Prepaid Cell Phone Guy

Verizon Prepaid vs Tracfone are examples of two different types of prepaid phone plans. Verizon Prepaid uses the “Unlimited in network minutes with a daily charge” type of plan and Tracfone uses the Cost per minute plan.

How Verizon Prepaid Works

Verizon Prepaid has several options

Prepaid Basic which offers 25 cent minutes.

99 cents per day which allows you unlimited calling to other Verizon Wireless phone users and then you will pay 10 cents a minute on all other calls. Every day that you use your phone you will pay the 99 cent fee. Texts are 10 cents to send and receive.

199 cents per day which allows you unlimited calling to other Verizon Wireless phone users and then you will pay 5 cents a minute on all other calls. You also get Unlimited Nights and Weekend calling with the $1.99 plan. Every day that you use your phone you will pay the $1.99 fee. Texts are 5 cents to send and receive.

399 cents per day which allows you unlimited calling to other Verizon Wireless phone users and then you will get Unlimited calling every day. Every day that you use your phone you will pay the $3.99 fee. Texts are 1 cent to send and receive. This is basically their Prepaid Unlimited Plan. $3.99 per day for Unlimited Calling to any phone in the United States.

Text Message Bundles

If you are on any of the Verizon Prepaid Plans you can get the Message Bundle Plans. For $20 per month you get Unlimited Messaging. For $10 per month you get unlimited texting to Verizon Wireless phones and 250 additional messages. If you go over the 250 you will pay 20 cents per message with the Basic plan, 10 cents with the 99 cent plan, 5 cents with the 199 plan, and 1 cent with the 399 Unlimited plan.

How Tracfone Works

Tracfone is a simple Cost Per Minute prepaid cell phone company.

You purchase the Tracfone phone and a Minute card.

Then you activate the phone by calling Tracfone on a land line or by going online.

You will have to type in some numbers into your phone and then it is active. It is really easy.

Next you will add a Tracfone Minute Card.

When adding a minute card if you use a five digit Bonus Code you might get more minutes. Check out the Tracfone Bonus Codes.

Basically you buy Tracfone minutes on a card and add them to your phone. You will get 90 days of service time on most Tracfone cards. You must keep minutes and service time on your phone to use it. The remaining number of minutes and the service end date will usually show on your display. vzprepaidvstrac

Buying Tracfone minutes

Tracfone minute cards come in different sizes.  You can spend $20, $30, $40, $80, $100 and $200.  As you spend more money on the card you get more minutes per dollar.  With the first four cards you get 90 days of service time with the card.  The twenty dollar card gives you three minutes per dollar and the eighty dollar card gives you 5.8 minutes per dollar.  These numbers double with DMFL.

Tracfone Minute Doubler Card

Be sure to check out what Tracfone DMFL is before you purchase your Tracfone. Here is a great article on Tracfone DMFL. I would only add minutes to a Tracfone that had DMFL on it.

Tracfone Service Time and Minutes Roll Over

If you add minutes or service time before your phone has completely run out the remaining minutes or service time will roll over.

Get $3 off on any Tracfone or accessory $19.99 or more with coupon code 23444.

How do I change my Phone number with Tracfone?

You will have to call Tracfone Customer Service if you want to change your phone number. Sometimes you will not be able to get a local number with your current phone. Where I live in Montana At&t and other GSM phones do not have very good coverage so Tracfone will not give you a local number unless you are using a CDMA phone that works on the Verizon Network.

Tracfone and Net10 LG 200c and Samsung R451c

Summary of Verizon Prepaid vs Tracfone Wireless

If most of the people you talk to are on Verizon Wireless the Verizon Prepaid plan can work well.  If you want to chat for more than just a couple of minutes with other Verizon users this can work very well.  I have three adult children that are all on Verizon.  I was talking to them with Skype and burning their minutes.  I bought a Verizon Prepaid phone and it cost me a dollar on the days I used it but it saved them a lot of minutes.

Messaging vs Chatting

If you use your phone to get messages to people then you will probably do OK with a Tracfone.  Send them texts or quick two minute phone calls.  If you want to talk on the phone like you do on a land line you will spend a lot of money on a Tracfone.  If the people you want to talk to are all on Verizon then a Verizon Prepaid Phone can work out well.

