Electronics

[sipp]

I was interested in a tracfone but the question i had can't be posted- the page comes up blank-thought it might be the laptop i was on but changed to a differnt one and still blank--- I don't know when the phone was presented- but the question i had was if i could just buy the "old" cards to keep it activated after the year is up. I don't use all the stuff- I don't play games - rarely take pictures- would use it to call home from my car or answer a call- and I also text- would use apps from stores for discounts and that's about it-- (I also still have triple minutes but have not used them up- so that leads to another question- it says the triple minutes will switch over to the new phone- BUT when i buy a card- IF i can buy a card- will they triple everything again? It's confusing to me. I buy a card to keep my phone active- I i don't want to sign up for tracfone's monthly plans. SO help??- TIA!

[catter70]

@sipp , I'd like to know that, too.I just had a flip phone prior to purchasing the TSV last month. I thought somewhere that it said if we had double or triple minutes that would also go with the new phone. I called Tracfone about that just yesterday and it doesn't sound like that will happen. Won't know for a year as that's when mine expires. BTW, I won't use any of the other stuff either. I only rarely even make phone calls.

[Ainhisg]

This article should help.  Some of the info is a bit outdated, but most of it is current.

https://tracfonereviewer.blogspot.com/2014/08/how-do-minutes-work-on-tracfone-android.html 

It sounds like you have a basic phone--not a smartphone.  If so, if you have 3300 minutes (for example), when you activate your new smart phone, then 3300 talk minutes, 3300 texts, and 3.3 GB of data will be transferred to it.  The package that's already on the phone (usually 1500 talk minutes, 1500 texts, and 1.5 GB of data) will be added to that making you have 4800 talk minutes, 4800 texts, and 4.8 GB of data.  At the end of your service date, there is a way that you can only buy another year of service (no talk minutes, texts, or data), and we can tell you how to do that when the time comes.  A lot of people just buy a new phone near the end of their service date as that is often not much more expensive than buying just the service plus you would have a new operating system, which means better security.  Once you switch to a smart phone, there is no more triple service, which sounds like it's not as good of a deal, but it is about the same price.

[Ainhisg]

@catter70 , you don't have to wait until your service is about to expire to activate your new phone.  Activate it now!    Your service date will be extended by a year.  For example, if your service expires in August of 2021, then after you activate your new phone, when you check your service date, it will then be August of 2022.  Absolutely no need to wait to activate it!  Here is a screen shot of my service, and you can see that it doesn't expire until May of 2022.  It was set to expire in May of next year, but I bought a new tracfone, and when I activated it last week, 1500 minutes/texts/1.5 GB of data and 365 days of service was added to what I already had.

[catter70]

@Ainhisg , thanks. Yes, I did activate my new phone which added the new date and rolled over my minutes from previous phone. I guess I misunderstood and thought they said if you had double or triple minutes that that would also transfer to the new phone. I very rarely use it at all and only by 60 minute cards which would then give me 120 minutes with my old phone. Thanks again for your input.

[Ainhisg]

Right...the minutes you had rolled over to the new phone but the triple minute feature does not.  Enjoy!

[Venezia]

@catter70 - Tracfone stopped the triple minutes plan back sometime in 2017.  If you kept your current phone or transferred to another one with it (an old model), you'd still get it.

But none of the new smartphones has this feature.  You should have a look at the Tracfone website, so you can see in advance all the options for adding minutes and service.  Adding just extra minutes now is inexpensive and easy.  You can also set up an account to add your phone; that makes it even easier, IMO.

[hckynut]

@sipp 

Here is what I think and did when I bought my last Tracfone. They had certain phones that still were sold as Triple Everything. I bought it for that reason. It is a smart phone, and as another poster said, my use is Seldom. I however choose to get the most Bang for my $$.

Don't know Tracfone still has phones that have the Triple/Triple, but my present one, and the backup phone my wife uses still is on the  Ttiple/Triple. 

hckynut

[sipp]

This actually is "closest" to my question- I do only have a basic phone with the triple minute feature-and up to maybe last year- the tracfone reps would say- yes your triple minute FEATURES will be transferred- but what exactly did that mean I wondered- would it be the same procedure that when(if) i added a ie 60 minute card to keep my service activated- (but didn't really ever use my other stuff up because I don't really use it much but do need it ) I would get ie 180   etc---- and then again if I added another 60  card at a later date  to keep it activated- would that triple as well? Seems not? Does anyone know for sure- Hckynut bought their triple minute smart  phones a while ago- so his answer doesn't quite fit my question. It's SO confusing!!! And to make matters worse- they say the 4g's will be phased out in a year or so- Our smartphones (one only which has been activated - because I was holding out on my older non-smart 3g---- but will be activating this month) SO is that meaning the 4g's won't work because of the 5gs? ARGGGHHHH!

[glb613]

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@sipp wrote:

This actually is "closest" to my question- I do only have a basic phone with the triple minute feature-and up to maybe last year- the tracfone reps would say- yes your triple minute FEATURES will be transferred- but what exactly did that mean I wondered- would it be the same procedure that when(if) i added a ie 60 minute card to keep my service activated- (but didn't really ever use my other stuff up because I don't really use it much but do need it ) I would get ie 180   etc---- and then again if I added another 60  card at a later date  to keep it activated- would that triple as well? Seems not? Does anyone know for sure- Hckynut bought their triple minute smart  phones a while ago- so his answer doesn't quite fit my question. It's SO confusing!!! And to make matters worse- they say the 4g's will be phased out in a year or so- Our smartphones (one only which has been activated - because I was holding out on my older non-smart 3g---- but will be activating this month) SO is that meaning the 4g's won't work because of the 5gs? ARGGGHHHH!

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From what I've read, 5G will be backward compatible.  You won't get the 5G speed but, your phone will connect and work.