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

[chauncey]

I can't believe this thread is almost 2.5 years old now. Great idea by HULK and probably one of the most valuable threads on the forum in terms of helping FBGs save money.

Today I crossed paths with a Cricket store and almost switched to them from my Tmobile prepaid plan that I currently have. They use Att&t which has better coverage in my area, and the two plans that caught my eye are $50/mo for 5gb data or $60/mo for 10gb data taxes included (I am now paying $53/mo for 3gb data including taxes).

Is there a catch to this? Anyone have any experience with Cricket?

 

[(HULK)]

I can't believe this thread is almost 2.5 years old now. Great idea by HULK and probably one of the most valuable threads on the forum in terms of helping FBGs save money.

Today I crossed paths with a Cricket store and almost switched to them from my Tmobile prepaid plan that I currently have. They use Att&t which has better coverage in my area, and the two plans that caught my eye are $50/mo for 5gb data or $60/mo for 10gb data taxes included (I am now paying $53/mo for 3gb data including taxes).

Is there a catch to this? Anyone have any experience with Cricket?

Yes, there is a catch.

Their LTE is throttled to 8MBps. It will not go any faster than that. So, its really 1/2 to 1/3 LTE. In fact, T-Mobile's HSPA+ is typically faster than that.

 

[(HULK)]

I've jumped in and out of this thread over its lifespan, as I knew eventually I would want a cheap plan for my son once he got to the age of needing cell service. Unfortunately, I need a summary because 57 pages is a bit too much to scan through.

Wife and are are ATT. Son has my old iPhone 4s (ATT model). Currently it has no cell service, uses it as a glorified iPod on wifi, which also allows him to send iMessages and FaceTime via wifi.

I want to add cell service at a minimum. Not much, just enough for emergency calls from after school activities, etc. Would be cool if he could use the phone to make calls via wifi at home as well, but a google voice number can do that already, just hoping to not have to have 2 different numbers for him. Text and data aren't a major concern, but limited number of both wouldn't hurt.

Good ATT service in my area, but most carriers are represented well here in Orlando.

Suggestions on who I should look at to bring the iPhone 4s over to, and would it be cheaper than adding him to a family plan??

Thanks for any thoughts.

I've been slacking on this lately.

I'm not sure if an old iPhone4 can do the wifi calling via its regular number or with Google voice. I've never had an iPhone. Maybe an Apple guy can chime in on that.

As for having 2 numbers, I do it, but I only use my Google Voice number. On Android I can do everything via the Google Voice number, including making calls over cellular from it. Not sure if it is the same within the walled garden.

I'm pretty sure Consumer Cellular has a cheap low-usage plan that might fit and it uses AT&T's network. Check them out. They're typically targeted towards old folks, but they could work for your son for a few years.

 

[heckmanm]

Other than targeting old folks (of which I'm closer to being one than I like to think about anyway), any downside to Consumer Cellular? I don't use a lot of minutes, and 3-4GB of data should be plenty for me. Hoping they don't throttle speeds as was mentioned above with Cricket.

 

[(HULK)]

Other than targeting old folks (of which I'm closer to being one than I like to think about anyway), any downside to Consumer Cellular? I don't use a lot of minutes, and 3-4GB of data should be plenty for me. Hoping they don't throttle speeds as was mentioned above with Cricket.

You use too much data for it to be price efficient with them. Old folks don't use that much!

Check out Straight Talk or Net10 (Net10 is slightly more expensive, but includes free roaming). Customer service sucks with both though.

 

[heckmanm]

Other than targeting old folks (of which I'm closer to being one than I like to think about anyway), any downside to Consumer Cellular? I don't use a lot of minutes, and 3-4GB of data should be plenty for me. Hoping they don't throttle speeds as was mentioned above with Cricket.

You use too much data for it to be price efficient with them. Old folks don't use that much!

Check out Straight Talk or Net10 (Net10 is slightly more expensive, but includes free roaming). Customer service sucks with both though.

At 250 min/4GB ($45) they're a little cheaper than adding my usage to our existing Ting account would be.

Will look at those other 2, although Net10 is T-Mobile network IIRC and their coverage is ungood in the little town where I live.