Converting Verizon Wireless Prepaid to Verizon Contract Service

Your Verizon Wireless Pay as you go cell phone can be converted to a Contract phone if you have used it for six months or more as a prepaid phone. You will not have to sign a contract to add this to a contract. I added a prepaid phone to my son’s contract for $10 a month on a month by month basis. I got a Long Term Contract rate without a long term contract. Verizon Prepaid vs Tracfone Wireless

For the best deals on Verizon Wireless phones Click here.

Tracfone and Net10 are similar Prepaid cell phone companies. What are the differences between Net10 and Tracfone Prepaid?

Your Verizon Prepaid Service Time will not Stack Up!

When you add money to your Pay as you go account you may extend the expiration date . a $15 to $29.99 payment you will extend your service to 30 days. $30 to 74.99 will extend to 90 days. If you make a $100 payment or more will extend your service to 365 days.

Verizon Wireless operates one of the largest and most reliable wireless networks in the nation. Verizon Wireless now offers prepay Wireless services. This is a picture of the Logo that we all relate to “Can you Hear Me Now.”

The Verizon Prepaid Basic Plan charges 25 cents per minute with no daily access charge. The Verizon Basic plan is not competitive with any of the other prepay plans.
Net10.com for 10 cents a minute or Tracfone.com. from 6.6 cents up to 33 cents a minute are much better options.

The Verizon Core Plan is 99 cents per day for access and calls are 10 cents per minute. Unlimited calls to other Verizon Wireless mobile phones are free. I utilized theVerizon Core program for nearly a year, if your main calls are to other Verizon Wireless users this can be a good deal.

The Plus Plan is $1.99 per day access and charges 5 cents per minute. Basically this will be the same as the Core plan with Unlimited Nites and Weekends added and you will only pay 5 cents per text to receive and send.

The Verizon Prepaid Unlimited Talk Plan offers Unlimited minutes and one-cent text messages for $3.99 per day.

Verizon Wireless Calling Features

Call waiting, caller ID, 3 way calling and call forwarding are included.

There is no extra charge for Verizon Nationwide Long Distance.

Check out my article on the Best Yearly Cell Phone Plan

Motorola W385 and Straight Talk Samsung R451c

Verizon Prepaid Text Bundles

1. Unlimited texts to Verizon Wireless Customers, plus 250 out of network messages, for 10 dollars per month.
2. Unlimited texting to any network for 20 dollars per month.

***Google Search Box***

Verizon Wireless features one of the largest and most reliable cellular networks in the nation. Verizon Wireless also offers prepay Wireless services. Here is the Logo which we all relate to “Can you Hear Me Now”

Verizon offers four Prepaid Wireless plans

The Verizon Prepaid Basic Plan with 25 cents per minute and no daily access fee. The Verizon Wireless Basic plan is not a good value when you compare to other prepaid wireless plans. Net10.com for 10 cents a minute or Tracfone.com from 6.6 cents up to 33 cents a minute are much better options.

The Verizon Core Plan is 99 cents per day for access and calls are 10 cents per minute. Unlimited calls to Verizon Wireless cell phones are free of charge. I utilized theVerizon Core program for almost a year, if your main calls are generally to other Verizon Wireless phones this can be a great deal.

The Verizon Plus Plan is $1.99 per day access and charges 5 cents per minute. In essence this is the same as the Core plan with Unlimited Nites and Weekends added and you will only pay 5 cents per text to receive and send.

The Verizon Prepaid Unlimited Talk Plan offers Unlimited minutes and one-cent text messages for $3.99 per day.

Motorola Droid from Verizon

Verizon Prepaid Per Day Fees

The Per Day fees are only charged on the days the phone is used.

The Per Day fees are from Midnight to Midnight local time. If you haven’t used your Verizon Prepaid phone for a full 24 hours and then you make a phone call to another Verizon phone at 11:55 pm and the call lasts until 12:05 (ten minutes later) you will be charged $1 for each day or $2.

If you only make one call in a day it will cost you $1 plus airtime. If you mainly make calls to non Verizon Wireless phones the dollars go away quickly.

Verizon has over 80 million customers therefore the Basic plan with Unlimited Verizon to Verizon calling for 99 Cents a day gives you a lot of phones you can contact.

Initial Charges for Verizon Prepaid.

You will pay up to a $25 fee when you initialize your Prepaid Verizon cell phone. I activated mine at a Verizon store and purchased a $30 card all at once. The person that helped me did not charge me the fee. I did spend $79.95 on the cellphone.

