Save $ on cell service -- Ting Mobile / Solavei (+ other MVNOs) (2 Viewers)

[Jaysus]

Just paid my Ting bill and have now had the service now for 12 months. My account has 3 smart phones. Because we use google voice and on wifi most of the time the bills with Ting are pretty low. Typically we are charged at the Med Rate for minutes; the Small Rate for texts; and the Med rate for data. Total for the past 12 months= $474.18.

To compare- we had been on Verizon for many years. Having 2 smart phones the 12 month total from March 2012-March 2013 was $1817.16.

I don't really notice any difference in call quality or service from Verizon to the Sprint networks. A lateral move in cell phone service quality AND a huge improvement is cost savings.

Anyway - real savings and thanks to Hulk and this thread.

Woot woot.

Yeah, that rules!

 

[Wingnut]

Umm, AT&T.com? ETA: Here

For unlimited calls/texts and 2GB of data (yes, LTE), its $80 on contract or $65 off contract.

However, a bunch of AT&T MVNOs now offer LTE. Straight Talk is the cheapest @ $45 for unlimited talk/text and 2.5 GB, but no roaming allowed. Net10 is the same for $50, and they include free roaming. Both have LTE just the same, on the same damn network. I'm not sure what you gain by going no-contract through AT&T themselves other than the joy of knowing you're financing those cute commericials with the guy and the little kids at a table.

In my experience, data coverage is way better when bought thru AT&T directly. StraightTalks data coverage was a friggin joke, and I just dont trust the others. Im on the road quite a bit and need good coverage, so Id rather pay $65 from AT&T directly and know my coverage is gonna be great than pay $50 a month to find out my coverage isnt as good as I need. $65 is still close to HALF of what I was paying this time last year, so Im happy with it.As for switching to the postpaid plan you linked to, not worth it to me to pay $36 line activation fee, so Im gonna stick with GoPhone, which I just found out will have LTE in a couple of months.

 

[(HULK)]

Umm, AT&T.com? ETA: Here

For unlimited calls/texts and 2GB of data (yes, LTE), its $80 on contract or $65 off contract.

However, a bunch of AT&T MVNOs now offer LTE. Straight Talk is the cheapest @ $45 for unlimited talk/text and 2.5 GB, but no roaming allowed. Net10 is the same for $50, and they include free roaming. Both have LTE just the same, on the same damn network. I'm not sure what you gain by going no-contract through AT&T themselves other than the joy of knowing you're financing those cute commericials with the guy and the little kids at a table.

In my experience, data coverage is way better when bought thru AT&T directly. StraightTalks data coverage was a friggin joke, and I just dont trust the others. Im on the road quite a bit and need good coverage, so Id rather pay $65 from AT&T directly and know my coverage is gonna be great than pay $50 a month to find out my coverage isnt as good as I need. $65 is still close to HALF of what I was paying this time last year, so Im happy with it.As for switching to the postpaid plan you linked to, not worth it to me to pay $36 line activation fee, so Im gonna stick with GoPhone, which I just found out will have LTE in a couple of months.

Straight Talk and Net10's data coverage should be identical to AT&Ts. AT&T will roam for voice/text/data though (on T-Mobile) whereas Straight Talk does not roam at all, and Net10 only roams for voice and text.

Still, I can't imagine that there are many places where T-Mobile has coverage and AT&T doesn't.

 

[heckmanm]

Cheapest options:

Sprint Coverage: Republic Wireless's 3G plan. $25. Uses Wi-Fi primarily for calls/texts/data and Sprint when away from Wi-Fi... and roams on Verizon if necessary. This is for unlimited calls/texts and data. Worth looking into for you maybe.

Looks great, but it doesn't appear I can bring my own phone.

 

[Wingnut]

Umm, AT&T.com? ETA: Here

For unlimited calls/texts and 2GB of data (yes, LTE), its $80 on contract or $65 off contract.

However, a bunch of AT&T MVNOs now offer LTE. Straight Talk is the cheapest @ $45 for unlimited talk/text and 2.5 GB, but no roaming allowed. Net10 is the same for $50, and they include free roaming. Both have LTE just the same, on the same damn network. I'm not sure what you gain by going no-contract through AT&T themselves other than the joy of knowing you're financing those cute commericials with the guy and the little kids at a table.

In my experience, data coverage is way better when bought thru AT&T directly. StraightTalks data coverage was a friggin joke, and I just dont trust the others. Im on the road quite a bit and need good coverage, so Id rather pay $65 from AT&T directly and know my coverage is gonna be great than pay $50 a month to find out my coverage isnt as good as I need. $65 is still close to HALF of what I was paying this time last year, so Im happy with it.As for switching to the postpaid plan you linked to, not worth it to me to pay $36 line activation fee, so Im gonna stick with GoPhone, which I just found out will have LTE in a couple of months.

Straight Talk and Net10's data coverage should be identical to AT&Ts. AT&T will roam for voice/text/data though (on T-Mobile) whereas Straight Talk does not roam at all, and Net10 only roams for voice and text.Still, I can't imagine that there are many places where T-Mobile has coverage and AT&T doesn't.

It must be the data roaming that makes the difference then...when I had Straight Talk I was constantly without data service when out on the road or just outside city limits, and I never have that issue with AT&T. If ST and Net10 don't have data roaming, then to me thats a deal breaker. I gotta have data coverage at all times.

 

[kardplayer]

Cheapest options:

Sprint Coverage: Republic Wireless's 3G plan. $25. Uses Wi-Fi primarily for calls/texts/data and Sprint when away from Wi-Fi... and roams on Verizon if necessary. This is for unlimited calls/texts and data. Worth looking into for you maybe.

Looks great, but it doesn't appear I can bring my own phone.

I've now been on this on the Moto X ($299 for the phone, no contract commitment) for a few weeks, and still loving it.

