Trac Fone has done it again

[Princess Erin]

Great deal for all of us park travellers. No hotel phone bills.

TracFone is now offering bonus minutes to their package.

http://www.tracfone-orders.com/direct/tr/itemdetl.jsp?prod=2068&techzip=06451

This is great 94.99 for digital phone, one year of service, plus 200 minutes, now 350 minutes, 100 minutes referral, 20 minutes to activate and 10 minutes for email information.

Total minutes are 480 minutes and no contract and no worries for one year.

[Franne]

Do you know if there is a connection fee with each call. Ex...I amke a call that is 5 minutes, am I charged 5 units?
I am thinking of getting this for my daughter but don't want to be lulled into something misleading.

[DNBois]

I have a Trac Fone and if you call within your state you will be charged one minute which equals one unit; if you call outside of your state, you will be charged two units.
We just returned from Niagara Falls, Canada (rescheduled our Disney trip for January and headed up there) and realized that we were using 3 units for every minute - hope this helps.

[Franne]

Thanks, that does. I was going to get her a verizon phone, but they charge .35 cents connection fee for every call for the first minute. I thought that was too much to pay so I decided to look elsewhere. This might be great!
Thanks!

[wildaboutmickey]

I purchased the tracfone almost a year ago and got the bonus minutes, can I get another phone with the 1 year minute card and get the bonus minutes again? or do they allow only one bonus minutes per customer?

Thanks,
Michelle

[Straitlover]

The number of minutes used is not based on your state, it's based on your local calling area. You can key in your zip code on the Trac Fome website to see your calling area. I live 25 miles from work. Halfway to my office, I switch from local to roaming. Roaming takes 2 minutes per minute of talk time. However, my phone is only for emergencies or being late to work, so I have oodles of minutes to spare.

If you go to the website and click on Buy Airtime (or buy Phone) you will find the year card w/ the bonus minutes. I believe it's good until around 10/13. My phone just came up for renewal (my year was to run out 9/26), and I was able to get the bonus 200 minutes, too, so that part's not just for new customers. If you have a phone that is deactivated, you should be able to buy that card, reactivate it and get the 200 minutes.

edited to correct spelling

[mum of two pirates]

Just wanted to let you know that Safeway stores have a add for them this week only. 39.99 after $10 instant rebate.. It says no activation fees. nationwide long distance included. Phone models may vary. Have fun. I wonder if you can combine this with the other stuff for the great min.l

[Princess Erin]

I just checked that out. The price is still much more expensive per minute and you do not get the benefits of buying and registering online.

Worth looking at though.

[disney4me4ever]

It's OT, but maybe someone who has a Tracphone can answer this question for me. I bought my sister a Tracphone last year, as she can't afford a regular cellphone. I know that she *should* be able to use that phone anywhere; (I know she would be using double minutes when roaming). But when she tries to use the phone out of her home area, she gets prompted for a phone card---is this for long distance???? She's called customer service, but apparently there are some "language-challenged" people that work the phones. I feel bad, because I bought her the phone and it's basically useless. Does anyone have any advice?

TIA,
Nancy :earsgirl:

[tink2dw]

1. I want to know why trac phones only work occaisionally and only if you are calling out?

2. If someone calls in it rings you answer hear hello and then the voice gets weaker so quickly you can't tell why they called??

3. And it gets worse every time you add minutes??

Please does anyone know what to do??

[georgina]

Originally posted by disney4me4ever
It's OT, but maybe someone who has a Tracphone can answer this question for me. I bought my sister a Tracphone last year, as she can't afford a regular cellphone. I know that she *should* be able to use that phone anywhere; (I know she would be using double minutes when roaming). But when she tries to use the phone out of her home area, she gets prompted for a phone card---is this for long distance???? She's called customer service, but apparently there are some "language-challenged" people that work the phones. I feel bad, because I bought her the phone and it's basically useless. Does anyone have any advice?
:

I have a similar problem. My phone won't work certain places. DH's does work everywhere, but his is several years newer than mine. There is something in my directions about needing a code to use the phone in certain areas, but I have never been able to figure it out. You're right, it is very difficult to make yourself understood to the customer service people.

tink2dw, your problem sounds like the phone is defective to me, not necessarily a problem with the service.

