AT&T Mobility Offers Unlimited Prepaid for $60/month--Compare thiswith other Unlimited Prepaid Plans

#1 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 06:30 AM

Following the lead of Verizon's MVNO PagePlus, AT&T (starting today) is
offering unlimited voice and text on its prepaid service. Let's see how
these unlimited prepaid services compare. I've also included Straight
Talk Unlimited (offered by Tracfone).

PagePlus AT&T Straight Talk
--------- ---------- -------------
Native Network Verizon AT&T Verizon
Roaming All CDMA Limited GSM None
Voice Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
Texts Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
Included Data 20MB None 30MB
Additional Data $1.20/MB $2/MB Not available
MMS Part of Data Unclear Part of Data
Lowest Cost $33/month* $60+/month $45/month
Fees/Taxes Included Extra None
Roaming Extensive Very Limited None
Roaming Cost 59¢/min No Charge N/A
2G Coverage Excellent Good Good
3G Coverage Excellent Fair Excellent
Handset Choice Good Excellent Poor

*Regular rate is $39.95 per month, but account can be funded with refill
cards that include greater than the face value, and that are sold at a
discount off the regular price. For example, $46 buys you $56 worth of
PagePlus money on the $50 refill card (sold at an 8% discount). $39.95
of PagePlus money is deducted each month for unlimited service. $39.95 x
46.00 ÷ 56.00 = 32.82.

#2 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 06:41 AM

SMS wrote:
> Following the lead of Verizon's MVNO PagePlus, AT&T (starting today) is
> offering unlimited voice and text on its prepaid service. Let's see how
> these unlimited prepaid services compare. I've also included Straight
> Talk Unlimited (offered by Tracfone).
>
> PagePlus AT&T Straight Talk
> --------- ---------- -------------
> Native Network Verizon AT&T Verizon
> Roaming All CDMA Limited GSM None
> Voice Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
> Texts Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
> Included Data 20MB None 30MB
> Additional Data $1.20/MB $2/MB Not available
> MMS Part of Data Unclear Part of Data
> Lowest Cost $33/month* $60+/month $45/month
> Fees/Taxes Included Extra None
> Roaming Extensive Very Limited None
> Roaming Cost 59¢/min No Charge N/A
> 2G Coverage Excellent Good Good
> 3G Coverage Excellent Fair Excellent
> Handset Choice Good Excellent Poor
>
>
> *Regular rate is $39.95 per month, but account can be funded with refill
> cards that include greater than the face value, and that are sold at a
> discount off the regular price. For example, $46 buys you $56 worth of
> PagePlus money on the $50 refill card (sold at an 8% discount). $39.95
> of PagePlus money is deducted each month for unlimited service. $39.95 x
> 46.00 ÷ 56.00 = 32.82.

Actually there's a mistake above. PagePlus has lowered their data rate
to $0.60/MB for additional data over the 20MB that's included.

#3 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 03:57 PM

In article <4ad2ccac$0$1648$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net>, SMS
<scharf.steven@geemail.com> wrote:

> Following the lead of Verizon's MVNO PagePlus, AT&T (starting today) is
> offering unlimited voice and text on its prepaid service.

it's not that new, they've actually been test marketing it for a while.

> PagePlus AT&T Straight Talk
> Additional Data $1.20/MB $2/MB Not available

wrong. data packages can be added.

> Lowest Cost $33/month* $60+/month $45/month

wrong. it's 60, not 60+.

> Fees/Taxes Included Extra None

very wrong.

> 2G Coverage Excellent Good Good
> 3G Coverage Excellent Fair Excellent

depends on location.

> *Regular rate is $39.95 per month, but account can be funded with refill
> cards that include greater than the face value, and that are sold at a
> discount off the regular price.

as are refill cards for any prepaid service.

#4 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 07:10 PM

"SMS" <scharf.steven@geemail.com> wrote in message
news:4ad2ccac$0$1648$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net...
> Following the lead of Verizon's MVNO PagePlus, AT&T (starting today) is
> offering unlimited voice and text on its prepaid service. Let's see how
> these unlimited prepaid services compare. I've also included Straight Talk
> Unlimited (offered by Tracfone).
>
> PagePlus AT&T Straight Talk
> --------- ---------- -------------
> Native Network Verizon AT&T Verizon
> Roaming All CDMA Limited GSM None
> Voice Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
> Texts Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
> Included Data 20MB None 30MB
> Additional Data $1.20/MB $2/MB Not available
> MMS Part of Data Unclear Part of Data
> Lowest Cost $33/month* $60+/month $45/month
> Fees/Taxes Included Extra None
> Roaming Extensive Very Limited None
> Roaming Cost 59¢/min No Charge N/A
> 2G Coverage Excellent Good Good
> 3G Coverage Excellent Fair Excellent
> Handset Choice Good Excellent Poor
>
>
> *Regular rate is $39.95 per month, but account can be funded with refill
> cards that include greater than the face value, and that are sold at a
> discount off the regular price. For example, $46 buys you $56 worth of
> PagePlus money on the $50 refill card (sold at an 8% discount). $39.95 of
> PagePlus money is deducted each month for unlimited service. $39.95 x
> 46.00 ÷ 56.00 = 32.82.

