I Like My Consumer Cellular

[steelyman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeWras I do not like watching TV on the phone. I could quote the director David Lynch on the subject, but it is completely NSFW. Let's just say he flippin' doesn't think phones are for watching anything. [emoji4]

That was the first thing I thought about too. I decided not to post the YouTube because of nasty-funny language. It predates tablets but was hilarious in early iPhone days.

[steelyman]

Yesterday was the last day of my first billing cycle with CC. I ended up using a whopping ~60 MB of data, and SpeedTest (just one run) consumed 40 MB of that.

I think that, in the general case, the plan I chose, especially with the recent boost in data limits, should work fine. For me.

Having followed this and other threads about cell plans and pricing, it seems clear that it’s worthwhile to research a number of plans that suit your situation/needs. CC may be great for me so far but my needs are likely more stripped-down than those who need multi-line and higher data. In other words, there’s no single “best cell plan”.

My Ooma Premier VoIP service really helps hold down the call minute total.

[ADDED] Actual data usage will probably influence my thoughts about the importance of 5G service (whenever that actually appears) to me.

[steelyman]

I got my first full-month CC invoice. The total is $23.81, with the base plan $20 and $3.81 Fed/NC taxes and fees.

Much better than my former Verizon bill (~$57)!

[pb4uski]

32% more than my $18 airvoicewireless bill and I get unlimited talk & text, 1GB of high speed data and 1GB of low speed data.

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by steelyman I got my first full-month CC invoice. The total is $23.81, with the base plan $20 and $3.81 Fed/NC taxes and fees. Much better than my former Verizon bill (~$57)!

Here's my comparison for 2 lines, 10GB plan, using AT&T network. (With AT&T, I had a 4GB plan with carry-over, allowing peaks. We've never used over 5GB per month.)

AT&T - Base fee: $76.95, added fees & tax: $12.17, total: $89.12
CC - Base fee: $55.00, added fees & tax: $6.64, total: $61.64

That's a nice dinner per moth for DW and I at our favorite family restaurant.

Maybe we can back off to the 5GB plan and save even more. TBD.

[pb4uski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeWras Here's my comparison for 2 lines, 10GB plan, using AT&T network. (With AT&T, I had a 4GB plan with carry-over, allowing peaks. We've never used over 5GB per month.) AT&T - Base fee: $76.95, added fees & tax: $12.17, total: $89.12 CC - Base fee: $55.00, added fees & tax: $6.64, total: $61.64 That's a nice dinner per moth for DW and I at our favorite family restaurant. Maybe we can back off to the 5GB plan and save even more. TBD.

$27.48 for a nice dinner for two.... wow... you must be having water and be a little tipper.

[Cobra9777]

If I'm following correctly, on Consumer Cellular, steelyman gets 250 minutes, unlimited text, and 500MB of data for $20 + taxes/fees = $23.81.

JoeWras has two lines that share 10GB of data, plus unlimited talk/text for $55 + $6.64 taxes/fees = $61.64, which (for comparison) is $30.82 per phone per month.

Based on my MVNO research over the last couple months, those are very high prices. Pb4 already posted about airvoicewireless, which is a good option for 1GB on AT&T for $18 (all-in).

But for light users like steelyman, Redpocket Mobile has an "Essentials" plan for $8.25/mo (all-in), which includes 500 minutes, 500 texts, and 500MB 4G LTE data, with unlimited 2G data thereafter. You can activate this plan on any of the 4 major carriers. Steelyman is paying almost 3X that rate at CC.

For heavier users like JoeWras, Redpocket has unlimited talk/text and 5GB of 4G LTE data on AT&T for $20 (all-in). This is the plan I'm on. DW pays $19 for unlimited talk/text and 2GB of 4G LTE data on Verizon. Both plans have unlimited 2G data if the 4G LTE limit is exceeded. JoeWras is paying ~1.5X that rate.

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pb4uski $27.48 for a nice dinner for two.... wow... you must be having water and be a little tipper.

Family restaurant. $10 entrees, no alcohol. LBYM.

[FreeBear]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cobra9777 If I'm following correctly, on Consumer Cellular, steelyman gets 250 minutes, unlimited text, and 500MB of data for $20 + taxes/fees = $23.81. JoeWras has two lines that share 10GB of data, plus unlimited talk/text for $55 + $6.64 taxes/fees = $61.64, which (for comparison) is $30.82 per phone per month. Based on my MVNO research over the last couple months, those are very high prices. Pb4 already posted about airvoicewireless, which is a good option for 1GB on AT&T for $18 (all-in). But for light users like steelyman, Redpocket Mobile has an "Essentials" plan for $8.25/mo (all-in), which includes 500 minutes, 500 texts, and 500MB 4G LTE data, with unlimited 2G data thereafter. You can activate this plan on any of the 4 major carriers. Steelyman is paying almost 3X that rate at CC. For heavier users like JoeWras, Redpocket has unlimited talk/text and 5GB of 4G LTE data on AT&T for $20 (all-in). This is the plan I'm on. DW pays $19 for unlimited talk/text and 2GB of 4G LTE data on Verizon. Both plans have unlimited 2G data if the 4G LTE limit is exceeded. JoeWras is paying ~1.5X that rate.

I agree that CC is never the cheapest deal, but that isn’t why I went with them. For me, they are “cheap enough”, but more importantly they get stellar reviews over several years from Consumer Reports and PC magazine based on their surveys. When I started my search for an MVNO to replace AT&T, most info on the internet was anecdotal or somehow marketing promo disguised on blogs. Other than price, there wasn’t much real data other than CR and PCMag to go on.

