Whenever someone talks to me about cell phones, the one
thing I hear more often than not in my line of work is the cost of the bill
every month. It ranges from “I can’t
afford it” to “If my kids would stop downloading all that music” and on and
on. In this grand information/technology
era, constant communication among family members really is important to a lot
of people, and I’m one of them, especially with my daughter. When she was 9, she asked for her first cell
phone and I had to think long and hard if getting her one was a good move. That being said, my daughter has had a cell
phone for the last 2 years, so I gave in but not without a little research. After doing some shopping around, I settled
on a no contract cell phone for her and it has been the best decision I’ve made
when it comes to cell phones.
No contract phones are just what they sound like: a cell
phone without a contract. Also included: no credit check, no down payment and no reason not to like it. Almost every carrier is now offering some sort of no
contract phones. As it was at one time
only Cricket or some smaller carriers, now AT&T, Verizon and others are offering
cell phones without a contract. After
(maybe) a higher initial fee for purchasing the phone, there are a lot of
positives to like about these phones compared to phones where you have to “sign
up” for 2 years, or longer. When you are
in a contract, if you do not pay the bill, the phone is shut off. When you re-connect, there is a fee. There are also late fees, charges for
downloads and other charges when you look at your bill. When a no contract phone is shut off, there
are no extra fees attached to getting it turned back on. All you must do it purchase a refill card and
add it to your account. Guess what else…no
fees for a re-connect.
If money is tight
and her phone is off, my daughter has to wait to get the money to turn her phone back
on. Another good thing about this phone
is that if you don’t refill the account and the phone is off, there is no
lingering bill out there making its way to the collection agency. You can also download to a no contract phone,
but guess what…if there is no money in the account, it will not let you
download anything. For me, it is a great
teaching tool. If my daughter wants a
ringtone, she saves her money and then will purchase a Verizon card and
download what she wants. There are not
any of the unexpected $340 cell phone bills that we have all been surprised
with. She saves her money and buys what
she wants. A quick plan comparison is
that my daughter pays only $50 for unlimited talk and text, where I pay $30 for
the family plan and $29.99 for the data package; she’s getting the better deal
I think.
Some other comparisons are:
Contract No Contract
Talk & text yes yes
Picture messaging yes yes
Downloads yes yes
2 yr. contract yes no
Re-connect fees yes no
Web browsing yes yes
Those are just some of the quick comparisons to keep in mind
when you are cell phone shopping for yourself or a family member. Good luck!!
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