What is meant by "Limited GSM" under "roaming" for AT&T?

--Mike Jacoubowsky
Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReaction.com
Redwood City & Los Altos, CA USA

#5 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 07:21 PM

Mike Jacoubowsky wrote:

> What is meant by "Limited GSM" under "roaming" for AT&T?

On AT&T's prepaid GoPhone you don't get roaming as extensive as you get
on their postpaid plans, and there is no way to pay extra to get that
roaming back.

Look at "http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/" and click on
"Voice" and then click on "GoPhone" and you'll see what I mean; you lose
significant amounts of coverage on GoPhone by not being able to roam
ontol any available GSM network. Look at southern Oregon, Montana, and
Wyoming.

Similarly, on Verizon's prepaid plan you don't get all the free roaming
that you get on postpaid, but you can roam on some other networks for
20¢ per minute (including some coverage that you don't get even on
Verizon's postpaid plans). On PagePlus it's 59¢ per minute to roam, but
they do include some non-Verizon networks gratis (i.e. my kids have not
been charged roaming up in the Sierra's and Gold Country when roaming
onto Golden State Cellular)

#6 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 08:33 PM

On Mon, 12 Oct 2009, SMS posted:
>> What is meant by "Limited GSM" under "roaming" for AT&T?
> On AT&T's prepaid GoPhone you don't get roaming as extensive as you get on
> their postpaid plans, and there is no way to pay extra to get that roaming
> back.

AT&T GoPhone can roam in Mexico, but not in Canada.

T-Mobile's prepaid can roam in Canada and quite a few other countries.
Page Plus can also roam in Canada.

-- Mark --

http://panda.com/mrc
Democracy is two wolves and a sheep deciding what to eat for lunch.
Liberty is a well-armed sheep contesting the vote.

#7 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 08:36 PM

Mark Crispin wrote:
> On Mon, 12 Oct 2009, SMS posted:
>>> What is meant by "Limited GSM" under "roaming" for AT&T?
>> On AT&T's prepaid GoPhone you don't get roaming as extensive as you
>> get on their postpaid plans, and there is no way to pay extra to get
>> that roaming back.
>
> AT&T GoPhone can roam in Mexico, but not in Canada.
>
> T-Mobile's prepaid can roam in Canada and quite a few other countries.
> Page Plus can also roam in Canada.

PagePlus works, kind of, in Canada but not officially. Someone also said
they were able to use PagePlus in China.

#8 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 08:50 PM

On Sun, 11 Oct 2009 23:30:18 -0700, SMS <scharf.steven@geemail.com>
wrote in <4ad2ccac$0$1648$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net>:

>Following the lead of Verizon's MVNO PagePlus, AT&T (starting today) is
>offering unlimited voice and text on its prepaid service. Let's see how
>these unlimited prepaid services compare. I've also included Straight
>Talk Unlimited (offered by Tracfone).
>
> PagePlus AT&T Straight Talk
> --------- ---------- -------------
>Native Network Verizon AT&T Verizon
>Roaming All CDMA Limited GSM None
>Voice Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
>Texts Unlimited Unlimited Unlimited
>Included Data 20MB None 30MB
>Additional Data $1.20/MB $2/MB Not available
>MMS Part of Data Unclear Part of Data
>Lowest Cost $33/month* $60+/month $45/month
>Fees/Taxes Included Extra None
>Roaming Extensive Very Limited None
>Roaming Cost 59¢/min No Charge N/A
>2G Coverage Excellent Good Good
>3G Coverage Excellent Fair Excellent
>Handset Choice Good Excellent Poor

Pity you had to spoil that nice chart with your usual distorted ratings.

--
Best regards,
John <http:/navasgroup.com>

If the iPhone is really so impressive,
why do iFans keep making excuses for it?

