hey im tired of these 1yr. and 2yrs. contact that they just take your money and leave you out to dry.so I started with the tmobile perpd.1000mins for ayear because Im home all the time and dont talk on the phone everyday.myhome phone is always cheater then my cells when youstill out of the pocket an extra 40to50 bucks.thanks to tmobile.

TracFone is a ripoff.
I had them for 3 years. I saved up 529 minutes. I joined AutoPay to keep the connection alive by taking $7.99 a month directly out of my bank account.

They disconnected my service, alleging non-payment of the autopay. The bank confirms the payment was made.

Now I need to buy more airtime to get my phone activated again.

RipOff

i live in philadelphia pa 19107. where can i buy ez-link minutes for my phone?

I can't recommend pre-paid mobile (cell) phones too highly for people who will use them as an "at-need" phone, given that plan costs have always been and still are so daunting. I know people who don't use their mobile any more than I do, but few of them use pre-paid and all of them pay more than me, often as much in one month as me in a year. Compare plans to choose the one best for you and check with other people about how good reception is with the companies you are considering, just as you would with plan phones. (A point - ALL calls to emergency from mobiles are picked up by ANY company that 'hears' it, and it doesn't matter whether the phone has a current account, credit, if it's locked to a company, so if it is a literal emergency, any phone will do. Check though; the number dialled off a mobile may be different to ordinary phones; Australia is 000 but 112 from mobiles.)

When I first bought my phone 7 years ago, I was able to run it for $AU75 a year, which was in credit for 2 months and then out of credit 2 months on a continuing cycle, but because in Australia it costs nothing to receive calls (with any company I think, so start hammering your companies for the same deal, you Americans), that was fine. Now, after my company restructured their pre-paid pricing plans, I'm even better off, spending $AU60 and being in credit all year round - that's only $5 per MONTH! If I used voicemail, it would cost me to retrieve missed calls, although some companies here don't charge for that. I get around this by setting my phone to divert to my home answering machine if for some reason I don't answer, which costs only 6c per diversion, although it is rare that people get diverted. I can then either check it when I get home, or if necessary, check my answering machine long distance using ordinary phones, at ordinary costs - a feature of my machine is that it answers quickly if it has at least one stored message and slowly if not, meaning if there are no messages, I know within a few rings, hang up and don't pay a cent. On occasion I will use a payphone with my prepaid card for landline (fixed) phones if that will help keep costs lower but payphones are not always easy to find and not always in working order.

And running out of credit if I were to break down is never an issue because when my credit gets low or is due to expire, I buy more credit and carry it with my phone. (If I don't intend to add the credit to my phone immediately, I try to buy a credit receipt (like a supermarket receipt docket) instead of plastic card because it fits easily in the phone case or you can even rip off and tuck the important sections of the receipt inside the battery compartment.) I can also use my Bankcard or Visa card to put credit on the phone but must wait about 10 minutes for the transaction to clear. So I really see no reason for many users not to switch to pre-paid, even some of the heavy phone users - when you stop letting your desires dictate your spending instead of your commonsense, we call it "budgeting."

I got my first cell phone a just over a month ago. I chose Virgin Mobile because I did my research and it really seemed like the best deal. Their customer service was excellent. I emailed them several times and their response time was always within 2 hours, even in the middle of the night. After sending them my address, they assured me that I would be covered. My main use was going to be at my home. I wasn't worried about losing money because I planned to be with them a long time. Get my phone, get my number, and gave it to everybody. My phone is constantly searching for signal anywhere around my property. Calls are cut up or cut off. Most calls made to me were sent directly to voice mail which I wouldn't get until I left home. I read the terms of service so I knew I couldn't get a refund for any of the money I put into my account. At work one day I get a call from VM asking me how I'm enjoying my new phone and service. So I tell her how I can't make or receive calls at my house, or most of the towns around here where I travel for work. She's shocked and apoligetic, and says maybe I can use all my money up in my account by buying games, or texting, or sending pictures to people, (it cost .25 cents per picture). I tell her "The only place I can use my phone is at work and I can't be messing around on it." Why would I buy games for a phone I can't use. The games don't even work at my house because everytime I turn on my phone it searches for a signal. At the end of the call she actually said, "That sucks!" Moral of this story-Even though they seem to be a great company, they lie about their coverage, so don't go putting a bunch of money into an account until you're sure you're covered. And make sure your phone is returnable or you'll be out $99 or so also.

