Does Anyone Here Use a Pay-As-You-Go Cellphone?

[Highereducation]

I've been using Virgin Mobile's top-up every three month service. I simply keep the phone with me for emergencies and have only had reason to use it once or twice in two years. It's been economically reasonable ($20.00 every three months and the phone wasn't more than $25 to start with). However, the service is spotty and the phone, to put it bluntly, stinks. Two years in the battery will no longer hold a charge and, based upon the service I've received (dead zones everywhere!), I'm hoping to find a similarly-priced carrier with a better track record who won't require a contract.

 

Has anyone had any experience with Trac-Fone? Like I said, I only want the service for emergencies - but even a pay-as-you-go service isn't worth it if the phone only works 65% of the time!

[Pamela H in Texas]

I have an AT&T Go-Phone and my daughter has a Trac-Fone. We live in a small town and haven't had any issues with service. I wouldn't touch T-mobile with a 10 foot pole though.

 

We, like you, use almost no minutes so it's good to have cheap options :)

[NicksMama-Zack's Mama Too]

but I bought a couple of new batteries online for my Virgin Mobile phone (3+ years old) and it works like new. I have the same plan that you have and really like it.

 

Perhaps your spotty coverage is because the battery is worn out?

[JudoMom]

I've been using Virgin Mobile's top-up every three month service. I simply keep the phone with me for emergencies and have only had reason to use it once or twice in two years. It's been economically reasonable ($20.00 every three months and the phone wasn't more than $25 to start with). However, the service is spotty and the phone, to put it bluntly, stinks. Two years in the battery will no longer hold a charge and, based upon the service I've received (dead zones everywhere!), I'm hoping to find a similarly-priced carrier with a better track record who won't require a contract.

 

Has anyone had any experience with Trac-Fone? Like I said, I only want the service for emergencies - but even a pay-as-you-go service isn't worth it if the phone only works 65% of the time!

 

I've had a Trac-Fone since May and haven't had any issues at all. It seems to have really good coverage. Dh got it for me in May 08, and I don't have to add any time to it until July 09.

[JFSinIL]

I have had a Trac-phone since May, too - we used it during vacation in California, as well as back here in Illinois, and never had a problem. It is not, however, my main phone - I am still an old-fart land-line person! But since i am driving around in a 10-yr-old mini-van now, I feel better being able to call AAA if I so need....also being reachable by the kids when I am out and about.

[Quiver0f10]

I have an AT&T Go-Phone .

 

 

We have Go Phones too and love them. Cheap, minutes are cheap and we have never had trouble with reception.

[Highereducation]

but I bought a couple of new batteries online for my Virgin Mobile phone (3+ years old) and it works like new. I have the same plan that you have and really like it.

 

Perhaps your spotty coverage is because the battery is worn out?

 

I considered that, but my mother has the same phone and plan and lives about 30 minutes away, and she is having the same issues. So maybe it's NJ!

 

The two of us have had the same exact experiences of needing the phone, turning it on and getting "No service available, try back later" messages. In her case, once she needed to call for help because she was stranded in her car, and the other time my dad had been admitted to the hospital and she was trying to call my brother and I to let us know. So it was very frustrating for her, especially since her phone had a fully charged battery both times. Afterwards we laughed about it, because NJ is probably the capital of cell phone towers - there's one about every twenty feet, lol - yet no matter what we do, the two of us can never get cell reception! But I worry because she is almost 70 years old, so I would like to find a consistent carrier and know that when she needs service, it will be up and running.

[I talk to the trees]

I have had a tracfone for going on 9 years now, and only had a handful of times when I couldn't get a signal. I only use it once or twice a month, so overall I am pretty satisfied with both service and cost. However, you might want to go with a more "standard" carrier if safety is your primary concern. At least if you have a problem, there will be a real person you can yell at. (I stick with local banking instead of online banking for the same reason. I have never had any problems, but want to be sure I can talk to a Human if I ever do.)

 

-Robin

[sixpence1978]

My husband has a T-mobile and I have Go Phone. Honestly, we like the T-mobile a little bit better because the rates are simple...10 cents a minute. We buy the $100 card and it lasts for a year (just like somebody else mentioned).

 

My Go Phone had the option of 2 plans...we chose the one that is 25 cents a minute because I don't use it except for emergencies and very important calls. Otherwise we use the T-mobile. Our reception has always been great and no complaints.

[mia78]

In my dh's experience, when he had constant signal problems, it was the phone that was the problem and not the towers and/or lack of enough of them in the area (we were in NJ at the time). He would call me several times and I eventually would stop answering the phone because when I picked it up I heard nothing.

 

My SIL schooled us on the fact that some cell providers tend to give you refurbished phones apart of their special promotions and when you have problems with it, you take it back to the store and they give you another of the same model or a different one that is still refurbished. These phones tend to have manufacturing flaws that just can't be repaired. Sometimes you keep going through this same cycle over and over usually until you upgrade to a better quality phone. After dh ditched that phone, he had no problems again. He had a friend that literally had several phones that had horrible signal problems. I think he fell into the refurbished trap.

