pay as you go phone plans

Beccaboone2 · ‎03-03-2014

Hello,

I am admittedly a technology dinosaur - I do not even have a smart phone yet. My current phone is very old, and I'm starting to have some trouble with it. Plus, I have been with Verizon for well over 12-14 years. I have seen a lot of ads and commercials for Straight Talk and Net 10 pay as you go plans, which are considerably less expensive than any comparable Verizon plan available (comparing plans with a smart phone I have yet to choose). Can anyone give me feedback on either Straight Talk or Net 10 plans - how happy are you with either, and how is the actual coverage? I appreciate any feedback...thank you!

willdob3 · ‎11-01-2010

I use Straight Talk with my iPhone. I have an unlimited plan (talk, text, & Internet) for $45 per month. I am happy with it & have no complaints.

I had AIO Wireless, a different month-by-month no-contract plan before this and did not like it because I discovered they did not support the coding used by UPS or stores so I was missing texts that I consider helpful. I also had problems receiving texts from friends with AIO. No such problems with Straight Talk & it costs $10 less.

millieshops · ‎03-09-2010

I bought a Net10 phone during the Sandy debacle when Verizon had no service for my Smartphone.

Just be very, very careful when you buy minutes from them. Their CS does not explain well and I managed to waste lots of my minutes and lose money. The company refused to reimburse me even when I explained what had happened.

I won't buy from them again, but the problem was CS, not coverage for making calls. That wasn't too bad.

spent2much · ‎03-10-2010

My husband and I have a TrakPhone plan. We pay $17 and change/month. We're under the family plan and we get TRIPLE minutes each month. In other words, maybe under the original plan he would get 100 min./month and I would get 60. Under this triple minutes plan, he gets 300 min./month and I get 180 min./month.

Of course, this would not be enough minutes for a person who spends a lot of time on the phone. My husband and I each have about 2,000 min. remaining because we don't use them very much.

We have always had coverage wherever we traveled (in the U.S.) and always have clear, consistent service. IF there is a billing problem, it takes a while to resolve because English is not the first language with most of the customer service reps. That being said, they try very hard to help and please you.

ETERNITY: your choice... smoking or non smoking!

kaydee50 · ‎02-07-2011

I too am a dinosaur when it comes to technology. We actually had a smart phone from HSN during their holiday promotion. Kept it for 2 months. Decided we were too stupid for a smart phone—LOL—and sent it back. Overkill for us.

I have a simple cell phone which is capable of text messages which I never use. I have Virgin Mobile for $20 every 3 months at 25 cents a minute. Rarely exceed that amount. I’m very satisfied with my Audiovox phone and Virgin service.

depglass · ‎03-10-2010

We have poor or nonexistent cell service at our house. So I have a $100.00 per year plan at Verizon with a cheap phone I just keep for road emergencies.

circles · ‎03-10-2010

OP....go to HSN....type in 336-162.....its a Motorola Tracfone....you get 2000 minutes and years service....also ear buds...and car charger...triple minutes for life...

its a camera phone....and texting...etc....

go take a look....its a simple phone....non of those fancy things...( I had to send one of those kinds of phones back because I didn't understand it...)

I have a different Tracfone I bought from HSN with same features and I love it....

lovinglife · ‎03-18-2010

Try Consumer Cellular. We have two cellphones and home phone base with 2000 shared minutes for $50. I can adjust the plan up or down anytime before billing cycle is over. All calls between our three phones are complimentary. They are a company in Oregon (USA) and have exceptional customer service!

hckynut · ‎03-10-2010

On 3/6/2014 Beccaboone2 said:
Hello,

I am admittedly a technology dinosaur - I do not even have a smart phone yet. My current phone is very old, and I'm starting to have some trouble with it. Plus, I have been with Verizon for well over 12-14 years. I have seen a lot of ads and commercials for Straight Talk and Net 10 pay as you go plans, which are considerably less expensive than any comparable Verizon plan available (comparing plans with a smart phone I have yet to choose). Can anyone give me feedback on either Straight Talk or Net 10 plans - how happy are you with either, and how is the actual coverage? I appreciate any feedback...thank you!

I have been using pre-paid TracFone for almost 9 years now and just about as many different types of cell phones. I have always bought them when my 1 year cell minutes is close to expiring(this could be as much as a month or 2), and when hsn has a special on one of their phones. This way it is cheaper than adding 12 months and the minutes that come with it.

Last phone I bought is a Samsung Smart Phone, which I hardly ever use, but when it comes to cost my works out to be around $6 per month which includes the price of the phone/2 chargers and a cover for the phone.

My phone has AT&T and T-Mobile as it's carriers and I have never found an area where it did not work. Now my wife has a much more expensive Samsung Smart Phone with Virgin Mobile Plan and she cannot make calls inside of our home. She can text and use the internet via wi-fi, but she cannot connect to a cell tower because of Virgin Mobiles smaller coverage area than what I have with TracFone.

Doubt I will ever see a reason to use any service other than TracFone nor buy anywhere but where I get a full year and lots of minutes for less than it would cost me to just buy minutes. And yes, the left over minutes are added on to the new phones. With my present phone I have over 4,000 minutes/4,000 texts and 4,000 data and it does not expire until August of 2015. I am set for a long time, who knows maybe even the rest of my life.

hckynut(john)

Suzeecat · ‎05-05-2010

I don't use my phone much for web browsing and the last TracFone I had was always accidentally hooking up to the internet and charging me minutes. That made me nervous. I switched to Virgin Mobile when HSN had a Samsung Ring special. Virgin Mobile has been the absolute worst in coverage, customer service, everything! I can't wait to get rid of it! I'm thinking of trying Consumer Cellular or SmartTalk next. Verizon is the best coverage in my area, but the most expensive.

But Virgin Mobile, I just can enough bad about them. Just - BAD!