T-Mobile Pay As You Go plan
- Thread starter AprilSun
- Start date
Marie5656
SF VIP
- Location
- Batavia, NY
I use tracfone. Not sure what they have
Don M.
SF VIP
- Location
- central Missouri
That sounds like a good plan. I've kept a small TracFone active for the past few years....costs us $7 a month...we just carry it when we are away from the house. If you are like us, and have no use for "Tweeting and Texting", it doesn't make sense to pay more than a few dollars a month to stay in contact.
terry123
Well-known Member
- Location
- Houston, Tx.
Love my consumer cellular phone. Got rid of the landline months ago. Unlimited calling and text for $25.00 a month. I don't text much but get them from the kids. Why pay for a land line.
AprilSun
Senior Member
I had tried a Boost Mobile phone a few years ago and I never used it. But, I still had to keep buying more minutes to keep the service active. The minutes rolled over but that doesn't help when you don't use them. I found this plan by searching on-line. I had read it was for Seniors. You can read about it at https://prepaid.t-mobile.com/marketing-module/pay_as_you_go.html It offers texting during the 30 minutes but I won't use it because I don't want to text. When I find the phone that I can use, this is the plan I will get.
When I dropped my landline - I ported the # to an old cell phone because so many people had the #, and because I don't want everyone calling my 'main' cell phone. I put the phone on PagePlus, which is a Verizon network 3rd party seller. It's cheapest pay-as-you-go is $10, and lasts for 4 months. It's $0.10 per minute and $0.05 for ea text sent & received. I have the data turned off on the phone. I've never used up all of the $10, but if I do, I can buy another $10 at anytime.
I use a calendar / reminder program on my PC to renew it before it expires.
I use a calendar / reminder program on my PC to renew it before it expires.
I use Tracfone too, generally for short calls now and then and to have for an emergency. So far $80 a year gets me all the air time and minutes I need. Don't go online with it or do anything but traditional local calling. I actually share the phone with my husband.
Butterfly
SF VIP
- Location
- Albuquerque, New Mexico USA
AprilSun, I've used this plan for years and I LOVE it. It costs me almost nothing because I use it very little; I am not a big phone talker, I don't text and I don't want/need internet on my phone. Try it -- you'll save a fortune!
AprilSun
Senior Member
Thank you for this information! I was hoping someone either is trying it or had. I haven't had a cell phone in so long and my son-in-law got it for me so I've sorta inexperienced about it. When I can figure out what I'm suppose to do to get it and what type of phone I need to use with it, I will get it! I'm like you, I don't want text, internet and none of that fancy stuff on my cell phone. I just want a plain phone.
AprilSun
Senior Member
Butterfly, I hope you don't mind answering some questions for me. Just how does this plan work? Do you pay per month and if so, how, or do you purchase several months in advance and then each month is deducted when you use it? Does it expire or does it stay activated as long as you have a balance or are using it or do I have to keep buying more months/minutes to keep it activated? I'm trying to stay away from plans that are like the Boost Mobile where I had to keep purchasing more minutes just to keep it activated regardless of how many more minutes I still hadn't used. I have read about it on the T-Mobile site but I like to hear about it from a first hand experienced user.
Butterfly
SF VIP
- Location
- Albuquerque, New Mexico USA
AprilSun, I buy a certain number of minutes, say $50.00 worth, and then when those run low (takes me forever to use up $50 worth of minutes at 10 cents a minute) I add more minutes by either calling them or online. They deduct the $3.00 per month from your minutes balance. The minutes never expire and it stays activated (I guess it would deactivate if you didn't have enough $ left in minutes to pay the $3/mo fee. They send you a warning message if you are running out of minutes if you lose track, or there's a combination of numbers you can press on your phone so you can find out how many minutes/$ you have left, or you can just call 'em up and ask them. I usually add minutes maybe once or twice a year.
I have been delighted with the service and have had absolutely NO problems with it. I just convinced my sister to get rid of her terribly overpriced Verizon plan and she is very happy with the T-Mobile thing -- she doesn't talk much on her phone, either and was throwing lots of $$ down the drain every month for phone service. She was able to move her old number over to T-mobile, though she did have to buy another phone (reasonably priced flip phone,which is what she wanted) to replace the dinosaur of a phone she already had.
There is no contract or anything like that, so if you don't like it you can just walk away or go to another company.
If you have any more questions, I'm happy to answer them. I'm a BIG fan of this T-Mobile plan and it has been the perfect plan for me. I've had it at about 7 years now, more or less.
AprilSun
Senior Member
Thank you for this information! It sounds like it works similar to how my transportation service works. I pay an amount of money into my account and then when I use it, they deduct the charge from my account. The only difference is, if I don't use it for several months, they don't deduct any charges. Do you mind telling me what phone your sister purchased to work with this plan? I'm looking for a phone and was interested in a reasonably priced flip phone. Thanks again for your help!
