My son is out looking at different cell plans so he can get a smartphone..
However, I've warned him - for budgeting purposes - that the real monthly
cost
is not just the detailed voice and/or data plan,
but it also includes the local TAXES.
Looking at some of my old Sprint bills,
it looks like a $39 plan had about $7.50 added in taxes = 20%
So - what do you see on your bill as far as actual plan cost vs added taxes
?
"P.Schuman" <pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote in
news:Vz45j.2844$Vq.1321@nlpi061.nbdc.sbc.com:
> Looking at some of my old Sprint bills,
> it looks like a $39 plan had about $7.50 added in taxes = 20%
>
> So - what do you see on your bill as far as actual plan cost vs
added
> taxes ?
>
>
Alltel in South Carolina, here. The $39 plan is over $47 after
the bureaucrats get their cuts. Every fiefdom wants some. It's
obscene. There'll be more taxes, now with the additional $25/mo
EVDO data added to that. $64/mo will total over $75.
I justify it by not having an AT&T landline at home, which I
consider obsolete. I'll never figure why someone with a
SELLphone they're paying so much for has another drain on their
funds with a useless landline with even MORE stupid addon
charges, like "long distance", a throwback into the 1930's.
People are stupid.
Larry
--
Isn't it ironic that the same ISPs that are telling you
you're downloads threaten their networks......
.....are testing 100Gbps TV to sell on the SAME systems? http://tinyurl.com/27qx3v
t-mobile. Basic fee $39.99. Taxes raise it to $50.
(a couple cents up or down from that $50. I have a
couple of small periodic extra charges, so can't calculate
the exact exact amount).
--
__________________________________________________ ___
Knowledge may be power, but communications is the key dannyb@panix.com
[to foil spammers, my address has been double rot-13 encoded]
We use prepaid, buy 1000 minutes at a time for $100 and only pay sales tax
on that (less we find refill card on EBay). We live in Illinois and our
local sales taxes are 7%. The minutes last a year then are rollable if you
don't use them. Of course we don't use that many minutes to begin with and
the prepaid phone selection isn't that great. We have 2 non camera phones
and a Sidekick II I only use for 10 days every 3 months ($10 a crack) when
we go on vacation so we don't have to lug the laptop around.
"P.Schuman" <pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote in message
news:Vz45j.2844$Vq.1321@nlpi061.nbdc.sbc.com...
> My son is out looking at different cell plans so he can get a smartphone..
> However, I've warned him - for budgeting purposes - that the real monthly
> cost
> is not just the detailed voice and/or data plan,
> but it also includes the local TAXES.
>
> Looking at some of my old Sprint bills,
> it looks like a $39 plan had about $7.50 added in taxes = 20%
>
> So - what do you see on your bill as far as actual plan cost vs added
> taxes ?
>
wonder which prepaid you are using ?
We have our son on Virgin Mobile right now....
but he's starting to eat up the minutes
It seemed the best at 90 day interval for adding funds.
"Patrick C" <me@privacy.net> wrote in message
news:gF95j.22710$4V6.8201@newssvr14.news.prodigy.n et...
> We use prepaid, buy 1000 minutes at a time for $100 and only pay sales tax
> on that (less we find refill card on EBay). We live in Illinois and our
> local sales taxes are 7%. The minutes last a year then are rollable if you
> don't use them. Of course we don't use that many minutes to begin with and
> the prepaid phone selection isn't that great. We have 2 non camera phones
> and a Sidekick II I only use for 10 days every 3 months ($10 a crack) when
> we go on vacation so we don't have to lug the laptop around.
>
> "P.Schuman" <pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote in message
> news:Vz45j.2844$Vq.1321@nlpi061.nbdc.sbc.com...
> > My son is out looking at different cell plans so he can get a smartphone..
> > However, I've warned him - for budgeting purposes - that the real monthly
> > cost
> > is not just the detailed voice and/or data plan,
> > but it also includes the local TAXES.
> >
> > Looking at some of my old Sprint bills,
> > it looks like a $39 plan had about $7.50 added in taxes = 20%
> >
> > So - what do you see on your bill as far as actual plan cost vs added
> > taxes ?