I found a great option to pre paid phones and I am going to buy one for my son. He has had at least 3 pre paid phones and it has always been a problem. He purchases minutes in $10 cards and always runs out at the worst time. The website that offers the alternative is http://www.saynotoprepay.com

They offer FREE Cell Phones with no credit check and it is NOT pre pay! I loved the concept so much I became an agent so I could get paid to share the program with others, you can too!

After an appreciable amount of time researching cellular mobile phone providers, I approached a sales associate with carefully though-out questions. Instead of clear, conscise, and coherent answers, I was replied to with evasions. I don't think that the sales associate was deliberately lying to me, it was as if this individual did not know what they were talking about, especially in terms of billing and charges. I've been a pre-paid mobile phone customer ever since.

The telecom market in US is not as mature as other markets in the world. For example in Germany Prepaid market is a big one compared with post paid and it was pretty cheap too. Buy a prepaid package which includes a phone and 15Euro card for around 70-80 Euro and you will have incoming free for one year and you can use the 15Euro card you get at the rate of around 20Cents flat per minute during any time of day. Even if you finish the card, you can still use the same phone for receiving calls for one year. Atleast some one can reach you. Even the post paid billing too was too simple. Not as complicated as here. Pay a montly fee of around 5Euro and pay as much as you use at the rate of around 10-15Cents per minute with all incoming free. And its the same in other countries I have seen. Only here in US the telecom guys are screwing up their customers.
I would love to see such kind of market here. Hope it comes sooner.

I recently got pre-paid T-mobile - pretty cool color flip-phone for $80 with 150 minutes bonus, and a card for $100/1000 minutes valid for a year (when I added the $100 after a month of using the phone, I got another 100 minutes as another bonus :)) ALL calls within the US are .10, no matter where I am and where I'm calling to (no roaming/long distance charges). I also was able to get phone number transferred from my old Verizon Wireless phone.

I think the only reason monthly plans exist is that it's easier for the providers (their costs are mostly fixed and don't change with amount of minutes you're spending). They don't make any sense for the consumers though.

Remember how they're saying that in monthly plans the minutes are cheaper than on pre-paid? Let's look at Verizon Wireless. For $49.99/month, which is really $60 or $65 with fees and taxes, you can get 900 minutes, which is about 7.5c/minutes. Nice - IF you talk EXACTLY 900 minutes per month. Let's say you talk 400 minutes. In that case, your minutes will cost you 16c. So, if you talk less than 650 minutes per month (10c/minute), you're spending more than you would have on a prepaid. That's not all. If you talk MORE than 900 minutes, you'll have to pay for extra minutes - and they're not going to be 7c, believe me ;)

So, in order to ensure that you're saving money comparing to pre-paid plans, you MUST spend between 650 and, say, 950 or 1000 minutes per month - while in pre-paid plan you will ALWAYS pay .10/minute. Plus, you have to be on 1 or 2 years contract. Am I missing something here?..

Hubby and I have T-Mobile prepaid phones, have had no problems with service in the 2 years we have owned the phones. Hubby lost his phone and was able to transfer that phone number to another T-Mobile phone. I also worked for one of the big carriers years ago and, based on what I observed, would NEVER have contract service. T- Mobile gives a voice and Text message to let us know when our minutes are running out, so we are never caught without minutes. We LOVE T-Mobile!!!!!

To pushers of contract plans, please.

1) Arm and a leg phone cost guy. This past week, Nokia "Shorty" Virgin phone for $30. $10 instant rebate and a free DVD up to $20. Let's see that's pretty much $0 and you get some free minutes.

2) Radiator/Flat tire guy - I don't know about other providers but Virgin provides all sorts of ways to topup your phone when and IF you were stupid enough to not bother to monitor your minutes. You can do it right on the phone if you have a registered credit card or call in via the phone to top up. You could also just keep a prepaid topup card in your car just in case. Even if you spent an hour on the phone that one problem day you're talking about $2.50 for the first 10 minutes and $5 for the other 50 minutes.

Strange, ported my wife's Verizon wireless number to Virgin Mobile. If I lose my Virgin phone I'll just buy another or maybe even get one for practically free. Another way to look at it is that I'm saving $30-$40 A MONTH as a low usage user so I could buy a new higher end Virgin phone every 3-4 months which of course would be ridiculous.