Butterfly
SF VIP
- Location
- Albuquerque, New Mexico USA
AprilSun, I'm not sure what her phone is, but I'll ask her. She bought it from T-Mobile. One caveat, if you are shopping for phones to take to T-Mobile, check first to see that they are compatible.
The T-mobile website says this, "GSM-capable phones that support Band II (1900 MHz) or IV (1700/2100 MHz) are compatible with T-Mobile's network. CDMA phones are not compatible with the T-Mobile network. Additionally, phones may need to be unlocked to operate on T-Mobile's network" which is what we were told when we went to talk to T-mobile. ALSO, Verizon uses CDMA technology and their phones will not work with T-Mobile. I have no idea what CDMA or GSM mean or how they are different.
If you have a T-Mobile store in your area, go in and talk to them about what phones will work before you buy one. When you either buy a phone from them or bring in a compatible device, they will set it all up for you, put in the sim card and even transfer your contacts, etc., be sure your old service is properly cancelled and transport your number. That's what we did when my sister switched. There may be a charge for setup, but if there is, it isn't much, and IMHO well worth it because I'm not a whiz at setting up electronic stuff and when it comes to phones I am dumb as a stump.
I'd go in a store rather than buying online. The store we used here was very friendly and helpful, wasn't pushy about buying, and didn't talk down to old ladies who clearly had very little idea what they were doing and understood none of the technical stuff. We went back there a couple of times to get them to tweak her phone setup and they were friendly and helpful and didn't charge us anything.
The T-mobile website says this, "GSM-capable phones that support Band II (1900 MHz) or IV (1700/2100 MHz) are compatible with T-Mobile's network. CDMA phones are not compatible with the T-Mobile network. Additionally, phones may need to be unlocked to operate on T-Mobile's network" which is what we were told when we went to talk to T-mobile. ALSO, Verizon uses CDMA technology and their phones will not work with T-Mobile. I have no idea what CDMA or GSM mean or how they are different.
If you have a T-Mobile store in your area, go in and talk to them about what phones will work before you buy one. When you either buy a phone from them or bring in a compatible device, they will set it all up for you, put in the sim card and even transfer your contacts, etc., be sure your old service is properly cancelled and transport your number. That's what we did when my sister switched. There may be a charge for setup, but if there is, it isn't much, and IMHO well worth it because I'm not a whiz at setting up electronic stuff and when it comes to phones I am dumb as a stump.
I'd go in a store rather than buying online. The store we used here was very friendly and helpful, wasn't pushy about buying, and didn't talk down to old ladies who clearly had very little idea what they were doing and understood none of the technical stuff. We went back there a couple of times to get them to tweak her phone setup and they were friendly and helpful and didn't charge us anything.
AprilSun
Senior Member
Thanks for the advise! I will certainly keep it in mind. I am dumb when it comes to cell phones. I haven't had one in so many years I have forgotten what little bit I did know then so I would rather someone set it up for me. Thanks again!
AprilSun
Senior Member
I have two more questions but before I ask, let me explain why I have taken so long in signing up to T-Mobile for my phone service. Around the same time I posted my original question about T-Mobile Pay As You Go $3 monthly plan here, I had sent my son-in-law an email asking him his opinion on which service did he think would be best for me. The two services I was asking about was T-Mobile Pay As You Go or AT&T GoPhone Daily which was listed as $2 a day. AT&T's plan was advertised as:
"Plan name: AT&T GoPhone Daily
Price: $2 per day of use
Plan at a glance: Includes unlimited minutes and text messages
Why we like it: You only pay on days you use your phone — and on those days, you can talk and text to your heart’s content"
This sounds like if I didn't use it for months, I wouldn't pay anything. I could not believe this. It sounded "too good to be true". My son-in-law advised me to get this plan but I couldn't do it. Every time I thought about this I could hear someone saying "If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. Don't do it". Who said this, I don't know unless it was on some of those court shows I watch. Between that and the confusion of picking the right phone, etc., I decided to wait until my land line was dead again because it could be another year before it happened again and that would give me more time to do my research. I am so glad I did because this is what I found yesterday about the AT&T plan:
"You do have to refill your account periodically to keep the account active. (The time frame each refill is good for varies - it increases along with the dollar amount of the refill levels.) After 60 days beyond your last refill expiration the account will be cancelled.
So yes, from this perspective, it's not actually "Pay as You Go". It's "Pay Periodically or Money for Nothing" and this is from people who have signed up for it and are very dissatisfied with it. Well, last Saturday I lost my land line again so here I am.