 

[(HULK)]

Cheapest options:

Sprint Coverage: Republic Wireless's 3G plan. $25. Uses Wi-Fi primarily for calls/texts/data and Sprint when away from Wi-Fi... and roams on Verizon if necessary. This is for unlimited calls/texts and data. Worth looking into for you maybe.

Looks great, but it doesn't appear I can bring my own phone.

I've now been on this on the Moto X ($299 for the phone, no contract commitment) for a few weeks, and still loving it.

Yeah, you can't. Their thing requires propritary software installed on the phone. Still, they sell the Moto X pretty cheap.

 

[the moops]

Cheapest options:

Sprint Coverage: Republic Wireless's 3G plan. $25. Uses Wi-Fi primarily for calls/texts/data and Sprint when away from Wi-Fi... and roams on Verizon if necessary. This is for unlimited calls/texts and data. Worth looking into for you maybe.

Looks great, but it doesn't appear I can bring my own phone.

I've now been on this on the Moto X ($299 for the phone, no contract commitment) for a few weeks, and still loving it.

well you are committed in that their moto x won't work with any other service

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Called T-Mobile today and we have been paying about $125 a month for 2 people, unlimited talk, text, 5 GB of data which we hardly use...they offered to lower our bill for both my wife and I, total=$58 a month. I was shocked to hear this. We have some sort of special discount thru my wife's work but to know we could have been paying this for a good while. Of course I said let's do it.

We have HTC One from 2012, they work just fine for what we do. We could buy or get new phones if we do a contract for 2 years and pay another $25-$30 a month. I told my wife that we should keep what we got because these deals get better every time I lock in. We are not under contract and if we ever do want new phones we can upgrade or change the plans.

I don't get the best coverage in house but I have a house phone thru U-Verse so that isn't a big deal. Out n about we get great coverage here in South Florida, occasionally a dropped call but not often. Usually max bars showing on the phone. One dead spot near downtown Miami between the downtown and Coconut Grove, almost never there and the dead spot only last a couple seconds on the freeway.

I think we are getting a good deal, wasn't completely unhappy prior but cutting the bill in half seems great.

 

[(HULK)]

Cheapest options:

Sprint Coverage: Republic Wireless's 3G plan. $25. Uses Wi-Fi primarily for calls/texts/data and Sprint when away from Wi-Fi... and roams on Verizon if necessary. This is for unlimited calls/texts and data. Worth looking into for you maybe.

Looks great, but it doesn't appear I can bring my own phone.

I've now been on this on the Moto X ($299 for the phone, no contract commitment) for a few weeks, and still loving it.

well you are committed in that their moto x won't work with any other service

True. You could probably sell it to an inbound Republic customer though I would think.

 

[(HULK)]

Called T-Mobile today and we have been paying about $125 a month for 2 people, unlimited talk, text, 5 GB of data which we hardly use...they offered to lower our bill for both my wife and I, total=$58 a month. I was shocked to hear this. We have some sort of special discount thru my wife's work but to know we could have been paying this for a good while. Of course I said let's do it.

We have HTC One from 2012, they work just fine for what we do. We could buy or get new phones if we do a contract for 2 years and pay another $25-$30 a month. I told my wife that we should keep what we got because these deals get better every time I lock in. We are not under contract and if we ever do want new phones we can upgrade or change the plans.

I don't get the best coverage in house but I have a house phone thru U-Verse so that isn't a big deal. Out n about we get great coverage here in South Florida, occasionally a dropped call but not often. Usually max bars showing not he phone. One dead spot near downtown Miami between the downtown and Coconut Grove, almost never there and the dead spot only last a couple seconds on the freeway.

I think we are getting a good deal, wasn't completely unhappy prior but cutting the bill in half seems great.

I thought the HTC One didn't come out until 2013?

If you feel compelled to upgrade, just buy an unlocked Nexus 5 from the Play store. T-Mobile's thing for phone upgrades doesn't involve a contract anymore, its more like an interest free phone financing program, but most phones are overpriced....

 

[Yenrub]

Will the samsung galaxy s2 work on Ting?

My contract is up in July time to get a cheaper plan

 

[(HULK)]

Will the samsung galaxy s2 work on Ting?

My contract is up in July time to get a cheaper plan

The Sprint version? Yes. You'd be able to bring that phone over pretty easily.

 

[(HULK)]

Well, 35orless just got more interesting.... again.

Highlights:
Still the only T-Mobile MVNO to give LTE access

Now allows FREE roaming for voice, text, AND DATA

Just bumped the data available on their plans higher.

Main plan:

$35 for unlimited calls/texts and 1 GB of data (used to be .5GBs). Cost drops as new people sign up... last month it was $28.50.

Data add on: Additional 2.5GB of data for $15.

What is interesting is that the data add on is now prorated. So, if you go over your 1 GB of data on the 20th day of your 30 day plan, it'd just be $5 for the extra data to finish out the month. Neat.

ETA: Apparently they are also now offering an upgrade to Unlimited LTE for $25 over the main plan... so for $60.

Very solid.

 

[Franknbeans]

Believe it or not I am totally new to the cell phone game. My wife has a basic phone and basic plan with T-mobile but the coverage is certainly spotty in areas where she needs it. So that eliminates them from contention. I have had horrible customer service experiences with Verizon in the past so they're out. My wife is looking to upgrade to a smart phone and I am getting in the game with a basic phone with talk and text for emergencies. I am wondering if you would be so kind as to give me your opinion.

I would consider Ting. If you're getting a basic phone for just emergency talk/text... you're phone will just be an additional $6 a month on her plan. Since she's going to be going with her first smartphone, she probably won't use a ton of data... and Ting ends up being very cheap for everyone who is a light to medium user. They use Sprint's network.

Its hard to give a better answer than that without knowing your usage patterns for talk/text/data.

I have none yet but thanks anyway. I hear the sprint service may not be all that around these parts, though. It's pretty much down to them and AT&T, though.

