what is the best cell phone service for the money?

[target2019]

The phones are now priced at $99, $129, and $229. And they are good phones (Android smart phones--Moto G, Moto E, Moto X).

I've been very happy with Republic Wireless. And they are now starting a new program that pays you back for cell data you don't use. This, coupled with their already low rates and good service (at least where I live and travel) means I won't be looking elsewhere soon. Of course, once you've bought the Republic-specific phone, you are loathe to abandon it and start over with another provider, but I saved enough over my old Verizon service to pay for the phone within a few months.

Before I switched, I was aspiring to be the last holdout flip-phone user on planet earth. Now I'm fairly well hooked on the voice-command "Google Now" function and all the other conveniences of a smartphone.

I went with Tracfone. In the future maybe I will try Republic. It was a tossup. Anything but Verizon.

 

[target2019]

When I ported to Tracfone, I signed back into my new account on their website about 3 hours later and it said the port was complete and I could continue with the activation process.

I do not have that message. What company did you port from?
Cell to cell port is usually very fast. Landline to cell can take time. Verizon is a dinosaur.

How long will the process take?
The exact timing for wireless and landline transfers depends on the carrier´s response time. The transfer process typically takes a few hours to complete, but could take as long as 2 business days or longer for landlines.

 

[Car-Guy]

Best plan depends on your needs (wants). For me I really don't like cell phones. Poor voice quality, dropped calls, no service areas, distracted drivers, etc, etc. However, I do realize they call be useful (needed) in some cases. So in my case, with my very low monthly usage, I use an AT&T Go-Phone. I pay $100 a year and have always had carry over minutes at the end of the year. As long as I renew for $100 once a year, the minutes keep carrying over. A new flip phone cost me about $15 and the last one lasted well over 5 years before the battery would not hold a charge. So my actual rate is well under $10 month. Probably about $6 to $7 a month. It's worked well for me for the last 8 to 10 years but probably is not what most people want in a cell phone.

Before I retired, I had a few different smart phones and really felt they were a PIA. About the only thing that I found useful in the business world was being able to access my email while in meetings (and bored to death). Probably 90% of the calls and features were worthless and/or not needed so I saw no reason to have one in retirement. YMMV

 

[Options]

The phones are now priced at $99, $129, and $229. They are good phones, too (Android smart phones--Moto G, Moto E, Moto X).

I've been very happy with Republic Wireless. And they are now starting a new program that pays you back for cell data you don't use. This, coupled with their already low rates and good service (at least where I live and travel) means I won't be looking elsewhere soon. Of course, once you've bought the Republic-specific phone, you are loathe to abandon it and start over with another provider, but I saved enough over my old Verizon service to pay for the phone within a few months.

Before I switched, I was aspiring to be the last holdout flip-phone user on planet earth. Now I'm fairly well hooked on the voice-command "Google Now" function and all the other conveniences of a smartphone.

Big +1 for RW. Got the Moto G and entirely happy. Voice command for all functions (search, text, calling, maps) is fantastic. I've got the $10/mo plan ($12 with all taxes) which is perfect for my needs. I like that I can switch 2x monthly to the $25/mo plan for unlimited V/T/D over 3G, although I've not done that yet as I've not had the need. When I do, I will try their latest feature of getting paid back for data I don't use. I"ve never had to contact customer service because the RW Community has answered every single question I had (and I had a lot at first). After suffering with a Blandberry and later an Iphone through work, I'll be staying with RW and androids going forward.

 

[target2019]

Back to square #2. The port of my landline did not take effect for some reason. I followed all of the steps exactly as written on the red enclosure card. That does not work, evidently.

I called again, gave all information. Starting port process again.

I notice that the support website is not part of Tracfone website. Support does not know what Verizon is, or how to spell it. Ut-oh. Still, I know this will work someday, and have great confidence!

 

[target2019]

At last, our had-it-forever home landline number is now a cell number on Tracfone. This is such a load off my mind. We have a phone that works, no static, and need not wait for Verizon service guy once a year.

This cuts the landline bill in half in the first year. 60 minute card for $20, and I am good for 90 days. And that tripled to 180 minutes.

Has anyone purchased 1 year Tracfone card online from Amazon? It seems legit. That appears to be the the cheapest way to go at the moment. $85.00 total for 400 minutes, and you're set for a year...

 

[aja8888]

At last, our had-it-forever home landline number is now a cell number on Tracfone. This is such a load off my mind. We have a phone that works, no static, and need not wait for Verizon service guy once a year.

This cuts the landline bill in half in the first year. 60 minute card for $20, and I am good for 90 days. And that tripled to 180 minutes.

Has anyone purchased 1 year Tracfone card online from Amazon? It seems legit. That appears to be the the cheapest way to go at the moment. $85.00 total for 400 minutes, and you're set for a year...

(my emphasis)....that just over one minute per day talk time, if they don't round up the partial minute. Pretty light user!

 

[Walt34]

(my emphasis)....that just over one minute per day talk time, if they don't round up the partial minute. Pretty light user!

Actually, that would work for me. For DW, no way!

 

[Texas Proud]

(my emphasis)....that just over one minute per day talk time, if they don't round up the partial minute. Pretty light user!

If he is like me, then it is tripled...


Now that he has no landline, then it might not be enough.... I only use cell for when I am out...


BTW, to OP.... I just added the $20 to my plan and they offered an extra 365 days for an additional $50 with no minutes.... since I have plenty of minutes I bought it.... so, $72 (with taxes) and I got 15 months... or less than $5 per month.....

I also got text and data, but do not use much of this... DW has unlimited data, so we use hers... but she cost me $40 per month.....

 

[target2019]

We each have a mobile cell with unlimited minutes and texts. Those provide most of our calling needs.
Moving landline number to pay as you go was a cost saving decision. We want to keep the number for various reasons. How many minutes we'll use will be very low number.

