Best pay as you go smartphone plans

[tvguy]

Looking for a plan for occasional use for data while traveling. Talking and texting are not an issue, I will have my old non-smartphone for that.

What I hope to get is a plan that only charges for actual use, not a monthly fee or GBs that expire in a short period of time since I will be using it a week at a time every few months or so, or have it in the glove box of the car for occasional use. I don't mind buying a block of data in advance. I realize I can get data and a free smart phone with my current carrier, but I don't want to spend $30 a month and have a 2 year contract.
I realize I will have to buy a basic smartphone, those seem to start at $50 and go to $600 plus if you want a top of the line iphone.
Any suggestions?

 

[princesskrys]

I am not sure if this is something you are looking for, but I have an ipod touch and I purchased the Internet on the Go Mobile Hotspot (3G) from Walmart. It is $10.00 for 500 mg and when it runs out, I refill it. I would just check and make sure it worked in your area. We used it in our car, 4 ipods / ipads hooked up to it, from Connecticut to Florida.

 

[crazelion]

Tracfone haS Smartphones now and get data, voice, data triples minutes for life. Example 60 minute card gets 120 talk, 120 texts and 120 mb data . i think for 19.95 and expires in three months. My kids is on that plan. You get phones for under 100 bucks and runs off Verizon towers.

 

[MinnieForMe]

Tracfone haS Smartphones now and get data, voice, data triples minutes for life. Example 60 minute card gets 120 talk, 120 texts and 120 mb data . i think for 19.95 and expires in three months. My kids is on that plan. You get phones for under 100 bucks and runs off Verizon towers.

I'll admit it. I'm clueless. How much is 120 mb of data?

 

[Shelly F - Ohio]

Virgin Mobile has pay as you go plans starting at $35 and comes with 300 minutes of talk and unlimited data and text. They run off of Spirit towers. I love using mine to travel.

I buy my top up cards at Target with my redcard and pay $33.25 for a $35 dollar card

 

[RitaE]

Republic Wireless. The phone costs $299 for the Moto X. It is a great smart phone, well reviewed and functions great. I've been using it since November. It uses Sprint coverage but it does roam over to Verizon towers if you go out of range. I get really good coverage in our area but you might want to investigate their coverage maps if that concerns you.

They then offer 4 different plans, all are Contract Free.

$5 a month (Wi Fi use only)
$10 a month - Data only thru WiFi and unlimited Cell use Talk and Text
$25 a month - Unlimited Talk and Text and unlimited (they cap at 5GB) 3G Data
$35 a month - Unlimited Talk and Text and unlimited 4G Data (again cap at 5GB)

A key feature though is that you can switch your plans twice a month. So you can primarily keep yourself on the $10 a month plan with unlimited talk and text and then use the data functions when you have a WiFi connection, and then if you are going on vacation or something for a week you can bump up to the plan where you get 3g/4g Data … and then revert back when your trip is over. This is a blog post where they describe how the plan switching works.

https://community.republicwireless.com/blogs/republic/2013/12/13/the-lowdown-on-plan-switching

You can test drive for 30 days and return the phone if you decide it isn't for you. There are numerous referral code and discounts out there also that can get you some free test time.

I have dropped our family monthly cell phone bill from $185 a month (4 phones) to $85 a month … and we are all carrying smartphones around. Pretty cool.

You might also want to read up on some of the reviews by the Tech magazines etc. They've been getting a lot of press lately.

 

[mrodgers]

I'll admit it. I'm clueless. How much is 120 mb of data?

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How much is 120 mb? Oh, about that much

 

[Lewisc]

I'll admit it. I'm clueless. How much is 120 mb of data?

You can go to verizonwireless. They have a calculator. You say what kind of phone you're going to buy, tell it how you plan to use the phone during a month and it tells you how much data you need.

120 mb is enough data to view about 300 webpages. OR enough to stream audio for about 2 hours. OR enough to stream 30 minutes of 3G video OR less then 20 minutes of 4G video. OR upload/download 40 pictures total.

More then enough for thousands of emails.

In other words 120mb is more then enough to check your email and check a few webpages. Maybe make a hotel or restaurant reservation. You could check your facebook page. Not enough to upload and download many pictures to/from you FB account.

MORE THEN ENOUGH if you limit your data use to essentials. Surf the web, upload your pictures etc. when your phone is able to use WiFii.

 

[wiigirl]

You can go to verizonwireless. They have a calculator. You say what kind of phone you're going to buy, tell it how you plan to use the phone during a month and it tells you how much data you need.

120 mb is enough data to view about 300R webpages. per day. OR enough to stream audio for about 2 hours. OR enough to stream 30 minutes of 3G video OR less then 20 minutes of 4G video. OR upload/download 40 pictures total.

More then enough for thousands of emails.

In other words 120mb is more then enough to check your email and check a few webpages. Maybe make a hotel or restaurant reservation. You could check your facebook page. Not enough to upload and download many pictures to/from you FB account.

MORE THEN ENOUGH if you limit your data use to essentials. Surf the web, upload your pictures etc. when your phone is able to use WiFii.

 

[Lewisc]

OP is asking about a data limited plan. It's a good idea to turn off data when you're not actively using it. Many applications use data in the background. Used to track your location. To check for updates. To download ads. Opera browser uses less data then other browsers.

