How much do you pay for your wireless service? Typically, we
are talking about a cellphone, although there are many other devices now that
want to use the wireless cells to access the internet and other communications
networks (tablets, iPads, etc.). If you are like most people, you got sucked in
by the powerful advertising pull of a large carrier (AT&T, T-mobile,
Verizon, Sprint) that got you hooked up on a nifty and sleek new phone that
“all of your friends already have”; and,
for a discount on that phone (or even for an option to get it for free) you
ended up with a two-year contract, which you never bothered to read…
You are probably paying about $100 per month, for
“everything unlimited”, with a few caveats. Being smart, you probably added a
few lines for family members, getting a “family plan” that makes your deal more
palatable, so that the cost per line does not look that high anymore. But, this
is only for family plans, i.e. for the situations when having several
cell-phones makes sense for you and your family. If you are single, or just
don’t need more than one cell-phone in your family (are there still families
like that?!), having a contract means one thing only – you are overpaying for
your wireless service. Consider it to be a pay-off of the discount you got for
your fancy new phone…which now, year and a half into a contract, is neither
fancy nor new J
Sounds like a situation with a leased car, doesn't it?
There is another way to save on a wireless bill. That is,
you need to get rid of the bill J
That’s right, I am talking about a pre-paid month-to-month service, wherein you
usually get “everything unlimited” (voice in US and sometimes Canada, texting
and internet browsing). Typical costs per month range from $30 to about $60 per
month, with the lower costs being the province of virtual operators (Simple
Mobile, Boost, Page Plus, Metro PCS and numerous others) and higher costs being
charged by telecom behemoths (AT&T, T-mobile, Verizon, Sprint and maybe a
couple more in this weight category). The distinct advantage of this type of
service is that your monthly cellular expenditures are limited and controlled
by you, with no surprises due to changes in pricing or overstepping whatever
small print limits you ignored when signing up for the two-year contract – see above.
Disadvantage – if you fail to prepay your service by the end of your previous
service month, your phone goes dead. Period. Until you pre-pay again, that is.
You also have to buy your phone, obviously, compatible with
the provider you want to use. You don’t get the discounted offers that you
would otherwise get with traditional contracts as per scenario number one,
above, but guess what – you can get amazing offers for mobile devices from Ebay
and Ubid auctions. Don’t buy cell phones in your local store! Ever! Your fancy
phone should cost you about $30-$50 tops! If it costs more, it is more fashion
than common sense…You are going to drop it on the floor anyway, trust me L
Now, a punch line. Once you buy your mobile device, an
in-between solution for the service provider exists – Flash Wireless. I bought my
service from them. It costs me $45.99 per month, thus falling in the middle
range of prepaid services, but is arranged more like a “contract” scenario
above, with no contract. Truth be told, I bought it from Flash Wireless through ACN,
having first signed up as their distributor, and now I am being paid
commissions on my service charges! Also, when I get 5 of my friends to sign up
to Flash Wireless through me, my cell phone service becomes…..drums….drums….FREE!
Which I think should be the goal of all of my readers wishing to save money on
their wireless services. Think about it
this way – a life without bills is the true financial freedom everyone is
talking about, isn’t it? Contact me for details.