 

[Jaysus]

Other than targeting old folks (of which I'm closer to being one than I like to think about anyway), any downside to Consumer Cellular? I don't use a lot of minutes, and 3-4GB of data should be plenty for me. Hoping they don't throttle speeds as was mentioned above with Cricket.

You use too much data for it to be price efficient with them. Old folks don't use that much!

Check out Straight Talk or Net10 (Net10 is slightly more expensive, but includes free roaming). Customer service sucks with both though.

At 250 min/4GB ($45) they're a little cheaper than adding my usage to our existing Ting account would be.

Will look at those other 2, although Net10 is T-Mobile network IIRC and their coverage is ungood in the little town where I live.

Net10 is also AT&T. Cricket and Net10 will both throttle after you hit your softcap.

 

[heckmanm]

Other than targeting old folks (of which I'm closer to being one than I like to think about anyway), any downside to Consumer Cellular? I don't use a lot of minutes, and 3-4GB of data should be plenty for me. Hoping they don't throttle speeds as was mentioned above with Cricket.

You use too much data for it to be price efficient with them. Old folks don't use that much!

Check out Straight Talk or Net10 (Net10 is slightly more expensive, but includes free roaming). Customer service sucks with both though.

At 250 min/4GB ($45) they're a little cheaper than adding my usage to our existing Ting account would be.

Will look at those other 2, although Net10 is T-Mobile network IIRC and their coverage is ungood in the little town where I live.

Net10 is also AT&T. Cricket and Net10 will both throttle after you hit your softcap.

Forgot that they do 2 carriers. Net10 has 5GB for $50 with unlimited talk/text.

The nice thing about Ting is that if I decide to be thrifty with my data usage, I can keep it under 2MB, and my bill goes down. If I go CC or Net10, then I'll be looking for ways to burn through all of my data.

 

[Mr. Ected]

Other than targeting old folks (of which I'm closer to being one than I like to think about anyway), any downside to Consumer Cellular? I don't use a lot of minutes, and 3-4GB of data should be plenty for me. Hoping they don't throttle speeds as was mentioned above with Cricket.

You use too much data for it to be price efficient with them. Old folks don't use that much!

Check out Straight Talk or Net10 (Net10 is slightly more expensive, but includes free roaming). Customer service sucks with both though.

At 250 min/4GB ($45) they're a little cheaper than adding my usage to our existing Ting account would be.

Will look at those other 2, although Net10 is T-Mobile network IIRC and their coverage is ungood in the little town where I live.

Net10 is also AT&T. Cricket and Net10 will both throttle after you hit your softcap.

Net10 doesn't allow Hotspotting, if that is important.

 

[heckmanm]

Other than targeting old folks (of which I'm closer to being one than I like to think about anyway), any downside to Consumer Cellular? I don't use a lot of minutes, and 3-4GB of data should be plenty for me. Hoping they don't throttle speeds as was mentioned above with Cricket.

You use too much data for it to be price efficient with them. Old folks don't use that much!

Check out Straight Talk or Net10 (Net10 is slightly more expensive, but includes free roaming). Customer service sucks with both though.

At 250 min/4GB ($45) they're a little cheaper than adding my usage to our existing Ting account would be.

Will look at those other 2, although Net10 is T-Mobile network IIRC and their coverage is ungood in the little town where I live.

Net10 is also AT&T. Cricket and Net10 will both throttle after you hit your softcap.

Net10 doesn't allow Hotspotting, if that is important.

I don't use it today, so probably not.

 

[(HULK)]

Other than targeting old folks (of which I'm closer to being one than I like to think about anyway), any downside to Consumer Cellular? I don't use a lot of minutes, and 3-4GB of data should be plenty for me. Hoping they don't throttle speeds as was mentioned above with Cricket.

You use too much data for it to be price efficient with them. Old folks don't use that much!

Check out Straight Talk or Net10 (Net10 is slightly more expensive, but includes free roaming). Customer service sucks with both though.

At 250 min/4GB ($45) they're a little cheaper than adding my usage to our existing Ting account would be.

Will look at those other 2, although Net10 is T-Mobile network IIRC and their coverage is ungood in the little town where I live.

Net10 is also AT&T. Cricket and Net10 will both throttle after you hit your softcap.