 

[(HULK)]

Believe it or not I am totally new to the cell phone game. My wife has a basic phone and basic plan with T-mobile but the coverage is certainly spotty in areas where she needs it. So that eliminates them from contention. I have had horrible customer service experiences with Verizon in the past so they're out. My wife is looking to upgrade to a smart phone and I am getting in the game with a basic phone with talk and text for emergencies. I am wondering if you would be so kind as to give me your opinion.

I would consider Ting. If you're getting a basic phone for just emergency talk/text... you're phone will just be an additional $6 a month on her plan. Since she's going to be going with her first smartphone, she probably won't use a ton of data... and Ting ends up being very cheap for everyone who is a light to medium user. They use Sprint's network. Its hard to give a better answer than that without knowing your usage patterns for talk/text/data.

I have none yet but thanks anyway. I hear the sprint service may not be all that around these parts, though. It's pretty much down to them and AT&T, though.

zipcode or city/state?

 

[Franknbeans]

Believe it or not I am totally new to the cell phone game. My wife has a basic phone and basic plan with T-mobile but the coverage is certainly spotty in areas where she needs it. So that eliminates them from contention. I have had horrible customer service experiences with Verizon in the past so they're out. My wife is looking to upgrade to a smart phone and I am getting in the game with a basic phone with talk and text for emergencies. I am wondering if you would be so kind as to give me your opinion.

I would consider Ting. If you're getting a basic phone for just emergency talk/text... you're phone will just be an additional $6 a month on her plan. Since she's going to be going with her first smartphone, she probably won't use a ton of data... and Ting ends up being very cheap for everyone who is a light to medium user. They use Sprint's network. Its hard to give a better answer than that without knowing your usage patterns for talk/text/data.

I have none yet but thanks anyway. I hear the sprint service may not be all that around these parts, though. It's pretty much down to them and AT&T, though.

zipcode or city/state?

01835

 

[Franknbeans]

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.

This is where I'm at.

 

[(HULK)]

Believe it or not I am totally new to the cell phone game. My wife has a basic phone and basic plan with T-mobile but the coverage is certainly spotty in areas where she needs it. So that eliminates them from contention. I have had horrible customer service experiences with Verizon in the past so they're out. My wife is looking to upgrade to a smart phone and I am getting in the game with a basic phone with talk and text for emergencies. I am wondering if you would be so kind as to give me your opinion.

I would consider Ting. If you're getting a basic phone for just emergency talk/text... you're phone will just be an additional $6 a month on her plan. Since she's going to be going with her first smartphone, she probably won't use a ton of data... and Ting ends up being very cheap for everyone who is a light to medium user. They use Sprint's network. Its hard to give a better answer than that without knowing your usage patterns for talk/text/data.

I have none yet but thanks anyway. I hear the sprint service may not be all that around these parts, though. It's pretty much down to them and AT&T, though.

zipcode or city/state?

01835

According to Root Metrics for Boston (closest place they have done a study) for calls and text performance, all 4 carriers are great. For data, AT&T and Verizon are great, T-Mobile is good, and Sprint is "okay". Honestly, coming from no smartphone at all, you'll be fine on any of them.

 

[(HULK)]

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.

This is where I'm at.

I think I'm tracking 57 companies at the moment, and there are a lot more plan possibilities than I imagined here. About 128,000 to be specific.

I can help narrow it down a lot with the database I built. But its tough since you're new to it and not really sure what you might need.

 

[Franknbeans]

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.

This is where I'm at.

I think I'm tracking 57 companies at the moment, and there are a lot more plan possibilities than I imagined here. About 128,000 to be specific.

I can help narrow it down a lot with the database I built. But its tough since you're new to it and not really sure what you might need.

yeah, unfortunately I have no clue on what talk/text usage I might end up with but suffice it to say I will be on the lower end. Now my wife, that's another story. I would max her out if you want to run some numbers.

I also get 15% off through work.

 

[(HULK)]

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.

This is where I'm at.

I think I'm tracking 57 companies at the moment, and there are a lot more plan possibilities than I imagined here. About 128,000 to be specific.

I can help narrow it down a lot with the database I built. But its tough since you're new to it and not really sure what you might need.

yeah, unfortunately I have no clue on what talk/text usage I might end up with but suffice it to say I will be on the lower end. Now my wife, that's another story. I would max her out if you want to run some numbers.

I also get 15% off through work.

Do you know roughly how many minutes your wife uses and how many texts she sends?

If she is a big user and you're not, seperate plans/carriers may make the most sense for you guys.

 

[the moops]

hulk posted a bit back that sprints 3g is really really slow. just an FYI for those looking at the 25 a month republic plan

 

[Rayderr]

Forgive me for not reading through all 38 pages. Looking to ditch Sprint and move to one of the low cost carriers. 2 lines, maybe 60 minutes of talk each month at most and maybe 10 texts total. Does get a fair amount of data usage, although most of that is at home and would be over my wifi. Data usage over the phone is mostly in the way of GPS navigation.

Looked at Virgin but they use Sprint (which doesn't work too well in our area) and the phones seem rather old (looking at Droid phones)

Any other good suggestions?

 

[(HULK)]

Forgive me for not reading through all 38 pages. Looking to ditch Sprint and move to one of the low cost carriers. 2 lines, maybe 60 minutes of talk each month at most and maybe 10 texts total. Does get a fair amount of data usage, although most of that is at home and would be over my wifi. Data usage over the phone is mostly in the way of GPS navigation.

Looked at Virgin but they use Sprint (which doesn't work too well in our area) and the phones seem rather old (looking at Droid phones)

Any other good suggestions?

How much data (no-WiFi) are you talking about? Just nav doesn't sound like it'd be much. 100 MBs?

Cheapest non-Sprint option looks to be Consumer Cellular. $35 for total for 2 lines, 200 minutes, 1000 texts, and 100 MB of data.

Sprint option, Zact is the cheapest covering you guys for just $17.83 a month.

 

[Yenrub]

Will the samsung galaxy s2 work on Ting?

