Prepaid Wireless Choices
John Bear
Prepaid cell phones also called pay-as-you-go phones are one of the recent additions to the wireless service industry. With prepaid wireless, there are no contracts to sign, no monthly bills, no long-term commitments, no credit checks, no age limit, no activation fee and no hidden fees; these features are what make prepaid cellular plans so attractive. You control your own cell phone expenses and manage your money when you use prepaid cell phones. You purchase minutes in advance or when you need them so you can monitor how much you spend.
There are countless cell phone service carriers who offer a variety of prepaid cell phone plans depending on your supposed usage and budget constraints. Cingular, T-Mobile, Verizon, Virgin Mobile, 7-Eleven, Tracfone, Net10 and Boost Mobile are the main service providers of pre paid cell phone.
Cingular wireless has all the benefits of traditional service in a prepaid cell phone plan. This prepaid service provider has a wide range of coverage areas, has good customer service and cool features. The T-Mobile Prepaid is another big brand that gets into the prepaid cell phone market. The T-Mobile's To Go plans that offer great coverage in T-Mobile friendly areas, wide array of basic phone features and competitive pricing make this prepaid service provider a great option.
Verizon Wireless has a long-standing tradition of superior customer service and product dependability. Verizon Wireless INpulse offers rates as low as 10 per minute, perfect for teens and people who talk a lot on the phone. For credit challenged people who want regular post pay style calling plans, they can opt for Verizon Wireless' EasyPay Plan.
Virgin Mobile offers one of the most feature-rich prepaid wireless plans available. They have a great coverage area and plan pricing is competitive, although it can be a little complicated. Boost Mobile is a reliable prepaid cell phone service provider that takes special aim at the youth of the cell phone user population. They have tons of in demand features available, which it is easy to see why Boost Mobile is a popular choice for the younger generation.
The 7-Eleven's Speak Out charges a flat 20 cents a minute (except for roaming charges of 39 cents a minute) and offers a choice of six handsets from Nokia, Motorola and Sony Ericsson priced from $60 to $150. However, unlike services that require activation online or by phone, 7-Eleven's phones come right out of the box. Net10 is a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) that is operating on TracFone Wireless' network. They offer the best per minute rate for prepaid voice service and the prepaid service requires no yearly commitment. Net10 phones start at $20 and include 300 minutes/60 days of service.
TracFone Wireless, a subsidiary of Latin American wireless giant America Mvil offers bare bones prepaid service that doesn't have the bells and whistles of youth-oriented MVNOs such as Virgin Mobile or Boost. It has a large national service footprint, thanks to its agreements with a variety of wireless carriers. The Tracfone prepaid cell phones are available in more than 65,000 retail stores nationwide. Tracfones are great for those people who don't want a contract, have bad credit and can't obtain a contract with a standard cell phone company. They are also good for those who don't use a phone a lot, don't use a lot of minutes each month or who only use their phones for emergencies. Tracfone prepaid offers a variety of payment options starting with prepaid cards for 40, 100, 200 and 400 minutes that are sold for $20, $30, $50 and $80, respectively. They also sell two yearly prepaid cards, one with 150 minutes for $90 and the other one with 300 minutes for $130 that also double the minutes on other cards bought.
Prepaid wireless phones aren't for everyone, especially to those who are heavy wireless users or want certain types of phones. If ever you decide that prepaid cell phone is for you, do not be intimidated or overwhelmed by the number of prepaid wireless options out there. You just have keep into consideration your unique communication needs very carefully.
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