AFAIK Tracfone is the only service which accomplishes what the OP is looking for. Your minutes and data will last for 3 months (or a year) and can rollover.Only makes sense if you're rarely using the phone.

 

[mickeyplanner08]

Ting may be another option to check on. $6/month for an activated phone, and then pay as you go for data. It runs on the Sprint network, as well. It does not allow data if you are out of the Sprint network, so that may eliminate this as an option for you. Otherwise, it would likely meet your needs.

 

[kellia]

Virgin Mobile has pay as you go plans starting at $35 and comes with 300 minutes of talk and unlimited data and text. They run off of Spirit towers. I love using mine to travel.

I buy my top up cards at Target with my redcard and pay $33.25 for a $35 dollar card

We have the $35 plan and it's great, as long as Sprint works in your area.

Target has sales on the top up cards every 2 or 3 months, too. So, I stock up then and use my red card.

 

[crazelion]

I'll admit it. I'm clueless. How much is 120 mb of data?

Enough check your email and check in to hotel using the internet. I use wi-fi a a lot it does not really matter to me. I want a smartphone and ATT was rob me believe for 5 smartphones over 400 dollars.

 

[DaretoDis]

Check with QVC or Home Shopping Network for Tracfone Android phone bundles. I got a Samsung Centura with 600 mins talk...600 texts...and 600 MB data, car charger, hard cover, SDHC card, and $25 Play Store credit for $129. If you get to the end of your 90 day term and still have plenty of time left, you can extend every 30 days for $6.00.

The 600 talk/text/data is actually a 200 minute card, and they run around $40.00. Add the cost of the cover, car charger, SD card puts the phone at around $50.00.

This was a couple of months ago, but both shopping services have ongoing deals.

 

[tvguy]

We have the $35 plan and it's great, as long as Sprint works in your area.

Target has sales on the top up cards every 2 or 3 months, too. So, I stock up then and use my red card.

I can get a free smart phone with a 2 year contract and pay $30 a month with my current provider. I am looking for an occasional use data phone that costs a whole lot less than $30 a month and I can carry over unused data. Maybe I'm not being realistic. I will be using this in Sacramento, Houston and Phoenix for the most part. DW and I like our small, light, stupid phones that can go a week on a charge, so that is another reason I don't want to upgrade my main cell phone. I just look at the folks I know with smartphones, and they have there huge heavy phones, and they have a charger at work, a charger in the car, and a charger at home because the phones won't go a day without a charge.

 

[kaytieeldr]

Tracfone. Buy a minutes card that you expect to cover your usage; I still haven't figured out how they charge for data (calls use one minute per minute/partial, texts use 1/3 minute each). Especially if you don't care about the phone number, just don't add minutes to your phine g. Just buy more minutes nd reactivate the phone.

 

[MinnieForMe]

You can go to verizonwireless. They have a calculator. You say what kind of phone you're going to buy, tell it how you plan to use the phone during a month and it tells you how much data you need.

120 mb is enough data to view about 300 webpages. OR enough to stream audio for about 2 hours. OR enough to stream 30 minutes of 3G video OR less then 20 minutes of 4G video. OR upload/download 40 pictures total.

More then enough for thousands of emails.

In other words 120mb is more then enough to check your email and check a few webpages. Maybe make a hotel or restaurant reservation. You could check your facebook page. Not enough to upload and download many pictures to/from you FB account.

MORE THEN ENOUGH if you limit your data use to essentials. Surf the web, upload your pictures etc. when your phone is able to use WiFii.

So, perfect for someone like me who sends about 15 texts a month! It would be great for the few times I wanted to check my email while out. I appreciate the time you took to post! Thanks.

 

[RitaE]

I agree with the poster who mentions that if you really don't want a Smartphone, you might be happier with a Mobile Hotspot and some sort of tablet or an iTouch.

For instance I carry the Freedom Pop Overdrive and a Kindle Fire in my bag. The Overdrive cost me about $45 and with it I get 500mb of data free a month for life --- or for as long as FreedomPop stays in business.

The Kindle Fire cost me about $125.

Again, I don't pay for a Data Plan unless I need to use more than that 500MB a month, which has only happened a couple times when I was on long trips. When it does I can just purchase what I need. It is more than enough to casually check email or do some brief internet surfing when I'm out running around. It connects to the Sprint 4G network.

There are several over mobile hotspot devices out there and a wide range of plans. They sell a couple brands at WalMart and most of the cell phone providers offer some version. You might want to research them.

 

[Calliaz]

I also think you might just want a MiFi hotspot. I go through TruConnect. The MiFi device is $59 and $4.99 a month for service. An hour of regular internet usage is $.78. I rarely spend over $10 total for the month.

 

[usnuzuloose]

Tracfone haS Smartphones now and get data, voice, data triples minutes for life. Example 60 minute card gets 120 talk, 120 texts and 120 mb data . i think for 19.95 and expires in three months. My kids is on that plan. You get phones for under 100 bucks and runs off Verizon towers.

Please be aware of Tracfone. I got mine all hooked back up for a Vegas trip and when we got there I could not use it. The rep said I had to get a new sim card and phone number. I will not be using them again.