going mobile

[caretaker]

lets say I'm going mobile for the first time, and i am a luddite,(know absolutely nothing) and a limited budget, i do not want to down load movies,play games or anything like that, but i pretty much want internet access but don't want to go to extreme measures, a booster maybe/probably, and you only had one choice, and you want an el cheapo  phone and using a macbook pro, barebones internet, for mechanical, ordering stuff, emails, lets say Verison,seems to be the most popular, with all taxes/ fees what can one expect to pay per month? and all i want to know about it is how to hook it up, and does it work like it should where it should, how do i know weather I'm in a coverage area you ask? i found a coverage map in a dumpster.FYI,,,,glossy paper makes for lousy toilet paper,( some day you will thank me).

 

[jonney38]

That's me. I'm also starting at square one. I have had flip phones of years. Someone gave my a Smartphone and I want to use it for internet in our teardrop. How to start when I'm several years behind has me baffled.

 

[Optimistic Paranoid]

There are various sites discussing this sort of stuff, but if you're really old school, you'll probably be comfortable with a good book on the subject.  Technomadia wrote the best:

https://www.amazon.com/Mobile-Inter...F8&qid=1497969925&sr=8-1&keywords=Technomadia

 

[user 37446]

The only thing I can add to this is coverage trumps price, ie. what good is a cheap provider if you can't use it. 

Case in point, I'm with T Mobile, which has probably the worst out of major areas coverage of the big carriers (Verizon still has the best, AT&T, Sprint after them, T Mobile dead last) as far as my travels have shown. 

The bigger thing on coverage is where are you located and where do you anticipate being? I am in the SW and the PNW, the SW coverage sucks in rural parts of AZ, NM, UT and even when driving up into the upper W and PNW, I have dead areas. It's fine for major urban and other built up parts. When I travel E, the population density is such that T Mobile is good.
Now my phone plan is cheap, but I get what I pay for.  Fair warning...

 

[caretaker]

all i want is someone who has a basic plan say how much do they pay, is it $50/60/70, what do you pay? thats all i ask. after all somebody out their somewhere must pay/direct deposit,have deducted from an acct. a consistent amount every month.

 

[caretaker]

an example would be when i had sprint i had an android phone w/ a hot spot it costs $133 dollars a month.(lousy coverage will NEVER have sprint again) would never recommend sprint except how NOT to run a railroad

 

[user 37446]

[font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif][font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif][size=xx-large]27 Phones Available[/font][/size]
[font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif][size=large][img=0x0]https://www.wirefly.com/sites/all/modules/features/phone_and_plan/images/tmobile.png[/img]T-Mobile ONE No Credit CheckNo Contract
DealTaxes & fees included 
DealGet up to $650 per line towards Early Termination Fee and new phone 
[/font][/size][/font]

• Unlimited calling, & unlimited data & texting (in 140+ countries)
• 10GB of 4G LTE mobile hotspot
• 4G LTE coverage in Mexico & Canada

[font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif][size=small]
UnlimitedMinutes[/font][/size]
[font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif][size=small]
UnlimitedUnlimited (may be slowed after 30GB of usage per month)[/font][/size]
[font='Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, sans-serif][size=small][size=small]$70/mo
[/size][/font][/size]

 

[Moonfreed]

caretaker,

An option I've gone with since 2014:

1 - buy an unlocked phone (meaning no annual service plan/contract) you like that's in your budget (I bought a BLU for under $200 3 years ago...fell in the bath once, dried it, camera won't work, but rest still working)

2 - get a SIM card 'starter' kit -> usually $10 for the SIM plus you then get $20 in initial minutes/data ... total of $30 (can buy these at Target, BestBuy, etc.)

3 - then sign up with that starter kit company's service for a monthly plan or do the 'pay-as-you-go' bulk minutes option (these companies usually 'borrow' the ATT infrastructure, for example)

So in my case, $200 phone + $30 SIM/initial minutes, and my monthly plan only costs me $27.

I use h2owireless as my service provider, by the way. They really suck customer service-wise if you use them with pay-as-you-go and refilling. They have been almost trouble-free with me paying monthly via bank deduction. Your mileage may vary, of course.