> >
>
> I justify it by not having an AT&T landline at home, which I
> consider obsolete. I'll never figure why someone with a
> SELLphone they're paying so much for has another drain on their
> funds with a useless landline with even MORE stupid addon
> charges, like "long distance", a throwback into the 1930's.
Because it's a lot easier for a child to find the phone mom drills him
to use in an emergency when the phone is *always* attached to the
kitchen wall, and because the landline will *always* accurately report
its number and location to the 911 center, unlike cellphones.
-= Hawk =- <Hawk@thispartisbogus.cfl.rr.com> wrote in
news:438al31sqhhflald6ta2ug3d3455k4mtq2@news-server:
> On Tue, 04 Dec 2007 05:28:03 +0000, Larry <noone@home.com>
scribbled:
>
>>"P.Schuman" <pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote in
>>news:Vz45j.2844$Vq.1321@nlpi061.nbdc.sbc.com:
>>
>>> Looking at some of my old Sprint bills,
>>> it looks like a $39 plan had about $7.50 added in taxes = 20%
>>>
>>> So - what do you see on your bill as far as actual plan cost
vs
>>added
>>> taxes ?
>>>
>>>
>>Alltel in South Carolina, here. The $39 plan is over $47 after
>>the bureaucrats get their cuts. Every fiefdom wants some.
It's
>>obscene. There'll be more taxes, now with the additional
$25/mo
>>EVDO data added to that. $64/mo will total over $75.
>>
>>I justify it by not having an AT&T landline at home, which I
>>consider obsolete. I'll never figure why someone with a
>>SELLphone they're paying so much for has another drain on their
>>funds with a useless landline with even MORE stupid addon
>>charges, like "long distance", a throwback into the 1930's.
>>
>>People are stupid.
>
> 2004, hurricane Frances (or Jeanne, your choice) makes
landfall a few
> miles south of here. My neighbors couldn't get a cell phone
call out for
> four days or more. Towers down, overloaded circuits, joy! On
the other
> hand my 'obsolete', 'useless landline' a 'throwback to the
1930's'
> survived both hurricane strikes and we were able to make calls.
Hell, I
> called my insurance company and made our initial insurance
claim during
> the height of the storm. You go on staring dumbly at "No
Signal" I'll be
> talking to my family around the country... Anyone you want me
to call
> for you, Tech-boi?
>
>
In 1989, around midnight, I stood in the street outside a
friend's wrecked home we were staying at, staring up at the stars
through the center of the eye, talking on AMPS with my bagphone
to my friend's family in Ohio to tell them we were ok, but the
house had moved 3" away from the garage, cracking the wall. We'd
been huddled in the bathroom for hours wondering if it would ever
be over. Whole pine trees were flying horizontally down the
street, lit up by the falling electrical power system it took
months to rebuild.
I guess I was lucky the old bagphone still worked. Of course,
that was on 800 Mhz AMPS with real transmitters and a better
system than PCS.
My family is all dead. Do you think your landline can call them?
Larry
--
Isn't it ironic that the same ISPs that are telling you
you're downloads threaten their networks......
.....are testing 100Gbps TV to sell on the SAME systems? http://tinyurl.com/27qx3v
Wooly <nobody@nunya> wrote in news:47554baa$0$2365
$4c368faf@roadrunner.com:
> Larry wrote:
>
>> I justify it by not having an AT&T landline at home, which I
>> consider obsolete. I'll never figure why someone with a
>> SELLphone they're paying so much for has another drain on
their
>> funds with a useless landline with even MORE stupid addon
>> charges, like "long distance", a throwback into the 1930's.
>
> Because it's a lot easier for a child to find the phone mom
drills him
> to use in an emergency when the phone is *always* attached to
the
> kitchen wall, and because the landline will *always* accurately
report
> its number and location to the 911 center, unlike cellphones.
>
Hmm....If a child is that young, shouldn't it be with its parents
or a trusted adult? If a child is 12, these days, the child has
his/her own phone and knows much more about its use (and hacking)
than all the adults in the house, combined.
As to 911, the SELLphone in the child's pocket is accessible,
from anywhere the child is located.....not just if the child is
trapped against the kitchen wall where the wall phone is located.
The kitchen phone won't help the child on her way home from
school or at the store or at the neighbor's house locked up by
the pedophile daddy of her friend, will it?
