Communications & Tech - The ISP, VoIP and Cellphone Superguide

[Tennis Maniac]

@destron
I also started with AT&T/iPhone 4s unlimited data plan.
My lifestyle has me at home or at the office 95% of the time.  Since I am on wifi 95% of the time I can use Google Voice for texting/talking over the internet (Talkatone app).  If you aren't out and about all the time checking your email, it's not a far cry to eliminate almost all of your cellular usage (i've used <$1 of my prepaid talk/text/data in 3 weeks (AirVoice).
I have texts/talk routed through GV (talkatone) and I've only turned on cellular data a couple times.
Test yourself by turning off cellular data unless you actively pick up your phone and use it.  Then use the iPhone's usage stats to see how much data you use.  What I found is that I pick up my phone and then ask why I even need to check my email while i'm walking through the park.
Don't use AT&T's stats to estimate your usage... the problem there is that you probably left data on all the time and use your cell phone at home for calling/texting.  I estimated my usage was going to be around $10/month after my changes and it seems to be closer to $1/month.

Good luck!!

https://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/cable-internet-home-cell-phones-redone-mmm-style!/

[destron]

@destron
I also started with AT&T/iPhone 4s unlimited data plan.
My lifestyle has me at home or at the office 95% of the time.  Since I am on wifi 95% of the time I can use Google Voice for texting/talking over the internet (Talkatone app).  If you aren't out and about all the time checking your email, it's not a far cry to eliminate almost all of your cellular usage (i've used <$1 of my prepaid talk/text/data in 3 weeks (AirVoice).
I have texts/talk routed through GV (talkatone) and I've only turned on cellular data a couple times.

Thanks. This is kind of my plan for in the future. Right now I do not have wi-fi at work and I have a highly un-mustacian commute of 27 miles each direction. Since I am away from home so much, I am not yet willing to cut myself off from communication. I have managed to get a new position that will only be 20 miles each direction (tiny golf clap). I am currently positioning myself for an out and career change, though. As a police officer, I'm tired of dealing with negativity on the job and, even worse, being treated poorly off the job because of assumptions people make about me.

[Daley]

Brief update on the entire Platinumtel transition over to T-Mobile and other assorted T-Mo MVNO news.

First, for all you potential Platinumtel converts out there who are thinking of jumping over after they've made the Sprint to T-Mo switch, be aware that their service area map is a bit misleading at the moment. Platinumtel does not provide any coverage outside of the native T-Mobile GSM network, so any area marked "service partner" will not have any service at all, and I feel listing T-Mo's Prepaid 4G GSM coverage with their partners is a little misleading. I've brought it to their attention, so hopefully there will be a map change shortly. A more accurate service area map can be had on either the Simple Mobile website, or over at T-Mobile's new prepaid brand GoSmart Mobile.

Speaking of, T-Mobile is in the early stages of launching their own newly branded prepaid service GoSmart Mobile. As you can tell by some of the prices, not only are they pushing hard into the prepaid market, they appear to be cutting their own new partners off at the knees with their "unlimited" offerings. Granted, you factor in the added cost of international support with GoSmart, it does keep Platinumtel's new prices in perspective, but P'tel doesn't offer packages without a feature most people don't give a toss about, and even still, offering 5GB of data before throttle with or without international calling/SMS support in the $45-55 range kicks P'tel right in the breadbasket given their $50 2GB unthrottled package offering. Interesting game being played here.

[sol]

How does the new Ptel 35/mo plan compare to virgin mobile's 35/mo plan? They look pretty much equivalent to me.

[Daley]

How does the new Ptel 35/mo plan compare to virgin mobile's 35/mo plan? They look pretty much equivalent to me.

Que? P'tel doesn't currently have a $35/month plan anymore. T-Mobile's new branded service GoSmart does have a $35/month plan that's "unlimited" talk, text and 2G/EDGE data (a bit better than dial-up speeds - great for text stuff, not for multimedia), so compared to Virgin (outside of hardware/network differences), you're trading minutes for bandwidth. Virgin caps your minutes at 300 to give you full-speed data up to 2.5GB for that money, where GoSmart gives you relatively uncapped minutes in exchange for heavily throttled data.

P'tel's $40 "unlimited" package gives you up to 250MB of unthrottled data before cutting you back to 2G/EDGE speeds, otherwise, it's pretty well unmetered across the board as well, like GoSmart.

Now, the $45 mark between Virgin and GoSmart is where things get interesting. T-Mo's network is smaller than Sprint's, but the GoSmart $45 plan wins out on all fronts with the same relatively uncapped minute usage as their $35 plan and that 5GB of data provided before being throttled back to 2G/EDGE speeds. No tethering options, though. That goes for both Platinumtel and GoSmart... T-Mo doesn't want their prepaids and MVNOs doing modem work, it looks like.

IIRC, you went Virgin for the data and bandwidth because you didn't really use minutes. If you're on their $35 plan, stay put.

[sol]

IIRC, you went Virgin for the data and bandwidth because you didn't really use minutes. If you're on their $35 plan, stay put.

That was all very helpful, thanks.

I'm on VM and happy with it, though the data speeds are considerably slower than when I had Sprint in the same locations. But now that my wife's contract is up with Verizon we're moving her to prepaid as well, and considering our options. She talks more than I do.

[hoyahoyasaxa]

Hi all,

I'm trying to figure out the best route to take for switching to an MVNO.  I current have an iPhone 4s with Verizon and pay $79.99 per month, but with fees and taxes, the average bill comes to about $95.  After a month on Mr. Money Mustache, I'm now ready to take up the Mustachean lifestyle and go to talk and text only (I have an iPod touch that I can use for camera/apps, etc. with wireless).