Cricket actually throttles you from the first bit of data. They throttle you harder after you hit your data cap.

 

[zbar]

Hi Hulk & co,

A couple years ago I asked for advice here and was/am really happy with the response (still using a Nexus, now a 5 I think, and Solavei).

My usage is pretty all over the place, between 200-400 minutes a month, between 0.9 and 2.047 GB of data. I ported my (old, US, pre-Solavei) number to Google Voice and primarily use that.

I'm moving to W. Africa at the end of the year. Anyone have thoughts on how to manage my phone needs from there, aside from having a Skype account? Any and all advice is welcome, mostly looking for options.

Cheers,

Z

 

[(HULK)]

Hi Hulk & co,

A couple years ago I asked for advice here and was/am really happy with the response (still using a Nexus, now a 5 I think, and Solavei).

My usage is pretty all over the place, between 200-400 minutes a month, between 0.9 and 2.047 GB of data. I ported my (old, US, pre-Solavei) number to Google Voice and primarily use that.

I'm moving to W. Africa at the end of the year. Anyone have thoughts on how to manage my phone needs from there, aside from having a Skype account? Any and all advice is welcome, mostly looking for options.

Cheers,

Z

A phone that is capable of wifi calling might be useful. Most are via an app that Jaysus uses, forget what it is called. Some can do it natively.

Also, I'd look up the radio frequencies used in that country. You probably can get a local sim card and get service locally (no idea about price or coverage though... I expect both suck).

 

[Mystery Achiever]

Verizon Folks- If anyone has been waiting to upgrade, phone subsidies go away on Aug 13.No more contracts.
http://www.cnet.com/news/verizon-kills-off-service-contracts-smartphone-subsidies/

 

[Jaysus]

Hi Hulk & co,

A couple years ago I asked for advice here and was/am really happy with the response (still using a Nexus, now a 5 I think, and Solavei).

My usage is pretty all over the place, between 200-400 minutes a month, between 0.9 and 2.047 GB of data. I ported my (old, US, pre-Solavei) number to Google Voice and primarily use that.

I'm moving to W. Africa at the end of the year. Anyone have thoughts on how to manage my phone needs from there, aside from having a Skype account? Any and all advice is welcome, mostly looking for options.

Cheers,

Z

A phone that is capable of wifi calling might be useful. Most are via an app that Jaysus uses, forget what it is called. Some can do it natively.

I use Google Hangouts for VOIP now. It's free, and awesome (and free!)

 

[SayWhat?]

Is anyone knowledgeable and kind enough to point me in the direction of best options based on the following?

- Wife and myself

- Currently on Verizon, both with iPhone 5s (my camera stopped working so may be replacing mine soon anyways)

- 1400 minutes (on top of unlimited nights, weekends, M2M, and 10 friends), unlimited text, 6gb data each phone

- Current bill ~$170/month, which includes 22% employee discount

- Minneapolis, MN

- Usage averages: Text 600/200 (wife/myself), data 3GB/6GB (wife/myself), minutes...not sure, would have to review each bill

Just truthfully looking to save money. $170 seems a bit high, and there seems to be some other options out there. Do love the iphone, but open to other options if the iphones wouldn't work.

Any insight would be much appreciated. Anyone?

 

[(HULK)]

Kitty Wireless would keep you on Verizon and be way cheaper

 

[saintfool]

Is anyone knowledgeable and kind enough to point me in the direction of best options based on the following?

- Wife and myself

- Currently on Verizon, both with iPhone 5s (my camera stopped working so may be replacing mine soon anyways)

- 1400 minutes (on top of unlimited nights, weekends, M2M, and 10 friends), unlimited text, 6gb data each phone

- Current bill ~$170/month, which includes 22% employee discount

- Minneapolis, MN

- Usage averages: Text 600/200 (wife/myself), data 3GB/6GB (wife/myself), minutes...not sure, would have to review each bill

Just truthfully looking to save money. $170 seems a bit high, and there seems to be some other options out there. Do love the iphone, but open to other options if the iphones wouldn't work.

Any insight would be much appreciated. Anyone?

do you own your phones yet?

 

[SayWhat?]

Is anyone knowledgeable and kind enough to point me in the direction of best options based on the following?