[frstimer128]

The only time I had a problem with mine was when I was in RI along the water where there was no signal.
Tracfone is not something you get if you are a talk-a-holic. It is great for that once in a while phone call or just to have for piece of mind. I love that I have no contract and that I am not getting a "surpirse" bill. You can only use the minutes you have so no overage charges.
Highly recommended for low to moderate use.

[AJKMOM]

An employee at the local WalMart recommended Virgin Mobile instead of Tracfone. Anyone else?

[dpayne1969]

hi guys,
i have a question in regards to this tracphone.I am wanting to get my 11 year old one of these for our trip in Nov.I do not want to get him a regular cell phone with a contract.I was wondering if this would work in Florida?We are from Oklahoma and i just want him to have one so if he gets lost from me i can call him on mine and find out where he is at and tell him to stay somewhere and meet me!
Please help.Any advice is very welcome.

[jizroc]

I have used a Virgin Mobile phone and have been very pleased with it. No roaming charges, 25 cents a minute and if you go over 10 min of usage in one day it drops to 10 cents per minute for the remainder of that day. Coverage is excellent.

[Raggedy]

do you get any nights or weekends free with these pre paid phones? That is king of expensivel, 25 cents a minute for the first ten minutes. I want to get my son a pre paid cell phone for his birthday this friday.

[Princess Erin]

I found this to work out great, for those who do not want a contract. It is an emergency phone for calls from the kids and for sporting events and kid pickups.

With the bonus minutes you actually make out very well. True with the contracted rates you have all those nights and weekends but it is a different usuage.

[Raggedy]

so they have nothing for nights and weekends?

[Straitlover]

Raggedy, w/ Tracfone, you use your minutes no matter what time of the day or night. If you're in your local area, it is one minute subtracted for each minute of talk time; in roaming areas, it's 2 minuted deducted for each minute of talk time. It doesn;t work like a cell phone plan where you get free nights and weekends. You just buy X number of minutes and have to buy more airtime at certain intervals to keep the phone active.

Pre paid phones are good for emergenices and people who use them rarely. Per minute they are a lot more expensive but in a year's time are a whole lot cheaper than having a phone w/ a plan. I talk maybe 10 minutes a month on mine, so I buy the one year card for $94.99. That works out to $7.91 per month, which is way less than a monthly plan for time that I won't use. I personally wouldn't get it for a kid if they are going to use it to call their friends.

[WDWorBUST]

Dpayne....I'm also in Oklahoma...although I have not used my tracfone in Florida yet I can't see it being a problem. The only place I have had a problem is the boonies in Arkansas.

[greendoor678]

I highly recommend Virgin Mobile.
It's great if you just need a phone for emergencies or occasional usage.

I must say that my Grandpa had a terrible experience with Tracphone. I don't want to totally diss Tracphone if you all are really pleased with it. But here's what happened:

My Grandpa lost over $100 worth of minutes because he accidentally dropped his phone and ruined it.
He had just put more minutes on it and could not even use the phone.
With the help of a WalMart employee, he purchased a new trac phone and called customer service about getting the minutes from one phone transferred to another.
He was told by TracPhone that he may or may not get his minutes transferred to the new phone and it would take 6-8 weeks to resolve the issue and give him an answer.
He was really disapointed.

Also, whenever he put more minutes on his phone, for some reason Tracphone would make him change his cell phone number, so he had about 3 different numbers in 2 years.

He is elderly and perhaps maybe couldn't communicate as well with their Customer Service dept as younger people, but I really felt bad for him.

My experience with the Virgin line of phones has been flawless and the pay-as-you go rates and usage areas were always great.

I sincerely hope that my Grandpa's Tracphone experience was isolated and that ya'lls experience with Trac is good.
But since he's on a fixed income and lost his money I can hardly recommend Trac to anyone considering them as a pay as you go solution.

:(

[dpayne1969]

thank you for your reply WDWorBUST
I am going to look into this for him to use while on our trip.Thanks for all the info you all have provided on this topic!

[Raggedy]

well i looked into this phone for my sons 15th birthday, and i found something that fits him better. It is from AT&T. It may not work for you. There is no contract. He will get 400 minutes a month and free weekends. I did the math and for my son this is better. It my not be for you. But it is something you can look into. I just didn't like the idea that it will cost him 2.50 for the first 10 minutes. THis plan is just not for a kid. It is for an adult that wouldn't use the phone. But i know my son. After the 400 minutes the phone turns off. I like that. I also like that the weekends are free. If i let them take the money from my account he would of go free nights too. But that wouldn't teach him. I want him to pay his own bill. So he can learn his responsibly. Just thought i would add my 2 cents. But thank you for sharing with me. I learned alot about different plans.