So, here's my situation.  I spoke with a Verizon rep who told me that I currently have 10 months left on my contract, and that the early termination fee right now would be $200.  My max usage in the past 6 months has been 166 voice minutes and 90 texts per month.  It would seem that I fit into the $10-15 per month range for a lot of these MVNO plans.  Here are my questions, because I am utterly confused by a lot of this.

1) If I break my contract now, would I be able to sell my iPhone on ebay (which I should be able to get $250-300 for)?  Would I have to do anything first, i.e. I've seen things about locked vs. unlocked phones?  I'd be fine with keeping the phone if I could simply switch, but it seems next to impossible to switch a Verizon iPhone 4s to an MVNO.

2) I've tried to do research on coverage in my area but see a million different opinions.  I live just a few miles outside Manhattan near Astoria in Queens.  For any NYCers out there- is there really a particular carrier to stay away from or is anything really going to be fine?

3) If I do get rid of the iPhone, is there any reason to get a smartphone?  I noticed the OP has Android- since I'm not using data, what's the difference between getting a smartphone for talk/text vs. a basic phone?

Thanks in advance!

[dahlink]

Hello hoyahoyasaxa,

  If you have an ipod touch then there is likely very little reason to NEED a smartphone.  You have access to all the great apps that way.  Unless you cannot stand carrying both or going without the iOS device sometimes I think you will just be fine.  Especially with the new found savings. 

  However, I used to rock a Palm Pixi Plus Verizon branded but bought unlocked from amazon for about 35 bucks or so.   I put in on Page Plus and was good to go.  It runs webOS which is a pretty fun operating system...except when you have to reboot...it takes forever lol.

Unfortunately, i cannot speak for NYC coverage.  Hopefully you get some feedback on here.

 WebOS phones have been on verizon, sprint, and AT&T...I'm not trying to push them but since they went upside down with HP the phones can be pretty cheap.

As for selling your phone.  You should be able to.  I would talk with Verizon on the details of what is needed.  You can always sell it to gazelle.com if you are in a rush, but selling it yourself on craig's or ebay my be best.

As for the difference between texts and talking between a smartphone and a regular cellphone...I think regular cell phones used to get better reception because of where the antenna with in the phone is (some pulled out) but texting and voice are the same.  The only thing I would miss is being able to check my emails when I'm at a free wifi hotspot.  It's not that important really since everyone else has a data plan anyways if you really need to get online.  But if you have your ipod touch then you are good to go anyways.

Well, good luck.

[Daley]

Hoyahoyasaxa-

1) Only if you buy out your contract and pay the ETF fees. When you do that, your phone's ESN becomes "clean" and you can resell the device on Ebay/Craigslist/etc. for as much as you can possible get for the thing as anyone else can re-activate the device on Verizon.

2) Major metro areas are going to have good coverage in general from all four of the major carriers, but you might run into the other problem in NYC: poor service from network congestion. If you're happy with Verizon's service and you're not feeling adventurous, it might be best to stick with a Verizon MVNO. That means Page Plus for you, and The 12 for your package.

3) Not really, the biggest differences are negligible if you approach the device as a tool. Take a look at this recent thread on just that subject. My wife and I may have Android smartphones currently, but our out-of-pocket on the devices with Platinumtel was $10 a pop, and we got them more for the flexibility of WiFi support, SIP support and the QWERTY keyboards. Overall, I find the platform overrated and not worth the extra money (even when there was no extra money involved) nearly a year in with the things and once we activate our SIM cards with Platinumtel's GSM migration will probably be switching to either used Nokia Symbian s60 devices or straight up Java MIDP 2.x feature phones with WiFi chipsets. The things are dirt cheap and plenty capable. A lot of them even do push email, not that email takes up much bandwidth usage if you turn off attachments and limit download to headers only until opened.

Dahlink's right on the Palm front... WebOS can be nice and the devices cheap. Between Ebay, Amazon and Craigslist, there'll be no shortage of available cheap handsets to activate with Page Plus if you want. Just be sure to shop for Verizon branded CDMA handsets with no 4G LTE support, no Blackberry, and a certified clean ESN (get a clear picture of the ESN from the device the seller has before purchase and call Verizon with the number to check if you go CL/Ebay). Refurbs through Amazon are usually worth the little extra money from a reduced hassle front, however, and you usually get a new battery out of the deal.

[hoyahoyasaxa]

Hoyahoyasaxa-

1) Only if you buy out your contract and pay the ETF fees. When you do that, your phone's ESN becomes "clean" and you can resell the device on Ebay/Craigslist/etc. for as much as you can possible get for the thing as anyone else can re-activate the device on Verizon.

Thanks, I.P!  One other question- if I paid to get out of my contract early, and decided to go with PagePlus, would I be able to keep my current phone number?

[Daley]

Thanks, I.P!  One other question- if I paid to get out of my contract early, and decided to go with PagePlus, would I be able to keep my current phone number?

Yes, you should be able to port your number over without any potential problems with or without paying the ETF first. Paying the ETF before porting your number just makes the account termination process triggered by that event less messy, especially if you want clean ESNs on your handsets.

If you didn't have an iPhone, you technically could have just taken the handset with you over to Page Plus after buying out the ETF, but those handsets are technically on the forbidden list along with the others I cited. It hasn't stopped people from getting them on Page Plus, but officially they're on the forbidden list.

Just remember... don't close your account with your current carrier if you want to keep your number... port it out. The act of number porting is what will terminate your account with your current carrier.