Larry
--
Isn't it ironic that the same ISPs that are telling you
you're downloads threaten their networks......
.....are testing 100Gbps TV to sell on the SAME systems? http://tinyurl.com/27qx3v
> 2004, hurricane Frances (or Jeanne, your choice) makes landfall a few
> miles south of here. My neighbors couldn't get a cell phone call out for
> four days or more. Towers down, overloaded circuits, joy! On the other
> hand my 'obsolete', 'useless landline' a 'throwback to the 1930's'
> survived both hurricane strikes and we were able to make calls. Hell, I
> called my insurance company and made our initial insurance claim during
> the height of the storm. You go on staring dumbly at "No Signal" I'll be
> talking to my family around the country... Anyone you want me to call
> for you, Tech-boi?
Tech-boi? What're you, a child?
Land lines are great, unless said hurricane topples the house, the lines or
the central office.
"P.Schuman" <pschuman_NO_SPAM_ME@interserv.com> wrote in message
news:1Tb5j.75678$YL5.34158@newssvr29.news.prodigy. net...
> wonder which prepaid you are using ?
> We have our son on Virgin Mobile right now....
> but he's starting to eat up the minutes
> It seemed the best at 90 day interval for adding funds.
>
> "Patrick C" <me@privacy.net> wrote in message
> news:gF95j.22710$4V6.8201@newssvr14.news.prodigy.n et...
>> We use prepaid, buy 1000 minutes at a time for $100 and only pay sales
>> tax
>> on that (less we find refill card on EBay). We live in Illinois and our
>> local sales taxes are 7%. The minutes last a year then are rollable if
>> you
>> don't use them. Of course we don't use that many minutes to begin with
>> and
>> the prepaid phone selection isn't that great. We have 2 non camera
>> phones
>> and a Sidekick II I only use for 10 days every 3 months ($10 a crack)
>> when
>> we go on vacation so we don't have to lug the laptop around.
>>
>> "P.Schuman" <pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote in message
>> news:Vz45j.2844$Vq.1321@nlpi061.nbdc.sbc.com...
>> > My son is out looking at different cell plans so he can get a
>> > smartphone..
>> > However, I've warned him - for budgeting purposes - that the real
>> > monthly
>> > cost
>> > is not just the detailed voice and/or data plan,
>> > but it also includes the local TAXES.
>> >
>> > Looking at some of my old Sprint bills,
>> > it looks like a $39 plan had about $7.50 added in taxes = 20%
>> >
>> > So - what do you see on your bill as far as actual plan cost vs added
>> > taxes ?
>> >
>>
>
>
Larry wrote:
>
> Hmm....If a child is that young, shouldn't it be with its parents
> or a trusted adult? If a child is 12, these days, the child has
> his/her own phone and knows much more about its use (and hacking)
> than all the adults in the house, combined.
A child can pick up the phone, dial 911 and say "my mom has diabetes and
I can't wake her up". That's much easier to do when the phone isn't a
moving target, and there are only three buttons to push.
Be snyde and ignorant all you want - if you had kids or medical
conditions or both you might have a little more appreciation for a
hardwired phone.
> As to 911, the SELLphone in the child's pocket is accessible,
> from anywhere the child is located.....not just if the child is
> trapped against the kitchen wall where the wall phone is located.
> The kitchen phone won't help the child on her way home from
> school or at the store or at the neighbor's house locked up by
> the pedophile daddy of her friend, will it?
You obviously don't have children. Show me one who remembers his
pencil, his homework, his lunchbox and his jacket every morning and I
might agree that's a kid who is responsible enough to own a cellphone.
Until you prove to me that you're talking about MY kid I'll continue to
be a responsible parent by knowing his friends, his friends' parents,
his hangouts, his hobbies and his habits - all of which goes a whole lot
farther toward keeping a kid safe than a gadget in his pocket.
My $39.99 monthly bill totals out at $47.79. I'm with T-Mobile in
Pennsylvania.
"P.Schuman" <pschuman_no_spam_me@interserv.com> wrote in message
news:Vz45j.2844$Vq.1321@nlpi061.nbdc.sbc.com...