- Wife and myself

- Currently on Verizon, both with iPhone 5s (my camera stopped working so may be replacing mine soon anyways)

- 1400 minutes (on top of unlimited nights, weekends, M2M, and 10 friends), unlimited text, 6gb data each phone

- Current bill ~$170/month, which includes 22% employee discount

- Minneapolis, MN

- Usage averages: Text 600/200 (wife/myself), data 3GB/6GB (wife/myself), minutes...not sure, would have to review each bill

Just truthfully looking to save money. $170 seems a bit high, and there seems to be some other options out there. Do love the iphone, but open to other options if the iphones wouldn't work.

Any insight would be much appreciated. Anyone?

do you own your phones yet?

Yes.

 

[SayWhat?]

Kitty Wireless would keep you on Verizon and be way cheaper

Would you mind explaining this a little bit? Thanks for any insight!

 

[Sweet J]

Hulk, I know you've PM'd me before, but I can't seem to find anything.

You are in the DC area, correct? I'm in Alexandria VA. Currently I'm on:

Verizon.

Wife has Samsung. Her contract is up and can go anywhere (I guess that means she owns the phone?). She doesn't care about getting a new phone.

Son has IPhone 5s. He's perfectly happy with it. We signed a two-year contract for him last December (so another year and change).

daughter (6th grade) will probably need to get a phone this year, but wife is fighting it. But still needs to happen.

Son and wife use a combined 3G.

We are ALL technological idiots. All this stuff confuses me and makes my head hurt, and I just throw money at it to make the confusion go away. (i.e., Verizon makes it all really easy for me, even though I probably know I'm overpaying).

suggestions?

 

[(HULK)]

Hulk, I know you've PM'd me before, but I can't seem to find anything.

You are in the DC area, correct? I'm in Alexandria VA. Currently I'm on:

Verizon.

Wife has Samsung. Her contract is up and can go anywhere (I guess that means she owns the phone?). She doesn't care about getting a new phone.

Son has IPhone 5s. He's perfectly happy with it. We signed a two-year contract for him last December (so another year and change).

daughter (6th grade) will probably need to get a phone this year, but wife is fighting it. But still needs to happen.

Son and wife use a combined 3G.

We are ALL technological idiots. All this stuff confuses me and makes my head hurt, and I just throw money at it to make the confusion go away. (i.e., Verizon makes it all really easy for me, even though I probably know I'm overpaying).

suggestions?

unfortunately your Verizon phones are only technologically compatible with Verizon. So, I think you're stuck with them or a reseller.Kitty Wireless (mentioned above) is a Verizon MVNO. Their plans are typically reasonable. Take a look at them.

 

[Jaysus]

True Story: I am currently using a VZW branded LG G2 on T-Mobile

 

[The Dude]

What about Google Fi?

 

[heckmanm]

Hulk> Did you ever get a website up, or are you still just working out of this thread? (Not seeing a link in your sig, I'm guessing the latter.)

 

[(HULK)]

Hulk> Did you ever get a website up, or are you still just working out of this thread? (Not seeing a link in your sig, I'm guessing the latter.)

I built a database, but its now out of date.

I have a website designed.

I just need my business partner to link the two, but he's had some family issues and basically stopped working altogether. He's a family friend, so I've just been patient with him.

 

[dancingbones]

Just jumping into this conversation now.

I have an iPhone 5 that was a Verizon phone. I'd like to give it to my 15 year old son & wondering what the best option would be for him.

My wife uses Solavei & seems to be happy with it - and it looks like they have a promo for $29 for 2GB data that goes to $39 after 3 mos (or $29 for 500MB data). Is that the best out there? Looks like Cricket has 2.5 GB for $35 (with autopay).

Any input would be appreciated.

 

[sbonomo]

If anyone needs a phine for ting i have a brand new htc one - pm me an offer - phone will work on sprint or tmobile.

 

[(HULK)]

@ Disney world right now, will get to these over the weekend

 

[BeTheMatch]

Just got a text saying Solavei will cease operations Dec. 4!!

 

[(HULK)]

Yup, they're done.

 

[BeTheMatch]

Yup, they're done.

Not exactly a lot of notice to get new service set up.