I don't view throwing away $30-$40/month for a plan on which I will use maybe 5-10% of, paying insurance, locking into a 1 or 2 year contract, etc a good deal. A lot of people needlessly blab away on the phone simply to justify the obscene monthly charges.

Hey,

I use a phone called EZlink. It has been the greatest thing i have ever seen. It has unlimited Nights and Weekends and refills are as cheap as $10 bucks. They also just cam out wit a new products with three chices of unlimted nights and weekends or unlimited incoming calls or just straight great minutes. i have has them for more than 3 years now.

I dont happen to work for one of the major carriers but i will adivse cell shoppers to please READ BEFORE YOU SIGN AND KNOW WHAT IT IS THAT YOU WANT BEFORE MAKING A SPORADIC PURCHASE"

I have had EVERY cell phone provider that has been out and can by far tell you that rate and cost wise T-Mobile is hands down the most economical. they currently have the samsung x495 for $50, the nokia 6010 for $30 and the nokia 6101 with camcorder and camera for $100, and they all come with a bundle package which includes 60 minutes and a free car charger and leather case and they only charge $0.10 a minute and have included nation wide calling for free, and you can IM on their prepaid service for free which would get around those pesky text messaging fees and the internet option is free. the best thing i love about my Tmobile prepaid is that unlike boost, cingular and verizon, they dont have any connection fees which i hated on my boost cause im sorry $1.50 a day equals out to $45 and add another $20 if you want to call someone: IE that friend who dont have boost, or granny might not chirp. now the only thing i dont like is the fact that they dont have free nights and weekends but for the price in getting for the phone and the minutes it justify not having that option. verizon's upper hand is that they have great phones but high rates, sprint also have some pretty good rates but they are the worst when it comes to customer service, boost.....well i never really understood the whole walkie talkie thing unless you had your own buisness, i guess every since kids thought it was cool they just became popular, but before being taken over by sprint the only people who had a nextel were either people with great credit or people with enough capital to spend $500 on a deposit. and its rather anoying walking through the mall and hearing other peoples conversations, ( i think this is for attention starved individuals )

and please whatever you do dont buy a trackphone with all of the options out here you can save a ton of cash by going with a better deal, my two top choices would be cingulars prepaid and of course tmobile, i have no complaints from either carrier.

All American cell phone companies are corrupt! (and very greedy, too) In Europe, prepaid is PREPAID. No fees, no monthly charges, nothing. In fact, the phone company doesn't even know your name most of the time. And one of the best things is that if you have no credit on your phone, you can still recieve phone calls because incoming is always free! (no matter what cell phone it is coming from.) When I came home from England, I tried to look for a prepaid plan that can do the same thing. Considering I am a very poor student right now, I needed something that could fit my tight budget. Well, every cell phone company charges for incoming calls, including prepaid. I eventually came to the conclusion that it just wasn't worth the money. Because of this, I will probably not have a cell phone until I start my career. Sadly, most Americans are just not aware of the ability to have a cell phone and get free incoming calls from every provider, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and is truly prepaid. I am hoping that by writing this some CEO somewhere gets the hint and trys a new trend. People, we really need to wake up, cause we are getting ripped off.

As a US student studying medicine abroad in a 3rd world country, I am amazed to see the proliferation of pre-paid cell phones. Except for the ultra-rich, people in Grenada have no option other than pre-paid. The problem down here isn't a 'gotcha'; it is the lack of competition. Until recently there was a monopoly by Cable & Wireless and then the gov't loosened their grip and allowed in DigiCel (who doesn't seem to want to compete pricewise). People here gladly dump hundreds of dollars into purchasing the newest phones that have a million features that aren't even useable on these cell networks. What's the point of having the greatest camera phone with MP3 player if your company doesn't have the infastructure to provide access to these features??

People of all walks of life have, use, and abuse their cell phones to the point of blurring their priorities - putting minutes on your phone or buying the latest gadgets becomes more important than healthy food.

It isn't uncommon for me to get off the campus bus and be targeted by a local "begger" who just happens to have a prepaid phone in one hand and a Carib Beer in the other... And what does s/he ask for? "Mister, gimme 5 EC, I'm hungry." When I decline, he calls his friend on his prepaid phone to complain.

Even though you can walk 2 blocks to contact a friend, people choose to spend their last dollars on CALLING the person 2 blocks away...