> My son is out looking at different cell plans so he can get a smartphone..
> However, I've warned him - for budgeting purposes - that the real monthly
> cost
> is not just the detailed voice and/or data plan,
> but it also includes the local TAXES.
>
> Looking at some of my old Sprint bills,
> it looks like a $39 plan had about $7.50 added in taxes = 20%
>
> So - what do you see on your bill as far as actual plan cost vs added
> taxes ?
>
P.Schuman wrote:
> My son is out looking at different cell plans so he can get a smartphone..
> However, I've warned him - for budgeting purposes - that the real monthly
> cost
> is not just the detailed voice and/or data plan,
> but it also includes the local TAXES.
>
> Looking at some of my old Sprint bills,
> it looks like a $39 plan had about $7.50 added in taxes = 20%
>
> So - what do you see on your bill as far as actual plan cost vs added taxes
It's not just government imposed taxes, it's the garbage fees that the
carrier adds-on to be able to appear to offer lower rates than they
actually do.
Does he want a SmartPhone to be able to use it primarily with WiFi, or
does he also want to use the 3G network where it starts to get really
expensive.
There are so many variables in choosing a "SmartPhone."
-If voice coverage is an issue then get Verizon
-If 3G coverage is an issue then get Sprint or Verizon
-If Wi-Fi is sufficient and 3G isn't needed, an unlocked iPhone used on
T-Mobile prepaid at 10¢/minute may be the best deal. The next iPhone
will have 3G, so it's worth waiting if he wants an iPhone for use with
the AT&T data network.
-Will he have a landline phone to be able to use a monthly cell plan
with less minutes? It's often amusing to see people give up their
landline which typically has a cost of under $20, and end up with an
$80/month cell phone bill, versus a $40/per month bill, plus also
spending $50/month on broadband from the cable company versus
$20-30/month for DSL.
When you look at the big picture, a low-cost cell phone plan plus a
landline with something like OneSuite or Talkloop ends up being a _lot_
less expensive if you have the discipline to minimize your cell phone
use. With PagePlus now down to 5.7¢/minute, $40 buys you more than 700
minutes.
P.Schuman wrote:
> wonder which prepaid you are using ?
> We have our son on Virgin Mobile right now....
> but he's starting to eat up the minutes
> It seemed the best at 90 day interval for adding funds.
Virgin is one of the worst prepaid plans in terms of cost. Also, there
is no roaming, which limits you to Sprint's native coverage which is
downright horrible in many parts of the country (including much of
California). When you have Sprint postpaid coverage you are allowed to
roam on other carriers which often makes up for Sprint's own limited
coverage, but you don't get this with Virgin.
T-Mobile is 10¢/minute with an $100 card, which gets you "Gold" status,
which means a one year expiration on air time, even on future purchases
of less than $100. The down side is that the T-Mobile network is not all
that great in many areas.
PagePlus is probably the best option with 120 day expiration and it's on
the Verizon network which has the best coverage in the U.S. by a large
margin. Roaming is extra, but in most areas of the country you won't be
roaming. AMPS roaming is also available. It does not work in Canada or
Mexico. 1400 minutes cost $80 (5.7¢/minute). 700 minutes are $50
(7.1¢/minute). 300 minutes are $25 (8.3¢/minute). These rates are
relatively new, and they have come down significantly from a few months ago.
I have my two kids on PagePlus and there are several benefits:
1) If they do get into a gabfest (which they haven't yet) it's at least
limited to whatever money they have on their account, plus unlike a
postpaid account the per minute cost doesn't sky-rocket when you go over
your monthly allocation.
2) Coverage is excellent. In my area, Sprint and T-Mobile coverage are
awful, AT&T is adequate, but Verizon is excellent. My daughter often
lets her friends use her phone to call their parents when her friend's
phones have no coverage.
3) Low per-minute cost
4) They can use my old phones from my Verizon account. Of course they
may not be too pleased about that when some kids at school have iPhones,
but tough luck. I don't want them taking a $400 piece of electronics to
school.
5) Longer expiration time than many prepaid services.
You can use any CDMA/AMPS phone that works on Verizon (I think I read
that Alltel phones also work). I know that you used to be able to use
Verizon InPulse phones on PagePlus, but I don't know if this still
works. You can buy a refurb phone from PagePlus, or find a Tri-Mode
CDMA/AMPS phone on craigslist or eBay. I recommend the Motorola V325i.
