What's the best (read reasonable) cell service nowadays?

LearnMS

Level 2 Member
My use of cell phone has remained minimal. I am on mint mobile now for 2 years with 2GB data/month and have been very happy with the switch. I do renew their service every year, but this time I am looking for other options.

I do see sprint 'free service' in slickdeals but feels like too many steps to follow. Also I have an old phone that doesn't support.

So my obvious question is - what's the best/reasonable/frugal/reliable alternative for mint mobile. Right now I pay $200 per year. Can any other service beat that?

TIA.
 

HanoiIG

Silver Member
I have been happy with T-Mobile. I'm over 55 so they have special plan but also traveling is $10/month for unlimited data so you don't always have to find wifi.
 

jnjustice

New Member
I have T-Mobile as well but you may want to check out Google Fi. They have varied pricing based on your needs and get coverage from both T-Mobile and Sprint. The data is pay per usage of GB but T-Mobile does have unlimited plans. Both offer international service if you travel a lot.
 

kuchbhi001

New Member
I have Red Pocket. They come out with special offers on Ebay. You can purchase a year's worth of service at a time. I am currently paying around $19 per month for unlimited calling, 5GB data and unlimited international calling. No international roaming, though. But I always buy a local SIM wherever I go and have never had a problem.
 

LearnMS

Level 2 Member
Good to know. Red pocket rates are similar to Mint. Unlimited international calling is a plus though....
 

Domat

Level 2 Member
Sprint deal really isn't that difficult. Did it 3 times now. You do need a sprint phone and it is a hard pull. But other then that it is surprisingly easy as long as you call the number posted on slickdeals. You will end up paying 30-40$ for 13 months. Which includes slow international roaming.
 

HanoiIG

Silver Member
Wow! We are on different wavelengths! 19$/month why would you change if it's OK service? I travel extensively and I know I can just get local SIM cards but I'm lazy so will probably stick with Telekom(T-Mobile)
 

c2nah777

Yes, it is a goatee.
Throwing this out there as I don't see anyone talking about it. After some consideration, I just joined Tello. They have a $10 per month plan which includes unlimited minutes, unlimited sms texts, and 1GB data. That is their most popular, but there are many options.

You can do Pay as you go, with a minimum start-up of $20 in bill credit added to your account. Very cheap rates for Paygo. I only need them for a backup phone.
Says free tethering and phone swaps with any plan. Sprint phones are compatible. BYOD for no extra charge. You will need a Sprint Sim card.

Paygo rates:
US calls 1¢ /min
US texts 1¢ /SMS
US data 2¢ /MB


If anyone wants to try it out, feel free to PM me for a referral code before registering an account. We will each get $10 in Tello bucks once you make a purchase of a plan or add Paygo funds. Then they'll give you a referral code of your own.

Here is the SD link to the new Tello plan discussion (see the wiki):
Code:
https://slickdeals.net/f/13140823-tello-economy-prepaid-plan-w-1gb-4g-lte-unlimited-mins-text-10-month-more-compatible-sprint-or-supported-smartphone-req?src=SiteSearch
I read good things about their customer service. They use Sprint's service - not VOIP. Being a R+ and FP refugee, I wanted something cheap and this seems decent for cheap either using a plan or Paygo.
 

druiddation

Level 2 Member
I have T-Mobile as well but you may want to check out Google Fi. They have varied pricing based on your needs and get coverage from both T-Mobile and Sprint. The data is pay per usage of GB but T-Mobile does have unlimited plans. Both offer international service if you travel a lot.
Google Fi just rolled out an unlimited plan as well. The cost for 1 person is too much for me. If I find a way to join up with a few others the cost seems much better.
 

churning_medic

New Member
I love T-Mobile. If you're planning on doing international travel, they're hard to beat.

Just updating my answer here. I was abroad in Amsterdam and Croatia last month and T-mo was giving me problems. It worked, but barely. Kept me at 2G the whole time, which is basically useless IMO. I had similar issues in Scotland last year (but I just attributed it to being in the Highlands most of my trip. There's no excuse for 2G service in Amsterdam, one of the busiest cities in Europe. As some of the others pointed out, Google Fi seems like an option. A friend of mine suggested it when he went down to Colombia.
 
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