Also, big caveat/disclaimer from me: I'm not full-timing it yet, so my coverage has been great in pretty much all CA/OR city locales. Hoping I won't have issues in the boonies...

 

[caretaker]

Moon, thanks thats the kind of info. luddites like me are looking for, thank you, caretakers

 

[caretaker]

twih thank you also, you know when you think about it for what it does, and what it lets a person do to me being in my late 50s thats really not a bad price, thanks once again, regards, caretaker

 

[user 37446]

twih thank you also, you know when you think about it for what it does, and what it lets a person do to me being in my late 50s thats really not a bad price, thanks once again, regards, caretaker

I'm in my early 60's, don't have Facebook or any other social media, just have a used IPhone (5s) that my son gave me, the T Mobile is actually unlimited data, it just gets throttled back to 3G when you are over the cap of your plan. Otherwise text, long distance to Canada (which I use) and minutes are unlimited.

I rarely use data off wifi, just limit my browsing and forum replies like this to wifi at free places. I also don't do any banking or purchases over the free wifi as its unsecure. There are cheaper plans, Cricket is $49 but has more limitations. AARP has a plan too, but I haven't looked into it.

 

[akrvbob]

Go to Walmart and get Smart talk but be absolutely certain it is on Verizon towers, Also be certain you get a smartphone that will let you set it up as a hot spot. I think it'll be about $50, They have a plan with more data for just a little more.

 

[[email protected]]

Op, I have a no contract plan through Total wireless, same as Straight talk at $82 per month. That price covers unlimited talk and text plus 12 gigabytes of data that is shared for two phones and my mifi box. I use a small mifi unit to access internet on my laptop and tablet. My data is at 3g which is not the fastest but it works for me. My service is through Verizon towers and coverage here in the SW is excellent. In remote locations I use a Wilson booster when needed. Good luck. Jeff

 

[caretaker]

thanks for all the replys, it looks like a decent plan is $60/$90, you know for what it does thats not bad.

 

[Theadyn]

I'm with AT&T, on the GoPhone plan. Smartphones for that plan can be low priced, I think I paid $50 for Samsung Galaxy not-the-latest model that had hotspot capable. I'm on the basic unlimited talk and text $30 month, it's $25 on autopay. There is no data (meaning, no internet) unless I buy data, which you can purchase over the phone when you need it. Like $5 for a small amount, depending on use, not too bad.

I did it this way because where I'm at, and will be most of the time (for now) AT&T has the best service, and I'm usually on wifi at home. You could use free wifi for casual browsing, then use your own data for your more sensitive information. My phone becomes a hotspot to tether internet to my much larger tablet (or laptop, whatever you use that has wifi available).

AT&T GoPhone plans are not contract and are the cheapest I've found for basic smartphone with occasional internet use. $50 phone, $5 SIM card, set up your AT&T account online, set it up to auto-pay to save another $5 a month, buy data for internet as you need it. Works for now. I've used their service the past 5 years with travel in the southern states, there was a few times I did not have service. I may look towards Verizon if I was more mobile.

 

[frater secessus]

I bought a BLU for under $200 3 years ago...fell in the bath once, dried it, camera won't work, but rest still working

I have a couple of BLU phones;  great value for the money when comparing specs.

 

[jimindenver]

Whatever you get, get something that roams. My Cricket phone was a great value until I got to the Grand Canyon and it would not connect because AT&T piggybacks on anothers signal there. Otherwise even at its least expensive plan you get unlimited calling and text plus unlimited data in a sense for $30 a month. I say in a sense because you only get 1 gig of high speed and then unlimited slower speeds good for everything but streaming video.

There are areas like that for all of the carriers. Sometimes someone else owns all of the towers in a given area and the carriers can not even put their antennas on them. They have no choice but to have the signal rebroadcast and you must roam no matter who you are with. In the case of the Grand canyon Verizon recently bought one of the carriers and now has a tower there but the other three were useless unless your account has roaming. AT&T has started expanding Crickets roaming but not there yet, so it was useless.