[NotUrsula]

DH & I both use Virgin phones. We are very pleased with them. If you live in a major metro area you should have no difficulty with coverage; their coverage map tracks along the Interstate hwy system. If you are a major metro area or near an interstate, you will have service. I have a Kyocera Rave, he has a Slider. Unused minutes roll indefinitely as long as you top up a min. of $20 every 90 days.

I don't use my phone often, but I use it a lot more when travelling than I do when I am at home. This means it is the best pre-paid plan for me, as there is not unit-charge difference regardless of where you are calling from within the US. Disregarding the initial investment for the phone, I can keep the account active for only $80/yr. (most other prepaids require you to top up more frequently now; that was why I dropped AT&T; they changed the expiration from 90 days to 45.) Target will occasionally offer 25% discounts on top-up cards; when that happens I stock up.

BTW, it now law that ANY US cellphone with a charged battery can be used to reach 911; even if there is currently no active service plan on the phone. Old phones can be kept charged and carried for true emergencies.

[Raggedy]

NotUrsula
yes you are right about the 911 calls. I just dropped off about 3 phones to the police station. They are collecting old phones for battered women, so they can dial 911 in an emergency. So if anyone has an old phone just drop them off at the police station and they will give them away. i think this is great.

I looked into the virgin phones and they were a good deal. But for my son i like the AT&T , only because i know he will use all him's minutes every month. But i do like that i didn't have to get a contract, so if anything else comes my way i can jump at it. So if anyone has anything better out there share it with us.

[Princess Erin]

Thanks for the info. I am going to drop off those old phones today also. I called the P.D. and they do need them.

Great tip. :Pinkbounc

[laurabelle]

I never knew that about 911... Thank you for the tip about taking the old phones to the police station! What a great idea!

[NotUrsula]

When you donate your old phones, remember to also donate the chargers that went with them, if you are not using them any longer; the phone's no use unless the battery is charged. Also, if the old phone was a pre-paid that you recently stopped using, make sure you call the company first and get the phone number permanently removed from the account. With most prepaids, the phone number can resurrect itself if you top up the minutes within a certain period after the last balance expired; if the recipient of the phone decides to re-activate the phone for prepaid use, you don't want them getting calls meant for you.

WRT teens on pre-paid phones, my preference is to stick to traditional prepaids for them, too. My reason for getting a cell phone for a teen in the first place will be for emergencies and so that I can reach him when I need to and vice versa; I can't reach him if the phone is busy every time I call. I'm just mean, I suppose, but I think that if it costs them $25/minute, perhaps it might teach them not to spend all their time yakking on the phone for no particular reason.

[laurabelle]

I thought of including the charger too.
I did keep my old phone number when I switched over. I wonder if this would be a problem...

BTW- We just switched to Virgin Mobile from T-Mobile. I was the only one with a celly, and I hardly use mine. Hubby who has a long commute really needed one and my oldest dd started middle school and I wanted her to have a phone. None of us will be using it that often, my dd isn't quite at the age where she's hanging on the phone with her friends alot. And she knows she has to budget her minutes. For the 3 of us, it works out to $20/month. T-Mobile just for me was $40. So far the customer service is excellent, and the phone, the KRave, is loud and clear. It's a great choice for those of us who aren't using it as our main phone.

[Robinrs]

Originally posted by dpayne1969
hi guys,
i have a question in regards to this tracphone.I am wanting to get my 11 year old one of these for our trip in Nov.I do not want to get him a regular cell phone with a contract.I was wondering if this would work in Florida?We are from Oklahoma and i just want him to have one so if he gets lost from me i can call him on mine and find out where he is at and tell him to stay somewhere and meet me!
Please help.Any advice is very welcome.

I used this with MY 11yo last trip. He would go traipsing with his friends we always had a connection.

Before leaving change your tracfone to Orlando's area code then change it back when you come home. This can be done on the tracfone website.

[dpayne1969]

thanks for your reply,
that sounds like a great idea!I think we are going to take the plunge and go with it!

[Princess Erin]

hello, check your pm :Pinkbounc