[HawkeyeNFO]

Can't say enough good things about Ooma.  I've been using it for almost 4 years, no problems at all, easy to set up and use.  Only cost was the equipment, although I think if you buy it now, you most likely have to pay some small taxes.  Anyways, the big thing was to convince the wife that this would work just like the plain old telephone system.  As long as power and internet work, the phone does too at my house.  The Ooma device paid for itself after just a few months.

Problem I have now is the FiOS came as a bundle, and it was cheaper to keep the Verizon phone then just get the internet and cable.  Will take a look at that periodically until the contract period is over.

[Daley]

Can't say enough good things about Ooma.

I know you like Ooma, Hawkeye, but there's a reason why I don't recommend them, and it comes down to math and features. Let me do the math breakdown for you and others on Ooma's costs and features for their "free" service:

$160 Ooma Telo purchase
$39.99 for number porting (optional)
$3.75/month for taxes and service fees (average)

TOTAL BUY-IN COST: $200
TOTAL COST PER YEAR: $45

That's for their "free" service. If you want any of the features they offer on their "Premier" service (free calls to Canada, number roll-over on device failure, Caller ID name, anonymous call block, voicemail forwarding to e-mail... basically free services with nearly any other VoIP carrier), it's an extra $10 a month. I might also add, most other VoIP providers will number port for free.

TOTAL COST PER YEAR FULL FEATURES: $165

Also, your expensive hardware's locked into Ooma. You can't use it with another SIP account, nor can you use Ooma with your own ATA. If the hardware fails (which it's known to do due to cheap capacitors), you're buying another $160 Ooma Telo. If you decide to switch elsewhere, you're buying or renting new equipment.

Now, let's compare that with VOIPo and their normal running deal:
$0 hardware costs (provided free)
$0 number porting fee (provided free)
$7.71/month for service, taxes, fees (average with $149/2 year deal + taxes)

TOTAL BUY-IN COST: $0
TOTAL COST PER YEAR: $92.50

It would take FOUR YEARS just to break even on the cost of Ooma's free service over VOIPo, and you wouldn't even get half the conveniences VOIPo would provide or the freedom and flexibility of having a standards-friendly SIP provider... and that's assuming there's no hardware failure in those four years. Both services cap at 5000 minutes a month, so there's literally no advantage... though VOIPo at least charges you for the overage instead of potentially terminating your service.

How's that deal look now?

I don't point this out to insult or belittle pre-existing Ooma users... if you've got the service and you're happy with it, fantastic. I mainly point this out for people who might consider buying into Ooma without thoroughly researching first figuring it's a fantastic deal when it really isn't by competitor's standards.

If you want dirt cheap phone service with a proprietary device and no SIP device support, you're far better to use NetTalk. All the premium features with Ooma for free at a fraction of the cost. $45 for the device and a year's worth of service, $20 number porting fee, $30 a year after for service. Ooma can't touch it except in call quality, but even the voice quality with NetTalk is more than serviceable (and moderately better sounding than MagicJack).

[HawkeyeNFO]

When I bought the Ooma 4 years ago, it was the best proven option at the time, none of that other stuff was around, and if it was it was a less than complete, optimal solution.  I'm on the Ooma Hub (not the Telo), also have a Scout but I don't need or use it.  If another system works for you, then go for it. 

As for me, I have paid two things for phone service since I plugged in the Ooma 4 years ago:  jack, and $Hl+.  It works 100% of the time.  So yes, I still like it better than any alternative.


Now, I am looking to save on cheap pre-paid service.  Currently using Net10, but I have decreased my cell usage dramatically since starting my current job (no cell phones allowed in the office), and don't need the amount of minutes I once did.  I probably need 100 minutes or less per month.

[Daley]

Now, I am looking to save on cheap pre-paid service.  Currently using Net10, but I have decreased my cell usage dramatically since starting my current job (no cell phones allowed in the office), and don't need the amount of minutes I once did.  I probably need 100 minutes or less per month.

As long as you've got decent T-Mobile coverage, Platinumtel should be your first and last stop. Otherwise, Airvoice if you need AT&T GSM coverage.

When I bought the Ooma 4 years ago, it was the best proven option at the time, none of that other stuff was around, and if it was it was a less than complete, optimal solution.  I'm on the Ooma Hub (not the Telo), also have a Scout but I don't need or use it.  If another system works for you, then go for it. 

As for me, I have paid two things for phone service since I plugged in the Ooma 4 years ago:  jack, and $Hl+.  It works 100% of the time.  So yes, I still like it better than any alternative.

I'd hardly call Ooma the "best proven option" four years ago when it's proprietary and was new on the market, and the options I mention now in the guide were available with just as mature features (if not more so) and availability with relatively similar pricing to today. Besides, it doesn't matter what deal you had four years ago when you recommend carriers, what matters is what's available now for new users. For the money, Ooma is a racket.

[Tom Reingold]

You've inspired me, and I've taken action. I switched from Vonage to voip.ms. I now own an obi100 and am about to buy an obi110. I love voip.ms! My phone bills are unbelievable now.

Plus I'm having a blast building IVR's. Not that I need them, but it's a great toy.

I'm trying to switch from AT&T cell service to net10, but I'm having trouble. First, I activated my sim card the wrong way: they assigned me a new number, but I had intended to port one of my voip.ms numbers to net10. The tech support person the only way for me to do that is to buy yet another sim card, which would entail throwing away the current sim card. Companies like AT&T would refund me the stupid $15 for my mistake. I'm torn between fighting them and swallowing the $15.