Verizon Prepaid Customer Service

Customer Service can be reached 24/7 by email, a toll free number and from your Verizon prepaid cell phone without incurring airtime charges. I have used the Verizon Customer service several times with great results. I have used Tracfone and Net10 and Straight Talk customer serviceand it is not nearly as good as Verizon Wireless Customer Care.
I have gone to a Verizon store for assistance as well as called 611 from my Prepaid phone. The Customer Support people have been excellent. The phone support person was located in Arizona not Chile.

Free Calls to Customer Support.

With Tracfone, Net10 and Straight Talk your calls to customer support it will cost you minutes. Call Verizon at 611 and it is free.

Converting from Prepaid to Contract

Your Verizon Wireless Pay as you go phone can be converted to a Contract phone if you have used it for six months or more as a prepaid phone. You will not have to sign a contract to add this to a contract. I was able to add one to a Verizon contract for $10 a month on a month by month basis. This worked well for me, a Long Term Contract rate without a long term contract.

Verizon Prepaid Phone Service

It will cost you a minimum of $10 a month or $100 per year to maintain Verizon Prepaid service.

Verizon Service Expiration

If your balance goes to Zero or if your Service time runs out your account will expire.

Using your Prepaid Phone as a Pager

Caller ID can act like a pager when your account balance is low on Money. Check the caller Id and call back on a landline.

Samsung R451c Qwerty Keyboard

Straight Talk Motorola Razr V3 Video Review

This is a video review of Straight Talk Motorola Razr V3 phone.

Straight Talk is a new partnership between Verizon, Tracfone and Walmart. The phones range from a basic phone for $60 with a $30 phone card to a pretty nice Smart phone that runs just over $300. I recently bought the Samsung R451c for $130 which included a $30 “All You Need” phone card.

This setup was good for one month of service, 1000 minutes, 1000 texts, and 30 mb of web browsing. That is quite a bit of browsing on the little screen of this phone.

The new Straight Talk program has two prepay options.

Unlimited Prepaid Straight Talk Wireless for $45 a month

* unlimited minutes
* unlimited text and picture messages
* unlimited data
* unlimited 411 calls

“All You Need” Prepaid for $30 a month which includes

* 1000 minutes
* 1000 texts
* 30 mb of data for
* unlimited 411 calls

Straight Talk Motorola Razr V3 next to the Samsung R451c Sllider

Summary Straight Talk Review

This is a well thought out venture which includes the largest retailer in the world, the largest cell phone company in the New World—(Tracfone’s parent company) and Verizon who has the largest collection of Cell phone towers in the United States.

This program hits a new low price for Unlimited Nationwide coverage $45 per month plus sales tax. It also hits a new low for prepaid minutes at 3 cents a minute. The minutes do not roll over. Still the cheapest prepaid minute you could find before this program was 6.66 with a $200 purchase from Tracfone.

Motorola Razr V3 Prepaid Review Straight Talk price for $130 including one month service.

Check out more information on Straight Talk Wireless.

Get the Best Price on Straight Talk Phones from Straight Talk.com

Benefits of Straight Talk Service

• No contract to sign
• No Credit Check
• Phones available at Walmart or Straight Talk.com
• Minute Cards available Online, Walmart, or direct from the phone
• Nationwide cell service on Verizon Network
• Nationwide no roaming charge service
• Local phone number available
• No deposit required
• No overlimit charges
• 411 calls for no extra charge on both Straight Talk plans
• Your plan information on your phone screen all the time
• 1,000 minutes a month for $30 a month
• Unlimited Calling, Text, and Data for $45 a month

Verizon Prepaid has a couple new Unlimited Texting plans.

Verizon In Network Unlimited Prepaid Text  And Verizon Unlimited Prepaid Texting.

The In Network Unlimited will cost an additional $10 per month and gives you unlimted texting to other Verizon Wireless customers and 250 texts to other cell phones.

Net10 Motorola W370 and Lg 600g Cell Phones

Verizon Prepaid Unlimited Texting

You can also pay $20 a month for unlimited texting to anyone on any network.

99 Cents per Day

Every day you use your phone will cost you 99 cents. You will only be charged the 99 cents on days you open or send an email or make or receive a phone call.

$10 a Month Verizon Prepaid Text Messaging
If you get unlimited texting to Verizon customers that will be $10 per month. You will still be charged .99 cents every day you receive (and open) or send a text.

The 99 cents daily charge also gives you unlimited calling to other Verizon customers for the day. Any other call will be 10 cents a minute after the 99 cent access fee.