-= Hawk =- <Hawk@thispartisbogus.cfl.rr.com> wrote in
news:jiral3pgd0pjm9k9mir1cni7dfjb8oqn83@news-server:
> On Tue, 04 Dec 2007 13:07:14 +0000, Larry <noone@home.com>
scribbled:
>
>>My family is all dead. Do you think your landline can call
them?
>
> Are you always this much of an ******* or are you extra special
bitter
> becuase of the holidays? Don't bother letting me know, I really
don't
> give a ****.
>
>
Wha'd I say?? It's true! They're all dead! It's not my fault
they're dead! Most died in their 80's!
Geez....
Larry
--
Isn't it ironic that the same ISPs that are telling you
you're downloads threaten their networks......
.....are testing 100Gbps TV to sell on the SAME systems? http://tinyurl.com/27qx3v
Wooly <nobody@nunya> wrote in news:4755647f$0$2314
$4c368faf@roadrunner.com:
> You obviously don't have children. Show me one who remembers
his
> pencil, his homework, his lunchbox and his jacket every morning
and I
> might agree that's a kid who is responsible enough to own a
cellphone.
> Until you prove to me that you're talking about MY kid I'll
continue to
> be a responsible parent by knowing his friends, his friends'
parents,
> his hangouts, his hobbies and his habits - all of which goes a
whole lot
> farther toward keeping a kid safe than a gadget in his pocket.
>
The modern kid will lose everything EXCEPT his video game and
SELLphone. My kids all grown and gone, she's 38. She lost
everything...it's a blonde thing...including a LOT of boyfriends.
But lose the COMMUNICATIONS link to the boyfriends? Uh-uh..
Larry
--
Isn't it ironic that the same ISPs that are telling you
you're downloads threaten their networks......
.....are testing 100Gbps TV to sell on the SAME systems? http://tinyurl.com/27qx3v
Patrick C wrote:
> We use prepaid, buy 1000 minutes at a time for $100 and only pay sales tax
> on that (less we find refill card on EBay). We live in Illinois and our
> local sales taxes are 7%. The minutes last a year then are rollable if you
> don't use them. Of course we don't use that many minutes to begin with and
> the prepaid phone selection isn't that great.
I was told at a T-Mobile store that you can have any phone they offer, for
the equivalent of the one-year-commitment price plus $50.
"clifto" <clifto@gmail.com> wrote in message
news37h25-1ml.ln1@remote.clifto.com...
> Patrick C wrote:
>> We use prepaid, buy 1000 minutes at a time for $100 and only pay sales
>> tax
>> on that (less we find refill card on EBay). We live in Illinois and our
>> local sales taxes are 7%. The minutes last a year then are rollable if
>> you
>> don't use them. Of course we don't use that many minutes to begin with
>> and
>> the prepaid phone selection isn't that great.
>
> I was told at a T-Mobile store that you can have any phone they offer, for
> the equivalent of the one-year-commitment price plus $50.
>
Good point. Didn't know that. You'd think they would mention that on their
web site.
For activations search eBay for "PAGE PLUS PREPAID ACTIVATION"
> Go ahead. Try to buy any of what you claim. It doesn't exist. Even on
> Ebay.
What are you trying to say? Since activations are available on eBay, and
minutes can be purchased both on eBay and direct from Pageplus by phone
or online, clearly you have something that you're not saying.
> If I can find a less expensive service, I'll switch to it. My wife
> uses less than 10 minutes of wireless service per month, so Virgin
> costs me $15 every 3 months, plus taxes and fees. I haven't found
> anything cheaper.
For minimal use, T-Mobile is $100 the first year, $10 (yes, ten) each
additional year. Target stores run a "free phone" with $100 card (1000
minutes/one year) purchase as a promo occasionally
> I justify it by not having an AT&T landline at home, which I
> consider obsolete. I'll never figure why someone with a
> SELLphone they're paying so much for has another drain on their
> funds with a useless landline with even MORE stupid addon
> charges, like "long distance", a throwback into the 1930's.
I have to have at least two phone lines. both with 5 Mbps DSL.