#9 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 09:03 PM

Mark Crispin wrote:
> On Mon, 12 Oct 2009, SMS posted:
>>> What is meant by "Limited GSM" under "roaming" for AT&T?
>> On AT&T's prepaid GoPhone you don't get roaming as extensive as you
>> get on their postpaid plans, and there is no way to pay extra to get
>> that roaming back.
>
> AT&T GoPhone can roam in Mexico, but not in Canada.
>
> T-Mobile's prepaid can roam in Canada and quite a few other countries.
> Page Plus can also roam in Canada.

Surprisingly, T-Mobile has not entered the fray of unlimited prepaid.
With AT&T's new offering, you can get unlimited prepaid on the AT&T GSM
network, on Verizon's CDMA network, and on both Sprint's CDMA and iDEN
networks, but not on T-Mobile. T-Mobile has been offering a "secret" $50
postpaid unlimited voice plan to select customers, but that's a far
poorer deal than what's available elsewhere.

#10 (**permalink**) 10-12-2009, 11:27 PM

In article <2457d59un5tm86fj85acgg6olbuhikmbl5@4ax.com>, spamfilter1
@navasgroup.com says...

> Pity you had to spoil that nice chart with your usual distorted ratings.

Pity both you and Steven have to act like shills. Half of the posts in
the Verizon newsgroup consist of you two arguing with each other.

--
Steve Sobol, Victorville, California, USA
sjsobol@JustThe.net

#11 (**permalink**) 10-13-2009, 03:57 AM

On Mon, 12 Oct 2009 14:03:23 -0700, SMS <scharf.steven@geemail.com>
wrote in <4ad3994e$0$1629$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net>:

>Mark Crispin wrote:
>> On Mon, 12 Oct 2009, SMS posted:
>>>> What is meant by "Limited GSM" under "roaming" for AT&T?
>>> On AT&T's prepaid GoPhone you don't get roaming as extensive as you
>>> get on their postpaid plans, and there is no way to pay extra to get
>>> that roaming back.
>>
>> AT&T GoPhone can roam in Mexico, but not in Canada.
>>
>> T-Mobile's prepaid can roam in Canada and quite a few other countries.
>> Page Plus can also roam in Canada.
>
>Surprisingly, T-Mobile has not entered the fray of unlimited prepaid.
>With AT&T's new offering, you can get unlimited prepaid on the AT&T GSM
>network, on Verizon's CDMA network, and on both Sprint's CDMA and iDEN
>networks, but not on T-Mobile. T-Mobile has been offering a "secret" $50
>postpaid unlimited voice plan to select customers, but that's a far
>poorer deal than what's available elsewhere.

FlexPay Unlimited is $100 per month.

--
Best regards,
John <http:/navasgroup.com>

If the iPhone is really so impressive,
why do iFans keep making excuses for it?

#12 (**permalink**) 10-13-2009, 05:15 PM

On Oct 12, 4:27*pm, Steve Sobol <sjso...@JustThe.net> wrote:
> In article <2457d59un5tm86fj85acgg6olbuhikm...@4ax.com>, spamfilter1
> @navasgroup.com says...
>
> > Pity you had to spoil that nice chart with your usual distorted ratings..
>
> Pity both you and Steven have to act like shills. Half of the posts in
> the Verizon newsgroup consist of you two arguing with each other.

I have had Navas kill-filed for a couple of years now. Arguing with
him is pointless. I don't know where you got the idea that I am
arguing with him. Yes, I've occasionally followed up on the posts of
all the others that argue with him, but that's the extent of it.

#13 (**permalink**) 10-13-2009, 10:05 PM

On Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:27:25 -0700, Steve Sobol <sjsobol@JustThe.net>
wrote in <MPG.253d5b33d95baae79897a3@news.justthe.net>:

>In article <2457d59un5tm86fj85acgg6olbuhikmbl5@4ax.com>, spamfilter1
>@navasgroup.com says...
>
>> Pity you had to spoil that nice chart with your usual distorted ratings.
>
>Pity both you and Steven have to act like shills. Half of the posts in
>the Verizon newsgroup consist of you two arguing with each other.

But you're OK with all the iPhone shilling, product and/or service
bashing, libels, ad hominems, and other off-topic noise?

--
Best regards,
John <http:/navasgroup.com>

If the iPhone is really so impressive,
why do iFans keep making excuses for it?

#14 (**permalink**) 10-14-2009, 08:04 PM

In article <4ad3994e$0$1629$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net>,
SMS <scharf.steven@geemail.com> wrote:
>Mark Crispin wrote:
>> On Mon, 12 Oct 2009, SMS posted:
>>>> What is meant by "Limited GSM" under "roaming" for AT&T?
>>> On AT&T's prepaid GoPhone you don't get roaming as extensive as you
>>> get on their postpaid plans, and there is no way to pay extra to get
>>> that roaming back.
>>
>> AT&T GoPhone can roam in Mexico, but not in Canada.
>>
>> T-Mobile's prepaid can roam in Canada and quite a few other countries.
>> Page Plus can also roam in Canada.
>
>Surprisingly, T-Mobile has not entered the fray of unlimited prepaid.

