[miclason]

Thanks for the heads up, Sharon! I am not in the US, so the conditions are a little different...

I must say I have had 8 long months to research this....since my old phone mysteriously "died" after receiving a text message....this was the third time it happened and, to make the mystery even greater, always within 8-6 months before my contracts expired...so twice before I was faced with the option of continuing to pay for the full contract AND for a new cell phone with another company, or just take the convenient step of asking for a new phone and signing a new contract with this company....Also, on all three occasions I found out that other people with the same phone make/model as mine had had problems with their phones within 8-6 months from the expiration of their contracts...(can you see a pattern??!!...this company has already scammed me twice!)...just by luck I had an old phone so I was able to NOT opt for the new phone/contract combo this time....Another thing working against the contract is that you agree to pay a fixed amount per minute, so, even if the company that you have the contract with has a special promotion at lower prices, you can not benefit from it!! (contracts are great for companies, though, as they usually offer you free calls between cell phone numbers in the same contract!)....

Most companies here in El Salvador offer you cards from $5.... the particular company that I am going to switch to offers $2 cards, and the minutes never expire....the other companies have different valid periods depending on which card you buy, so, a $5 one lasts 3 days, a $15 one lasts 12 days and a $20 one lasts only 1 month!!!....Also, this company that I want to switch to charges you "by the second", which means that if you make a 45 second call, you pay for 45 seconds, while others round up to the minute!! (so you pay for a 2minute call even if your call was 1minute 5 secs!... (I just hope I have the restrain to limit my calls!!)