One has unlimited long distance to use a dial-up ISP in another city to
test my web servers from the outside. I can't use one DSL line to look
back into the other DSL line.
If line one is busy, it rolls over to line two. Cellphone is too awkward
to take a second call and flip between the two, compared to hitting the
hold button on the phone and answering second line.
I have a multi-line phone system at home with voice mail.
I can receive or place a call on my home phone and transfer the call to
my cellphone on the fly (and it frees up the land line).
At 04 Dec 2007 19:47:08 -0500 Elmo P. Shagnasty wrote:
> > PagePlus is probably the best option
>
> except, you can't buy it.
>
> Go ahead. Try to buy any of what you claim. It doesn't exist. Even on
> Ebay.
PagePlus is certainly a weird outfit in that they don't really sell phones
(that I've been able to find- they simply activate phones you acquire
yourself.
I bought a used Verizon phone on eBay last month, e-mailed the info to
"Ugly Eric" along with a few bucks via PayPal, and my $25 eBay phone was
active within an hour.
"Todd Allcock" <elecconnec@AmericaOnLine.com> wrote in message
news:ZAr5j.325$vs5.161@fe119.usenetserver.com...
> At 04 Dec 2007 19:47:08 -0500 Elmo P. Shagnasty wrote:
>
>> > PagePlus is probably the best option
>>
>> except, you can't buy it.
>>
>> Go ahead. Try to buy any of what you claim. It doesn't exist. Even on
>> Ebay.
>
> Activations available on eBay:
> http://search.ebay.com/page-plus-act...Zm37QQfromZR40
> ...or directly at http://www.uglyeric.com
>
> Refill minutes available here:
> http://www.babblebug.com/product_wir...cfm?type_id=23
> or,
> http://www.telecomservices.net/cgi-b...tam?tcon=21130
>
> ...among others...
>
>
> PagePlus is certainly a weird outfit in that they don't really sell phones
> (that I've been able to find- they simply activate phones you acquire
> yourself.
>
> I bought a used Verizon phone on eBay last month, e-mailed the info to
> "Ugly Eric" along with a few bucks via PayPal, and my $25 eBay phone was
> active within an hour.
>
Page Plus sells phones. http://www.pagepluscellular.com/onli...re/phones.aspx
Paul Miner wrote:
> On Tue, 04 Dec 2007 10:20:28 -0800, SMS ???• ?
> <scharf.steven@geemail.com> wrote:
>
>> P.Schuman wrote:
>>> wonder which prepaid you are using ?
>>> We have our son on Virgin Mobile right now....
>>> but he's starting to eat up the minutes
>>> It seemed the best at 90 day interval for adding funds.
>> Virgin is one of the worst prepaid plans in terms of cost.
> <snip>
>
> If I can find a less expensive service, I'll switch to it. My wife
> uses less than 10 minutes of wireless service per month, so Virgin
> costs me $15 every 3 months, plus taxes and fees. I haven't found
> anything cheaper.
7-11 Speak-Out has a minimum cost of $25/year. It's 15¢/minute plus
$1.25 per month. You only have to add time once a year. Ten minutes per
month would be $1.25 + $1.50 = $2.75 per month. AT&T network.
PagePlus is 50¢/month and the cheapest card is $10 for 83 minutes, or
12¢/minute. Ten minutes per month would be 50¢+$1.20=$1.70, but since
you must buy airtime every four months, $10/4=$2.50/month.
With T-Mobile, if you buy $100 to start (1000 minutes), your airtime
lasts a year, and then future airtime purchases, even the least
expensive amounts will last a year. So while the first year is
$8.33/month, future years will be $10/12 months (33 minutes for $10), or
83¢/month, as you deplete the initial 1000 minutes, which would take you
about six years if you add 33 minutes a year for $10. There is no
monthly fee. If T-Mobile has coverage where you expect to need it, it's
the cheapest by far, after the first year. Alas, in many areas,
including where I live, their coverage is not good. In the latest
Consumer Reports, T-Mobile got a black circle for coverage in my area
(though they still were the second rated carrier).