Developing nations integrate new technology and shoot themselves in the foot by having a population that is unprepared for the responsibility of time management and basic fiscal responsibility.

Before anyone jumps down my throat, calling ethnocentric, I recognise this problem is not only outside our borders... We have the same problems at home (children with phones who charge up an $800 bill on Mom & Dad's account, people in poverty investing in cell phones instead of outstanding debt and basic living expenses, etc.).

Have cell phones advanced society? Or have they just made it easier for us to be complacent?

FINALLY.... someone mentions the big 'gotcha' here... the fact thet if you lose your phone, or switch to another prepaid plan.... YOU LOSE YOUR PHONE NUMBER
You don't get protection from the new law that requires to be able to 'port' your existing number to another provider.
Pre-paid isn't worth the hassle. Maybe for you baby boomers or older... but for us young professionals in our 20s and 30s, we have very mobile lifestyles and require tons of minutes and the peace of mind of a long term contract.
Also, the contract doesn't only benefit the company, it also benefits you knowing you'll have that specific plan for 1 or 2 years. Meaning you don't have to expect random rate increases, and you have the stability of keeping the same phone number, insurance, the ability to add on extra features, etc.
By the way, I use Verizon Wireless, and my internet provider as well, I use the National BroadbandAccess, it's wireless in all the major markets, and it's simply included on my cell phone bill. Can't do that with pre-paid.

I am another person who works for a "big carrier". I'd like to give you the skinny from the backstage view. I'll remain anonymous so I don't get in trouble...

Prepaid Pros:
-If you don't use your cell phone a great deal (you stick to emergency use or only call to say, "pick up milk on the way home"), then you cannot beat a prepaid deal.
-You are not tied into a contract.
-It is not difficult AT ALL these days to refill your prepaid phone.
-You do not have regulatory fees or taxes to worry about. (Which are totally bogus and unfair in the first place)
-If you lose the phone, you don't have to worry about someone racking up your bill.
-You can trust kids with it.
-For those who do talk a lot but still don't want, or cannot obtain, a contract cell phone... there are prepaid "plans". They hook up to a checking account. You get the same benefits as contract phones such as a large chunk of anytime minutes and UNLIMITED night and/or weekends (*check out Cingular Go phone).

Prepaid Cons-
-For one, we sales people who work on commissions hate prepaid because we make, on average, about $5 (if that) for selling them to you. Can't pay rent on that kind of paycheck. (Damn carriers...they don't make much on your prepaid purchase either...so they don't offer us any dough to help you out.)
-You will pay an arm and a leg for your phone in comparison to what a contract customer will pay. (Those carriers will get you one way or the other.)
-If you lose or break your phone, you do not have insurance options and you don't get any upgrade offers. You will have to drop another hunk of cash for your new phone...
-And chances are, you will have to get a new cell phone number. THAT IS A REAL PAIN.
-You pay more per minute. (Again, they get you any way they can.)
-If you phone malfunctions at all, many store have NO RETURN policies on prepaid phones and technicians will not work on them.

All in all... just be careful with whatever wireless decisions you make. The moral of the story is... do your homework. Because, believe me, the big carriers already have.

Whatever did we do before cell phones???

It sounds good, but also like it has the usual list of gotchas. For those of us who only want a phone in public for emergencies, it sure would be wonderful if pay phones existed again! There when you need one on a one time basis! The "progress" of cell phones, like most "progress" has turned out to have a high price. Call me a Luddite, but the machines control us, we don't control the machines, and that is especially true for cell phones.

I am a railroad man who works on call. I've had Cingular prepaid for four years now and have never had a problem. I always have roll-over minutes left over when its time to recharge, which I do on the computer, every three months. Before, I was on the pager, and the cost of a cellular plan was not worth the cost.

to the poster who opts to walk into a store and plug a quarter into a pay phone - I haven't seen a quarter pay phone for quite a while now. Aside from that - the issue is to have IMMEDIATE ACCESS. Not to need to go to a pay phone.