The $10 monthly text fee will also give you 250 texts to non Verizon customers.

Verizon Activation Fee
If you go to the store and are nice you can probably get the $35 activation fee waived if you purchase $100 in service.

$15 per month for ServiceYou will have to add at least $15 per month to your account to keep it active. If you add $100 your account will be active for a full year.

To use unlimited texting to Verizon customers every day of the month will cost you about $40 a month. That is if you do not make any calls to non Verizon customers.

Do all your friends have Verizon?
This plan works great if all your friends have Verizon. This plan has worked very well for me because I have several friends that are on Verizon.  I don’t use it every day.  If I am around my landline I will often not answer my cell and call back on the land line.

My Verizon prepaid phone.

I bought a Verizon Prepaid phone to play with the Verizon Navigator and also to play with a Verizon Prepaid plan.  I played with the Navigator and it works great but I did not use the phone.

Then a week later I wanted to call my daughter and chat on the cell phone.   It wouldn’t work.  I live three miles out of town and my other cell phone was working fine.

A couple days later I went to take the phone back to Verizon.  I went in to the Customer Service person and said my phone isn’t working.  She promptly dialed with it and it worked.  Then she asked where I lived.  I told her and she said “Oh last weekend the tower near you quit working.”  Then she said everyone else’s phone was working fine because they roamed onto the nearby Alltel Tower.  She didn’t know why my phone had been dead.

Verizon Prepaid VS Verizon Contract Coverage
The coverage is different. Even most of the Verizon customer service do not know it. There are holes in coverage with most services. If Alltel has coverage in an area a contract phone will roam onto the Alltel network. The Verizon prepaid phone will drop the call and not roam. The Verizon prepaid phone will not get as good of reception as a Verizon contract phone. Verizon actually has a different coverage map for prepaid than it does for contract.

Three Hours for One Dollar Verizon Prepaid
Since my prepaid Verizon phone is now working I called my daughter and talked for over an hour. I also called my son and talked for over an hour (he has Verizon also). The Verizon One dollar a day prepaid plan lets you talk as much as you want to other Verizon users for one dollar a day. You will only be charged on the days you use your phone. You must add at least $30 every two months to keep your service active. If you add $100 to your account it will stay active for a year.

24 hours
When you start use of your Verizon prepaid cell you have use for 24 hours. If you start using it at 1:00 in the afternoon on Monday you will get free usage to other Verizon numbers until 12:59 Tuesday afternoon. This is true also of the VZ Navigator, when you activate it you get 24 hours of usage.

Verizon Prepaid Cell Plans are significantly different than most prepaid cell plans.  Most prepaid plans you purchase minutes add them to your phone and then use them.  Unlimited calling is not a normal Prepaid option.

The Verizon Inpulse Prepaid Wireless Cell Plans

The Verizon Inpulse Core plan will charge you $1 a day to use your phone (only on the days you use your phone) and 10 cents a minute for calls and for text messages. But you can make all the calls to other Verizon phones for free for the day.

The Verizon Inpulse Plus has a $2 a day plan that gives you unlimited night minutes along with unlimited in network calling. The call to other phones on this plan will cost 5 cents a minute and 5 centseach for text messages.

The Verizon Inpulse Power has a $3 a day plan that gives you Unlimited nights and weekends and will charge you 2 cents a minute for other calls and for text messages. You must spend at least $15 a month to keep your Verizon phone active.
Verizon Samsung SCH-U430 Prepaid Phone and Charger

One dollar a day you use it or $30 a month for unlimited calls to other Verizon users.

Buying a Verizon Prepaid Phone Verizon Prepaid phones are generally more expensive than Tracfone phones.  You do have the option of getting top of the line phones to work with Verizon Prepaid.  You normally have to pay $35 to activate your Verizon phone on top of the purchase price. Most old Verizon phones can be activated and used as Verizon Prepaid phones, None of the Blackberrys or Smartphones can be used on Verizon prepaid. Verizon customer service is much better you can go to your local Verizon store if you have questions or problems.

Verizon Customer Service
I had a problem with my Verizon Prepaid Cell Phone and I took it in to the local Verizon store and the problem was solved quickly.  Much easier than dealing with Net10 or Tracfone customer service.

Verizon Prepaid Cell Plans

Emergency Cell Phone
Check out  your best deal on an Emergency Cell phone.

How to Buy Tracfone Minutes and use Bonus Coupons