in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Jun 14th 2006, 2:22 pm
#16
Septicity
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 23,762
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by magilla442
Just starting to establish it over here, but will put the contract in my wifes name, whos credit score is over 800! 
That'll work!
(Coz without the credit history, your choice is not wide. Some will reject you out of hand for certain plans, others will require a large deposit.)
Jun 14th 2006, 3:46 pm
#17
UK & US Citizen
Joined: Jul 2003
Location: New Orleans
Posts: 1,276
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by magilla442
the best deals for phoning and texting back to the UK
Jun 14th 2006, 3:57 pm
#18
Back where I belong!
Joined: Aug 2005
Location: Melbourne, Oz to Banbury, England to El Mirage, AZ & now back to England!
Posts: 5,989
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
www.tel3.com works with your mobile. It works by caller ID, so you put your mobile phone number down as one of your phones that you call from, so you can call England from your mobile. I love tel3, I have saved so much money with them, I pay 2.5c per minute, plus when you sign up/have special offers, they give you free minutes/bonuses. You can call from any phone, but then you'll have to use your password. If you call from your mobile, you just dial a local access number & it detracts from your mobile minutes.
Hope that makes sense!
Hope that makes sense!
Jun 14th 2006, 3:59 pm
#19
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Apr 2006
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 387
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Verizon wanted $400 from me as I have no credit history! I decided to use the T-Mobile pay as you go service since I rarely talk on the telephone anyway (usually send text messages) and I use the internet to talk to the folks back home. Does anyone one else find US mobile phone plans horrendously expensive when compared to the UK companies? And how some still charge per minute and not per second, and how the top ups expire after 30 or 90 days, which they don't do in the UK?
Sometimes I wonder if the USA really is the technologically advanced nation it claims to be. We seem to be streets ahead in many respects (chip and pin, Direct Debit, the fact that having your wages paid into your bank account here is something special that you have to request...) I could go on and on....
Sometimes I wonder if the USA really is the technologically advanced nation it claims to be. We seem to be streets ahead in many respects (chip and pin, Direct Debit, the fact that having your wages paid into your bank account here is something special that you have to request...) I could go on and on....
Jun 14th 2006, 4:11 pm
#20
Back where I belong!
Joined: Aug 2005
Location: Melbourne, Oz to Banbury, England to El Mirage, AZ & now back to England!
Posts: 5,989
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by gsnichol
Verizon wanted $400 from me as I have no credit history! I decided to use the T-Mobile pay as you go service since I rarely talk on the telephone anyway (usually send text messages) and I use the internet to talk to the folks back home. Does anyone one else find US mobile phone plans horrendously expensive when compared to the UK companies? And how some still charge per minute and not per second, and how the top ups expire after 30 or 90 days, which they don't do in the UK?
Sometimes I wonder if the USA really is the technologically advanced nation it claims to be. We seem to be streets ahead in many respects (chip and pin, Direct Debit, the fact that having your wages paid into your bank account here is something special that you have to request...) I could go on and on....
Sometimes I wonder if the USA really is the technologically advanced nation it claims to be. We seem to be streets ahead in many respects (chip and pin, Direct Debit, the fact that having your wages paid into your bank account here is something special that you have to request...) I could go on and on....
Jun 14th 2006, 4:23 pm
#21
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Oct 2004
Location: Baltimore, USA
Posts: 526
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by Drebin
I just moved from the extortionate VirginMobile PAYG to a Sprint Contract.
I pay $30 a month for:
- 500 free anytime minutes a month, extra mins only $0.10 a min (as good as any PAYG deal)
- Free evenings and weekends
- Free mobile to mobile if they're on Sprint
- Free picture mail and web access
- Selection of decent phones with rebates. Lowest end one is free.
And soon I'll try for $5 off my bill a month to get it to $25 a month.
Here's how you get it, it's not quite straightforward but it's worth the effort:
http://forums.anandtech.com/messagev...&enterthread=y
Did have to put down a $150 deposit since I had no credit rating, but apparently I get this back in six months.