I did a comparison between Tracfone, T-mobile and Net10

Tracfone - cheapest DEVICE out of the box (currently $19 for the device - Nokia 1100 - tiny little thing but works. The "advantage" to the 1100 phone is that it operates 850/1900 mhz GSM and will allow usage in "other countries" once unlocked. The CDMA phone is usable US only. Minutes are a bit high but as an emergency phone it will work (excluding phone cost roughly $15/month)

T-mobile - with the rebate, it's about $30 - comes with 60 minutes and is good for 2 months from activation. After that it's easy enough to buy a $100 card which is good for an entire year (excluding phone cost roughly $8/month)

Net10 - The phone cost is 3x higher for the same phone but the call cost is .10/min. The expiration for card time is 60 days I seem to remember (but it was only a "look at" phone, not a "contender" for my use).

For some providers, there WAS (might not be any longer) a "roaming charge" that doubled the cost per minute when you were out of your "home area". I haven't quite figured out IF the cost is still there or that when I unlocked the Tracfone the extra charge "went away". (There was something on their website about removing roaming charges - but as with all cell phone webpages, it's a bit CrYpTIc)

The main issue is the actual intent of the phone - "day to day" use a "lose it and you are out the cost of the phone but not much else" issue, or simply for emergency use (and contact when "out and about" and don't want to pay for the "contracts" usually associated with the "major cell phone companies".

For "emergency use only" (my need), it's a good alternative - that is ASSUMING you aren't out in the boondocks where service is slim to none (there ARE a few areas with little to no service - but they are becoming less every day). Since all you want is a signal (to call AAA, police, fire, or whatever). Add to that the fact that in most plans the minutes don't "expire" if the phone is kept up to date and then at some point you have a phone that you can use "just to burn off the minutes". I have a Tracfone and a T-mobile. The Tracfone is still in the box (intended for use out of the US on the 1900 GSM band). The T-mobile is the $100/1000 minutes per year "insurance policy".

I also was tired of the expense and hidden taxes etc. on Verizon and switched to TMobile. I have been very happy with it and have only spent 50.00 in minutes for the last few months. Sure a lot less than the 50-60.00 per month plus taxes, fees, more taxes, air charges.........

i, too, am a pre=paid convert. after a minimum purchase, i get 1000 minutes for $100, good for 12 months. it usually last for 8-10 months. could not be more plesed. finished wiht $60 monthly contracts.

My problem is minutes lost. I began the t mobile plan with 400 minutes and they tossed in another 100. These expire after 90 days but roll over if you buy more. In my estimate 500 minutes should last me 6 months. At the two month mark I was down to 110 minutes and couldn't of used 300 let alone almost 400.
I called to inquire where the minutes were going and they have no call log (they say) to show if I inadvertently made a pocket phone call for two or three hours.
They gave me antoher 200 minutes $25 free the week before last. I've already used half of that and I can't figure where those minutes are going.
At this rate, a regular phone would be cheaper for me.
I predominantly make one and two minute phone calls.
No roaming and no long distance and very feew call in'.

I'm amazed that PAYG (Pay as you go) is a new thing in the USA. I would think that there are more payg phones in the UK than not. You can buy a top up in most shops or ring the provider and pay via credit card even if your phone has run out.

I've had Verizon prepay for a couple years and really like it. $30.00 buys me 60 days of service (assuming light usage). I've never come close to using all my time and now have a balance of about 400 minutes. I really don't have much use for a cell phone but it is a great security blanket when traveling. I would not have a cell phone if I had to sign one of those disgusting contracts.

I need help deciding which pre-pair company and phone to get. I, my daughter and two teen-age granddaughters will need the phones....Help

My wife and I recently got what I feel is the best deal going for prepaid wireless, T-Mobile. We got a nice phone for about $80 and $100 for 1,000 minutes. The good thing about the minutes is they don't expire for 1 year. We also have long distance and a nationwide calling area. It was nice to go to this instead of getting dinged for extra charges for our old monthly service. I highly recommend this route if you don't use the cell phone too often.

What a mess getting my Net10 to finally work right. Eleven calls to tech support, three different SIM cards (two via UPS Overnight, their dime), and 17 days. Tech support apparently is out of Bolivia, though they say they are in Miami. As such, communication was very difficult.
Other than that, the phone seems FINALLY to be working right.
300 minutes for $30, and I've got to "refresh" in two months. Always 10 cents a minute, no matter.

We have had a Tracfone for several years. We use it for
travel, emergencies and occasional calls when we otherwise are not able to use the home phone. They are not good for heavy users, but fit our needs nicely. The best deals are obtained on line rather in the retail stores.