My contract is up in July time to get a cheaper plan

The Sprint version? Yes. You'd be able to bring that phone over pretty easily.

Yes on Sprint currently

I need to check my usage but I’m pretty sure it isn’t much in terms of data because I have wi-fi access at home and in the office

If Ting uses Sprints network my service won’t get any better but at least I won’t be paying nearly as much.

Anyone use an MVNO’s that use the Verizon network?

 

[Rayderr]

Forgive me for not reading through all 38 pages. Looking to ditch Sprint and move to one of the low cost carriers. 2 lines, maybe 60 minutes of talk each month at most and maybe 10 texts total. Does get a fair amount of data usage, although most of that is at home and would be over my wifi. Data usage over the phone is mostly in the way of GPS navigation.

Looked at Virgin but they use Sprint (which doesn't work too well in our area) and the phones seem rather old (looking at Droid phones)

Any other good suggestions?

How much data (no-WiFi) are you talking about? Just nav doesn't sound like it'd be much. 100 MBs?

Cheapest non-Sprint option looks to be Consumer Cellular. $35 for total for 2 lines, 200 minutes, 1000 texts, and 100 MB of data.

Sprint option, Zact is the cheapest covering you guys for just $17.83 a month.

Been going through old cell bills. If I'm reading it right, it says I'm using roughly 150mb-250mb per month. There was one month where we hit 500mb, but that was when we were visiting my folks who have no internet access, so that makes sense.

I have to say, Ting is looking pretty good. Being able to bring Evo phones over (hence not having to buy new ones) outweighs the the discomfort of being on Sprint. Though, their instructions on bringing the phone over do have me hyperventilating a bit (don't know hy, but despite being great with electronics, cellphones totally elude me.)

 

[Jaysus]

Forgive me for not reading through all 38 pages. Looking to ditch Sprint and move to one of the low cost carriers. 2 lines, maybe 60 minutes of talk each month at most and maybe 10 texts total. Does get a fair amount of data usage, although most of that is at home and would be over my wifi. Data usage over the phone is mostly in the way of GPS navigation.

Looked at Virgin but they use Sprint (which doesn't work too well in our area) and the phones seem rather old (looking at Droid phones)

Any other good suggestions?

How much data (no-WiFi) are you talking about? Just nav doesn't sound like it'd be much. 100 MBs?

Cheapest non-Sprint option looks to be Consumer Cellular. $35 for total for 2 lines, 200 minutes, 1000 texts, and 100 MB of data.

Sprint option, Zact is the cheapest covering you guys for just $17.83 a month.

Been going through old cell bills. If I'm reading it right, it says I'm using roughly 150mb-250mb per month. There was one month where we hit 500mb, but that was when we were visiting my folks who have no internet access, so that makes sense.

I have to say, Ting is looking pretty good. Being able to bring Evo phones over (hence not having to buy new ones) outweighs the the discomfort of being on Sprint. Though, their instructions on bringing the phone over do have me hyperventilating a bit (don't know hy, but despite being great with electronics, cellphones totally elude me.)

Check out the Moto G on an AT&T or T-Mobile MVNO. The cost of that phone should be manageable.

 

[rick6668]

Forgive me for not reading through all 38 pages. Looking to ditch Sprint and move to one of the low cost carriers. 2 lines, maybe 60 minutes of talk each month at most and maybe 10 texts total. Does get a fair amount of data usage, although most of that is at home and would be over my wifi. Data usage over the phone is mostly in the way of GPS navigation.

Looked at Virgin but they use Sprint (which doesn't work too well in our area) and the phones seem rather old (looking at Droid phones)

Any other good suggestions?

How much data (no-WiFi) are you talking about? Just nav doesn't sound like it'd be much. 100 MBs?

Cheapest non-Sprint option looks to be Consumer Cellular. $35 for total for 2 lines, 200 minutes, 1000 texts, and 100 MB of data.

Sprint option, Zact is the cheapest covering you guys for just $17.83 a month.

Been going through old cell bills. If I'm reading it right, it says I'm using roughly 150mb-250mb per month. There was one month where we hit 500mb, but that was when we were visiting my folks who have no internet access, so that makes sense.

I have to say, Ting is looking pretty good. Being able to bring Evo phones over (hence not having to buy new ones) outweighs the the discomfort of being on Sprint. Though, their instructions on bringing the phone over do have me hyperventilating a bit (don't know hy, but despite being great with electronics, cellphones totally elude me.)

I think this is your best choice. If you can keep your data to under 100MB a month and just use WIFI, the data charge is only $3 a month. With the very small usage of minutes/texts you showed, you're looking at $21/month for 2 phones +taxes/fees. If it doesn't work out, you can just leave, no contract.

Bringing the phone over is simple and if you have issues, just call them. A real person will pick up in 2 rings ready to help you. Seriously, their customer service is excellent.

I have 5 phones (4 smart phones including 2 iphones and a regular phone) and my bill has been $57.75 the last 3 months. That includes $10.75 in taxes/fees.

Good Luck.

 

[mon]

I'm sure it's been mentioned on here before, but I just checked out republicwireless.com and they have a pretty simple set up that's going to save me a ton of $. You can switch your plan twice per month and the phones they offer are actually pretty nice. I think I can get by with 3G speeds when I'm not connected to WiFi. Definitely worth a look.

Phones? All I'm seeing is one phone -- the Moto X. Is there another site to buy from?

 

[bweiser]

i haven't paid for a phone in years. i've had a free iPhone through work that i will be losing use of in 3 weeks when i leave my job.

it has 9GB and 3G as far as i can tell (i'm pretty naive when it comes to this stuff).

here's what i do on my phone:

i call. probably on average 300 minutes per month. i text. probably on average 600 texts per month. maybe even more.

i play a couple of games.

i take pictures.

i check sportscenter once a week or so.

i use the bravo poker application a few times a week.

and mostly i listen to spotify while sitting at a poker table for 4-6 hours. this will be increasing to 30-40 hours per week (or until the battery runs out on a given night).

i would like to have access to watch videos on my phone (was thinking iPad or tablet or something, but i need a phone first and foremost) on some nights at the poker table.

i will have access to wifi at one location, but not at the other i will be frequenting after i leave my job.

i live in zip code 19018.

i would like to purchase a phone and then find an affordable plan. i had figured $200 for the phone and $100/month for the plan. obviously, if i can spend less per month, that would be awesome.