Also surprisingly, T-Mobile still has no provisions for prepaid data
service (other than the "walled garden" you get with the ToGo version of
T-Zones).

#15 (**permalink**) 10-14-2009, 08:54 PM

Mike S. wrote:

> Also surprisingly, T-Mobile still has no provisions for prepaid data
> service (other than the "walled garden" you get with the ToGo version of
> T-Zones).

Maybe because their 3G is at 1700 MHz, though they could at least offer
2G data to prepaid.

I heard today that T-Mobile is poised to drop the price of their
unlimited "flex" plan considerably. Whether or not they will include
messaging, or even 2G data, remains to be seen. It was also reported in
the Wall Street Journal
"http://online.wsj.com/article/BT-CO-20091014-712000.html". I think they
will have to include some data to remain competitive though AT&T's
prepaid plan doesn't include any.

The StraightTalk plan mentioned in the article is a good deal, but has
some issues. You can't use any handsets other than the non-smart phones
that they offer, and you can't roam off of Verizon's network, even at
extra cost, but if you compare the StraightTalk and PagePlus maps there
aren't all that many places with no coverage on Straight Talk other than
all of Alaska and much of Kentucky and Utah. Certainly far more
coverage than Virgin or AT&T (EIYJN).

Ironically, T-Mobile now has better prepaid coverage than Sprint or AT&T
(EIYJN) because they finally are allowing a lot more roaming on their
prepaid plans which is a change from just a couple of years ago. Compare
the T-Mobile prepaid coverage map with the AT&T and Virgin prepaid
coverage map and you can see the stark differences.

I see that MetroPCS at least now allows off network roaming for 19
cents/minute which isn't a bad deal.

Personally I think the 1200 minute/1200 MMS or text/50MB of data for $25
on PagePlus is an amazingly good deal that for most users would be as
good as unlimited voice and messaging, and the large number of minutes
eliminates the need for free off-peak or mobile to mobile. I'll probably
switch to that when my Verizon contract is over.

Links to the Prepaid Coverage Maps

T-Mobile Prepaid
----------------
"http://www.t-mobile.com/coverage/Prepaid.aspx"

AT&T GoPhone
------------
"http://www.wireless.att.com/coverageviewer/" (click GoPhone)

Verizon InPulse
---------------
"http://www.verizonwireless.com/b2c/CoverageLocatorController" (tick
prepaid then refresh)

Virgin/Boost CDMA
-----------------
"http://www.virginmobileusa.com/check-cell-phone-coverage" (should be
the same as Boost CDMA coverage map because it's basically Sprint native
coverage).

PagePlus
--------
"http://www.pagepluscellular.com/Why%20Page%20Plus/Coverage%20Map.aspx"

StraightTalk
------------
"http://www.straighttalk.com/Coverage"

MetroPCS
"http://www.metropcs.com/coverage/"

#16 (**permalink**) 10-14-2009, 09:01 PM

On Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:54:26 -0700, SMS <scharf.steven@geemail.com>
wrote:

>
>Ironically, T-Mobile now has better prepaid coverage than Sprint or AT&T
>(EIYJN) because they finally are allowing a lot more roaming on their
>prepaid plans which is a change from just a couple of years ago. Compare
>the T-Mobile prepaid coverage map with the AT&T and Virgin prepaid
>coverage map and you can see the stark differences.
>
T-Mobile has had good pre-paid coverage - and roaming - in wide swaths
east of the Mississippi for the five years I've had it.
Don't need data, and if it increased the prepaid cost I'd drop them.
You have to look at the big picture.

--Vic

#17 (**permalink**) 10-14-2009, 09:19 PM

On Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:27:25 -0700, Steve Sobol <sjsobol@JustThe.net>
wrote:

>In article <2457d59un5tm86fj85acgg6olbuhikmbl5@4ax.com>, spamfilter1
>@navasgroup.com says...
>
>> Pity you had to spoil that nice chart with your usual distorted ratings.
>
>Pity both you and Steven have to act like shills. Half of the posts in
>the Verizon newsgroup consist of you two arguing with each other.

This coming from what used to be Sprints major shill when he lived in
OHIO.