I'm also having trouble setting APN on my iphone. I feel as if not many iphone users use net10.

Any recommendations?

[Daley]

Any recommendations?

Yup, don't use Net10.

If you want to use AT&T GSM service, Airvoice has cheaper monthly and prepaid minute plans, cheaper SIM cards, and better customer support to boot. If you're cool with T-Mobile GSM coverage and your iPhone's carrier unlocked, use Platinumtel or GoSmart Mobile depending on the sort of plan you're after.

[Tom Reingold]

You're telling me almost too late, but my investment so far is low, so I'll consider your recommendation strongly. I haven't read this whole thread, of course, so what are the main points against net10?

[Daley]

You're telling me almost too late, but my investment so far is low, so I'll consider your recommendation strongly. I haven't read this whole thread, of course, so what are the main points against net10?

Nutshell? Terrible customer support, not as competitively priced (though they are better than they were). Same issues I cite against StraightTalk stand against sister products Net10 and Tracfone. In the native tongue of their tech support, for the money? America Movil is no bueno. Better can be had elsewhere for less.

[Tom Reingold]

OK, thanks.

Airvoice has a $55/month plan that includes 1 GB of data. That's $5 more than net10's $50 plan that has unlimited data. Show me where Airvoice's rates are lower. I must be overlooking something.

[TheDude]

OK, thanks.

Airvoice has a $55/month plan that includes 1 GB of data. That's $5 more than net10's $50 plan that has unlimited data. Show me where Airvoice's rates are lower. I must be overlooking something.

I think I.P. points you back to the first page where he says:

1) I need a cell phone data plan for my GB and GB of data every month!
No, you don't. Use your cell phone as a tool. Learn to use its primary function as an emergency communications tool, nothing more. Stop using Facebook, Twitter, browsing the web, streaming music and video, and whatever else you young kids today use cell phones for. For the data you will be using on your cell to keep costs low with lower priority communications, you don't need much data. You'd be surprised how little Google Voice, TextFreek, Kik, e-mail, IM, and GPS/map data for the times you don't have a real paper map in the car for the area you're in can really use. You also forget the multitude of WiFi hotspots around... if you're concerned enough about data, you likely own a phone that can connect to WiFi. Use it. If you want to be entertained while out and about, use an MP3 player or read a book.

I tend to agree with unlimited is neither truly need nor need by most people.

[Daley]

OK, thanks.

Airvoice has a $55/month plan that includes 1 GB of data. That's $5 more than net10's $50 plan that has unlimited data. Show me where Airvoice's rates are lower. I must be overlooking something.

What Dude said.

Countless others here have gone on a data diet, MMM included, and realized they really don't miss paying for it.

Also, everything I have said about "unlimited" data from Straight Talk applies to Net10 as well.

Don't believe me? Check out Section 20 of their Terms & Conditions:

NET10 UNLIMITED PLAN INTENDED USE

​The NET10 Unlimited Plan may ONLY be used with a NET10 Phone for the following purposes:  (i) Person to Person Voice Calls (ii) Text and Picture Messaging (iii) Internet browsing through the NET10 Mobile Web Portal and (iv) Authorized Content Downloads from the NET10 Mobile Web Store.  The NET10 Unlimited Plan MAY NOT be used for any other purpose.  Examples of prohibited uses include, without limitation, the following: (i) continuous mobile to mobile or mobile to landline voice calls; (ii) automated text or picture messaging to another mobile device or e-mail address; (iii) uploading, downloading or streaming of audio or video programming or games; (iv) server devices or host computer applications, including, but not limited to, Web camera posts or broadcasts, automatic data feeds, automated machine-to-machine connections or peer-to-peer (“P2P”) file sharing; or (v) as a substitute or backup for private lines or dedicated data connections.  This means, by way of example only, that checking email, surfing the Internet, downloading legally acquired songs, and/or visiting corporate intranets is permitted, but downloading movies using P2P file sharing services or redirecting television signals for viewing on laptops is prohibited.  A customer engaged in prohibited uses may have his/her Service terminated without notice or a refund.

Wireless data is expensive. If you want to belly up to the data bar that much, start supporting your habit with WiFi hotspots or bite the bullet and go with a T-Mobile MVNO. T-Mo's own GoSmart Mobile is $5 a month cheaper than Net10 and they have actual data usage disclosure before they even throttle you down to EDGE data speeds. It's 5GB, 2.5x the soft cap of America Movil... not that it'll matter, you're likely only going to get EDGE data speeds on that iPhone on T-Mo anyway. Might as well go with the $35 plan at that point.

[Tom Reingold]

Fair points. If my situation were different, I'd make some pointed decisions about how much wireless data I need and what kinds of things I'll access through my phone.

My current situation is that I work for one of the big cell carriers, and they supply me with an iphone 4S with unlimited data. This means that my personally-owned iphone 4 rarely needs to access the internet. If I leave this job, I'll have to rethink things, and I promise to use a mustachian approach.

So I'll take another look at your suggestion. I want to stick to the AT&T network. At this point, you can guess why I'm inflexible about that.

[Daley]

I want to stick to the AT&T network. At this point, you can guess why I'm inflexible about that.

Fair enough. Just understand that your loyalty there is pretty much committing you to the most expensive MVNO network in the US for data, and be cautious of anyone promising unmetered on it... there'll be gotchas out the wazoo.

