Since we don't have a land line, we need to keep phones for each of us (one for his business and one for me to use for work, etc), so we are getting burner phones... Yup, Tracfones to be exact.
We ordered 2 track phones from Amazon. For SCB the Samsung T301G Slider with triple minutes for life for $12.99 and since I wanted a phone with a full keyboard, the LG 505C with triple minutes for life for $22.99.
The triple minutes means each time we buy a card with minutes, it automatically triples. Text messages cost us 1 minute of talk time and we can get 60 minute cards (3 hours with our triple minute phones) for $20.00. That $20 card is good for 3 months and then it expires. If we run through that, we just buy a new card.
We know one card will last SCB 3 months and then expire based on his current usage... and if we figure we buy me a new card each month, at most $30 a month will cover our talking/texting time, based on current usage.
For the farmer's markets though, we need a smart phone to collect credit card payments. We have found a portable wi-fi device from Walmart "internet on the go" for $80.00 upfront and then we can buy 500 Mb for $10 and it never expires until we use it... So this will take care of our "data" for the company. There were other free and cheaper options, but they don't have coverage in the areas we need them to cover so this was the best one because it uses the same network as our phones so we know it will work at the market and in our area.
So for less than the cost of the phone SCB would want if we renew our cell phone contracts, we are getting 2 new phones and a WIFI device... and AT max will be paying $40 a month... instead of $137.00
The only thing I'll miss is the GPS tracker on my phone when i'm running. So with the money we are going to save, I will get a cool gps running watch... and with the rest, we are going to save up for a tablet because SCB really wants one.
I can still use my smart phone on airplane mode to listen to audio books and take pictures and SCB can use his old phone at work for an e-reader on airplane mode so it shouldn't be a problem there.
So soon we will be paying maybe $40 a month instead of $137 and saving roughly $1,200 a year. Sounds smarter than a smart phone to me... and if I break or loose my phone I just buy a new one for $23.00
So have you decided to ditch the Smart Phone? If so, what are you using?
I was asked to try out Republic Wireless, and so far it has been going great. We're thinking about switching from our $200 a month cell phone plan to their $40 for two phones plan.
ReplyDeleteNo way. It's worth it for me to be able to access the internet at anytime, anywhere. I use it for fitness, personal communication, work, school, my finances, entertainment, everything. Never again will I be without one!
ReplyDeleteya, I hear you on that one. I love having all those applications and everything... but what was really getting to me was the cost. $137 a month for what I was using (even though I loved it) wasn't worth it because I can still use my old phone off network for the few things that were "must haves" for me like my audio book app.
DeleteI have a regular phone and an iPod Touch, which I use for fun apps at home or with my Wi-Fi device on the go. It's a slightly bigger hassle, but it saves me big money!
ReplyDelete