#18 (**permalink**) 10-14-2009, 09:35 PM

On Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:54:26 -0700, SMS <scharf.steven@geemail.com>
wrote in <4ad63a31$0$1631$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net>:

>I heard today that T-Mobile is poised to drop the price of their
>unlimited "flex" plan considerably.

From the homeless guy at your local Starbucks most likely.

>Ironically, T-Mobile now has better prepaid coverage than Sprint or AT&T
>(EIYJN) because they finally are allowing a lot more roaming on their
>prepaid plans which is a change from just a couple of years ago. ...

Very old "news".

--
Best regards,
John <http:/navasgroup.com>

If the iPhone is really so impressive,
why do iFans keep making excuses for it?

#19 (**permalink**) 10-14-2009, 09:35 PM

On Wed, 14 Oct 2009 16:01:37 -0500, Vic Smith
<thismailautodeleted@comcast.net> wrote in
<tmecd51e713k28l68gb8k72pdpsar1ufuv@4ax.com>:

>On Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:54:26 -0700, SMS <scharf.steven@geemail.com>
>wrote:
>
>>Ironically, T-Mobile now has better prepaid coverage than Sprint or AT&T
>>(EIYJN) because they finally are allowing a lot more roaming on their
>>prepaid plans which is a change from just a couple of years ago. Compare
>>the T-Mobile prepaid coverage map with the AT&T and Virgin prepaid
>>coverage map and you can see the stark differences.
>>
>T-Mobile has had good pre-paid coverage - and roaming - in wide swaths
>east of the Mississippi for the five years I've had it.
>Don't need data, and if it increased the prepaid cost I'd drop them.
>You have to look at the big picture.

Steven needs to look at _any_ picture --
he just makes up most of the things he says.

--
Best regards,
John <http:/navasgroup.com>

If the iPhone is really so impressive,
why do iFans keep making excuses for it?

#20 (**permalink**) 10-14-2009, 09:54 PM

Ron wrote:

> This coming from what used to be Sprints major shill when he lived in
> OHIO.

LOL. I remember that.

Seriously though, despite the accusations, I have no allegiance to any
wireless company. I would never tell anyone to sign up for Verizon
InPulse service, it's very overpriced, just as I advise people to stay
away from AT&T GoPhone and Virgin Mobile because of the price and the
coverage.

These days, for GSM prepaid the best option is T-Mobile in terms of
price and coverage, but only for relatively low usage since the lowest
per-minute price is still relatively high and their unlimited flex pay
plan sucks. For CDMA the best option, as long as you aren't in an area
with no native Verizon coverage, is clearly PagePlus.

I'd also be more careful with the word "shill" as it implies that the
person promoting a particular product will gain economically from his or
her actions. Even our favorite troll who continually reposts an
inapplicable charter into alt.cellular.attws really isn't shilling, he's
just trolling, and I for one will be more careful with how I use the
term "shill" in the future.

Steve
"http://prepaiduswireless.com"

#21 (**permalink**) 10-14-2009, 10:15 PM

John Navas wrote:

> On Wed, 14 Oct 2009 13:54:26 -0700, SMS <scharf.steven@geemail.com>
> wrote in <4ad63a31$0$1631$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net>:
>
>>I heard today that T-Mobile is poised to drop the price of their
>>unlimited "flex" plan considerably.
>
> From the homeless guy at your local Starbucks most likely.
>
>>Ironically, T-Mobile now has better prepaid coverage than Sprint or AT&T
>>(EIYJN) because they finally are allowing a lot more roaming on their
>>prepaid plans which is a change from just a couple of years ago. ...
>
> Very old "news".

And not all that reliable. I looked at the T-Mobile map, which says I have
excellent coverage. Well, no. Inside my house (ordinary one-story
single-family on a main street) I get NO signal. In my front yard I get 0-2
bars and conversations have a lot of dropouts. I'd call it 'fair' at best, not
excellent.

--
Cheers, Bev
"""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""" """
"We're from the Government. We're here to help."

#22 (**permalink**) 10-14-2009, 10:31 PM

"Ron" <ron.clifford@peoplepc.com> wrote in message
news:v1gcd5578te7c88kipi0uco559viro3l8r@4ax.com...
> On Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:27:25 -0700, Steve Sobol <sjsobol@JustThe.net>
> wrote:
>
>>In article <2457d59un5tm86fj85acgg6olbuhikmbl5@4ax.com>, spamfilter1
>>@navasgroup.com says...
>>
>>> Pity you had to spoil that nice chart with your usual distorted ratings.
>>
>>Pity both you and Steven have to act like shills. Half of the posts in
>>the Verizon newsgroup consist of you two arguing with each other.
>
>
>
> This coming from what used to be Sprints major shill when he lived in
> OHIO.

