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Can you use a regular phone (monthly contract) on a prepaid/pay as you go plan, both same company?

Discussion in 'General mobile discussion' started by Ram_Crazy, Nov 9, 2009.

  1. Ram_Crazy

    Ram_Crazy Member

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    Can you use a regular phone (one that is used for a 1 or 2 yr contract, paid monthly) on a prepaid/pay as you go plan, when both phones are from the same company? I am having difficulty trying to find the answer to my question even from the phone company. Which to be more specific. Right now i have a pay as you go plan from t-mobile, and bought the el cheapo $19.99 cellphone for the plan. However i hate, hate, hate the phone, and saw the new samsung gravity 2 berry model and wondered if i could use it on my prepaid plan. Yes, i do realize texting would be additional cost, but still cheaper to me for a prepaid plan. I could get it free with a 2yr contract, but i would be paying $40 per month instead of $25 every 3 months. I was looking online and was able to find it on amazon where i can purshase just the phone, which i was happy about b/c i went to the t-mobile sight and could not just purchase the phone, especially for as cheaply as amazon. Please can someone help me? Why do they have prepaid phones and monthly phones? Why can't they have phones that do both, is it special programming or another way to get more money from us?
     
  2. godowar

    godowar Member

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    Ram_crazy....

    I'm looking for the answers to the same questions. Did you find out anything yet? My 2 year alltel contract runs out in june and they now have prepaid plans a lot cheaper with more bells/whistles than what we have now on our contract. ..but the cell phone selections on prepaid plans suck! I want one of those shiney new phones that i can surf the web and access google with...got any ideas for me?
     
  3. gonzalo1

    gonzalo1 Guest

    spam edited by ddp
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Apr 20, 2010
  4. xboxdvl2

    xboxdvl2 Regular member

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    if you have a phone that will support a pre paid sim card it shouldnt be a problem.alot of phones these days are sim locked so you might have to get the locks removed costs $50 in a shop here but im in australia and i dont know where you are.
     
  5. jonscott

    jonscott Guest

    'Pay as you go' plans work completely differently. For starters there is no monthly fee or contract and you don't need a credit card. Instead you can buy a phone card from the market which is like giving the carrier money towards your account. You only need to add $20 credit to the account every 90 days to keep it active. However, minutes are billed against that at about $.25 each, a higher rate than a standard plan. And there are generally no perks.

    A 'pay as you go' plan first requires that you buy a cell phone made to use with this type of plan. You can purchase pay as you go phones from stores like Target. The phone needs to be made for the carrier you will be using. If you want to use Virgin Mobile, for example, you'll need a Virgin Mobile phone. If you don't have a credit card or don't want to use it, you should also purchase a phone card for that carrier. They cost anywhere from $20 up, and are just plastic cards used to add credit to your account.

    Once you buy the phone, signing up is easy. Just call the carrier's number listed in the phone manual. The representative will ask for the serial number off the phone, then will assign it a cell number. Some carriers automatically credit your account with $10 for signing up with them, but if not, you can add $20 to your account with the phone card you purchased. Your account is recorded using the cell number, so you don't even have to give the company your name!

    Cell phone minutes are deducted from your available balance. If the balance reaches zero before 90 days have expired, you will need to buy another phone card to add more credit to the account before you can make additional calls. This is why it is called 'pay as you go.' If, on the other hand, 90 days passes and you haven't used all your credit, you will need to add $20 dollars anyway to keep the phone active, but your existing balance accumulates. You don't lose it if you don't use it!
     
  6. godowar

    godowar Member

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    thanks for the reply :D
     
  7. Paula_X

    Paula_X Guest

    what a load of tripe. My compadre got it right.. you need an unlocked (all networks) phone, then put any active sim you want in it and buy credits.. I have a so called Virgin phone running on Orange, but I can put anything I want in it because it's been unlocked.
    Some phones these days have specific network software which is annoying, but they can usually be flashed with generic software, or even set up for the network you want.. usually.... but not always, and that kind of thing costs unless it's done as part of an unlocking procedure. In europe 99% of phones need hardware to unlock them.. no codes any more (the ones listed on the internet for €2.99 are scams.. they either don't work or break your phone) so you will need to take it to a back street fone unlock shop.. charges are in the £10-£45 range depending on network, make and model.
     
  8. hooter007

    hooter007 Regular member

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    also if fone is locked to a certin network and you want to use another network try this HERE
     

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