Which cellphone provider has the best coverage at the lowest price and doesn't care if you tether your phone a lot witho

[magentawave]

Is there a consensus yet on which cellphone provider has the best coverage at the lowest price and does NOT care if you tether your phone a lot without having their expensive data plan? Or maybe they care but they don't do anything about it because you use an app that masks it like FoxFi or something similar?<br /><br />Thank you.

 

[wandering mike]

I am not sure you will get a consensus. &nbsp;If you have to have data and tethering, the vendors will get concerned if they think you are cheating. &nbsp;I use Net 10. &nbsp;$25 for 750 minutes. &nbsp;It is more than enough for me. &nbsp;I figured out once that with the right phone and purchase of minutes, Tracphone could get down to about $6 per month, assuming one used only about 40 minutes a month or something like that. &nbsp;Sure that is a high per minute rate, but that is where you have to consider the total cost, based on your usage, as well as the per minute rate. &nbsp;<br /><br />This will also get you voice mail which you can check by calling in from skype when using free wi-fi someplace. &nbsp;Then return the calls via skype or Google voice for free or cheap. &nbsp;Also, make your calls to their help desk and such via skype or they ding you for minutes there too. &nbsp;

 

[SirJoey]

I use Net 10. &nbsp;$25 for 750 minutes.

<br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Mike, I have a Net 10 phone which I've been using for years, but I always have to buy a $30 card every other month, &amp; it only gives me 300 minutes &amp; 2 months of time.</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Also, do U mean U can use your computer with your Net 10 phone?&nbsp; Am I missing something?&nbsp;<br /><br /></strong></span>

 

[wandering mike]

Sir Joey, If you buy on the web you can get it cheaper if you use more minutes. &nbsp;It sounds like you use more "days" than minutes, so what you are doing may be best for you. &nbsp;The best "carry over" minute plan like you are using (as far as the lowest cost per minute) seems to be 1500 minutes for $100 and six months service. &nbsp;That is $10 more than you are paying but 600 more minutes. &nbsp;<br /><br />You may want to check into&nbsp;<a href="http://www.tracfone.com/">tracfone</a>&nbsp;though if you are "low minute user" &nbsp;(Both of them and Walmart Straight Talk are owned and operated by the same company (a Mexican company, America Movil (owned by Carlos Slim of Mexico). &nbsp;The service is the same. &nbsp;Tracfone has rates that are higher per minute, but last longer. &nbsp;You can also cut the per minute cost if you buy one of their "triple minutes for life" phones. &nbsp;One plan is $20 for 3 months and 60 minutes. &nbsp;If you have a "triple" phone, that becomes 180 minutes for the 3 month period. &nbsp;Either with or without the triple, it is $6.66 per month. <br /><br />I buy the Net10 750 minutes plan since although mostly retired, I still have a couple clients who for some reason pay to listen to what I have to say. <br /><br />Now if you switch to the 750 minute (or unlimited) monthly plan, you don't get rollover minutes and you lose your service expiration date if you use more minutes in the time period and have to buy more. &nbsp;(I actually bought another phone when I switched as my other phone had service time until sometime in 2014 that I don't want to lose. &nbsp;It also works on AT&amp;T &nbsp;instead of Verizon for coverage issues when traveling).<br /><br />What I was trying to say with Skype and Google Voice is you can call your Net10/Tracphone voice mail service on Skype (2 cents per min or $2.99/mo unlimited)(or free with Google voice) and pick up your voice messages that people leave you on your Net10/Tracfone number's voice mail. &nbsp;Then also you can call them back on Skype/Google Voice. &nbsp;So your outgoing calls are much less than if you choose to take an incoming call on Net10 or Tracfone. &nbsp;You can also have Skype show your Net10 number when you dial out of Skype so people recognize the caller. &nbsp;Also, if nothing else, if you need to call Net10 or Tracfone customer service, use skype or Google voice and call their 800 number for free rather than using your minutes. &nbsp;<br /><br />The Walmart plan is a bit different still, but one benefit for some is it has a "family" plan and other wrinkles. &nbsp;You just have to "do the math" to figure which works best for you based on your usage.

 

[Mortisha]

I use Verizon. I have the unlimited text plan (20 dollars). All my family uses this plan so I can text all the time. I also add money to use the talk plan which is 99cents one time per day for unlimited to any other verizon phone. I don't use my cell much to talk just texting. Not really sure how far out it goes but I have texted from a few states over.