HELP!!!

 

[BoltBacker]

There have been some skepticism toward Republic Wireless in this thread in the past and I just wanted to post this review by Leo Laporte (skip ahead to 25:23)...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZeO6orGT2k

... he recently reviewed the product with the $299 Moto X but now you can get a $149 Moto G for an even more amazing value. This would be the service I would be using already if I got any Sprint reception at all where I live.

It's important to keep in mind that not only is he a tech journalist(who usually are a little elitist when it comes to anything "budget" in the tech field) but a millionaire tech journalist. In the past he once said he couldn't understand why anyone would buy a netbook($200) instead of just buying a MacBook Air($1200) so when he does reviews he obviously isn't as price sensitive as the rest of us. He's fair but like the rest of them he leans toward poo-pooing the "cheap" stuff.

Another interesting development is the Cia Mobile service coming soon....

http://ciaomobile.net/lite/#

... which is way too early to get excited about but if you want to get in early you can join the wait list. The reason I found this one so interesting is it seems to be the model that so many people expect Amazon to use when they eventually enter smartphones in some capacity. If a startup like Ciao can make a run at this at $10/month you have to think that Amazon could become a huge player in the market on a similar model. In fact, Prime membership almost costs $10/month and those are typically high volume shoppers. I know people that can't go more than 10 minutes without checking their phone and can you imagine the ability to not only advertise to someone every time they check their phone but have targeted advertisements based on their amazon shopping history of the higher volume Prime shoppers? The amazon fire tablet really shook the entire tablet market(remember when 10" $600 tablets were the norm?) on it's launch but an amazon phone subsidized by advertisements could have an even bigger impact imo.

I'm all for a shake up in the cell market and I hope people(that live in areas with good Sprint reception) will give these types of services a chance. At those prices it really doesn't hurt to just try. Viva la revolution.

 

[Rayderr]

Forgive me for not reading through all 38 pages. Looking to ditch Sprint and move to one of the low cost carriers. 2 lines, maybe 60 minutes of talk each month at most and maybe 10 texts total. Does get a fair amount of data usage, although most of that is at home and would be over my wifi. Data usage over the phone is mostly in the way of GPS navigation.

Looked at Virgin but they use Sprint (which doesn't work too well in our area) and the phones seem rather old (looking at Droid phones)

Any other good suggestions?

How much data (no-WiFi) are you talking about? Just nav doesn't sound like it'd be much. 100 MBs?

Cheapest non-Sprint option looks to be Consumer Cellular. $35 for total for 2 lines, 200 minutes, 1000 texts, and 100 MB of data.

Sprint option, Zact is the cheapest covering you guys for just $17.83 a month.

Been going through old cell bills. If I'm reading it right, it says I'm using roughly 150mb-250mb per month. There was one month where we hit 500mb, but that was when we were visiting my folks who have no internet access, so that makes sense.

I have to say, Ting is looking pretty good. Being able to bring Evo phones over (hence not having to buy new ones) outweighs the the discomfort of being on Sprint. Though, their instructions on bringing the phone over do have me hyperventilating a bit (don't know hy, but despite being great with electronics, cellphones totally elude me.)

I think this is your best choice. If you can keep your data to under 100MB a month and just use WIFI, the data charge is only $3 a month. With the very small usage of minutes/texts you showed, you're looking at $21/month for 2 phones +taxes/fees. If it doesn't work out, you can just leave, no contract.

Bringing the phone over is simple and if you have issues, just call them. A real person will pick up in 2 rings ready to help you. Seriously, their customer service is excellent.

I have 5 phones (4 smart phones including 2 iphones and a regular phone) and my bill has been $57.75 the last 3 months. That includes $10.75 in taxes/fees.

Good Luck.

Even if I do go over 100mb, I'm not too worried. $30 a month still saves me over $100 a month from my current plan. Confirmed both phones are eligible last night, so this afternoon when I get home I'll be making the switch. Pray for me.

 

[rick6668]

Forgive me for not reading through all 38 pages. Looking to ditch Sprint and move to one of the low cost carriers. 2 lines, maybe 60 minutes of talk each month at most and maybe 10 texts total. Does get a fair amount of data usage, although most of that is at home and would be over my wifi. Data usage over the phone is mostly in the way of GPS navigation.

Looked at Virgin but they use Sprint (which doesn't work too well in our area) and the phones seem rather old (looking at Droid phones)

Any other good suggestions?

How much data (no-WiFi) are you talking about? Just nav doesn't sound like it'd be much. 100 MBs?

Cheapest non-Sprint option looks to be Consumer Cellular. $35 for total for 2 lines, 200 minutes, 1000 texts, and 100 MB of data.

Sprint option, Zact is the cheapest covering you guys for just $17.83 a month.

Been going through old cell bills. If I'm reading it right, it says I'm using roughly 150mb-250mb per month. There was one month where we hit 500mb, but that was when we were visiting my folks who have no internet access, so that makes sense.

I have to say, Ting is looking pretty good. Being able to bring Evo phones over (hence not having to buy new ones) outweighs the the discomfort of being on Sprint. Though, their instructions on bringing the phone over do have me hyperventilating a bit (don't know hy, but despite being great with electronics, cellphones totally elude me.)

I think this is your best choice. If you can keep your data to under 100MB a month and just use WIFI, the data charge is only $3 a month. With the very small usage of minutes/texts you showed, you're looking at $21/month for 2 phones +taxes/fees. If it doesn't work out, you can just leave, no contract.

