Just got a HTC EVO 4G for $175 thru ebay. Ting has a list of phones that they can support, purchased outside of them, on their website.
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Save $ on cell service -- Ting Mobile / Solavei (+ other MVNOs) (2 Viewers)
- Thread starter (HULK)
- Start date
Should be signing up in the next couple of days the new phones arrive.I'll post the results of my porting/configuration when I get done. Hopefully it's a smooth process. I'll be glad to ditch tmobile.So, do I need to use your referral Hulk? We both get $25 off, right?
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As a T mobile customer (along with 3 other family members) I look forward to your post. I am def. thinking of replacing T mobile with one of these options...I still need to crunch the numbers regarding all of our different usage for text, calls, data, but I'm sure I'll be making a change to something sooner or later. Our contracts are quite a ways out...me and my son are up the soonest in Nov.
(HULK)
(Smash)
If you use it for BYOD you'll get a $25 credit to your account. I'll get a $25 credit too (unless you do it BEFORE 3/15, because they just launched a double referral bonus thing that runs through then, so if you get it done before 3/15, I'll get $50!) Once you've activated your phone, you'll get your own referal code, PM it to me so I can put it in the first post and you can get some love too.
(HULK)
(Smash)
FYI, I just had my first customer service experience. My wife does NOT like the Note2 after using it for a few days and wanted to go back to a GS3. EG take note imo.Anyways, call and they pick up on the 2nd ring. Explain situation in 45 seconds. They'll offer a full refund, they're emailing me a UPS thing to send it back. Total call time was like 2 minutes and not only painless, it was pleasant.
Jaysus
Good times!
Evilgrin 72
Distributor of Pain
What didn't she like about the Note?
(HULK)
(Smash)
(HULK)
(Smash)
Size mostly. Her hands are like normal size for a 5'4" female (I'm a foot taller than her!). She also was underwhelmed with the S-pen.Now I have to decide if I want to keep it for myself or return it. I made the choice to wait earlier, but having this toy in arm's reach is going to make it tough to keep my resolve.
I played around with it, but was just ballparking. I just need to drill down a little bit further...find out what the rest of the family uses. I'm kind of a dummy as far as what phones we actually have...I need to find out for certain that we can bring our devices when we make the switch.
(HULK)
(Smash)
Peaces, the following phones are eligible for bring your own device:
•Samsung Nexus S
•HTC EVO 4G (A9292)
•HTC EVO 3D (X515C)
•HTC EVO Shift (A7373)
•Samsung Galaxy SII Epic 4G Touch (SPHD710)
•Samsung Epic 4G (SPH-D700)
•LG Optimus S (LS670)
•Motorola Photon 4G (MB855)
The list is a little short, mostly because Sprint doesn't want to let them bring devices that are somewhat recent. It'll probably be late fall before you can bring a Sprint GS3, thats my guess anyways. Here is their post about it: My link
•Samsung Nexus S
•HTC EVO 4G (A9292)
•HTC EVO 3D (X515C)
•HTC EVO Shift (A7373)
•Samsung Galaxy SII Epic 4G Touch (SPHD710)
•Samsung Epic 4G (SPH-D700)
•LG Optimus S (LS670)
•Motorola Photon 4G (MB855)
The list is a little short, mostly because Sprint doesn't want to let them bring devices that are somewhat recent. It'll probably be late fall before you can bring a Sprint GS3, thats my guess anyways. Here is their post about it: My link
Brady Marino
Footballguy
I have an offer from Gazelle for $43 for my Motorola Photon, but if anyone can offer me more (including shipping), I'd love to sell my phone to you. I'll make sure it's cleaned up and factory-restored before shipment. No simcard, however. If you're interested, PM me for details.
(HULK)
(Smash)
I have yet to get a reasonable offer from Gazelle. Try EBaying it.Or, if you think you're buying the HTC One that was announced yesterday, they're (HTC) taking you're "old phone" and giving you a $100 for it. Basically buy the One, send them you're Photon and a proof of purchase, they send you a $100 prepaid Visa.I'm tempted to do this myself with an old broken phone I have lying around, but I'm not sure I want Sense 5.0 on my phone, it looks like Windows phone. Some of the other features with the camera look pretty cool though. I'll have to see the S4 before I make up my mind.'Brady Marino said:
(HULK)
(Smash)
Here is that link for the HTC One $100 trade in thing. This phone should be available on Ting 4 to 6 weeks after Sprint gets it.
$100 old phone trade in from HTC
I think I'll probably be getting a different phone, but all you have to do is put in your email address right now, so it doesn't hurt to cover your bases if you think you might get this. I did, just incase I'm underwhelmed by the Galaxy S4 and Moto X Phone.
