Dropping Verizon - How to keep my current phone?

[Colgate_Toothpaste]

Hello all,

I have been in the process of eliminating wasteful accounts.  So far, I have cut out over $250/mo.

I have had a cell phone for the past 10 years, but it wasn't until 2008 that I started down the dangerous road of texting.  It's harmless at first, but then they rope you in with the data plan.  Before you know it, your $29/mo plan becomes over $120 a month.  Whoa, then did this happen? 

The last straw with Verizon was in January 2013.  My iPhone 4 had started bugging out bad at the end of the 2yr contract (planned obsolescence much?), so I went in and upgraded to an iPhone 5.  What I was not told was that my unlimited data plan for $79/mo was no longer available, and I would be cut to 2gb per month.  I primarily use my phone for work, so it's easy to slice through 2gb.  My $79/mo bill was actually $96/mo after taxes and other BS fees.  Then, I'd slip over the 2gb mark and my bill would skyrocket to $120-150 a month. 

I went into Verizon recently to figure out if I could cut out any costs from my plan.  Long story short, I was told that there is no possible way to keep my iPhone 5 on a pre-paid plan- I would have to upgrade to a new phone.  I think that is theft.  The iPhone 5 was $700 when it first came out, amortized over 24 months, that's $30/mo.  If the plan is supposed to be $79/mo, subtracting $30/mo, we wind up at $49/mo.  I figured it was reasonable, but Verizon doesn't allow that- it would cut into their business of shoving new phone garbage down their customers' throats.

Does anyone know of a way where I can keep my iPhone 5 and put it on a different carrier on a pre-paid plan?  I am sick of the BS with Verizon. 

PS:  I have read the FAQ, and the nice write-up on cutting costs of communications.  This question is specifically aimed at keeping my current phone since I don't want to have to pay for a new one.

[Rube]

I switched to a company phone with a great corporate deal on VZW. I think it's $60 a month with unlimited data and texting. There's a pool of minutes but I mostly call mobile to mobile anyway which is free. But it turns out my company is willing to pay for it; I just had to buy the phone. Yay me.

When your contract is up with VZW, your VZW iPhone 5 should work fine with T-Mobile and presumably also with MetroPCS.

[alsoknownasDean]

Are there any MVNOs using the Verizon network that will let you bring your Verizon phone over?

[davisgang90]

You could move over to Ting, sell your Iphone 5 on glyde.com and get a Ting capable Iphone 5 with virtually no out of pocket.  Ting is on the Sprint network, so make sure that works where you live.

[Elle 8]

Hi.  Check out Page Plus Cellular.  They run on the Verizon network.  Currently you can't use a 4G LTE phone on Page Plus without some complicated programming on the phone (called "flashing").  However, there are rumors that they will be accepting them very soon (sometime this fall?).  At that time I think a Verizon iPhone 5 will work on Page Plus without the extra programming.  The forums at Kitty Wireless (a Page Plus dealer) may be helpful for your research (www.kittyforums.net).

Currently you can get unlimited talk and text with 3 GB data for $55 or 5 GB for $70 (lower end plans also available), although I'm not sure if the pricing will change when they go to 4G LTE. 

I am not affiliated with Page Plus or Kitty Wireless, just a satisfied customer!

[Daley]

Here's the problem you face, Colgate: As of right now, no Verizon MVNOs support LTE devices (this may be changing very, very shortly... like in hours shortly), this means (right now) you can't take your Verizon iPhone 5 to a Verizon MVNO. Once LTE comes however, there still might be an embargo on which iPhone handsets can be activated, so don't entirely put your eggs into this basket... and just keep the option in mind and keep an eye on the Page Plus and Selectel websites the next week. Even still, it probably wouldn't do much for you financially without working out some way of going on a bit of a data diet. If it's tethering that drives some of those numbers, it will complicate things and limit you in your alternative carrier choices.

I understand the whole business angle, but the biggest burners of data is media like streaming video and audio, and GPS... the great news about the GPS issue is that there are offline GPS apps available. The rest is just trying to eliminate as much personal data usage as possible and keep it business only. That's not a bad thing, however. It kinda sounds like you really need to start to separate your personal life from the phone anyway. Let it just be a tool for you.

Now, a great thing about the Verizon iPhone 5/5c/5s: the SIM slot is carrier unlocked for US GSM providers as per Verizon's LTE spectrum purchase deal with the FCC. This means that your phone can be taken to any AT&T or T-Mobile based MVNO that strikes your fancy and meets your needs. Given the fact that prepaid GSM service is cheaper (especially on the data end) than CDMA, even with the pending LTE device support and service, it might be more worthwhile to weigh your options on a different network. AT&T's coverage is usually pretty thorough, but some areas, T-Mobile has better. Just check coverage maps and ask a couple folks.

You can do this without replacing your phone or doing wasteful switches just to stick with CDMA service... and if you can keep your data usage in check (under 2GB - or could survive with 2G data throttling above that point), you shouldn't have to spend more than $50/month. You eliminate the heavy data dependence though, you could get down into the $30 or less range. Hope this helps!