Any thoughts on Ultra Mobile? That's where it looks like I could use my Nexus 5 and get a comparable plan.

 

[Jaysus]

Yup, they're done.

Not exactly a lot of notice to get new service set up.

Any thoughts on Ultra Mobile? That's where it looks like I could use my Nexus 5 and get a comparable plan.

For a quick solution you may want to just grab a Straight Talk starter kit from a B&M store to hold you over for a month until you find the deal that is best for you. Check out Cricket - people seem to love them.

 

[(HULK)]

Yup, they're done.

Not exactly a lot of notice to get new service set up.

Any thoughts on Ultra Mobile? That's where it looks like I could use my Nexus 5 and get a comparable plan.

For a quick solution you may want to just grab a Straight Talk starter kit from a B&M store to hold you over for a month until you find the deal that is best for you. Check out Cricket - people seem to love them.

I can't get past the Cricket throttling their LTE speed at 8 MBps. Thats slower than HSPA+. Annoys me that the advertise LTE and then they throttle it to slower than HSPA+.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do.

We get a free month with T-Mobile, so I'll probably take that and then go from there.

 

[BeTheMatch]

Yup, they're done.

Not exactly a lot of notice to get new service set up.

Any thoughts on Ultra Mobile? That's where it looks like I could use my Nexus 5 and get a comparable plan.

For a quick solution you may want to just grab a Straight Talk starter kit from a B&M store to hold you over for a month until you find the deal that is best for you. Check out Cricket - people seem to love them.

I can't get past the Cricket throttling their LTE speed at 8 MBps. Thats slower than HSPA+. Annoys me that the advertise LTE and then they throttle it to slower than HSPA+.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do.

We get a free month with T-Mobile, so I'll probably take that and then go from there.

I requested an invite to Google Fi. But even if/when I get one, I'd still have to buy a new phone if I want to go that route - have to use a Nexus 5X or a 6 to be able to join.

 

[Jaysus]

Yup, they're done.

Not exactly a lot of notice to get new service set up.

Any thoughts on Ultra Mobile? That's where it looks like I could use my Nexus 5 and get a comparable plan.

For a quick solution you may want to just grab a Straight Talk starter kit from a B&M store to hold you over for a month until you find the deal that is best for you. Check out Cricket - people seem to love them.

I can't get past the Cricket throttling their LTE speed at 8 MBps. Thats slower than HSPA+. Annoys me that the advertise LTE and then they throttle it to slower than HSPA+.

I'm not sure what I'm going to do.

We get a free month with T-Mobile, so I'll probably take that and then go from there.

I requested an invite to Google Fi. But even if/when I get one, I'd still have to buy a new phone if I want to go that route - have to use a Nexus 5X or a 6 to be able to join.

There are a couple other phones that Fi works on as well (unofficially of course)... T-mo only I believe. Moto X for example... LG G4 too I believe.

 

[(HULK)]

I don't get the strong draw of Fi. I think its a little pricey. I'll have to take a look again.

 

[BeTheMatch]

I don't get the strong draw of Fi. I think its a little pricey. I'll have to take a look again.

It's $20 for unlimited talk and text, then $10 per GB of data. I don't use much where I can't use wi-fi, so it's kind of a no-brainer for me. And you get cash back (credits on next bill) for unused data.

 

[Jaysus]

I don't get the strong draw of Fi. I think its a little pricey. I'll have to take a look again.

Me either, but if one has good Sprint and T-Mo coverage... and does not use a lot of data, I suppose I can see the value.

For my usage pattern, it would be way too expensive.

 

[(HULK)]

I don't get the strong draw of Fi. I think its a little pricey. I'll have to take a look again.

It's $20 for unlimited talk and text, then $10 per GB of data. I don't use much where I can't use wi-fi, so it's kind of a no-brainer for me. And you get cash back (credits on next bill) for unused data.

If you don't use much data and talk a lot it could make sense. Only then though.

If you don't talk much and don't use much data Ting is going to be better.

If you use a lot of data and either way for talking, a number of places will be better.

$10 per GB is pricey coming after $20 for unlimited talk/text.

I use about 3GB a month, so this probably isn't for me.