Countering your delusional rants when you used to call yourself PHILLIPE,
hardly makes anyone a shill.

#23 (**permalink**) 10-15-2009, 12:02 AM

The Real Bev wrote:

> And not all that reliable. I looked at the T-Mobile map, which says I
> have excellent coverage. Well, no. Inside my house (ordinary one-story
> single-family on a main street) I get NO signal. In my front yard I get
> 0-2 bars and conversations have a lot of dropouts. I'd call it 'fair'
> at best, not excellent.

Since T-Mobile operates at 1900 MHz, and has far fewer cells than AT&T
and Verizon, indoor coverage, and coverage in general, will be less than
optimal. Did you drill down to your exact address on the T-Mobile maps?
I found the T-Mobile maps very honest in coverage. Up until recently
they showed almost no coverage at my house. When they turned on a cell
four blocks away the coverage increased greatly, and their maps
reflected the change. I went from 0-1 bar to a solid three bars, the
same as I get on my AT&T service using the same model phone.

The key difference in T-Mobile prepaid is now you can get coverage on
many GSM systems throughout the country, including (but not not limited
to) AT&T, if T-Mobile has no network in that area (while AT&T prepaid
does not allow much of that coverage on the other networks). Ironically
this means that you will often get better coverage on T-Mobile prepaid
when you're in a non-T-Mobile area and are roaming onto an 850 MHz GSM
network then when you're on their own network and stuck at the less
desirable 1900 MHz (EIYJN). It's similar with Sprint and Verizon, if
you're outside Sprint's 1900 MHz coverage area roaming onto Verizon 800
MHz then you'll get usually get better coverage than you get in Sprint
areas where they don't let you roam onto Verizon (unless you force the
phone to roam or unless there's absolutely no Sprint signal at all).

AT&T doesn't want to allow its prepaid customers to roam too much
because it costs them money, and because it lessens the value of
postpaid service that does allow extensive roaming. Verizon prepaid lets
you roam and charges you for it (20¢/minute), as does Verizon's MVNO
PagePlus (59¢/minute), and as does even MetroPCS (19¢/minute). I think
that most users would be happy to pay occasional roaming charges rather
than have no coverage at all, but there are always exceptions I suppose).

BTW, as usual our favorite troll has no idea what he's talking about
regarding what's coming from T-Mobile very soon. A lower cost unlimited
prepaid plan from T-Mobile has been widely reported on in the past week.
It's supposed to be announced on October 25th, and will include
unlimited voice, messaging, and data for $50/month. Of course you can
already get all this on Boost CDMA on Sprint's network for $50/month so
it's not some spectacularly new low price point, but on Boost CDMA a)
you can't use smart phones (though there is apparently a way to get
around this limitation) and b) you can't roam, even for voice, off of
Sprint's limited network, and c) you'll find nothing mentioned about
that plan on Sprint's web site (you have to go to a Sprint store to sign
up). With T-Mobile you'll need a new handset that supports W-CDMA 1700
in order to take advantage of 3G and presumably they'll continue with
their current roaming agreements.

Your best way to keep up with the latest development in prepaid in the
U.S. is to enter "prepaid u.s. wireless" into the Google search box and
then click on "I'm Feeling Lucky." That will take you to the premier web
site for information on prepaid in the U.S..

Steve

#24 (**permalink**) 10-15-2009, 12:54 AM

SMS wrote:

> The Real Bev wrote:
>
>> And not all that reliable. I looked at the T-Mobile map, which says I
>> have excellent coverage. Well, no. Inside my house (ordinary one-story
>> single-family on a main street) I get NO signal. In my front yard I get
>> 0-2 bars and conversations have a lot of dropouts. I'd call it 'fair'
>> at best, not excellent.
>
> Since T-Mobile operates at 1900 MHz, and has far fewer cells than AT&T
> and Verizon, indoor coverage, and coverage in general, will be less than
> optimal. Did you drill down to your exact address on the T-Mobile maps?

Yes.

> I found the T-Mobile maps very honest in coverage. Up until recently
> they showed almost no coverage at my house. When they turned on a cell
> four blocks away the coverage increased greatly, and their maps
> reflected the change. I went from 0-1 bar to a solid three bars, the
> same as I get on my AT&T service using the same model phone.

You're fortunate. The old map showed my neighbors with good coverage, but a
pseudopod of 'fair' stuck out and covered my yard and house. Thanks, God. The
categories may have been 'fair' and 'poor', but the difference was certainly
there. I think AT&T is somehow at fault -- paying somebody off so I have to
keep my land line.