Bringing the phone over is simple and if you have issues, just call them. A real person will pick up in 2 rings ready to help you. Seriously, their customer service is excellent.

I have 5 phones (4 smart phones including 2 iphones and a regular phone) and my bill has been $57.75 the last 3 months. That includes $10.75 in taxes/fees.

Good Luck.

Even if I do go over 100mb, I'm not too worried. $30 a month still saves me over $100 a month from my current plan. Confirmed both phones are eligible last night, so this afternoon when I get home I'll be making the switch. Pray for me.

Excellent. You will be so glad you did this. Are you still in a contract at Sprint? Ting does offer a credit on part of your ETF if you have one : https://ting.com/etf

Remember to use one of the referral links in the first post. $25 off your first bill for you and the referee. Pick whomever you like (I'd be grateful if you picked me )

Hulk, are you still on Ting? I'm not sure who has links posted on the first page are still with Ting and are still eligible for the credit.

 

[(HULK)]

Forgive me for not reading through all 38 pages. Looking to ditch Sprint and move to one of the low cost carriers. 2 lines, maybe 60 minutes of talk each month at most and maybe 10 texts total. Does get a fair amount of data usage, although most of that is at home and would be over my wifi. Data usage over the phone is mostly in the way of GPS navigation.

Looked at Virgin but they use Sprint (which doesn't work too well in our area) and the phones seem rather old (looking at Droid phones)

Any other good suggestions?

How much data (no-WiFi) are you talking about? Just nav doesn't sound like it'd be much. 100 MBs?

Cheapest non-Sprint option looks to be Consumer Cellular. $35 for total for 2 lines, 200 minutes, 1000 texts, and 100 MB of data.

Sprint option, Zact is the cheapest covering you guys for just $17.83 a month.

Been going through old cell bills. If I'm reading it right, it says I'm using roughly 150mb-250mb per month. There was one month where we hit 500mb, but that was when we were visiting my folks who have no internet access, so that makes sense.

I have to say, Ting is looking pretty good. Being able to bring Evo phones over (hence not having to buy new ones) outweighs the the discomfort of being on Sprint. Though, their instructions on bringing the phone over do have me hyperventilating a bit (don't know hy, but despite being great with electronics, cellphones totally elude me.)

You can call them and they'll hold your hand for the switch over. Its not hard.

Also, there is something you can get called an AirRave which is a signal booster... put it in your home and boom, full bars. Its $99 though. Only worth it if you really love everything else about Ting though.

 

[(HULK)]

I'm sure it's been mentioned on here before, but I just checked out republicwireless.com and they have a pretty simple set up that's going to save me a ton of $. You can switch your plan twice per month and the phones they offer are actually pretty nice. I think I can get by with 3G speeds when I'm not connected to WiFi. Definitely worth a look.

Phones? All I'm seeing is one phone -- the Moto X. Is there another site to buy from?

They have an older one that is way worse. Supposedly adding the Moto G in the immediate future, before the month is up. But yeah, thats it. Very limited options. Moto X is a great phone though.

 

[(HULK)]

i haven't paid for a phone in years. i've had a free iPhone through work that i will be losing use of in 3 weeks when i leave my job.

it has 9GB and 3G as far as i can tell (i'm pretty naive when it comes to this stuff).

here's what i do on my phone:

i call. probably on average 300 minutes per month. i text. probably on average 600 texts per month. maybe even more.

i play a couple of games.

i take pictures.

i check sportscenter once a week or so.

i use the bravo poker application a few times a week.

and mostly i listen to spotify while sitting at a poker table for 4-6 hours. this will be increasing to 30-40 hours per week (or until the battery runs out on a given night).

i would like to have access to watch videos on my phone (was thinking iPad or tablet or something, but i need a phone first and foremost) on some nights at the poker table.

i will have access to wifi at one location, but not at the other i will be frequenting after i leave my job.

i live in zip code 19018.

i would like to purchase a phone and then find an affordable plan. i had figured $200 for the phone and $100/month for the plan. obviously, if i can spend less per month, that would be awesome.

HELP!!!

Hmmm.

Spend $350 on a phone and get a Nexus 5. Or $199 on a phone and get a Moto G. Either or. Can you keep your old iPhone?

For you, I think your data will likely be HIGH because of all of the streaming. This means you want unlimited.

If you want Sprint coverage, you have several options. I'd say Toto Wireless's 4G LTE plan (unlimited everything for $50).

If you're willing to try T-Mobile's coverage, you could do the unlimited plan with 35orless. Starts at $60 and goes down from there each month (depends on how many new customers they get... most months it ends up being about an $8 discount).

 

[(HULK)]

There have been some skepticism toward Republic Wireless in this thread in the past and I just wanted to post this review by Leo Laporte (skip ahead to 25:23)...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZeO6orGT2k

... he recently reviewed the product with the $299 Moto X but now you can get a $149 Moto G for an even more amazing value. This would be the service I would be using already if I got any Sprint reception at all where I live.

It's important to keep in mind that not only is he a tech journalist(who usually are a little elitist when it comes to anything "budget" in the tech field) but a millionaire tech journalist. In the past he once said he couldn't understand why anyone would buy a netbook($200) instead of just buying a MacBook Air($1200) so when he does reviews he obviously isn't as price sensitive as the rest of us. He's fair but like the rest of them he leans toward poo-pooing the "cheap" stuff.

Another interesting development is the Cia Mobile service coming soon....

http://ciaomobile.net/lite/#

... which is way too early to get excited about but if you want to get in early you can join the wait list. The reason I found this one so interesting is it seems to be the model that so many people expect Amazon to use when they eventually enter smartphones in some capacity. If a startup like Ciao can make a run at this at $10/month you have to think that Amazon could become a huge player in the market on a similar model. In fact, Prime membership almost costs $10/month and those are typically high volume shoppers. I know people that can't go more than 10 minutes without checking their phone and can you imagine the ability to not only advertise to someone every time they check their phone but have targeted advertisements based on their amazon shopping history of the higher volume Prime shoppers? The amazon fire tablet really shook the entire tablet market(remember when 10" $600 tablets were the norm?) on it's launch but an amazon phone subsidized by advertisements could have an even bigger impact imo.