 

[SirJoey]

<br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Thanx, Mike! That's a lot of good info there, most of which I was unaware. Yep, U pegged me right, I'm a "time" buyer, rather than minutes. Since I live in a dead zone, my phone is useless at home, so I only keep it active in order to have a phone with me whenever I leave the house, mainly in case of a breakdown (my truck is a 17-year-old oil burner), but also for the RARE case of someone actually calling me.</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Since it rarely actually gets used, the minutes keep piling up. Right now I have nearly 8,000 minutes on the darn thing, but for an average of $16 a month (including tax), it beats any monthly plan I've come across, &amp; no contract, so that's always worked for me!<br /><br />I'm gonna check out that "triple minutes" tracphone thing! That would be less than half of what I pay now, thanx! <br /></strong></span><br /><br />

 

[wandering mike]

Sir Joey, if we could only find a way to match your 8000 excess minutes with my 24 excess months of service time on my other phone.......

 

[offroad]

SKYPE or FRING or MAGICJACK or GOOGLE VOICE all have good cost or free services to pair with the use of your data connection. &nbsp;just fyi.

 

[wandering mike]

Thanks OffRoad. &nbsp;Anyone on here use MagicJack or FRing? &nbsp; Magic Jack sounds nice and has been on my list to investigate because it gets you a phone number and voice mail and the ability to forward calls to another phone if you were going to be away from internet access and wanted still to get a call on a pay as you go phone. &nbsp;You can do that with Skype too, but a phone number with them costs something like $6 per month and the calls cost too as opposed to the MajicJack one time. &nbsp; Fring looks a lot like Skype from their website.&nbsp;

 

[offroad]

I use FRING and put $20 on it a year ago. &nbsp;On my IPHONE. &nbsp;Used it maybe five or six times. &nbsp;works fine with a WIFI connection. &nbsp;Most do require WIFI to function. &nbsp;Some company WIFI might not allow it to work, so you have to trial and test, to see if blocks are in place.<br /><br /><br /><br />

 

[SirJoey]

Sir Joey, if we could only find a way to match your 8000 excess minutes with my 24 excess months of service time on my other phone.......

<br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Yeah, no kidding!<br /></strong></span><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Hey, if I go the TracPhone route, I can prolly sell my Net10 phone for a decent price, since it has so many minutes on it! To folks who talk a lot, 8,000 minutes should be worth quite a bit, or so I'd think.&nbsp;<br /><br />At the rate of $30 for each 300 minutes, that's $800 worth of minutes! 8-O<br /><br /><br /></strong></span>

 

[Lifemagician]

Mike<br /><br />You mentioned your Net 10 - $25 for 750 mins.<br /><br />Is this with or without a contract?&nbsp; post paid or prepaid?&nbsp; <br /><br />I do not have a US address, do not have a SS #, do not have plastic money.<br /><br />As a visitor to the US, I only want the phone for three or six months, but am yet to find an affordable plan.&nbsp; Tracfone is hugely outside my budget.&nbsp; But something like you mentioned would work.<br /><br />At present I have an AT&amp;T sim card in my an old phone.&nbsp; (I use a phone for making phone calls only.&nbsp; I have a camera to take pictures and I have a computer for the web.&nbsp; So only want it for calls.)<br /><br />I do use Skype when I can, but you need wifi access for that... and wifi access where you can speak.&nbsp; Which is not possible at the library, or at Starbucks or any of those types of places.<br /><br />Would it be possible do you think, to get that for just the six (or three) months that I am in the US?&nbsp;&nbsp; And is it something I can take around wherever I happen to travel.&nbsp; Which is never predetermined.<br /><br />Lifey

 

[McBe]

Mike,<br /><br />I've been on MagicJack for about three years now and am very pleased with it.&nbsp; My renewal fee is about $20 per year.&nbsp; I run it through a headset but you can run it through a regular phone too.&nbsp; My set up only works when my computer is on, but I believe there is an adapter to work when offline, not sure.&nbsp; In the future, I will probably give Google Voice a try because it's free.&nbsp;

 

[wandering mike]

Thanks McBee.<br /><br />LifeMagician: &nbsp;All Net10/Tracfone/Walmart phones are non contract.<br />I don't think you need to be a US Citizen, but probably do have to have a photo ID like a passport. &nbsp;I don't think you need plastic. &nbsp;Walmarts will have them or Dollar Stores. &nbsp;You can get them for a month if you want and even stop for a month and restart within about a year. &nbsp;You will lose your number though if you drop and then reactivate. &nbsp;I am pretty sure they only work in the US and Canada. &nbsp;I know they don't work in Mexico. &nbsp;(But the Telcel pay as you go phone is pretty cheap and in Mexico the caller pays for calls to a mobile and the call is free to the&nbsp;receiving&nbsp;party. (and rates are high).<br /><br />The plans all depend on what you need. &nbsp;Tracphone goes from 60 minutes for $20 with three months to use them (or $6.66 a month if you have it for emergencies only) and then you have to buy a $15 phone on the low end. And on the high end, you can get a full blown smart phone from Net10 or Walmart for a couple hundred dollars and have to buy the unlimited use plan for $45 or $50/month. &nbsp;(the smart phones use Sprint towers though). &nbsp;I would recommend you go to the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.net10.com/">Net10</a>; <a href="http://www.tracfone.com/">Tracfone</a>; or <a href="http://www.straighttalk.com/">Walmart StraightTalk</a>&nbsp;sites and wander around, read the FAQs, etc.<br /><br />For me, I find I can usually talk quietly on Skype from the outside of Starbucks or&nbsp;McDonald's&nbsp;or Home Depot, even from inside the RV if close enough. &nbsp;At one county park in Denver I was able to pick up a Home Depot's wifi from 1/4 mile away. &nbsp;As alwasy YMMV.