Great article. Just last week I had been discussing pre-paid phones with a co-worker and she had suggested Tracfone. My husband and I have been trying to figure out how to have a cell phone package which we could use primarily for checking in re: schedules and for emergencies. We also wanted a package which could be used when I do my twice yearly drive from WI to CT. Neither of us talks on the phone a great deal and we need a land line for accessing the Internet so the regular cell phone packages with 16 gadzillion minutes were just too expensive when added to the regular phone bill.

I use Boostmobile, Nextel/Sprint's prepaid service, since most of my firends are using Nextel phones I usually just use the walkie-talkie. I don't talk much anyway so I've never ran out of minutes. I might add 25-30 dollars a month which gives me more than enough time. The walkie-talkie only costs $1.50 a day if you use it.

I am tired of the comercials encouraging kids to talk long hours on the phone as if this is the expected norm and that parents should pay. I bought my high school and college age children pre paid cell phones for one year. They are responsible to buy additional minutes if they run out. They have learned to call responsibly. A great lesson.

Ive got my whole family on the Virgin Mobile plan... Average "bill" is about 7 dollars per month per person. Its great with the kids as they have to mind their minutes and for my wife and I, we mostly use the phone for emergencies and quick check in calls. On those days when we travel and use the phone more, the cost drops to 10 cents a minute. The beauty of that is, that I only pay more when I need to.... Good quality phones can be had for as little 25 dollars and gadget filled phones not too much more. I'll never go back to a contract.

I have been using Virgin for 2 years and Tracfone before that. Both services have been great for the way I use my phone. I don't use my phone to visit with anyone. Just calls made and received from family letting me know their schedule, etc. Total used minutes per month approx. 20-30. Virgin now has a service where you can have it charged to your credit card every 90 days for $15. That is $5/month!

In response to the post from the "big carrier" employee. Stop trying to scare people. Your scenario is very unlikely. People who have prepaid phones pay as much attention to our expiration dates as we do the charge on our battery. In fact your much more likely to have a drained battery (on any) cell phone than to have it expire on you in the middle of a trip.
My wife and I have both have had Trac phones for the last 4 or 5 years. Every year as our minutes are about to expire we plunk down another ~$100.00 each. Our unused minutes all roll over and we are good for another year. We primarily use our phones for emergancies and other occasional events, so our balance has just kept growing over the years. It is a very inexpensive way to have peace of mind.

If you have low minutes, opt for the cingular 25 cent per minute plan... it may seem steep cost per minute, but there is no access minimum charge of a buck for each day it is used... only 25 cents per minute, and if you pay $25 bucks, that's a hundred minutes that will last for 3 months until renewal, at which point you can pay more for a shorter time frame, or the same (or more) for 3 more months, and the minutes carry over... this is great for those of us that really don't use a cell phone except for emergency and/or low minute usage... I've been this for 6 months and it's cost me 50 bucks... a great deal to have to only drop $100 a year for a cell phone!

Stimobile minutes never expire as long as one outgoing call is made every sixty days. A no frills service for sure, but for basic phone use, perfect!

I really dislike my T-Mobile phone (traditional plan) and was told by a sales person at the mall that I could probably get the best deal on another one by buying a prepaid phone at WalMart and then putting my SIM card in it. Because traditional cell phone companies subsidize your phone, to replace it costs hundreds of dollars. I can get a decent pre-paid phone for $150 and put my SIM card in and not miss a beat. (This is what I have been told and will be trying over Xmas).

My wife had a Tracphone for a few years but tired of the cost and having to buy minutes before they expired. We both got Virginmobile last Xmas. I loved it. Their plan of auto topup every 90days for $15 works for me. What other plan can you get away with $5/month. My wife has now switched to T-mobile because of coverage problem in our home town. But I still like and have Virgin.

Virgin Mobile is a great deal for Occasional/Emergancy use. I pay less a month on that phone than my wife does on her cell in taxes alone ($ 7.41 on hers last I checked). A $20 car last me three months and the un-used minutes roll over.

One other suggestion for pre-paid phones: EBay. You can buy everything you need at a deep discount, but be sure to check the feedback of the seller and read the auction details carefully (as you always should do on EBay).

Key point for privacy buffs out there: You are pretty much anonymous with these types of plans.

I love prepaid phones. I am in my office all day and at home at night, if I need to make a call otherwise I use my virgin Mobile cell and it saves me alot of money compared to a monthly contract with long terms. Many of my family have them and they love them, especially kids, they have to replenish their own minutes and are therefore more cognizant of talk times.