I'm all for a shake up in the cell market and I hope people(that live in areas with good Sprint reception) will give these types of services a chance. At those prices it really doesn't hurt to just try. Viva la revolution.

I think Republic suffered a bit by launching a half baked product back when they launched. Its very good now though, I have a good friend on them and he loves it.

I'll keep my eye on this Ciao thing. Probably not for me, but it might be for some.

 

[(HULK)]

Forgive me for not reading through all 38 pages. Looking to ditch Sprint and move to one of the low cost carriers. 2 lines, maybe 60 minutes of talk each month at most and maybe 10 texts total. Does get a fair amount of data usage, although most of that is at home and would be over my wifi. Data usage over the phone is mostly in the way of GPS navigation.

Looked at Virgin but they use Sprint (which doesn't work too well in our area) and the phones seem rather old (looking at Droid phones)

Any other good suggestions?

How much data (no-WiFi) are you talking about? Just nav doesn't sound like it'd be much. 100 MBs?

Cheapest non-Sprint option looks to be Consumer Cellular. $35 for total for 2 lines, 200 minutes, 1000 texts, and 100 MB of data.

Sprint option, Zact is the cheapest covering you guys for just $17.83 a month.

Been going through old cell bills. If I'm reading it right, it says I'm using roughly 150mb-250mb per month. There was one month where we hit 500mb, but that was when we were visiting my folks who have no internet access, so that makes sense.

I have to say, Ting is looking pretty good. Being able to bring Evo phones over (hence not having to buy new ones) outweighs the the discomfort of being on Sprint. Though, their instructions on bringing the phone over do have me hyperventilating a bit (don't know hy, but despite being great with electronics, cellphones totally elude me.)

I think this is your best choice. If you can keep your data to under 100MB a month and just use WIFI, the data charge is only $3 a month. With the very small usage of minutes/texts you showed, you're looking at $21/month for 2 phones +taxes/fees. If it doesn't work out, you can just leave, no contract.

Bringing the phone over is simple and if you have issues, just call them. A real person will pick up in 2 rings ready to help you. Seriously, their customer service is excellent.

I have 5 phones (4 smart phones including 2 iphones and a regular phone) and my bill has been $57.75 the last 3 months. That includes $10.75 in taxes/fees.

Good Luck.

Even if I do go over 100mb, I'm not too worried. $30 a month still saves me over $100 a month from my current plan. Confirmed both phones are eligible last night, so this afternoon when I get home I'll be making the switch. Pray for me.

Excellent. You will be so glad you did this. Are you still in a contract at Sprint? Ting does offer a credit on part of your ETF if you have one : https://ting.com/etf

Remember to use one of the referral links in the first post. $25 off your first bill for you and the referee. Pick whomever you like (I'd be grateful if you picked me )

Hulk, are you still on Ting? I'm not sure who has links posted on the first page are still with Ting and are still eligible for the credit.

Yup, my wife is. But I'm probably switching her to something else soon. She went back to work and her call volume jumped to about 2000 minutes a month, and I can find cheaper for her. Still burning through free credit though, so I haven't moved her yet.

So, don't use my link. Use ricks

 

[bweiser]

i haven't paid for a phone in years. i've had a free iPhone through work that i will be losing use of in 3 weeks when i leave my job.

it has 9GB and 3G as far as i can tell (i'm pretty naive when it comes to this stuff).

here's what i do on my phone:

i call. probably on average 300 minutes per month. i text. probably on average 600 texts per month. maybe even more.

i play a couple of games.

i take pictures.

i check sportscenter once a week or so.

i use the bravo poker application a few times a week.

and mostly i listen to spotify while sitting at a poker table for 4-6 hours. this will be increasing to 30-40 hours per week (or until the battery runs out on a given night).

i would like to have access to watch videos on my phone (was thinking iPad or tablet or something, but i need a phone first and foremost) on some nights at the poker table.

i will have access to wifi at one location, but not at the other i will be frequenting after i leave my job.

i live in zip code 19018.

i would like to purchase a phone and then find an affordable plan. i had figured $200 for the phone and $100/month for the plan. obviously, if i can spend less per month, that would be awesome.

HELP!!!

Hmmm.

Spend $350 on a phone and get a Nexus 5. Or $199 on a phone and get a Moto G. Either or. Can you keep your old iPhone?

For you, I think your data will likely be HIGH because of all of the streaming. This means you want unlimited.

If you want Sprint coverage, you have several options. I'd say Toto Wireless's 4G LTE plan (unlimited everything for $50).

If you're willing to try T-Mobile's coverage, you could do the unlimited plan with 35orless. Starts at $60 and goes down from there each month (depends on how many new customers they get... most months it ends up being about an $8 discount).

Cool. Thanks. Company phone, so I can't keep it.

 

[Rayderr]

Successfully made the jump.

Rick, you should have a credit for the referral.

Hulk, thank you for the thread. You have been very knowledgeable and helpful, which confuses me since I thought you worked at the Pentagon.

 

[rick6668]

Successfully made the jump.

Rick, you should have a credit for the referral.

Hulk, thank you for the thread. You have been very knowledgeable and helpful, which confuses me since I thought you worked at the Pentagon.

Thanks!!

If you have any questions about Ting, let me know. Looks like it was easy.

 

[(HULK)]

Successfully made the jump.

Rick, you should have a credit for the referral.

Hulk, thank you for the thread. You have been very knowledgeable and helpful, which confuses me since I thought you worked at the Pentagon.

I'm at Walter Reed now, for the past 2 years.Good luck!

 

[Rayderr]

Successfully made the jump.

Rick, you should have a credit for the referral.

Hulk, thank you for the thread. You have been very knowledgeable and helpful, which confuses me since I thought you worked at the Pentagon.