[adam]

MVNO's in the news:
http://arstechnica.com/apple/2013/01/walmart-to-sell-iphones-with-a-45-per-month-unlimited-prepaid-plan

Edit:
For what its worth, I've been running a test this last week (since the 3rd) to see about how much data I really need/use.  I restricted the background data use of everything for a few days, and since have identified the biggest violators and individually restricted their background data usage.  So having 7 full days in the books on my Galaxy Nexus with LTE connectivity, I have used 52.35MB.  I know that if I was to fully go on a data diet it would be much less than this but I'm trying to get an honest  figure for what I use  when I'm aware that I'm measuring use, but not necessarily restricting it as if I'm paying by the MB (yet).  During that same time I have used 126MB of data on wifi networks.    Total for the billing period that ends in 2 days is a hair under 1GB on my unlimited plan.             

13.25 MB of that 52.35MB figure are from the android OS, so that wasn't exactly intentional.  7.5MB was from google + which I don't 'actively' use, I think its from automatically uploading pictures taken with the camera which I have since changed to only do on wifi.  Out of the stuff I actually 'use', ~16MB was Chrome, which is entirely my decision to use. 3.75MB was facebook.  There's no reason I have to check facebook, on mobile its just a habit, and one I would gladly break. 2MB was the google play store.  I downloaded a wifi analyzer to better configure my home wireless channels.  I should have waited till I was on wifi to do so. 2MB was 'google services', not sure what that entails.  1.73MB was mail, this is something I would still consciously use.  1.44MB was from maps, I would probably also use this, although I have since cached the local area.  812kb was kindle, probably from syncing as I might read on the kindle at home  and then sync to the phone semi-daily to read ... you know... in the bathroom, or wherever.  That's not everything obviously, but it tells me that my main data use is from web browsing, which sometimes is necessary, but is mostly out of boredom I'm guessing.  I can cut most of the rest of that stuff out if I needed to, but I'm guessing a prepaid plan with 100MB is probably going to be more my speed than one with 10MB.  At least to start.  My wife on the other hand.... I could probably shut off her mobile data altogether and she wouldn't even notice.  I actually told her that I'm switching her first, and I'm going to try and not tell her when, so we can see if she notices any difference.  This might be hard though because I'll need to get my hands on her phone, so she'll probably know something is up.

[Tom Reingold]

That's great investigative work, adam. Interesting and useful.

Daley, my decision to stick with AT&T isn't permanent, like everything else in life. I can change my mind easily.

If I were to switch to a T-Mobile MVNA, what would I notice? I'm interested in the pluses and minuses. I was a happy T-Mobile customer some time ago, though coverage wasn't the high point, to put it mildly. It doesn't work in my home whatsoever.

[sol]

For what its worth, I've been running a test this last week (since the 3rd) to see about how much data I really need/use.

I did this same test in December and it was about 6-7mb per day, mostly from background android processes that you can't really turn off without just disabling wireless data some of the time.  I don't wave wifi at work though, so it was connected pretty much all day.

I only used a mb or two per day on average for maps and search, but total usage was still well over the 100mb per month target to make paying per mb economical.

So I reverted to full data on my unlimited plan for $35/mo, and now I stream podcasts on my walk to work and let Pandora run all day at my desk and never worry about it.  I thought it was a worthwhile experiment but the background data consumption killed the idea of making it permanent, at least until they come up with a better way to restrict background data when not on WiFi.

[Tom Reingold]

sol, if you have wired internet at work, you might be able to plug in a wireless router. Check with your employer first, of course.

[Daley]

Adam-

I'd caught the news myself about the Walmart StraightTalk iPhone deal. I just rolled my eyes, honestly.

Walmart says it will offer $25-per-month financing for the phone itself if customers use a Walmart credit card.

Because let me tell you, I was so worried that the food stamp set were being deprived of iPhone access up until this point! OH THANK G-D WALLY WORLD IS FIXING THAT LONG STANDING SOCIAL INJUSTICE!

*headdesk*


As for your data usage, a lot of that background data can actually be nipped in the bud if you know what to look for. I did the same with my Intercept when I first got it. The key is to turn off the following items:

-Disable auto-sync with Google
-Disable Google Play Store updates over 3G
-Disabled and replace the built-in email client with K9 Mail
-Disabled maps auto-updating

It also helped knocking out some of the junk apps and services auto running in the background by jailbreaking and grabbing a copy of Autostarts. (Cheaper through Amazon app store than Google Play directly. Once you're done with it, you can uninstall both.) Word of caution... you need to be careful about what you disable, because you can brick your phone if you're too aggressive.

Those take care of the major OS data sinks that you noticed. Average baseline data usage per month wireless and WiFi combined on my end is under 15MB now, all remaining data above and beyond that is deliberate usage. This is also why I'm planning a retreat back to "feature phone" land. Although Symbian s60 is considered a smartphone platform, it's not by modern standards, and it and Java platforms both don't and won't access the network for crap unless you have specific apps you give permission to. They're designed to behave as phones first and are marketed to people who don't necessarily want data access. As such, it makes data management much easier and deliberate to do I'm finding.

Modern smartphone operating systems seem to be designed to force a larger data subscription by default. They can be tamed, but it still feels like you're playing a game of Hungry Hungry Hippos.

[Daley]

If I were to switch to a T-Mobile MVNA, what would I notice? I'm interested in the pluses and minuses. I was a happy T-Mobile customer some time ago, though coverage wasn't the high point, to put it mildly. It doesn't work in my home whatsoever.

If you had coverage problems with them in the past, that's likely not going to improve today... especially on an MVNO, as you'll be restricted to T-Mo owned and operated network towers only.