[Paula in PA]

In my dh's experience, when he had constant signal problems, it was the phone that was the problem and not the towers and/or lack of enough of them in the area (we were in NJ at the time). He would call me several times and I eventually would stop answering the phone because when I picked it up I heard nothing.

 

:iagree: Both my dh and I have Tracfones, different models and ages. There are places where mine gets much better reception than his, standing side by side.

[mamato3 all-boy boys]

I just got my dh and I Tracfones. They had the best coverage maps for the pay as you go phone services (we're kinda rural). So far, so good. Their coverage plus their service fees (both minutes and usage fees) was the best combo I could find.

[cjzimmer1]

We used Page Plus last year. They run on Verizon phones and Verizon networks. When you bought the minutes in bulk they were as little as 6 cents a minute. It worked good for us. The only reason we don't use it right now is that my husband switched jobs and they gave him a cell phone to use.

[Susan in KY]

Trac phone here, customer service stinks, but if you keep at it when you have a problem, they'll give you whatever you request. So far, we've been more-or-less satisfied.

[Testimony]

That's what I have. I enjoy it.

 

Blessings,

Karen

http://www.homeschoolblogger.com/testimony

[SapphireStitch]

DH, DD, and I all have TracFones. DH & DD have slightly older models than mine and they don't get reception a couple of places that I do. (In the back aisles of Target, for instance.:confused:)

 

But DD had reception at Crater Lake in OR when she was there with my brother...who did not have reception on his uber-expensive-does-everything phone.

 

We've been very pleased with TracFone overall. If you have to contact customer service you need to be prepared to be calm, firm, insistent, and patient. But we've found that if we buy our airtime online we have very little need to deal with customer service.

 

DD pays for her own phone. DH and I use ours for locating each other when we're out shopping, texting shopping lists, arranging pick-up times, etc. Probably 5-10 calls per week? We average about $20/month between the two phones, which is what we used to pay for a bare bones Alltel plan with just one phone.

[Ummto4]

We are stingy in this area and only have 1 cell phone in our family for whoever is on the road (plus we're one car family). We use T-mobile and so far the service is great. We're in Houston, btw and are rarely going out of state. However, whenever my hubby went to other city/state, I was always able to contact him via cell phone. There was one instance when he couldn't be contacted and it turned out that he was in our friend's house in Massachussets by the woods.

[sweetTN]

I have had a Trac-Fone for the past 3 years and love it. It uses everyone's cell tower, so I always have service. I buy the "Double Minute/Never Expire For a Year" card.

[gamommy]

I think it varies by region. When we lived in New England Virgin Mobile and Tracfone were great, but not as good as the local giant (then US Cellular). Here in our area of Georgia Altel is king and their prepaid service, because it uses their network, was the best. My advice is to find out what most people have the best coverage with and then investigate that companies prepaid service. Most have one now.

[stansclan89]

I've been using Virgin Mobile's top-up every three month service.

 

It was my understanding that Virgin Mobile and Tracfone don't actually have their own service area--they use everyone else's towers. If you are having trouble, I would think that no one can call from that spot, or you need a phone with better reception.

[Mommyof4ks]

We have had tracfone for several years, and for $99 we get a phone and at least 400 minutes for a year (look for deals, we got 820 minutes for that price this month). There have been no coverage issues here (better than our contract carrier a few years back).

[MgoBlue]

I agree ... depends on the area... I have a centennial pay as you go phone. I can buy 4 months for $80 and if I repurchase before the 4 mo is up, the minutes carry over. I'm in rural northern Indiana & the att phone I had from Michgian didn't work. But...ATT has just purchased Centennial...so it may become an option again!

We're stingy about the minutes here too but travel back & forth to Michigan almost every weekend in the summer so I can't be w/o it.

[hsmomof2boys]

My parents have had a Trac-phone for several years. The reception seems to be very good. They travel several times per year and just buy a pre-paid card to use then.

 

Because of their happiness with their phone, I am thinking of getting a Trac-phone myself when my cell phone contract runs out. I am paying about $35 per month and use only a few minutes per month (only for emergencies), except when I travel out of town, which isn't that often, then the minutes rack up!

[mom31257]

My dh used T-Mobile as well. I bought it for him for Christmas a year ago. I purchased it online. I got a flip phone, including $25 minutes and free overnight shipping, for $40. When those minutes were used up (last spring??), we bought the $100 card for 1000 minutes and that is good for 1 year. He's still using those.

[shea]

I've had a tracfone for years and have had no problems. I have even accidentally let my phone service expire for a day or two, and after calling customer service to add new minutes my previous unused minutes were still available to me.

 

Sue

[siloam]

I have problems with my AT & T go phone, but it may be the phone and not the service. We were on a full AT & T plan before with no reception problems, but had bought nice phones. With the pre-paid we took the free phone and that is when the problems started, so I think it is just the phone is junk, not the service.

 

Heather