 

[Psychopav]

Ting: 4 phones, wifi only - I actually leave the data turned off on the phones, keep it on at Ting in case of travel emergencies etc.

Average bill for all 4 phones is <$60.

Thanks again Hulk!

 

[rick6668]

Ting: 4 phones, wifi only - I actually leave the data turned off on the phones, keep it on at Ting in case of travel emergencies etc.

Average bill for all 4 phones is <$60.

Thanks again Hulk!

Yeah, this is an awesome way to go. Have 5 phones like this with the data only turned on for a select few

 

[Mr.Pack]

HULK,

You still doing this?

Looking to switch from TING..... Daughter having problems with cell coverage in Nashville 37206

 

[(HULK)]

HULK,

You still doing this?

Looking to switch from TING..... Daughter having problems with cell coverage in Nashville 37206

I got bogged down a lot by a partner who had some personal issues crop up and stopped doing his part. I will be reviving it in January though. Finally got a deal to buy him back out of it in place.

As for your daughter, what is her usage like?

 

[cstu]

I don't get the strong draw of Fi. I think its a little pricey. I'll have to take a look again.

It's $20 for unlimited talk and text, then $10 per GB of data. I don't use much where I can't use wi-fi, so it's kind of a no-brainer for me. And you get cash back (credits on next bill) for unused data.

If you don't use much data and talk a lot it could make sense. Only then though.

If you don't talk much and don't use much data Ting is going to be better.

If you use a lot of data and either way for talking, a number of places will be better.

$10 per GB is pricey coming after $20 for unlimited talk/text.

I use about 3GB a month, so this probably isn't for me.

You're only using cell data when wi-fi isn't available. Between work, home, and public wi-fi spots (Time Warner has hot spots all over for subscribers) I don't come close to 1GB of cell data.

 

[Mr.Pack]

HULK,

You still doing this?

Looking to switch from TING..... Daughter having problems with cell coverage in Nashville 37206

I got bogged down a lot by a partner who had some personal issues crop up and stopped doing his part. I will be reviving it in January though. Finally got a deal to buy him back out of it in place.

As for your daughter, what is her usage like?

1200 mins

800mb

~2000 Texts

On average

 

[(HULK)]

HULK,

You still doing this?

Looking to switch from TING..... Daughter having problems with cell coverage in Nashville 37206

I got bogged down a lot by a partner who had some personal issues crop up and stopped doing his part. I will be reviving it in January though. Finally got a deal to buy him back out of it in place.

As for your daughter, what is her usage like?

1200 mins

800mb

~2000 Texts

On average

Did she try the T-Mobile version or the Sprint version? Simplest would be to try the other, but only certain phones can use both.

If she has a just Sprint phone, she's going to have coverage issues no matter where she takes that phone. If she's using the T-Mo service, switching her to an AT&T based one might make the most sense. Take a look @ Consumer Cellular.

 

[simsarge]

Black Dotted this thread a while ago and have been perusing off and on. Ready to bail on VZW. Currently with Verizon & off contract.

Current plan is Unlimited Data (averaging ~6GB) @ $50/mo,

700 Minutes (averaging ~200) @ $50/mo,

1000 texts (averaging ~500) @ $10/mo.

Access Fee $10

Miscl stuff $10

-------------------------------------------

- 15% VZW Gov't Employee Discount

Total $110ish/mo

Live in southern NJ 15mi Philly. Verizon coverage is excellent in my area. Not sure about the rest.

Thanks!

ETA: Also, interested in VOIP for home phone service as verizon wants a small fortune for this too. It was quasi reasonable until I dropped Verizon DSL for Comcast internet with the anticipation of ditching DirecTV also and needing the speed.

 

[AC05]

I just moved and am looking to move carriers if it makes since. I'm currently out of contract at AT&T. My bill total is 72.41 per month for unlimited text (1200 avg), unlimited minutes (500 avg) and 3 GB data with 1 month rollover (2.75 GB avg).

My wife is also with AT&T, but is on a different plan and is still under contract.

Seems like a good plan, but I'm up for whatever if there is something better. Thoughts?

 

[SacramentoBob]

Switched to Google Fi. I use less than 1GB of data per month and this seemed like a no brainer. Plus Google sent me legos for Christmas.