go over my contract and everything this weekend, and see what ends up being the most cost efficient. I have a feeling going prepaid is going to be more budget-friendly, especially considering I don’t need a fancy phone nor do I need unlimited anything except for texts. I probably won’t bother with a data plan, either.

[Michelle&Lolli]

I’ve always had a contract. But I did want to point out that like others have said, the prepaid companies basically “rent” their signals from the other major cell phone companies. Based on that fact, if I was considering it, I would want to know what the signals and coverages are like. It all comes down to what you are wanting your phone and how often you are going to use it. I looked into prepaid to try and cut costs as well but I still wanted my smart phone. So it didn’t make any sense for me to switch. I’d just do a lot of research and google reviews on the companies and services.

[bunnnnnnie!]

Posted By Michelle&Lolli on 03/06/2013 08:34 AM
I’ve always had a contract. But I did want to point out that like others have said, the prepaid companies basically “rent” their signals from the other major cell phone companies. Based on that fact, if I was considering it, I would want to know what the signals and coverages are like. It all comes down to what you are wanting your phone and how often you are going to use it. I looked into prepaid to try and cut costs as well but I still wanted my smart phone. So it didn’t make any sense for me to switch. I’d just do a lot of research and google reviews on the companies and services.

Right now I have AT&T, and they do have a prepaid program.  So I think for now, I would try just sticking with AT&T since their coverage is decent.  It’s not the best (I live out in the boondocks), but I at least know what their signals are like already.

If I had a smartphone or even used my phone for more than basically 99.9% texting, and a call once every 4 or 5 days, with nothing else, I probably wouldn’t even bother with prepaid.  But since I don’t require much from my phone, I think it might be a good way to save some $$$!

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