I pay $30 a month for:
- 500 free anytime minutes a month, extra mins only $0.10 a min (as good as any PAYG deal)
- Free evenings and weekends
- Free mobile to mobile if they're on Sprint
- Free picture mail and web access
- Selection of decent phones with rebates. Lowest end one is free.
And soon I'll try for $5 off my bill a month to get it to $25 a month.
Here's how you get it, it's not quite straightforward but it's worth the effort:
http://forums.anandtech.com/messagev...&enterthread=y
Did have to put down a $150 deposit since I had no credit rating, but apparently I get this back in six months.
Jun 14th 2006, 4:35 pm
#22
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Oct 2004
Location: The Big Apple
Posts: 1,834
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by gsnichol
Verizon wanted $400 from me as I have no credit history! I decided to use the T-Mobile pay as you go service since I rarely talk on the telephone anyway (usually send text messages) and I use the internet to talk to the folks back home. Does anyone one else find US mobile phone plans horrendously expensive when compared to the UK companies? And how some still charge per minute and not per second, and how the top ups expire after 30 or 90 days, which they don't do in the UK?
Sometimes I wonder if the USA really is the technologically advanced nation it claims to be. We seem to be streets ahead in many respects (chip and pin, Direct Debit, the fact that having your wages paid into your bank account here is something special that you have to request...) I could go on and on....
Sometimes I wonder if the USA really is the technologically advanced nation it claims to be. We seem to be streets ahead in many respects (chip and pin, Direct Debit, the fact that having your wages paid into your bank account here is something special that you have to request...) I could go on and on....
I think they are pretty similar. The deposit is due to credit history - and would be similar in the UK if you were in the same position - i used a PAYG until had a credit history and was using the phone more. On cingular our bill is around 50 bux with all the taxes - and this gives me more minutes than i will ever use!! At home the cheapest Orange contract is around 25 quid a month (similar to what i pay here) but that has much fewer minutes. I think it is much improved here in the US but we will see it getting more cut throat soon.
Jun 14th 2006, 4:49 pm
#23
Bloody Yank
Joined: Oct 2005
Location: USA! USA!
Posts: 4,186
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by Roadster280
If so - Cingular and T-Mobile are the way ahead (GSM technology), as they will roam in Europe/ROW, if you have the right plan.
As for GSM being superior, that's debatable. As a technology, CDMA is arguably more advanced and delivers superior call quality and data transmission to GSM.
The real benefit of GSM, though, is global compatability. The Europeans were wise to standardize their systems early on, and to actively export them abroad so as to create widespread adoption for the technology. CDMA is not used in many places outside of North America, so even if you believe that it is superior to GSM, you still end up with something similar to the Betamax-VHS conflict that once faced the videotape market. (Betamax was the better technology, but VHS had wider distribution, which led to Betamax being eliminated entirely. Compatability was more important than picture quality, and VHS remained dominant because it was "good enough.")
In contrast, the US allowed the free market to dictate the technology to be used, leaving us with no standard and the compatability issues that we have today. The technology base is there, but without a single standard, it becomes more difficult for the consumer to make use of it.
Jun 14th 2006, 4:59 pm
#24
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Apr 2006
Location: Tucson, AZ
Posts: 387
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by Big D
I think they are pretty similar. The deposit is due to credit history - and would be similar in the UK if you were in the same position - i used a PAYG until had a credit history and was using the phone more. On cingular our bill is around 50 bux with all the taxes - and this gives me more minutes than i will ever use!! At home the cheapest Orange contract is around 25 quid a month (similar to what i pay here) but that has much fewer minutes. I think it is much improved here in the US but we will see it getting more cut throat soon.
Jun 15th 2006, 12:31 am
#25
Forum Regular
Joined: Aug 2005
Location: Atlanta
Posts: 249
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by RoadWarriorFromLP
If you get a "world phone" from a provider such as Verizon, the phone will operate on both CDMA and GSM, meaning that the phone will work abroad. (I'm not endorsing Verizon as a provider -- for one, its international roaming rates look extortionate -- but there won't be an issue with technology if you have the right phone.)
As for GSM being superior, that's debatable. As a technology, CDMA is arguably more advanced and delivers superior call quality and data transmission to GSM.
