FREE Cell Service! No, REALLY!

My last post introduced you to FreedomPop, an up and coming Internet Service Provider (ISP) that borrows (legally of course) Sprint's 3G and 4G WiMAX network to provide FREE and low cost home internet service. As of October 1st, FreedomPop made an announcement that will blow your mind!

FREE talk, text, and web is now a reality and not just a gimmick. It is pretty basic but offers 200 minutes, 500 texts, and 500mb of data per month for absolutely nothing. You do have to buy their HTC handset but its only $99 for a limited time and runs Android 4.0. If you want a little bit more, you can get unlimited talk and text and 500mb of data for $11 a month.

Ok, so its pretty limited but if you are not heavy on your data when you're away from a WIFI connection, this would be a perfect low cost/free solution. If you're ready to take the leap and give your kid(s) a phone so you can reach them at any time (yeah, RIGHT!), this is an incredible alternative to adding a line to a traditional family plan. If you run a small business and want a separate phone just for business use, there is no better deal out there. The possibilities are endless so check it out!

Unlimit Your Cell Plan

How much are you paying each month for your cell plan? Cell phones have been attached to our hips for more than a decade and many of us are still frustrated with the dent that our cell plan puts on our budget each month. Even if we wanted to try something else, we can't because we're locked into a long-term contact with one of the major carriers.

Non-contract and pay-as-you-go services have been popping up everywhere over the past few years but many offer limited service range or poor handset selection. For those of you ready to ditch the contract, check out Walmart's StraightTalk service. They offer a wide variety of Android and iOS smartphones and their UNLIMITED service is only $45 a month! They contract with all four major carriers (Verizon, Sprint, T-mobile, and AT&T) for use of their cell and data networks and with a little research you can find out which carrier services the handset you want to buy. StraightTalk even offers a "bring your own phone" program where you can get a StraightTalk SIM card for your existing T-mobile phone or get service to your existing compatible Verizon or Sprint (CDMA) phone. If you are ready for a new phone you can buy a brand new smart phone from the StraightTalk website at full retail price and they'll ship it to you all set up and ready to use. Want to save even more money? If you want to live on the wild side, buy a used smartphone of your choice off of Craigslist and use the "bring your own phone program" to get it up and running with StraightTalk service. See the bottom of this post to see how much you can save using StraightTalk.

I have been using an iPhone 4s (Craigslist purchase) with StraightTalk service for over a year and a half and have been extremely happy! I've read user reviews who have stated that they have had their data throttled for overuse but I have yet to have this happen to me. If you use your phone HEAVILY for watching movies or tv shows away from wifi, this may not be the service for you but I watch 5-10 hours of video on my data connection each month, surf the web often, use navigation heavily, and email constantly from my phone and have never seen a decrease in my data speed.


How Much Can YOU Save?

Major Carrier Unlimited Plan Individual

Major Carrier Unlimited With 2 Lines

*Note that the above prices DO NOT include the initial cost of the handset nor monthly taxes and fees







StraightTalk Plan Per Line

Buy iPhone 5 at full price + $45 monthly= $72/month over 2 years
Buy iPhone 5 used + $45 monthly= $62/month over 2 years
Buy iPhone 4s at full price + $45 monthly= $68/month over 2 years
Buy iPhone 4s used + $45 monthly= $55/month over 2 years
Buy Galaxy SIII at full price + $45 monthly= $62/month over 2 years
Buy Galaxy SIII used + $45 monthly= $55/month over 2 years