It's been quite a long time since I last used post-paid phone service. I shifted to using pre-paid phones because of the lower monthly cash-out required. If I should reconsider going back to post-paid phones, what practical reasons must I look into? Do you use a prepaid service or a postpaid one? What is the driving force behind that choice?
I use prepaid because I was fed up with T-Mobile's stupid monthly fees and customer service. Now granted not all companies are the same (I wouldn't even use T-Mobile prepaid) but it seems like you have to have higher standards when it comes to a contract phone. With pre-paids you only pay for what you use so they are cheaper. The only disadvantage to a pre-paid that I see is it's a temporary number.
If you're content with using a prepaid phone, then just stick to it, because postpaid phones require you to have a contract, and you'll never know, you might end up not being able to afford paying a fixed monthly bill in the future, so at least with prepaid, there are no obligations involved.
I've always heard horror stories from friends who used pre-paid. Mostly, awful service because they not only used pre-paid but also a not as good phone service. While I do pay a hefty fee for my regular phone contract, I have never had any issues and that is worth it to me.
In my life most things are pre-paid now. My phone, internet access and credit card. I recharge or reload my credit every couple of weeks and am in total control over how much I spend. One of the reasons why I don't like to pay later is that I can't stand sudden nasty surprises, such as hidden costs. Also, I like to keep my personal details to myself as much as possible, which presents a problem if I have to sign up for a contract.
I think this has already been answered in another thread a long time ago. Anyway, I am currently under a postpaid unlimited text plan to the same network. I have to make a lot of texts throughout the course of the day so this plan is good for me. I have a colleague who has a postpaid unlimited call plan because he needs to make a lot of phone calls. If you're not the type of person who sends texts messages or calls somebody every 5 minutes or so, just stick with prepaid. It would save you more money. But if you live and breath communication through a phone, a postpaid plan would be your best choice.
I prefer post paid just because it's a lot more convenient. There are a lot of types of packages nowadays anyway that allow you to use as less or as much as you like so you don't end up forcing yourself to use up credits each month. Another reason why I dislike using prepaid is when you run out of credits, sometimes it's not very easy to reload to your balance and that just sounds terrible to me especially for times of emergency.
I use pre-paid because it's easier to manage financially. I've never actually had a contract service, and don't plan to for a while. I know you can save a small amount in the long run but I use it so infrequently anyway that I prefer the pre-pay service I have.
I'm currently using a pre-paid, but I might change to post soon. The perks with a pre-paid is that you only pay for what you need, which for me is actually very little per month. However, at least where I live you can only get decent internet and a decent data plan if you have a post paid contract. As my internet right now is awful I might just change to a post-paid if I find the right plan.
Really it comes down to what features you want. For example, prepaid phones are usually for a set number of minutes or text. Many of them don't have data options. If you go with a post-paid one, you may have more features that are offered to you. They're almost always more expensive, though. I wish I could go back to pre-paid, but I have had the same phone number for nearly 10 years now and don't want to lose it by switching to a pre-paid plan.
That contract phone thing is what makes me not go for the post paid platform. These days I stay hooked on my prepaid option and I have not regrets so far. Maybe in the future when things get better, then I might just decide to go back to the post paid platform but for now I will stick to prepaid
Both have their cons and pros but I personally prefer postpaid, yes the monthly fees are sometimes a bit overpriced and a bit taxing, but at least I don't have to worry about my credits running out in the middle of something.
I would say that it is necessary to go on prepaid. I have found that i am in control of my phone and what i do with my credit and how long i talk. I think that when you are on post paid, you have a feeling that you are paying a set price and that you need to get your moneys worth. So i personally would go for the prepaid plan. It is better for me.
Post-paid for me no doubt. I'm still milking my unlimited data plan with Verizon and I don't think I will change until they take my unlimited away.
I don't use the phone often enough to justify either choice, seriously. Having said that, pre-paid is the best choice for me because I don't want to be stuck in a contract and paying for service I don't even use.