> The key difference in T-Mobile prepaid is now you can get coverage on
> many GSM systems throughout the country, including (but not not limited
> to) AT&T, if T-Mobile has no network in that area (while AT&T prepaid
> does not allow much of that coverage on the other networks). Ironically
> this means that you will often get better coverage on T-Mobile prepaid
> when you're in a non-T-Mobile area and are roaming onto an 850 MHz GSM
> network then when you're on their own network and stuck at the less
> desirable 1900 MHz (EIYJN). It's similar with Sprint and Verizon, if
> you're outside Sprint's 1900 MHz coverage area roaming onto Verizon 800
> MHz then you'll get usually get better coverage than you get in Sprint
> areas where they don't let you roam onto Verizon (unless you force the
> phone to roam or unless there's absolutely no Sprint signal at all).

At my son's house in the far suburbs of RTP, I could get some unknown company's
signal. He lives 20 miles from anything, I live 1/4 mile from a freeway. Feh.

> AT&T doesn't want to allow its prepaid customers to roam too much
> because it costs them money, and because it lessens the value of
> postpaid service that does allow extensive roaming. Verizon prepaid lets
> you roam and charges you for it (20¢/minute), as does Verizon's MVNO
> PagePlus (59¢/minute), and as does even MetroPCS (19¢/minute). I think
> that most users would be happy to pay occasional roaming charges rather
> than have no coverage at all, but there are always exceptions I suppose).
>
> BTW, as usual our favorite troll has no idea what he's talking about
> regarding what's coming from T-Mobile very soon. A lower cost unlimited
> prepaid plan from T-Mobile has been widely reported on in the past week.
> It's supposed to be announced on October 25th, and will include
> unlimited voice, messaging, and data for $50/month. Of course you can
> already get all this on Boost CDMA on Sprint's network for $50/month so
> it's not some spectacularly new low price point, but on Boost CDMA a)
> you can't use smart phones (though there is apparently a way to get
> around this limitation) and b) you can't roam, even for voice, off of
> Sprint's limited network, and c) you'll find nothing mentioned about
> that plan on Sprint's web site (you have to go to a Sprint store to sign
> up). With T-Mobile you'll need a new handset that supports W-CDMA 1700
> in order to take advantage of 3G and presumably they'll continue with
> their current roaming agreements.
>
> Your best way to keep up with the latest development in prepaid in the
> U.S. is to enter "prepaid u.s. wireless" into the Google search box and
> then click on "I'm Feeling Lucky." That will take you to the premier web
> site for information on prepaid in the U.S..

I've got 900 minutes left. In February I'll buy $10 (35 minutes) more and be
good for another year. I'll probably die with unused minutes :-( The phone
itself sucks, though.

--
Cheers, Bev
oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo ooo
"With sufficient thrust, pigs fly just fine. However,
this is not necessarily a good idea...."

#25 (**permalink**) 10-15-2009, 01:03 AM

The Real Bev wrote:

> I've got 900 minutes left. In February I'll buy $10 (35 minutes) more
> and be good for another year. I'll probably die with unused minutes
> :-( The phone itself sucks, though.

Fortunately there's almost a limitless supply of non-sucky GSM phones on
craigslist and even on freecycle.

For some unknown reason my mom dropped her T-Mobile prepaid which was
perfect for her usage when AT&T convinced her to sign up for a package
deal of TV, landline, postpaid wireless, and DSL which was far more
expensive than what she had before, or needed. Then she switched to AT&T
prepaid which was still ridiculously expensive. Now she's on PagePlus
and paying about $5 a month instead of $40 a month and using the same
number of minutes she used before. We also surreptitiously got her a DSL
modem/wireless router from AT&T to replace her DSL modem so we can at
least use her DSL when visiting. At least AT&T was kind enough to send
it at no cost.

#26 (**permalink**) 10-15-2009, 02:17 AM

SMS <scharf.steven@geemail.com> wrote in news:4ad6747b$0$1587
$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net:

> The Real Bev wrote:
>
>> I've got 900 minutes left. In February I'll buy $10 (35 minutes) more
>> and be good for another year. I'll probably die with unused minutes
>> :-( The phone itself sucks, though.
>
> Fortunately there's almost a limitless supply of non-sucky GSM phones on
> craigslist and even on freecycle.
>
> For some unknown reason my mom dropped her T-Mobile prepaid which was
> perfect for her usage when AT&T convinced her to sign up for a package
> deal of TV, landline, postpaid wireless, and DSL which was far more
> expensive than what she had before, or needed. Then she switched to AT&T
> prepaid which was still ridiculously expensive. Now she's on PagePlus
> and paying about $5 a month instead of $40 a month and using the same
> number of minutes she used before. We also surreptitiously got her a DSL
> modem/wireless router from AT&T to replace her DSL modem so we can at
> least use her DSL when visiting. At least AT&T was kind enough to send
> it at no cost.
>

So Stevie- how much does PagePlus pay for each referral these days?