In terms of coverage, look at the January Consumer Reports Magazine that
just came out. In _every_ market, a CDMA carrier was #1 (Verizon in 17
out of 20, and Alltel in 3 out of 20). PagePlus uses Verizon (and can
roam on Alltel, though at extra cost, plus there is AMPS roaming when
needed, also at extra cost). With Virgin, you're on the carrier that was
rated worst in 19 out of 20 cities, and second to worst in one city, and
you aren't able to roam onto other CDMA carriers, or onto AMPS. AMPS is
_not_ going away in rural areas in 2008, only in metro areas that have
overlapping digital.
See "http://www.cellguru.net/prepaid_compare.htm" but I notice at least
one error in his table, 7-11 is now 15¢/minute not 20¢,
> PagePlus is certainly a weird outfit in that they don't really sell phones
> (that I've been able to find- they simply activate phones you acquire
> yourself.
PagePlus does sell a couple of refurbished phones.
PagePlus also sells through dealers, who presumably offer either new or
used phones, but I've never visited a dealer though there is one not far
from me.
Reality is that used CDMA phones are very cheap on craigslist or eBay,
or free on a Freecycle group (http://www.freecycle.org/), and people are
often happy to give away their old phones rather than tossing them.
Elmo P. Shagnasty wrote:
> In article <ZAr5j.325$vs5.161@fe119.usenetserver.com>,
> Todd Allcock <elecconnec@AmericaOnLine.com> wrote:
>
>>>> PagePlus is probably the best option
>>> except, you can't buy it.
>>>
>>> Go ahead. Try to buy any of what you claim. It doesn't exist. Even on
>>> Ebay.
>> Activations available on eBay:
>> http://search.ebay.com/page-plus-act...Zm37QQfromZR40
>> ...or directly at http://www.uglyeric.com
>>
>> Refill minutes available here:
>> http://www.babblebug.com/product_wir...cfm?type_id=23
>
> Go to that page. Now, pull down the menu.
>
> Where are the $80 cards? Only in someone's imagination, apparently.
Go directly to PagePlus, not to a reseller.
Go to "https://www.pagepluscellular.com/online%20store/minutes.aspx"
The $80 card is the last one listed.
PagePlus has greatly improved their website, which was indeed very poor
up until recently. The $80 card was gone for a while, but is now back,
and is a better deal than before, at 1400 minutes for $80.
What I like about PagePlus is that a) they have the cheapest per minute
rate, by far; b) they have the best coverage, by far (just look at the
most recent Consumer Reports survey of 48,000 cellular subscribers and
see how Verizon is ranked), c) the expiration is 4 months on even the
least expensive refill which is better than any prepaid company other
than 7-11 Speakout which is 365 days.
> PagePlus is a ****ed up company.
They're a small MVNO offering the best rates and coverage, but they
don't have the retail brick and mortar presence of AT&T, Virgin,
T-Mobile, Verizon, or even 7-11. You have to expend a little effort to
get started with them.
> If you don't use a lot of air time there's no beating T-Mobile. We'll be
> going into our third year of pre-paid service for another $10 in Feb.
> Not counting the cost of the phone $120 for three years cell phone
> service is amazing. Judging by the minutes we've used over these last
> two years and as long as t-mobile doesn't change it's way of doing
> things I expect to get five years of service before having to spend
> another $100 on another block of 1000 minutes.
I don't think they'll change their policy for existing customers that
did the "Gold" thing of $100 for 1000 minutes and future airtime
expiration of one year for all future purchases. That was essentially a
contract when they said that future airtime purchases last a year. What
they _could_ do is to stop selling $10 airtime cards, or no longer offer
the 1 year expiration to new customers.
The problem I have with T-Mobile is that their coverage in my area is
poor. I have no coverage at my house in Silicon Valley, and I'm not out
in the boonies. NIMBYs have stopped T-Mobile and Sprint from putting up
more towers, and at 1900 MHz they need a lot more towers than AT&T or
Verizon to cover the same area. T-Mobile was recently granted permission
to put up a tower near me, on an office building, with the only caveat
being that they needed to shield the equipment from the view of
neighboring residences with some sort of a low wall. They dropped their
plans because of that restriction, which would have added only a few
thousand dollars to the cost.
basic cellular bill + added taxes ? 
37h25-1ml.ln1@remote.clifto.com...
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