DontSpendMore.com Blog

Category: Cell Phones

  • Prepaid Cell Phones: Why You Should Have One

    Not everyone seems to understand how prepaid cell phones work and that is actually quite expected because of their long term acquaintance with yearly cell phone contracts.

    How do prepaid cell phones work?

    Prepaid cell phones can do everything that your regular long term contract cell phones do. You can make calls, send text messages, and browse the web. Your phone is available for use as long as the prepaid amount has balance remaining.

    As soon as you exhaust the amount, you cannot use it anymore, unless you recharge it again with an additional prepaid amount. But you need not wait for the next month to begin before your phone becomes functional again as the recharge facility can be used multiple times in a month (according to your need).

    Why should you get a prepaid cell phone

    Occasional use. Prepaid cell phones can actually come in as an advantage in many cases, like for example you use your phone very sparingly and even the lowest plan in your monthly contract seems to be a waste of minutes. With prepaid cell phones, you have to pay only as much as you use.

    Save unused minutes. There are no overage charges or need to worry your brains about wasting your money on unused minutes. You are also spared the sudden shock of getting a hefty monthly bill, for the reason that you are in control of your call charges and your cell phone use gets restricted to only as much as you prepay.

    Temporary phone. Sometimes you could suddenly be faced with the need for a temporary phone, like when your regular phone gets stolen or your kid banged it on the floor and broke it into pieces. The waiting period for getting your old phone replaced need not be a ‘no phone’ phase of your life. After all that’s what prepaid cell phones are for, aren’t they?

    Credit issues. Maybe you are just a young adult who has no credit history to boast of or maybe you are an older adult but your credit history is best kept secret, then prepaid cell phones are the best choice for you. You do not require to divulge any of your credit details or pass through any credit checks to avail of a prepaid cell phone.

    Teens. You are unsure about your monthly usage and you want to get an approximate idea about it, before you settle with a certain monthly plan. Actually, I would highly recommend that parents of teens should make use of prepaid cell phones to foresee their call charges. This information can put you in a better position to choose a monthly plan that is suitable for your teen.

    Life transition. Or perhaps you are transitioning between jobs or are on a budgeting spree. In either case, a prepaid cell phone plan will allow you to cut down on your overall cell phone costs every month. Some plans start at a few cents a day.

    A prepaid cell phone works just like a regular one, except that you prepay the usage and have more control over how much you pay. Some plans allow you to  pay a small daily usage fee so if you don’t use your phone on a certain day, you don’t pay.

     

    Prepaid cell phones are getting more popular nowadays, albeit at a slower pace. But parents of teenagers seem to be nodding their heads in approval at the never before option that allows one to budget the monthly call charges with prepaid cell phones.

  • How To Cut Your Cell Phone Bill

    Life has now become impossible without a cell phone to go along with its high and lows. But high cell phone bills often leave you feeling low. But don’t despair because there is hope yet. You could cut back on your cell phone bills without having to cut your cell phone into pieces. Here’s how:

    Select an appropriate plan

    Usually we select a plan at the time of signing a contract with the cell phone service provider and then practically forget all about it. But once you have used this plan for some months you will get an idea of your actual usage. Review all your previous phone bills to get a clear picture of your usage history and then approach your cell phone company to provide you with a plan that better suits your current usage.

    Doing so will help you cut back on unnecessary expenses and pay only for what you actually need.

    Axe the extras

    There are so many features that we all keep paying for, irrespective of whether we use them or not. Most of the times, we are not even aware of what we are paying for. Scrutinize your bills minutely and see if you are being charged for services like visual voicemail, roadside assistance, GPS etc.

    If you are sure that you do not need any of these services, make it clear to the cell phone company and they will deduct those charges from your next phone bill and stop providing you those extra services as well.

    Banish the bandwidth hoarders

    There are so many apps that sneakily use up a lot of your bandwidth. More bandwidth usage translates into more expensive data charges. There are many commonly used apps like Google maps, free version of the game Angry birds, Netflix etc which hoard a lot of bandwidth. Just get rid of these apps and see how light your data usage becomes and saves you quite a few dollars as well.

    Care for a new carrier?

    In the US, there may be only 4 major players in the cell phone service arena, but that does not mean they are the only ones out there. Many small players are quietly trying to make a mark out there too. At DontSpendMore.com, you can compare various cell phone plans in just a few seconds.

    Dig up info on them and see how they compete with the biggies to provide you with comparable service at dirt cheap rates.

    Play with prepaid

    Prepaid plan can never go wrong when it comes to managing your cell phone budget perfectly. Instead of paying for what you use (as in post paid plans) you are limited to use only what you paid for. This restriction actually allows you the freedom to stick to your budget. Instead of having to foot the bill after a month of reckless usage with a post paid plan, you can save money by avoiding limiting your usage to a predetermined sum of money each month.