After spending $64 per month for a Verizon family plan that we used maybe once a week we switched to Cingular prepaid. Couldn't be happier. We now spend $50 every three months for two phones, that's about $17 per month. Our calls are 10 cents per minute, no roaming and no long distance charges. Cingular to Cingular calls cost $1.00 per day, but you can talk as long and as many times a day as you want for that $1.00. We have several family members using Cingular, so this is a really good deal. There are extra charges for certain features, but we never have any reason to use most of them. This is a good deal for people like my husband and myself who don't use the phone all that much.

We have a Sprint contract that costs about $50/mo. but has unlimited night and weekend time.
I carry a TracFone for emergencies. I'm very satisfied. It is what it is. It costs me $10-15/mo. You can buy time-cards anywhere; WalMart and Sam's discount them. Usually TracFone's website offers a starter kit of a 'phone, charger, and 60 minutes for $19.95. It's the package that's $40-50. in CVS and other stores. TracFone doesn't charge Daily Roaming.

I've had Virgin Mobile for over two years and have had no problems. They originally required $20 for 3 months but have recently reduced it to $15. That's $5 a month!! It's .25 for the first 10 minutes a day and .10 after that. No roaming fees or long distances charges in the continental U.S. No hassle and you can "top-up" right from your phone. So your never stuck without phone coverage. How great is that!!

My virgin mobile still costs 25 cents a minute. I wish I could find one that was only 10 cents a minute, but I have not found it yet where it was enough of an incentive to switch. Nice thing about virgin though is the free text messaging. Pretty nice free feature

Great article. I used to have sprint. I thought the service wasn't great at all. Still, I was stuck with them for 2 years. Now I have Net10 Wireless. It's a fairly new company but it's definitely worth it. The phone is a Motorola V171 Flip Phone and looks great. The service is just .10 cents a minute, for U.S. calls, .15 cents for international calls, and .5 cents for text messaging. Additional minutes are just $30 for 300 minutes, $60 for 600 minutes etc. Not to mention free voicemail and upto 90 days of additional activation time everytime you re-up on minutes. Now, if that isn't better than a 2 year sprint contract I don't know what is.

We got my 13-year old son a Tracfone. It gives peace of mind, allows him to call if he's running a few minutes late, and if he loses it I don't have to worry about getting the number cancelled before whoever finds it runs up a fortune in ill-gotten calls!

A very timely article. My wife and I are just now looking into this option as we both need new phones (ours are starting to "bug out") and are not sure that we really use enough minutes to justify our current monthly charges (which currently are even lower than any comperable monthly plan that we could switch to with a new provider).

Prepaid is great for emergency-only users. With Virgin Mobile prepaid, my cell phone bill is under $6 a month, and the unused minutes roll over. If you don't plan to talk more than 20 minutes a month on average, I don't think there's a cheaper way to have a cell phone. They offer an automatic top up option on their web site so you don't forget every 3 months. I've used them for over 3 years, and have been very happy.

Tell you what ... I'll just walk into the local 7-11 and plunk a quarter into the machine and save even more $$$. For goodness sake... there are so many restrictions that it is hardly worth having a wireless phone! JTR

In Uganda, where I visited recently, cell phones only operate with prepaid access minutes. You buy a little device like a car fuse that holds the minutes, stick the thing in the bottom of your phone, and talk. If you don't want anyone using your minutes, you pop the thing out. Then, if a friend, say, wants to use your phone, he/she has to buy their own "fuse", stick it in your phone, and spend their own minutes. Because only the caller pays for the call, enterprising callers 'ping' one another. One ring, the number appears on your screen, and off the caller goes; they hang up and pay no fee. You then, if you want to talk, are constrained to recognize the number, call your caller -- and as a result get to pay for the call! Prepaid works in Africa, EVERYONE (it seems) has a phone, and it's the only option. Maybe our phone Co's are just TOO greedy, and recognize their profits from unnecessary charges, not possible in the Ugandan system, would disappear.

I have had a Tracfone prepaid cell phone for approximately four years. Averaged over a year, my monthly cost is approximately 15 dollars a year! Tracfone offers a year at a time "refill', with which there is no monthly mandatory refills required. That is what I use. I couldn't be happier with my Tracfone plan!