$100 old phone trade in from HTC
I think I'll probably be getting a different phone, but all you have to do is put in your email address right now, so it doesn't hurt to cover your bases if you think you might get this. I did, just incase I'm underwhelmed by the Galaxy S4 and Moto X Phone.
Brady Marino
Footballguy
ebay prices haven't been much better from what I've seen. It's not exactly a sought-after phone.
Thanks...good info.'(HULK) said:
Looks like my phone doesn't qualify...apparently I have a LG-P999. Not sure about the wife and kids phones, but I'll check. Maybe our phones will qualify by the time our contracts run out though? None of us have brand new phones. 
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Brady Marino
Footballguy
Not in a metro area, unfortunately. :(If it helps, I still have the Otterbox for it. Granted, it's a little cruddy and beat up (rubber tabs for headphone and USB port have vanished), but it's pretty much ensured the Photon itself is almost in brand-new condition cosmetically.
(HULK)
(Smash)
They're supposedly working to grow the list, but it is Sprint that is limiting it, not them. My phone (Evo 3d) is elligible, but I bought it like 18 or so months ago.Thanks...good info.'(HULK) said:
Evilgrin 72
Distributor of Pain
Just pulled the trigger on the Note 2 with your link, HULK - muchas gracias.
(HULK)
(Smash)
So, you ended up going with the N2 over the S3 then? I thought you were leaning the other way?
Evilgrin 72
Distributor of Pain
I was, mainly because the S3 is smaller and lighter and I imagined it would be more comfortable to carry around. Then, I realized that I don't really carry the phone in my pocket all that often, it's usually in the console of my car or on a table/desk at home/work, so I figured the additional size and added battery life would be more of a boon than the added size and weight would be an issue.
(HULK)
(Smash)
Fun Fact: There are currently 53 companies in the US offering smartphone plans.I don't have the total number of plans offered yet, but some companies have a crazy big selection. AT&T has 35 different base plans. I estimate that there are probably 300 or so plans total... picking the right one for yourself is pretty much a nightmare.
Jaysus
Good times!
As I have experienced first hand over the last several weeks....
(HULK)
(Smash)
I'm seriously going to build a website to make this easier for folks. Already started working on it.
Jaysus
Good times!
My dilemma is that my wife uses a TON of minutes, and other than the Mobile-to-mobile minutes I use when she calls me, I use very few.I am also a fairly heavy data user as I have all of my music on Google Play, and I do a fair amount of streaming. I average just over 2GB a month, but I am way over that sometimes. My wife barely uses any data.Texting is not as big of a concern for me, as I would have no problem using G+ Messenger or gTalk (when are they going to combine those?) but my wife and her sister text each other like no ones business - I could prob get them on gTalk though.That pretty much forces us in to one of those unlimited everything plans, and they seem to run $45 per line minimum... and I have to worry about data being throttled to 2g (which is absurd) after I hit some arbitrary cap.
(HULK)
(Smash)
Maybe seperate plans? I think there is a t-mobile pre-paid plan that is 100 minutes, unlimited texts, and 5 GBs for like $30ish. T-mobile is blocked at my office for some reason so I can't check on that for you. You wife need unlimited minutes probably. Or a muzzle
.A website which you selected the number of minutes, amount if text, and amount of data you need along with any carrier preference would be nice. Then produce a list of plans ranked by price to meet your needs would be cool. I am surprised it has not been done. It would be a huge task to keep it updated. Also knowing discounts that are available is also important and even taxes. Places like calling Mart offer 3 to 7 percent off many mnvo plans. And the big companies like Verizon also have enployee discounts for certain clients which can be upto 25 percent. It is a tall task, but it would be a valuable tool for millions.
Jaysus
Good times!
That T-mobile plan is the exact one I have had my eye on... the 100 minutes would be pushing it without the muzzle though. If it was just me, that would do the trick.Maybe seperate plans? I think there is a t-mobile pre-paid plan that is 100 minutes, unlimited texts, and 5 GBs for like $30ish. T-mobile is blocked at my office for some reason so I can't check on that for you. You wife need unlimited minutes probably. Or a muzzle
(HULK)
(Smash)
You could go on that one, put her on something with unlimited talk. If you hit the 100 min wall, use GrooveIP to call over wifi/3g/4g (the calls won't sound as good though).That T-mobile plan is the exact one I have had my eye on... the 100 minutes would be pushing it without the muzzle though. If it was just me, that would do the trick.Maybe seperate plans? I think there is a t-mobile pre-paid plan that is 100 minutes, unlimited texts, and 5 GBs for like $30ish. T-mobile is blocked at my office for some reason so I can't check on that for you. You wife need unlimited minutes probably. Or a muzzle
(HULK)
(Smash)
This is roughly where my head is at. 130 million smart phone users, and I bet the vast majority are on a sub-optimal plan and overpaying for what they want/need.What is Mart?
