Cell Phone Company Advice

[Capella]

After some bad recent events, I've decided that I need to take charge of my own everything and become completely independent from my family. This means I'm not going to rely on them for cellular anymore, but get my own. So now I'm looking at different cellular phone companies, trying to find what the best deal is. I know nothing about the best cell companies, etc; we initially chose Cingular because they and BellSouth offered combined billing and BellSouth had my home phone and my internet.

I'm a college student on a limited budget, which means I want a cheap plan. (A free phone or at least a sub $40 one would be nice.) From what I've seen, the basic plans of most companies start at around $40 a month and just go up from there. I'd really like to stick to sub-$50 a month if at all possible; I have other things to pay for as well. I do not text message (I have sent a grand total of 2 in my life, both this month, and now feel thoroughly unclean.), so I don't need a plan with text messaging. I generally make a bunch of short calls (i.e. to my boyfriend to tell him where to meet me or to ask my roommate if she's eaten), but I do call my parents for about an hour once or twice a week. I never go online or do anything else with my phone- it's just for talking. And I can't afford anything new and shiny anyways.

If this helps any, currently my family has Cingular FamilyTalk, the 550 minutes a month plan. My average usage is about 300 minutes per month, but most of that is at night or on the weekends, when I have unlimited minutes. (They have the main line and I have the second $10 a month line, which is why I need to cancel my line and create my own contract.) So I really don't use that many minutes. I'd be happy either switching to another or starting my own contract with AT&T (I still think of it as Cingular!) instead. I guess the only advantage of AT&T is that I already have a phone so I wouldn't need to get a new one, but if I got a free new one, losing mine wouldn't suck too much. I don't get attached to phones.

Which company should I go with? Which plans would be cheapest and best for me, given my usage?

[screensaver400]

Check coverage in your area, but I'm a big fan of T-Mobile. Their customer service is first rate, their plans are relatively cheap ($39/month for unlimited calling to 5 people, 300 whenever minutes, and unlimited nights and weekends), and they have a pretty decent selection of phones. Their downside is no 3G, but if you're more concerned with calling than internet, T-Mobile is the way to go.

[kieran]

You can still transfer your number to a new contract. You can get the number put in your name and then transfer it wherever you end up going.

I'd recommend going with the company of the person with whom you talk to the most. That way, all of those minutes are free. And going by your post, your family already has AT&T/Cingular, so I'd stick with that.

[Capella]

Yes, but I don't talk to my family on a cell phone, I call their landline, so if I'm calling them I use minutes. Right?

[screensaver400]

Yes, but I don't talk to my family on a cell phone, I call their landline, so if I'm calling them I use minutes. Right?

With the T-Mobile MyFaves, you get unlimited calling to 5 numbers of your choice, including landlines.

[bender0069]

I would look at either AT&T or T-mobile. I've had good luck with both companies, but with the T-mobile top 5 plan it may be the way to go. Look and see who has the best coverage in your area.

You also may want to look into a pay as you go plan.

[Partial]

CDMA has spoiled me. Look to go with Verizon or Sprint. Ask about corporate discounts as they have a ton (I get 25% off of my plan).

[rasmits]

Be prepared for a massively confusing thread in which no one agrees with one another.

Seriously. Everyone hates every other mobile operator for one reason or another. Personally I'd die before I joined an operator like Verizon, but I'm sure someone would definitely say the same about my carrier SFR.

Point being - no one can know what operator gives you the best coverage, best rates for your usage, and offers the kind of phone you want at the price you want. This really is one of those decisions that you'll have to make primarily on your own.

[Souflay123]

I say whatever you do dont go with verizon, or sprint/nextel. I have had very bad experiences with both along with many people i know. I am currently with ATT b/c of the iphone, it is okay, I have had decent reception everywhere i have been, and i travel alot. Cell signal is iffy around some parts of so cal. but i have great reception in the valley, and around LA area. How it seems to go is when i have full signal, my boyfriend who has t-mobile has full or none in terms of cell signal, and the same goes for my side. I would lean towards the t-mobile with my-faves b/c that is something that will keep your plan down in terms of mins, But ATT still has a place in my heart :)

[cosus]

Why not try a prepaid phone? It seems your phone usage is rather minimal, so best to just pay the minimum with no monthly plan.

[Shades of Blue]

I've had both Verizon and Sprint. Both were fine as far as reception went. I'm with Sprint now; I hate Verizon because their customer service treated me badly, but I'm sure you can find examples of every cell phone provider treating people badly. This is because all cell phone companies are scum. So I'd just go with whatever provider has the best reception in your area.

[Capella]

Here's another question. How much will it cost me to set up my account? I'm not talking about the $40 a month plan fee. I know there'll probably also be a phone fee unless I stay with AT&T, but hopefully I could keep that low. Are there going to be setup fees? Contract fees? Any of those other hidden things? How much do you think my first bill will actually be?