We have been using a Virgin phone now for 2 years - we don't talk much and it is a very reasonable way to have a phone when you need it. We hooked the phone to our credit card, and it is very simple to add minutes as needed. Virgin requires you spend at least $20 every three months, but unused dollars carry over, so you never lose anything. We find that $20 will usually buy enough minutes to last us 3 months (we are not big talkers on the cell phone) That is less than $7 per month!

Im going to have to poke some holes in your prepaid theory...I work for one of the big carriers, we sell prepaid and post-paid plans. Say you are driving along down a big highway at night. BOOM, your tire falls off or your radiator decides it would serve a better purpose in the middle of the highway. You go get your trusty handy dandy little pre-paid phone and....ooops, no minutes. Some of the carriers will allow you to call in with a credit card and recharge your minutes, but what if you dont have a credit card or your provider doesnt allow this option? What then, your only option is to call 911 and they arent going to be real happy about you tying up the emergency lines because your bald tires finally gave out on you. I would rather pay a little more (and alot more on prepaid considering how much I yap on my phone) and be "locked" in a contract than be stuck in West Nowhere with a blown tire and no one to call. Plus most of the big carriers give you a grace period to decide whether or not you like the service and you can cancel within that time frame with no penalty.

***By the way, always keep a charged phone in your car, no matter if you have service on it or not, you can dial 911 from any cell phone that has power****

This looks like a great idea for kids in grade school and Jr High who you need to keep in touch with to make sure they are safe. I think I will get these for my grandchildren for Christmas. Thanks for the info!

I enjoyed your article. It was excellent info. I have used Tracfone for several years and have been very satisfied with the results. For our two phones it usually costs about $20 per month. With Alltel it costed $54 for the last month and we only used 11 minutes. Quite a savings!!!

I have learned the hard way about cell phones and have switched to prepaid as well, Hassle free. Lots of good info here.Thanks

We have T Mobile pre-paid.We got the phone with rebates for $50 each.We pre-paid for 1000 minutes ($100).@10 cents/minute.The minutes roll over with an expiration date of ONE YEAR from the date of purchase of the minutes.Long distance is not extra...still only 10 cents per minute....

We all commplain about corporate america getting richer what did we do before cell phones. I have a verizon free up plan now for 6 years never have I spent more than $30 in 2 month and always roll my minutes over. Yes you get astronomical weekend minutes.

I've used TRACFONE for about three years now and have had zero problems. There are none of the strings that your article mentioned. I buy the double minute plan and it costs about a dime a minute and is active for a year. I buy minutes on-line and it takes about five minutes.

Another way to go is the Tracfone. After years of paying monthly cell phone bills and hardly using it, we were advised to go the Tracfone way. No monthly charges and you buy lots of minutes for a small amt. of money. We will never go back to cell phones.We have our relatives and friends using it now.

Another way to go is the Tracfone. After years of paying monthly cell phone bills and hardly using it, we were advised to go the Tracfone way. No monthly charges and you buy lots of minutes for a small amt. of money. We will never go back to cell phones.We have our relatives and friends using it now.

Check out TMOBILE for prepaid cell phone service.My btoher and i have ussec it for years in our business and have not had any problems and the service is great.

Another "GOTCHA" with pre-paid phones is that you are generally charged a minute whether your call is actually connected or not. This can add up to a lot of minutes throughout the course of a month!

Super article! I had a Tracfone for a while and it seemed like a big ripoff because the cards averaged out to about 50 cents a minute. Plus, they charged minutes for EVERYTHING and constantly propounded me with advertising e-mails. Then I got a little Virgin Mobile phone and it ends up being like 10 cents a minute, you get more freebies and you're not continually harassed. Go Virgin Mobile!!!

I have several friends who love the pre-paid option. If you read the fine print (as you always should in any transaction), consider your realistic use of a phone, and use smart comparison shopping, you can do quite well with pre-paid.

I buy $15 worth of minutes a month, charge is $15.90, from Verizon. It is automatically charged to my credit card and any unused minutes accumulate. As I only use my phone in the car for quick checks on ETAs, or emergencies, this is very cost effective for me. Before the automatic charge option, if the expiration date to re-up had expired, I would lose any unused minutes. Now I always have them available, and I can add to them at any time in $15 increments in case I do use them all.
I recommend this to my friends who aren't chatterboxes.