#27 (**permalink**) 10-15-2009, 02:33 AM

SMS wrote:

> The Real Bev wrote:
>
>> I've got 900 minutes left. In February I'll buy $10 (35 minutes) more
>> and be good for another year. I'll probably die with unused minutes
>> :-( The phone itself sucks, though.
>
> Fortunately there's almost a limitless supply of non-sucky GSM phones on
> craigslist and even on freecycle.
>
> For some unknown reason my mom dropped her T-Mobile prepaid which was
> perfect for her usage when AT&T convinced her to sign up for a package
> deal of TV, landline, postpaid wireless, and DSL which was far more
> expensive than what she had before, or needed.

<sigh> They keep sending out those SIGN UP NOW bargains as if they actually
WERE bargains.

> Then she switched to AT&T
> prepaid which was still ridiculously expensive. Now she's on PagePlus
> and paying about $5 a month instead of $40 a month and using the same
> number of minutes she used before. We also surreptitiously got her a DSL
> modem/wireless router from AT&T to replace her DSL modem so we can at
> least use her DSL when visiting. At least AT&T was kind enough to send
> it at no cost.

Those are common yardsale items, although not as common as nice wired routers.
There are even wireless routers. All for $1 or $2 each. If Charter ever
stops the "special" rate, I can quit and get AT&T DSL service for a while.
Much slower, but still better than dialup.

--
Cheers, Bev
---------------------------------------------------
I have no idea what you're talking about, so here's
a bunny with a pancake on his head:
http://www.ebaumsworld.com/forumfun/misc15.jpg

#28 (**permalink**) 10-15-2009, 04:15 AM

At 14 Oct 2009 17:02:30 -0700 SMS wrote
> Your best way to keep up with the latest development in prepaid in the U.S.

> is to enter "prepaid u.s. wireless" into the Google search box and then
> click on "I'm Feeling Lucky." That will take you to the premier web site
> for information on prepaid in the U.S..

Odd, Dave Markson's http://cellguru.net didn't come up when I entered that...

#29 (**permalink**) 10-15-2009, 04:48 AM

Todd Allcock wrote:
> At 14 Oct 2009 17:02:30 -0700 SMS wrote
>> Your best way to keep up with the latest development in prepaid in the U.S.
>
>
>> is to enter "prepaid u.s. wireless" into the Google search box and then
>> click on "I'm Feeling Lucky." That will take you to the premier web site
>> for information on prepaid in the U.S..
>
>
> Odd, Dave Markson's http://cellguru.net didn't come up when I entered that...
>
>

Very funny.

He seems to have stopped updating his site. I used to have a link to his
site, and I periodically sent him e-mails with updates and corrections.
For example his page on hybrid plans features two PagePlus plans that
are obsolete but lacks their new hybrid plans and lacks the Boost CDMA plan.

#30 (**permalink**) 10-15-2009, 05:13 AM

"SMS" <scharf.steven@geemail.com> wrote in message
news:4ad66645$0$1636$742ec2ed@news.sonic.net...

> BTW, as usual our favorite troll has no idea what he's talking about
> regarding what's coming from T-Mobile very soon. A lower cost unlimited
> prepaid plan from T-Mobile has been widely reported on in the past week.
> It's supposed to be announced on October 25th, and will include unlimited
> voice, messaging, and data for $50/month.

Actually no one with any type of authority has confirmed that rumor- it's
all speculation and hearsay at this point. All anyone knows is that
T-Mobile is announcing something on October 25th.

While I suspect an "everything plan" of some sort is likely, I don't see it
as a primarily prepaid proposition. T-Mo is struggling with postpaid
customer acquisition lately, but doing well with prepaid. Offering a
"killer" prepaid plan, whatever it turns out to be, particularly one with
data, seems like an industrial-strength stupid idea since it'd have the
potential to further gut their postpaid business in favor of prepaid- not
the place T-Mo wants to be at right now.

Meanwhile, a new MVNO, Simple Mobile <http://www.mysimplemobile.com/> that
from their coverage maps seems to be using native T-Mo coverage only, seems
to be signing up dealers in preparation for launch with unlimited talk/text
for $40/month, with an extra-cost (but as yet undefined) data plan
component.

Things are getting interesting, to say the least!