Brady Marino
Footballguy
(HULK)
(Smash)
They seem mostly geared towards dumb phones, with the ability to get discounts on smartphone post-paid plans from 3 of the big carriers. Not sure I would take my site to that level. Honestly, I need to get all of the details and see if post-paid is EVER a good deal... something tells me that it may not be in any circumstance.
Jaysus
Good times!
I found a T-Mobile Family Value Plan (BYOD) that, coupled with my corporate discount, and pre-tax (which is another benefit of pre-paid), may wind up being the most cost effective route for me... of course then I am tied to them for two years, and who knows how I will like their network. It was about $85 for two lines, but I don't recall the details without looking.
(HULK)
(Smash)
You could do the T-mobile plan for $30 and put your wife on Airvoice Wireless. They have a $35 plan, unlimited talk/text with 100MBs. That puts you at $65 a month.
Why you say dumb phones? Most of them offer some crappy smart phone for a reasonable price or you can bring your own android or iPhone into them. A lot of them have unlimited data plans. There are a lot of great no contract plans which offers the same service for humdreds less per year. I am not sure what carrier offers a better deal than straight talk unless you have 5 family members in the plan.
(HULK)
(Smash)
You're right, I didn't look at it hard enough. So, they offer discounts on all of those plans? I need to figure out a way to offer the same discounts imo.
I figured your site was mostly for information only and the revenue stream would be ads. If you start selling plans, I think it will taint what you are trying to do.
(HULK)
(Smash)
I figured I could get an affiliate relationship with every single provider (or most at least), and then send them to wherever is the best fit with whatever affiliate deal. Pick up a few bucks to support the site, etc. I wasn't thinking about directly selling myself, and probably wouldn't go that way.
Wingnut
Footballguy
So I ordered a Straight Talk SIM online from WalMart. Should be here in a few days.HULK, I got a question for ya. I've got a friend that wants a cheaper plan. She has an old flip phone on Verizon plan and needs a plan with talk and text only. Its a work phone and she wants to stick with that phone style. Right now she is paying around $140 a month for Verizon cell and land line (she needs the land line for FAX). The land line is close to $30 a month, so she's basically paying $110 for her cell phone and she uses zero data.So, is there a good MVNO with unlimited talk and text (data not necessary) she can use with her phone? I'm not sure of the make and model of her phone but I can get that info tomorrow if need be. I'm pretty sure she would be open to switching to AT&T but probably not T Mobile or Sprint, but whatever company she switched to would need to have a sturdy flip phone option and keeping her current cell number is a MUST.
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She could use her current phone with PagePlus since they use Verizon. For 1200 minutes and 3000 Text and 250GB of data it is $29.95. Or if she really needs unlimited talk and text she can go with a $39 plan. You can also get a 3% discount from Calling Mart and there are no taxes or fees on top of it if you buy online.
(HULK)
(Smash)
I've been researching ones that offer data, and based on what I've got thus far (research is incomplete still), the best I see with Unlimited talk on Verizon is: Straight Talk. I know they have a couple of flip phones, but I didn't check to see if they're on Verizon's network.If she is okay AT&T, then she could go with AirVoice Wireless. They have an unlimited talk/text w/ 100MBs of data for just $35. They're a SIM operation, so any flip that would work on AT&T can be made to work on their network.As I said, research thus far is incomplete (there are SOOOOO many plans!) and I've been ignoring ones that don't include data so there may be even better deals out there. Still this would save her $75 a month, and is probably close enough to whatever the best deal is that she should look into AirVoice hard.It only took me a few seconds in my spreadsheet to find this deal for her... this is why I think I should build a website offering this service. A friend of mine basically poo-pooed all over my idea last night, saying no one cares that much about saving a few pennies. I dunno, he was drunk, but it was somewhat discouraging.
(HULK)
(Smash)
Yeah, I'm familiar with Republic Wireless. Haven't gotten to them on my list yet (going alphabetical for the MVNOs). The calling over wifi, from what I understand, its not as clear as a cellular call. But I've never done it. Has anyone here done it? I'm also not sure on their policy away from wifi and if there are associated costs. I should be through building my sheet by the end of the weekend, so maybe I'll have these questions answered by then too.
GB would have been sweet.
(HULK)
(Smash)
I took a quick look at voice/text only MVNOs on Verizon and AT&T, and no one is beating the $35 a month. So, unless a better plan is somewhere between Page Plus Cellular and Zing PCS, the AirVoice plan seems like the way to go.
Wingnut
Footballguy
Cool, much thanks for the info HULK. Did a little checking, looks like she's gonna go with ST or AirVoice. Leaning towards the $45 ST plan because she wants to stay on the Verizon Network. She could switch to AirVoice and pay $30, but even the $45 ST plan is a huge savings over what she's paying now.