 

[SirJoey]

<br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Hey Mike, I wanna thank U again for bringing me up to speed on the TracPhones! I looked at 'em today at Wallyworld, &amp; U were exactly right! They have the triple minute phones for $50, plus $20 for the first card, so $70 would get me started, but it would pay for itself (INCLUDING the card) in 9 months time, PLUS it's a LOT nicer than my Net10 phone! MP3 player, cam phone &amp; more, but I didn't see on the package if the charger was included. I'm assuming it is, plus I'd still want a car charger &amp; home charger both.</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Thinking about giving my 7,700 minute Net10 phone to a friend who, like me, is in financial dire straits. Heck, I'd come out ahead in less than a year, even though my current phone still has 55 days left on it, IN ADDITION to all those minutes! I'll let U know when I make the transition!&nbsp;</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>One question.... do the Tracphones have as good coverage as Net10?</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Thanx again! <br /><br /></strong></span>

 

[wandering mike]

SirJoey, if you buy the phone in the same area as you bought the Net10 phone, it should be the same. &nbsp;The three companies juggle between Verizon, AT&amp;T and Sprint towers. &nbsp;On their website you can plug in your zip code and see the coverage. &nbsp;A lot of traveling RV'ers like to try and get Verizon towers since they are a bit broader in coverage. &nbsp;If you travel a lot in the boonies or are in North Dakota or West Texas a lot, let me know and I can explain what I did. &nbsp;But if you stay near major freeways and "red roads" you won't have a problem no matter what phone it is.<br /><br />I am sure there is a wall charger with it. &nbsp;

 

[SirJoey]

I am sure there is a wall charger with it. &nbsp;

<br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Kool, thanx! Then all I'll have to buy additionally will be an <br />after market car charger &amp; another "belt holster" for it. <br /></strong></span><strong style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><br /><br /></strong>

 

[SirJoey]

<br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Well, I offered the phone for free to my friend, but she said she's already signed <br />a contract with one&nbsp;of the major carriers, so I've placed the phone on Craigslist:&nbsp;<br /><br /></strong></span><a style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: medium; background-color: #90ee90;" href="http://greenville.craigslist.org/ele/3174260114.html" target="_blank">http://greenville.craigslist.org/ele/3174260114.html<br /></a><strong style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><br />Wish me luck! <br /><br /></strong>

 

[SirJoey]

<br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>I got the triple minutes phone, but I hate this thing. SUPER hard to use, &amp; VERY poor support on their website. It's a stinkin' LG. I should've known.&nbsp;</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>There's an INCREDIBLE amount of crap that's not covered in the manual, OR on their website. The clock is off by nearly 7 hours, the date shows Jan 1, 0000, it won't set on it's own, &amp; there's no way to set it manually.</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong> There are all kinds of display things that aren't explained. Suddenly, several huge icons mysteriously appeared on the main screen, with seemingly no way to remove them, &amp; one of them is an internet icon, so if I accidentally bump it, the darn thing automatically tries to connect to the internet &amp; deducts a minute of my time before I can stop it.&nbsp;</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>The scrolling display says I have 734,866 service days left, so that's all screwed up. Geeze, wotta nightmare. Unfortunately, I sold my Net10 phone today in order to buy this thing, &amp; it's gonna be another 50-mile-round-trip to return it.&nbsp;</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>The PLAN itself is better suited to my needs for sure, but the phone is junk &amp; so is their SERIOUS lack of support &amp; info on the darn thing.</strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Should've known better than to buy an LG. Maybe I can return it &amp; opt for one of the single-minutes phones, just to get a Samsung, or Motorola. </strong></span><br /><br /><span style="font-family: 'comic sans ms', sans-serif;"><strong>Wotta bummer. I have MAJOR buyer's remorse! :-(<br /><br /></strong></span>

 

[wandering mike]

Sorry to hear about the handset. The actual service should be pretty much the same as you had with Net10. &nbsp;Their customer service are the same people as Net10 too. &nbsp;Did you talk to them over skype or anything? &nbsp;I have both an LG and a Samsung and like the Samsung better. &nbsp;Do let us know how the return process works at Walmart if that is where you got it. &nbsp;We all know they are good at returns, but I don't know about pay as you go phones and cards.