So I went with CC as the most safe and cheap enough option on paper not having any personal experience. I just couldn’t risk any problems without only phone. No land line and we critically need our mobiles for 2FA.

That being said, I am looking for a dirt cheap MVNO for a burner ‘droid phone that will run either T-Mobile (overseas)or Verizon (boonies driving). The likes of red pocket are very appealing!

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cobra9777 For heavier users like JoeWras, Redpocket has unlimited talk/text and 5GB of 4G LTE data on AT&T for $20 (all-in). This is the plan I'm on. DW pays $19 for unlimited talk/text and 2GB of 4G LTE data on Verizon. Both plans have unlimited 2G data if the 4G LTE limit is exceeded. JoeWras is paying ~1.5X that rate.

Not sure what their 2 line price is. Their web page is opaque on that.

For 1 line, this is what my webpage at Redpocket says:

[pb4uski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cobra9777 .... Pb4 already posted about airvoicewireless, which is a good option for 1GB on AT&T for $18 (all-in). ...

To be clear, my data is 1GB 4G and 1GB 2G as I understand it... in any event it is sufficient for our needs and use. While it is called the $20 plan, if you are on autopay the monthly charge is $18 and there are no additional taxes or fees... $18 is charged to my credit card.

Quote:

... Data allotments are split in half and provided at two different speeds. The first half of the data allotment is provided in high speed and the second half of the data allotment is provided in a reduced speed. ... After a refill is added on the $20 plan, you will receive the first 1 GB of data at high speed. Once you complete the first 1 GB of data, the next 1 GB of Promo data will automatically be switched to a reduced speed. ...

[Cobra9777]

Quote:

Originally Posted by JoeWras Not sure what their 2 line price is. Their web page is opaque on that. For 1 line, this is what my webpage at Redpocket says:

Under "Plans", click on "Annual Plans." Or just click here.

We've been on these plans for 2 months now with no issue. Price is much lower than our former MVNO (Ting/T-Mobile at ~$60-70/mo). Signal strength and speed tests are MUCH better as well. I'm on AT&T with 5GB and DW is on Verizon with 2GB. Total all-in price for both lines is $39, on a prepaid annual plan.

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cobra9777 Under "Plans", click on "Annual Plans." Or just click here. We've been on these plans for 2 months now with no issue. Price is much lower than our former MVNO (Ting/T-Mobile at ~$60-70/mo). Signal strength and speed tests are MUCH better as well. I'm on AT&T with 5GB and DW is on Verizon with 2GB. Total all-in price is $39, on a prepaid annual plan.

I see. I didn't want to go annual. At least not yet. Thanks for the pointer, it may be a future option.

[steelyman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cobra9777 If I'm following correctly, on Consumer Cellular, steelyman gets 250 minutes, unlimited text, and 500MB of data for $20 + taxes/fees = $23.81.

In my case, that’s correct. I double-checked just now because CC recently upped the data limit.

[Cobra9777]

Quote:

Originally Posted by pb4uski To be clear, my data is 1GB 4G and 1GB 2G as I understand it... in any event it is sufficient for our needs and use. While it is called the $20 plan, if you are on autopay the monthly charge is $18 and there are no additional taxes or fees... $18 is charged to my credit card.

They advertise it as a 2GB plan, which is a bit misleading for people who don't read the T&C as you and I have. With every other MVNO that I've researched, when they say 2GB data, that means 2GB of 4G LTE data, PLUS unlimited 2G data thereafter. Airvoice Wireless is 1GB 4G LTE, then 1GB 2G, then nothing.

As I've said before, $18 is a good price for 1GB on AT&T and I'm sure it works fine for you. The equivalent Redpocket plan is $17.08, with the only difference being unlimited 2G when the 1GB of 4G LTE is exceeded. Plus it's an annual prepaid plan, which may not be to everyone's liking. So the $18 Airvoice plan is clearly very good for those who use around 1GB per month. We needed more, so went with Redpocket.

My main point is that there are options that are significantly lower cost than Consumer Cellular. People talk about the great phone service and technical support and that is important for sure. But once everything is up and running, there's not much to call in about. So the more important criteria for me is price and network performance. So far I have been quite pleased with Redpocket on that front.

[pb4uski]

^^^ Agreed... if it were not for the small hassles of switching, I would probably chose the Redpocket plan... but for 92c a month I'm not so hot to trot on it.

[braumeister]

Quote:

Originally Posted by steelyman CC recently upped the data limit.

Utterly OT, but every time I hear that word used I think of this old Pat Paulsen campaign slogan:

iu.jpg

It always makes me smile.

[steelyman]

Quote:

Originally Posted by braumeister Utterly OT, but every time I hear that word used I think of this old Pat Paulsen campaign slogan: Attachment 32800 It always makes me smile.

I’d almost forgotten about him! Hilarious especially as elections loom.

OT is fine, the thread has already been sidetracked away from the topic/title.

[pb4uski]

Quote:

Originally Posted by steelyman .... the thread has already been sidetracked away from the topic/title.

Yeah, that rarely happens around here....

[JoeWras]

Quote:

Originally Posted by steelyman I’d almost forgotten about him! Hilarious especially as elections loom. OT is fine, the thread has already been sidetracked away from the topic/title.

Maybe Cobra9777 needs to start a new topic named "I love my RedPocket."

We do have a cellular comparison thread that may be more appropriate for some of this discussion. That way, the rest of us CC users can have a safe place to bask in the glory of seeing our beautiful mature models on our CC webpage, enjoy the great service, all while surely paying more than RP.