If you've got poor T-Mo coverage in the area, you're not attached to AT&T (or GSM), and you've got good Sprint CDMA coverage, it might be worth looking into either Ting or EcoMobile as they both allow BYO(S)D (bring your own Sprint device - no iPhones, though). Either that or take a look at Virgin Mobile like Sol did. Alternately, Page Plus on the Verizon network might be worth a look as well, though their BYOD support is a bit more restrictive than Sprint's.

[adam]

As for your data usage, a lot of that background data can actually be nipped in the bud if you know what to look for. I did the same with my Intercept when I first got it. The key is to turn off the following items:

-Disable auto-sync with Google
-Disable Google Play Store updates over 3G
-Disabled and replace the built-in email client with K9 Mail
-Disabled maps auto-updating

I didn't think abut the auto sync, but I have a button for enabling/disabling that on my home screen. (along with wireless, gps, bluetooth, etc).

Already set play store to restrict background data and only update over wifi.  If I go back even 1 day to Jan 2nd it was the largest data user when it was updating apps in the background.

For email, I'm not anticipating this being much of a problem, but I can change the update settings to only check when I manually ask it to.

Do you mean auto updating maps as in the maps application?  Because that should now be disabled through the app store.


So of course, different android phones, different features, but I'm finding the Nexus is pretty good about letting me control what apps are accessing data outside of just turning off all mobile data.  I can individually set each app to restrict background data, I can set all apps to restrict background data, I can set many apps to only use Wifi (although I think that is dependent on the app developer giving me the option), and of course, I can manually enable or disable mobile data entirely if I need to.

For a 'daily' picture I'll use yesterday:
2.95MB
GMAIL: 795k
Android OS: 687k
Kindle: 498k
Facebook: 419k
Google Services: 276k
Google Search: 262k
Maps: 166k
Twitter: 157k  (I don't even use twitter, wtf?  It had background data enabled apparently, I think I'll just uninstall)
HD Widgets: 43.6k (weather information on my home screen)
Google Wallet: 15k (background)
GTasks: 6.66k
Media: 393 B

Everything below that is 'restricted'

So 3 MB/day * 30 days would be 90MB.  You might notice I had no Chrome data for yesterday, so it might be more of a "good data day" than I would normally see.

[Daley]

Adam-

Turning off the auto sync will probably knock out a pretty major wad of that, but it might not hurt to monkey with the configuration in the actual settings screen. Also, like you said... uninstall anything you don't actually use that you can remove. Another case for rooting, but not really a necessity on the Nexus given the stock Google nature.

As for Gmail, I found that the default mail client likes to push entire messages, though that just may have been the version on my phone. With K9 Mail, I can restrict push notice to headers only, only Inbox, enable data compression, opened messages to cap at 16k without direct intervention, limited push reconnect to once every hour, and enabled "Quiet Time" from 9pm to 8am. Those changes alone put my e-mail data usage in line with my old Blackberry data usage for mail, which runs about 2-5MB a month total (I average about 80-160kb a day on email data usage.) It also keeps the fat messages (which are usually pretty low priority anyway) from chewing up bandwidth until I'm home and can read them on WiFi or from the desktop. Of course, you could probably go even lower with K9 if you turn off push and check for mail manually. Granted, I don't use Gmail for my email accounts (Open Xchange), but...

As for the maps restriction I was talking about, that was in reference to wireless network location and GPS. I found that turning both off killed maps data usage. Just turn GPS on from the front screen widget when you need it and wait for the signal lock.

The rest looks like things that can easily be restricted to WiFi access only or "deliberate" access with a little tweaking. I don't see how you couldn't squeeze total daily data down to well under 1MB. That could put you in the 30MB a month range for baseline, split in half for the WiFi time at home...

[Tom Reingold]

Daley, Sprint coverage here is bad, too. You wouldn't expect this, since I live in a very densely populated suburb of NYC, very close to the city. We have a choice of TWO wired internet carriers, comcast and verizon. Mostly, it's a well connected area, but it's pretty much just either AT&T or Verizon, and Verizon is the better carrier for coverage. Verizon even puts access points in the train tunnels! They're the only company that did this.

Anyway, my personal phone is an iphone 4S, and I don't feel inclined to buy a replacement, so AT&T is the right choice for me, for now.

[Daley]

Tom-

Sounds like you're in a rape and pillage duopoly zone with the two worst carriers. Well, looks like the Death Star's your path of least resistance like or no.  That leaves you with Airvoice, H2O, AT&T GoPhone, Red Pocket, or an America Movil property. It's either expensive data or shoddy support with questionable business practices.

You know my feelings... it's all disposable above basic communication tool level. Sorry mate.

Edit: You know what? This is a tough love crowd, I'm gonna say it anyway. Stick by your comment to make those very pointed decisions; otherwise, you're letting a small glowing metal and glass box dictate a not insignificant chunk of your monthly operations budget if you keep the two-iPhone/data habit going as currently professed. Employer subsidized is one thing...

[Mactrader]

If I were to port my prepaid $30/month 100 minute unlimited data/text plan to Google Voice, what would happen? I'd like to keep the same sim and account and just draw a random number or something. What would be the best approach for this? Also, what's the best way to keep transparency for my iMessage? Set it up without the phone number, or just with the google number?

[Daley]

If I were to port my prepaid $30/month 100 minute unlimited data/text plan to Google Voice, what would happen?

Your phone service and any remaining unused balance would vanish.

I'd like to keep the same sim and account and just draw a random number or something. What would be the best approach for this?

Not gonna happen. You'll have to start over with a new SIM card and account. The best route would have been to initially port your number over to Google to begin with if this was the approach you wanted to use, so now, the question is going to be if the cost of the switch and hassle at this point will be worth it.