The real benefit of GSM, though, is global compatability. The Europeans were wise to standardize their systems early on, and to actively export them abroad so as to create widespread adoption for the technology. CDMA is not used in many places outside of North America, so even if you believe that it is superior to GSM, you still end up with something similar to the Betamax-VHS conflict that once faced the videotape market. (Betamax was the better technology, but VHS had wider distribution, which led to Betamax being eliminated entirely. Compatability was more important than picture quality, and VHS remained dominant because it was "good enough.")
In contrast, the US allowed the free market to dictate the technology to be used, leaving us with no standard and the compatability issues that we have today. The technology base is there, but without a single standard, it becomes more difficult for the consumer to make use of it.
As for GSM being superior, that's debatable. As a technology, CDMA is arguably more advanced and delivers superior call quality and data transmission to GSM.
The real benefit of GSM, though, is global compatability. The Europeans were wise to standardize their systems early on, and to actively export them abroad so as to create widespread adoption for the technology. CDMA is not used in many places outside of North America, so even if you believe that it is superior to GSM, you still end up with something similar to the Betamax-VHS conflict that once faced the videotape market. (Betamax was the better technology, but VHS had wider distribution, which led to Betamax being eliminated entirely. Compatability was more important than picture quality, and VHS remained dominant because it was "good enough.")
In contrast, the US allowed the free market to dictate the technology to be used, leaving us with no standard and the compatability issues that we have today. The technology base is there, but without a single standard, it becomes more difficult for the consumer to make use of it.
As for the radio interface technology, yes, of course, CDMA is much better. 3G in Europe is Wideband CDMA.
I work for a telecoms network infrastructure company, and one of the CDMA providers is by FAR our biggest customer. But we have Cingular phones, because they have they best international roaming.
Jun 15th 2006, 1:21 am
#26
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Oct 2004
Location: Baltimore, USA
Posts: 526
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by Roadster280
Almost spot-on! I didn't say GSM technology is superior. I said that if roaming was an issue, then GSM would be the way to go, because, as you rightly say, the internationally installed base dwarfs that of CDMA. "World phones" are the only way that CDMA providers can tap the overseas-travelling market. What it means, is that the handset must have two radio systems, and is therefore bulkier and heavier. Do T-Mobile and Cingular offer these? No. No need. GSM works just fine here too.
As for the radio interface technology, yes, of course, CDMA is much better. 3G in Europe is Wideband CDMA.
I work for a telecoms network infrastructure company, and one of the CDMA providers is by FAR our biggest customer. But we have Cingular phones, because they have they best international roaming.
As for the radio interface technology, yes, of course, CDMA is much better. 3G in Europe is Wideband CDMA.
I work for a telecoms network infrastructure company, and one of the CDMA providers is by FAR our biggest customer. But we have Cingular phones, because they have they best international roaming.
Jun 15th 2006, 1:53 am
#27
Powder Maggot
Joined: Nov 2004
Location: Nuevo Mexico
Posts: 4,452
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by Roadster280
Almost spot-on! I didn't say GSM technology is superior. I said that if roaming was an issue, then GSM would be the way to go, because, as you rightly say
Jun 15th 2006, 3:24 am
#28
Not living a 9 to 5 life
Joined: Jun 2002
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 11,061
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by magilla442
My british vodafone contract is finally up, and since i live here now i need to get a U.S. one, only thing is, I have no idea which company off the best deals for phoning and texting back to the UK, does anyone have any advice, I have spent hours trawling throught the websites, yet they all seem concentrated on national call plans 
Any help greatly appreciated!
Any help greatly appreciated!
NC Penguin
Jun 15th 2006, 3:49 am
#29
Account Closed
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 15,455
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Tim, did you sort out your job?
Jun 15th 2006, 1:49 pm
#30
Tim
Thread Starter
Joined: Sep 2005
Location: wilmington, nc
Posts: 75
Re: in need of a new cell phone, best price plan?
Originally Posted by Sallyanne
Tim, did you sort out your job?
just got in from my first 12hr overnighter! knackered, hope i can stay awake for the footy!