I'm at Walter Reed now, for the past 2 years.Good luck!

So that's where the Pentagon is shipping their smart people off to.

 

[(HULK)]

Successfully made the jump.

Rick, you should have a credit for the referral.

Hulk, thank you for the thread. You have been very knowledgeable and helpful, which confuses me since I thought you worked at the Pentagon.

I'm at Walter Reed now, for the past 2 years.Good luck!

So that's where the Pentagon is shipping their smart people off to.

Honestly, having worked there and worked here... the opposite is pretty true. I've never seen so many people trying to so hard to fufill the lazy government worker stereotype than right here.

 

[Rayderr]

Successfully made the jump.

Rick, you should have a credit for the referral.

Hulk, thank you for the thread. You have been very knowledgeable and helpful, which confuses me since I thought you worked at the Pentagon.

I'm at Walter Reed now, for the past 2 years.Good luck!

So that's where the Pentagon is shipping their smart people off to.

Honestly, having worked there and worked here... the opposite is pretty true. I've never seen so many people trying to so hard to fufill the lazy government worker stereotype than right here.

I'll just say this... I deal with Pentagon on a near daily basis. If someone from there calls me, they should know one of things I'm going to need from them is specs. Yet they never seem to know what their specs are. Been that way for years now.

Anyways, allow me jump on the ting referral gravy train.

Rayderr's Ting Referral Link

 

[BlueDredSo]

Hey Hulk, I've been looking into separating from Verizon. The coverage and speed is great, but as you know the prices are ridiculous. I even get 17% off from my employer and $10 off the bill because I also have a FiOS Triple Play plan (which I will be terminating in the near future as well). So, here's my situation:

Me: Currently have a Samsung Galaxy Nexus, contract with Verizon is expired and on month to month until I decide what to do. I've really only looked into Republic so far, but Sprint only has 3G in Buffalo. I could probably settle for 3G but it'd be nice to at least have the option of 4G. I use around 2GB/month or less, unlimited may be the best option. Around 1,000 texts/month, unlimited there would be good I'm assuming. 250-350 minutes/month.

I also have my mother and father on my plan. Mom's contract doesn't expire until Feb of next year. She uses 1GB of data/month, 200-300 texts, 300 minutes. Dad doesn't have a smart phone and will never need one, doesn't text much, but he does use around 350-500 minutes/month.

If you need any more information let me know. With the discounts, taxes, fees, etc I'm paying around $160-$165/month for all 3 lines. My phone is responsible for around $70/month. I'm totally willing to have my own plan and let my parents figure out what they want to do in the mean time.

Thanks for your help! How's the website coming?

 

[(HULK)]

BlueDredSo,

Ran your numbers. Keeping you guys all together on 1 plan puts you at $101.57 on Zact and $105 on Ting. Both use Sprint though, so you'd be stuck waiting for the whole Sprint Spark upgrade thing to hit Buffalo. I'm sure they will one day, but as a former Sprint customer, I can warn you to not be suprised when they fail to meet their published roll out timelines. Non Sprint coverage wise, cheapest would be a Metro PCS plan coming in at $135. Not sure if it is worth it, especially if you have subsidies on phone purchases via Verizon.

BUT!

Lets look at you guys as two seperate groups, you and your parents.

For you, you can get covered with an unlimited call/text deal plus 2GB of data. Straight Talk can work for you @ $45 a month (either AT&T or T-Mobile coverage). Only downside there is no roaming included. If you want roaming too, next cheapest is Solavei (T-Mobile coverage) @ $49 a month. If you go that way, PM me and I'll send you a free SIM card for them, I'm sitting on a few.

For your parents, I think the Sprint 3G thing is probably less of an issue for them than for you, right? They could both be on Zact for $48.80 or Ting for $54.

So, theoretically, you on Straight Talk, parents on Zact, puts you at $93.80 + taxes/fees a month, your cheapest scenario. Main decision points for you are wether you personally want roaming availble to you (and free) and having a large phone selection for the parents (Ting has WAY more options than Zact for phones). If you went Solavei + Ting, you'd be looking at $103 + taxes/fees, which is still pretty good.

Good luck.

------

Website is getting closer and closer. I've got a sweet database built now, working on the user facing interface at the moment. I expect this thing to be off the ground before summer. Been working on it over a year now though, lol.

 

[BlueDredSo]

Awesome. Thanks for the help and quick response. I'm looking into Straight Talk. My dad can jump on whatever network my mom eventually chooses if I do split from the family plan, which seems likely at this point.

Straight Talk's compatible phones seem to be a little complicated. Is basically any phone that uses Sim Cards compatible? I have a Samsung Galaxy Nexus right now connected to Verizon. I'd like to get a new one, but the best Android on Straight Talk's website (ZTE Unico LTE) is probably no better than my phone right now. I've never had an iPhone and not really willing to pay $550 for one. I'd like to get a newer Android phone if at all possible.

 

[(HULK)]

Awesome. Thanks for the help and quick response. I'm looking into Straight Talk. My dad can jump on whatever network my mom eventually chooses if I do split from the family plan, which seems likely at this point.

Straight Talk's compatible phones seem to be a little complicated. Is basically any phone that uses Sim Cards compatible? I have a Samsung Galaxy Nexus right now connected to Verizon. I'd like to get a new one, but the best Android on Straight Talk's website (ZTE Unico LTE) is probably no better than my phone right now. I've never had an iPhone and not really willing to pay $550 for one. I'd like to get a newer Android phone if at all possible.

So, Straight Talk has deals with all 4 carriers so you can get a phone that works on any of them... thing is, for CDMA carriers (thats Sprint and Verizon) the selection is VERY limited. But for GSM carriers (thats T-Mo and AT&T) you can bring ANY unlocked GSM phone. Which means you could pick up a Nexus 5 and just get an AT&T SIM from them and you're all set.

For good value on unlocked phones, I'd recommend the Nexus 5 or the Moto G (if you want to keep it under $200).