Now I've been seeing a lot of people making the switch from cellphone contract companies to prepaid because it's so much easier and less costly. And what really makes you feel good is you have the choice to pay exactly for what you use instead of monthly payments for 2 years. Honestly, with my cellphone bill now, I really feel like I'm being overcharged. What makes me feel even worse is that I've found better prepaid service that offer the same exact plan for much less. The only difference if you get to choose whether you want to refill the next month or not, unlike a contract where you're left with no choice. Lately I've been thinking of switching from my current wireless company to a prepaid because the prepaid plans are cheaper, more convenient and offer more then what I'm currently paying. It's just sick to feel that your being overcharged each month when there are much better choices out there. So what are you're views on wireless companies and prepaid services?
My boyfriend has a prepaid cell phone and it only costs him $35 a month. That is way cheaper then any contract you would sign. He doesn't always use the full amount so if he adds more money the next money then the previous balance will carry over. With his plan he pretty much has unlimited everything too. It is a great deal.
I think that the trick is that you need to consider how much you use. If you use enough to make it less expensive to get a contract mobile phone then this is good for you, however if you don't use very much at all then prepaid might be better for you. There is no right or wrong answer either way really, the only thing that you can do is to make sure that you get the best deal for you, that saves you the most money in the long term. That is the best plan.
I use prepay because plans change in the US so often and you can be stuck with a bad plan. With prepay you can use what you like and because there are some tariffs that you can pay for daily it can be cheaper. I have the $2 a day unlimited calls to landlines and cellphones and texts, which is cheap. If I don't use the phone that day then I don't get charged. It's ideal if you don't need to use it everyday or if you are away a lot. I also used to email people back (free wi-fi) if they sent a text if I didn't want to use my phone as you can receive for free on some prepay services.
@Sue Which company does your boyfriend use? I don't even have a cell phone right now. They don't work well where I live, and I'm home most of the time, so it would be a waste of money. I am, however, considering getting something really minimal, for when I'm out driving, in case there's a problem. I saw some prepaid ones that seemed very inexpensive at Kroger, but I want to do a lot of research before I decide on one particular plan/program/company.
From a purely financial standpoint, prepaid smartphone services make sense for anyone looking to save money. There are downsides, though, in that you're going to be considered a second-tiered customer. Most prepaid service providers piggyback off of the larger networks (Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile), and your speeds could be limited. For instance, 4G speeds are yours, but your actual 4G speed could be a fraction of what post-paid customers receive. Prepaid is not for power users that want maximum speed and the highest quality services in most cases.
Although it very probably depends a lot on which country you live in, what the tariffs are as well as how often they change - I would say that prepaid is generally the better option for those that hardly use their phones. It certainly is for me - in fact since switching to prepaid years ago I haven't looked back since - particularly as - because I hardly use my phone for anything other than making and receiving calls and then only when out and about or staying away from home and having a contract meant that I was actually paying for a service that I barely used - as the standing charge for the privilege of having a contract was the equivalent of $15 a month whether I made calls or not - switching to prepaid has for sure saved me money - as instead of paying for something unnecessarily - I now use that $15 to top up my phone every month
I found that I was paying around $90/month for very little use back when I had a cell phone. That was way too much, so I think prepaid is a good option for those who rarely use their phones, or mainly keep one for safety on the roads. I have had prepaid service in the past, but that was years ago, before many of the currently popular companies got into the game. Back then, you had to pay a certain amount, and the minutes expired at the end of the month. I like the sound of roll over minutes, since I would probably never use up all of the minutes I purchased in the same month.
Yes, I basically keep my phone for emergencies and to tell people of my arrival times and so forth and have a prepaid option I have been watching the Straight Talk Wireless commercial though and that seems like a good option. I could share a phone with someone and pay 29.88 a month...for unlimited talk text and wireless.. I notice though in the ad fine print says the data is 1gb a month, that isn't unlimited.
I am a prepaid user myself and I also think it's an economical way in using a cellphone. It gives you the discipline to use your phone only when you really need it and if you don't have the budget to buy load, you don't have to buy right away. Unlike when you're on postpaid, you have to religiously pay every month or you would have to face the consequence of having to pay more for the charge of late payments.
I think both plans are good for certain people and it's why there are both of these options available to everyone. I personally prefer postpaid plans and I just get the lowest so I don't feel pressured to use it all up and I won't be too bothered if I have some minutes left at the end of the month and personally I think it's just the same as what I would spend if I went prepaid and it's just slightly a bit more convenient. There are others who aren't as able to keep their usage in control or keep track of it so in this case prepaid would be much more advisable for them.