Also, what's the best way to keep transparency for my iMessage? Set it up without the phone number, or just with the google number?

*shrug* I dunno, I don't bother with iPhones. Anyone know this one?

[Mactrader]

Thanks for the info!

The sim itself costs $1.05 after tax, then it's just the amount for the plan you want to activate on. The sim actually comes with $3 and change so it'd potentially be a cost saver there. Then all I'd need to do is port out my number near the refill point on the old card (when the balance is $0) and then throw money on the new sim. I think there's a cost ($20) to port to GV though, so there's that. What brought this on was seeing a deal on a ptel (I know it's non-GSM) and recognizing that from time to time there are going to be deals that I may want to take advantage of and want to be able to comfortably hop around on sim cards without dealing with porting issues.

I suppose the last loose end I haven't addressed is what would happen to my T-mobile $30 plan/account if I went to another carrier temporarily and wanted to put more money on it. Would the $30 account still be available, or would I have to get yet another sim card, and run the risk of that plan not being available?

[Daley]

Thanks for the info!

The sim itself costs $1.05 after tax, then it's just the amount for the plan you want to activate on. The sim actually comes with $3 and change so it'd potentially be a cost saver there. Then all I'd need to do is port out my number near the refill point on the old card (when the balance is $0) and then throw money on the new sim. I think there's a cost ($20) to port to GV though, so there's that. What brought this on was seeing a deal on a ptel (I know it's non-GSM) and recognizing that from time to time there are going to be deals that I may want to take advantage of and want to be able to comfortably hop around on sim cards without dealing with porting issues.

I suppose the last loose end I haven't addressed is what would happen to my T-mobile $30 plan/account if I went to another carrier temporarily and wanted to put more money on it. Would the $30 account still be available, or would I have to get yet another sim card, and run the risk of that plan not being available?

Actually, P'tel is GSM now... they're a T-Mobile MVNO as of last month in fact.

Yes, there is a cost to port the number to Google, and there's also a price taken in call quality as well. Some days its fine, others it's a nightmare. SMS delivery can be unreliable at times as well. You should also factor in time on number porting. Frequently, it can be as quick as minutes or hours, but sometimes it can take upwards of three weeks. If you let your account lapse before the port goes through, you'll lose the number.

As for the hypothetical account jockeying? SIM cards with all carriers are pretty much one shot. You kill the account and go back to the carrier later, you're getting a new SIM. If you want to keep using the same SIM and phone number with the carrier, you'd either have to reactivate during the grace period (though you'd lose any remaining balance after that lapse), or start fresh. You will lose your package deal on the account if you try to suspend it or let payment lapse, and suspension will cost money to keep active. Read their Terms and Conditions for more details. Bottom line, it's not worth jockeying on short term deal whims. Better to understand what you need and just pick the best deal for that up front.

[Mactrader]

Thanks for the info!

The sim itself costs $1.05 after tax, then it's just the amount for the plan you want to activate on. The sim actually comes with $3 and change so it'd potentially be a cost saver there. Then all I'd need to do is port out my number near the refill point on the old card (when the balance is $0) and then throw money on the new sim. I think there's a cost ($20) to port to GV though, so there's that. What brought this on was seeing a deal on a ptel (I know it's non-GSM) and recognizing that from time to time there are going to be deals that I may want to take advantage of and want to be able to comfortably hop around on sim cards without dealing with porting issues.

I suppose the last loose end I haven't addressed is what would happen to my T-mobile $30 plan/account if I went to another carrier temporarily and wanted to put more money on it. Would the $30 account still be available, or would I have to get yet another sim card, and run the risk of that plan not being available?

Actually, P'tel is GSM now... they're a T-Mobile MVNO as of last month in fact.

Yes, there is a cost to port the number to Google, and there's also a price taken in call quality as well. Some days its fine, others it's a nightmare. SMS delivery can be unreliable at times as well. You should also factor in time on number porting. Frequently, it can be as quick as minutes or hours, but sometimes it can take upwards of three weeks. If you let your account lapse before the port goes through, you'll lose the number.

As for the hypothetical account jockeying? SIM cards with all carriers are pretty much one shot. You kill the account and go back to the carrier later, you're getting a new SIM. If you want to keep using the same SIM and phone number with the carrier, you'd either have to reactivate during the grace period (though you'd lose any remaining balance after that lapse), or start fresh. You will lose your package deal on the account if you try to suspend it or let payment lapse, and suspension will cost money to keep active. Read their Terms and Conditions for more details. Bottom line, it's not worth jockeying on short term deal whims. Better to understand what you need and just pick the best deal for that up front.

Thanks for the advice, that definitely sounds like more hassle than its worth. I think I had a more romanticized version of switching sim cards in and out than the reality of it all. I just switched to the Tmobile $30 plan from AT&T and am quite happy with it, especially once they roll out the 3g towers in the space between my home and work. Your threads and posts definitely helped me start rethinking how I was handling Telecom!

[strider3700]

I'm in canada.   My wife is starting a new business that will require a cell phone with texting and access to facebook for messaging.  I'm looking for no contract incase the business doesn't work out, and the cheapest we can go because the is MMM.

I see that petrocan is offering a monthly plan with 200 minutes (400 for the first two months) unlimited text for $25 plus $8 for unlimited mobile browsing.  This should meet her needs if I'm understanding correctly.  My question is where do you look for phones that will work?   They need to be unlocked GSM.   petro can offers some but non that she likes (she's thinking something like an galaxy S2) I see a fair number of used but don't know enough about phones to know if I'm getting screwed or not with them.