 

[gauss]

Has anyone purchased 1 year Tracfone card online from Amazon? It seems legit. That appears to be the the cheapest way to go at the moment. $85.00 total for 400 minutes, and you're set for a year...

I don't know if I purchased them on Amazon, but I have purchased them on Ebay all the time. I have never had a problem.

For purchasers, Ebay and Amazon are much more secure than Craigslist IMHO in that cash transactions (and the associated risks inherent in them to the buyer) do not generally take place on Ebay/Amazon.

-gauss

 

[pb4uski]

DS lost his trac phone.... but he was close to being out of time and money anyway. He lives in a rural area that only Verizon covers (no AT&T, Sprint, etc). He is a light user but it is his only phone (no landline) and is concerned about cost (that's my boy!).

Any thoughts on a low cost Verizon network pay-as-you-go plan?

We have airvoicewireless and love it ($10/month) but it is AT&T.

 

[Major Tom]

Another vote for RW. I've only been with them for a little over a month but so far, I am happy. $10/mo + taxes and fees for unlimited voice and texting (+ data when on WiFi) makes it hard to justify not having a cellphone. The Moto G is in the sweet spot for price vs performance, too.

I like that I can switch 2x monthly to the $25/mo plan for unlimited V/T/D over 3G, although I've not done that yet as I've not had the need.

Me too, though I just tried it and the way it works is that when you switch to the $25/mo data plan, that is one switch. Then when you switch back to your $10/mo plan, that is another switch. So if you switch to the data plan for a while, then switch back, that is your quota used up for that billing cycle.

 

[bjorn2bwild]

DS lost his trac phone.... but he was close to being out of time and money anyway. He lives in a rural area that only Verizon covers (no AT&T, Sprint, etc). He is a light user but it is his only phone (no landline) and is concerned about cost (that's my boy!).

Any thoughts on a low cost Verizon network pay-as-you-go plan?

We have airvoicewireless and love it ($10/month) but it is AT&T.

Same here, Verizon is the only network reaching my rural area home.
I recommend Page Plus. The cheapest plan is $10 per 4months, plus the cost of the phone - as cheap as $20 on their site, or bring your own. I use a discount service to refill - prepaid online with auto refill at a slight discount @ $9.70 x 3 = $29.10 per year, no worries.

https://www.pagepluscellular.com/

PrepaidOnline.com Instant Prepaid Phone Cards, Wireless Refill Cards and online Shopping Mall

 

[Free To Canoe]

Same here, Verizon is the only network reaching my rural area home.
I recommend Page Plus. The cheapest plan is $10 per 4months, plus the cost of the phone - as cheap as $20 on their site, or bring your own. I use a discount service to refill - prepaid online with auto refill at a slight discount @ $9.70 x 3 = $29.10 per year, no worries.

https://www.pagepluscellular.com/

PrepaidOnline.com Instant Prepaid Phone Cards, Wireless Refill Cards and online Shopping Mall

+1

I get refills at pinzoo.com.

 

[Birdie Num Nums]

DS lost his trac phone.... but he was close to being out of time and money anyway. He lives in a rural area that only Verizon covers (no AT&T, Sprint, etc). He is a light user but it is his only phone (no landline) and is concerned about cost (that's my boy!).

Any thoughts on a low cost Verizon network pay-as-you-go plan?

We have airvoicewireless and love it ($10/month) but it is AT&T.

Doesn't Tracfone use the Verizon network? See here.

 

[rbmrtn]

Has anyone purchased 1 year Tracfone card online from Amazon? It seems legit. That appears to be the the cheapest way to go at the moment. $85.00 total for 400 minutes, and you're set for a year...

Somewhere on one of the tracfone blogs I read the landline ports take longer, up to two weeks. This seems to be true with other carriers as well.

I always ran out of service time vs minutes. If you use the tracfone site you get 30 minute card and add 365 service days for total of ~$60. Just depends how many minutes you need. The 400mn/1yr card on ebay is $79.99.

 

[pb4uski]

Doesn't Tracfone use the Verizon network? See here.

Yes, it does. Sorry, I wasn't clear on that. He's just looking at alternatives to renewing with Tracfone.

 

[pb4uski]

Doesn't Tracfone use the Verizon network? See here.

Yes, it does. Sorry, I wasn't clear on that. He's just looking at alternatives to renewing with Tracfone.

 

[target2019]

Somewhere on one of the tracfone blogs I read the landline ports take longer, up to two weeks. This seems to be true with other carriers as well.

I always ran out of service time vs minutes. If you use the tracfone site you get 30 minute card and add 365 service days for total of ~$60. Just depends how many minutes you need. The 400mn/1yr card on ebay is $79.99.

Yes, I mentioned earlier in the thread that a landline port takes longer. 2 hours | 2 days | 2 weeks. Take your pick.

Also mentioned that 1 year card. It looks like that it the best value. And I have a triple minutes phone, so it would be 1200 minutes added. Yearly cost to maintain service approximately $85.00. Not bad.

"Has anyone purchased 1 year Tracfone card online from Amazon? It seems legit. That appears to be the the cheapest way to go at the moment. $85.00 total for 400 minutes, and you're set for a year... "


Also worth a mention is WhatsApp, which installs to your cellphone. Here's why.

We have been using Google Chat, and found the connection to be a problem to the other side of the world. It used to work well, but somewhere along the way I guess it got too popular, and quality went down hill due to throttling or spats between ISPs.

We have the Tracfone also authenticated to our wireless network. I installed WhatsApp. Found out that we could have a very clear one-hour conversation between US and AUS. This was using the Tracfone through our wireless network, out through the internet half-way around the world, and down through 3G to kid's cellphone down under.