Any good cell phone deals out there ?

[Russell]

I recently left my work and had to return the company cell phone. I'm in the market for a cheap cell phone and a cheap plan. I don't need lots of mins nor do I need a flashy phone.

So far, I'm not finding anything cheaper than $39 a month. Which to me is a lot, in fact, 3 yrs ago I was paying $29...I thought things were supposed to get cheaper with more supply and demand ? By comparison I'm paying $14 for DSL now which used to be $60 5 yrs ago

[Tree0164]

There are a lot of good deals out there. It really depends on your location and how many minutes that you want. Compare cell phone providers

If you don't think you will use your phone alot, look at prepaid phones.

[Bluezy]

I gave up my Virgin Mobile for a $39.99 deal with Verizon. Since my little boy started calling me several times every day, the pay-as-you-go got to be $100 a month or more.

If you don't use a cell often, a pay-as-you-go might work. You top up your account every so often to keep the phone number active, so you aren't out much.

[Russell]

Thanks for the suggestions but I'm still unable to find any good deals. The cheapest I've seen is $39/mo. The pay as you go plans seem to have lots of strings attached. For one, they charge you $1 access fee per day. The minutes expire after 30, 60 or 90 days and probably other hidden stuff.

[sweeps]

Have you looked into Tracfone? They're currently running a deal until 4/21. $100 gets you 350 minutes (+20 starter minutes) for 1 year of wireless service and a free Nokia 1100 phone. 30-day money back guarantee, no contract. They also have 60-day plans. No access fees, but you have to "recharge" every 60 days. Cards are available at Walmart and other places. When comparing the costs to other plans, be sure to compare on a monthly basis.

Only consider Tracfone if you don't use many minutes. Otherwise, it's probably best to bite the bullet and go for one of the $39/month plans at Verizon, U.S. Cellular, Cingular, etc.

[Russell]

Thanks Sweeps, I didn't know about Tracfone. This is exactly what I was looking for. Except, I don't know how their wireless coverage and service is so I'm trying to decide if I should try their $20 deal which comes with 60 mins or if I should sign up for the whole year. Thanks again.

[jodi]

Good luck with Tracfone - let us know how it goes. I would have loved to do a prepaid, but since my cell phone use varies so much with my business, I needed a plan that I can get a lot of minutes if needed. The cheapest I found was Nextel, which I got for the walkie-talkies, even though I never use them. It was $36.99/line per month, plus $1.50 if you want call detail, plus a $1.99 "infrastructure fee" per account, so it actually ended up being over $40 per month (and then you add all the taxes...). Just be sure to ask very explicitly what the charges cover - and then get it in writing. I had a sales associate who promised me a lot that I had to jump through hoops to get because he never put it in writing (he never told me about the additional charges even though I directly asked him, promised me a 10% discount b/c I was a state employee which I was later denied, etc.).
There's another thought - I was eligible for different discounts through my union and realtor's association. Think about if there are any organizations you belong to that might give you a discount with certain companies - although I doubt this works with Tracfones, it may come in handy if you decide to go elsewhere.

[Cheetahwoman7]

Well, I finally decided to register just so i could respond to this post. If you want a plan instead of prepaid, try T-Mobile's $19.95 plan. That's what I have. It gives you 60 anytime minutes and 400 weekends. Sorry, no nights included with those 400 minutes. They're considered anytime minutes.

I don't use the phone much, but am glad that I have those minutes for the weekend. Hope that helps you out some. Oh, and you can get the plan with a one year contract instead of the usual two that most companies require.

Hope that helps,
CJ

[Russell]

Thanks everyone. I just bought the 60 minute prepaid card+refurbished nokia phone for $20 from tracfone. I'll see how I like it.

I considered the T-mobile plan but according to those who have their coverage in this area its spotty at best. Also since I'm in front of the computer 11 out of 15 hours every day my main means of communications is emails and IM. The cell phone is for emergencies and occasional use only.

[RJB1180]

If tracfone doesn't work out, look on amazon, letstalk.com or wirefly, I have had good experiences with amazon, best, and letstalk.com, good. Never used wirefly, these sites offer new contracts with rebates, I know I got top of the line for free after MIR, and my dad got okay phones, free at purchase, with ~$100 back per phone. There is the 2 yr contract but to get any deals right now your stuck that way. Also if you have up& down months look at cingular, because of the rollover, I know I saved almost $200 last month because of rollover, guess there was a lot of chatter last month. always try to talk to as many people who have coverage first, and NEVER throw out the boxes before the contract is over.

[<><]

go here: http://www.sprint.com/sero/

enter the email: John.H.Heflin@sprint.com and your zip code

Sprint is currently offering its SERO (Sprint Employee Referral Offer) plan, lots of minutes and perks for a good price ($30/500,$50/1250,$100/2500). The usual stuff but it also includes nights starting at 7PM ... just email ecare after you sign up to get the free offer.

Hope that helped

[Tree0164]

Tracfone has one of the best networks out there so that is a good choice.

[veronak]

You know I have two cell phones and I think they are all the same, rip offs
for my second phone I am able to talk all I want when I want at no additional cost the only problem if I travel out of the area it will not work the other I can basically go anywhere and use it but when I use it locally the calls always drop, and of course if I am in another area of course it works just fine in order to charge me roaming charges
good luck

[Russell]

Well I got my tracfone and I activated it today. I got a factory refurbished Nokia phone (looks brand new) and 60 mins + 20 mins, all for under $27 shipped.

I haven't used it to make calls yet but my wife has sent me a bunch of text messages (incoming text messages are free). So I think this will work out OK, of course, the catch is you have to 'recharge' your air-time card every 60 or 365 days (depending on the type of card) to keep your account active. Since I plan to use it for emergencies only I think I can live with the number of alloted mins per 60 days or per 365 days.