[Daley]

My question is where do you look for phones that will work?   They need to be unlocked GSM.   petro can offers some but non that she likes (she's thinking something like an galaxy S2) I see a fair number of used but don't know enough about phones to know if I'm getting screwed or not with them.

I'm actually in the midst of trying to put together a sort of frugal phone shopping guide and storefront of sorts... but in the mean time, the best things you can do to spend the least amount of money and get the best phone for the task would be to do the following:

Since you're looking for GSM phones, research form factors and features desired here: GSM Arena (US/Canada uses GSM 850/1900 - those are the two bands to keep in mind when searching) Once you have a short list of makes/models that you like, start hitting up Ebay, Amazon and Craigslist (and sites like them) for good deals. The thing to ask about with used GSM equipment is a clean IMEI, not just carrier unlocked. A clean IMEI guarantees that the phone isn't stolen or still under contract with another carrier. I'm not sure if the stolen IMEI database has gone global or even gone live in Canada yet (I'm being lazy and not looking it up), but it doesn't hurt to check anyway. If the phone is branded to a carrier, run the IMEI past them before purchase. If the seller is reputable, they'll share the IMEI before purchase.

Beyond that, the only real other bits I can help with are the following tidbits. If you by chance missed it, I've got a post over on my blog that covers Canadian MVNOs that MMM linked a few months back. It's not too in-depth, but it's a consolidated starting point. I would also like to point out to you that when your wife goes shopping for a phone, she should start at the bottom and work her way up through the options instead of just buying some fancy bells-and-whistles smartphone right off the bat. You might be surprised to find that a feature phone or an older Nokia e series phone running Symbian s60 might work better for her needs and not use as much data. (Elop just can't kill 'em.)

[strider3700]

she's looking at android smartphones because I won't pay for an iphone,   and she wants to run credit card payments directly through it.   I haven't seen anything not a win8/andriod/iphone that can run one of those apps.  but as just a phone  yeah smart phones are dumb.

[Mactrader]

Quick check-in, can I port from T-mobile prepaid to T-mobile postpaid?

Thanks!

[Daley]

she's looking at android smartphones because I won't pay for an iphone,   and she wants to run credit card payments directly through it.   I haven't seen anything not a win8/andriod/iphone that can run one of those apps.  but as just a phone  yeah smart phones are dumb.

They exist. I don't know specifically about Canadian payment processing outfits, but Android smartphones and iPhones aren't the only devices that can run payments using a toy magstrip reader and an internet connection.

[Daley]

Quick check-in, can I port from T-mobile prepaid to T-mobile postpaid?

Thanks!

I don't believe so, but I might be wrong. I think T-Mo only lets you port from postpaid to prepaid internally... of course, that may change as they're ending contracts and phone subsidies here soon.

[Daley]

Brief update, especially for those of you under contract and considering a Sprint (or Verizon) MVNO or Ting specifically: The Ting $100,000 ETF Payout

We’ve set aside $100,000 to pay off Ting switchers’ early termination fees (ETFs) over the entire month of February.

On Feb 1, the Ting $100,000 ETF payoff page will go live (we’ll update this post with the link). Continuing through the end of the month, Ting will be paying off the early termination fees (ETF) up to $350 per line for anyone that’s ready to ditch their mobile contract and come over to Ting.

Granted, that works out to at minimum 286 switched accounts... and I'm sure there'll be some heavy competition, but if you're gonna do it, it looks like February's the time to do it!

[arebelspy]

Wouldn't be surprised if some unethical people take advantage of that by signing up for a new plan with the top of the line phone model (subsidized, of course, by having a two year plan), then Ting their way out of it.  I'm assuming they'd be locked into Ting then for two years, or have to pay a large ETF though?

[Daley]

Wouldn't be surprised if some unethical people take advantage of that by signing up for a new plan with the top of the line phone model (subsidized, of course, by having a two year plan), then Ting their way out of it.  I'm assuming they'd be locked into Ting then for two years, or have to pay a large ETF though?

It's gonna be pretty difficult to game this offer, and I doubt the folks who try that are going to be too impressed with the outcome. Although Ting will not be forcing a contract, the ETF payout will only be applied as non-expiring account credit with Ting, and only if a copy of your final bill with the ETF is submitted within 30 days of activation. This means the actual ETF is still coming out of your own pocket, and you're effectively locked into Ting until the credit is used if you want to get your money's worth out of it. The remaining loopholes are pretty well killed via Ting's BYOD requirements: inactive and clean ESN, Sprint handset only. People could try this, pay for the new phone at subsidized price, pay the $350 ETF, and port over after it's inactive and clean, but they'd pay more than just buying new out of pocket for everything but the iPhone 5 going this route (correction, any iPhone it looks like), a device that can't be activated on Ting anyway.

Safe to say they've got this pretty well sewn up in their favor.

[Rangifer]

Wouldn't be surprised if some unethical people take advantage of that by signing up for a new plan with the top of the line phone model (subsidized, of course, by having a two year plan), then Ting their way out of it.  I'm assuming they'd be locked into Ting then for two years, or have to pay a large ETF though?

A little birdy told me you'll have to be in a contract prior to the date this promotion was announced to qualify.


Also, regarding background data usage, you can install LBE Privacy Guard if you are rooted. This will allow you to restrict certain applications from accessing data over either 3G or Wifi. It will even work for the stock google apps.

[norvilion]

Oh dear, I suppose I switched away from Verizon a month too early o_o;

Oh well, savings overall will be worth it in the long run.