Okay, now to my questions about the T-Mobile plan. How do they handle the telemarketers calling our cell phone numbers? Is this time taken off of our account or if we don't answer it, does it still come off of our account? Also, does voice mail come with it or is this something we have to add to it? I don't need it just for what I will use it for but I would like to know anyway. If anyone can answer these questions, I will surely appreciate it. I am going to get it this time and now if my son-in-law asks why I didn't get the AT&T plan, I can tell him what I found and also what you have told me about the T-Mobile plan. I may still be a little slow due to transportation but it will get done this time! Thanks everyone!
"Plan name: AT&T GoPhone Daily
Price: $2 per day of use
Plan at a glance: Includes unlimited minutes and text messages
Why we like it: You only pay on days you use your phone — and on those days, you can talk and text to your heart’s content"
This sounds like if I didn't use it for months, I wouldn't pay anything. I could not believe this. It sounded "too good to be true". My son-in-law advised me to get this plan but I couldn't do it. Every time I thought about this I could hear someone saying "If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is. Don't do it". Who said this, I don't know unless it was on some of those court shows I watch. Between that and the confusion of picking the right phone, etc., I decided to wait until my land line was dead again because it could be another year before it happened again and that would give me more time to do my research. I am so glad I did because this is what I found yesterday about the AT&T plan:
"You do have to refill your account periodically to keep the account active. (The time frame each refill is good for varies - it increases along with the dollar amount of the refill levels.) After 60 days beyond your last refill expiration the account will be cancelled.
So yes, from this perspective, it's not actually "Pay as You Go". It's "Pay Periodically or Money for Nothing" and this is from people who have signed up for it and are very dissatisfied with it. Well, last Saturday I lost my land line again so here I am.
Okay, now to my questions about the T-Mobile plan. How do they handle the telemarketers calling our cell phone numbers? Is this time taken off of our account or if we don't answer it, does it still come off of our account? Also, does voice mail come with it or is this something we have to add to it? I don't need it just for what I will use it for but I would like to know anyway. If anyone can answer these questions, I will surely appreciate it. I am going to get it this time and now if my son-in-law asks why I didn't get the AT&T plan, I can tell him what I found and also what you have told me about the T-Mobile plan. I may still be a little slow due to transportation but it will get done this time! Thanks everyone!
Butterfly
SF VIP
- Location
- Albuquerque, New Mexico USA
I have the T-Mobile plan and I don't pay for calls I don't answer, like telemarketers. I would certainly advise the T-mobile plan over the AT&T plan. The T-mobile plan costs me almost nothing and I've had zero problems with it over the several years (about 5 years) I've had it.
Try it for a while and if you don't like it, you can just stop refilling the minutes. My plan has no contract whatsoever, so you aren't tied to it. I purchased my phone outright, so the price of it wasn't tied to the plan. You can use any unlocked phone (as long as it is compatible with the T-mobile system -- you can check that out online).
Try it for a while and if you don't like it, you can just stop refilling the minutes. My plan has no contract whatsoever, so you aren't tied to it. I purchased my phone outright, so the price of it wasn't tied to the plan. You can use any unlocked phone (as long as it is compatible with the T-mobile system -- you can check that out online).
AprilSun
Senior Member
Oh, it's most definitely going to be the T-Mobile plan. I never was unsure about it. It was the AT&T plan that I was uncertain about because they tried to make it sound so much better but I learned from other users how it really is. Now, I wouldn't take the AT&T plan if it was given to me. I just don't trust AT&T and I like to hear from people who are using the services I'm interested in and you have provided me with positive information which I can't say about AT&T and don't really care. As soon as I decide on a phone or get me some transportation into town to the T-Mobile store, I am getting it! Thank you so much for your help!
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Butterfly
SF VIP
- Location
- Albuquerque, New Mexico USA
You are so welcome. The plan works very well for me and costs me very little.
I've known people including myself that have experience with many of those plans. I'd say Trac Phone and Tmobile the best. The problem is at the 30 or 90 day mark that service ends, no grace period unless you get a monthly bill. Again be prepared to have service cut on the date it's scheduled to, there is no leeway. But you can go pay 10 days later and get service restored without fees or penalties. I've delayed paying simply to avoid calls for a few days, the landline rings but don't have to worry about the cell for a while.
AprilSun
Senior Member
Thanks for this information! It's good to know that TMobile is considered one of the best. But, I do have to confess on the monthly bill issue. I took the lazy way out. I enabled the AutoPay and they will be billing my credit card once a month. I use this with my SiriusXM service and it has been working great for years with no problems. I know this is a different company but I thought I would try it and if there is problems, I can always log in to my account and make the needed changes. Thanks again for the information!