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Cell Phone Help
myself

Posted on 08/01/2006 7:07:10 AM PDT by 2Jedismom

Freepers, I value your opinion.

I need a cell phone. Not one to use every day, one that I only use in case of emergency, like if I get lost or my car breaks down. I am considering one of those kinds in a package at Walmart with a pay as you go deal. I know they're more expensive per minute, but I will hardly ever use it.

The other day I got lost on the way to a friend's house. I had no AC in my car and it was 101 degrees outside. I had to stop and get out and find a phone to call her and I had just driven right by her house. A cell phone in that situation would have been perfect.

I am deaf in one ear and I find it uncomfortable to talk on the phone *anyway* so chatting on this phone would not happen.

So, any tips or suggestions on what to look for in this kind of cell phone? Anything I should steer clear of?


TOPICS: Miscellaneous
KEYWORDS: cellphones
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To: raccoonradio

>>I think they have a deal where if you do Auto Top Up i

that may no longer be the case but they do have occasional deals like that.
And I notice the K10 phone Royalem which I'd bought last yr for $50 is down to $20...


21 posted on 08/01/2006 9:56:44 AM PDT by raccoonradio
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To: raccoonradio
LOL. I know the feeling. When I bought mine it was on sale for $100. Now? $49.99 PLUS $20 in free airtime. {grumble grumble}
22 posted on 08/01/2006 10:01:48 AM PDT by Sue Perkick (...heavy strings, tune low, play hard and floor it. Floor it. That's technical talk....)
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To: 2Jedismom

I have such a phone from walmart....simple freedom.. It effectively costs $10 per month because you have to buy minutes every 60 days.

Although there is a wide service area, in some locations you have to dial the number twice.

You have to purchase a phone, but for those of who don't hear well, it has a loudspeaker function.


It does exactly what I need..... allows me to call whenever I want to. Only one person knows the number so no unnecessary incomong calls.


23 posted on 08/01/2006 10:03:13 AM PDT by bert (K.E. N.P. We will screw you inshallah)
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To: raccoonradio

Went to Virgin Mobile site and yes, I guess if you do
Auto Top Up you can keep going with a minimum of _$15_
every 90 days


>>Auto Top-Up Settings
Simplify and save with Auto Top-Up
To access our special $15 Top-Up amount, choose one of the Auto Top-Up settings below.


24 posted on 08/01/2006 10:09:51 AM PDT by raccoonradio
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To: 2Jedismom

Mrs. Slim and I recently got tracfones, they seem to be OK. We only use them to contact each other and in potential emergencies.


25 posted on 08/01/2006 10:11:45 AM PDT by Tijeras_Slim (Crazier than a rattlesnake at a Thai wedding)
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To: 2Jedismom

Yes, money is required every 90 days but you only have to put in $20 at a time. :)


26 posted on 08/01/2006 11:25:01 AM PDT by pbear8 (Praying for the innocents in Lebanon)
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To: 2Jedismom

2J - I used a TracFone when I was driving across country the first time. Worked fine for that, and you can get cards for them at any Wal-Mart and plenty of gas stations, too.


27 posted on 08/01/2006 11:29:38 AM PDT by RosieCotton
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To: pbear8

That sounds prety good. Does Virgin have good coverage?

I run the Interstates and need wide coverage.


28 posted on 08/01/2006 1:23:32 PM PDT by bert (K.E. N.P. We will screw you inshallah)
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To: raccoonradio; Sue Perkick

That sounds like the ticket!

I like the idea that I'm auto topping for $5 a month...That sounds REAL good.

So my understanding is that I buy the phone and then every 90 days, they'll charge me $15 and take it right out of my account and that keeps the service going and the minutes just keep adding up...correct?

What about voicemail? Is it free? I had free voicemail if I accessed it from a land line when my parents let me borrow theirs once. I never answered casual phone calls on the cell, would just see who was calling then return the call when I got home!

Does it have caller id and such?

Heh! I feel like a moron. (You know, it was the 90s before I got rid of my eight-track tape player and finally got a CD player.)


29 posted on 08/01/2006 2:24:18 PM PDT by 2Jedismom (Expect me when you see me!)
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To: bert

It piggybacks on the Sprint system. They might have a coverage map on their website - www.virginmobileusa.com


30 posted on 08/01/2006 3:06:55 PM PDT by pbear8 (Praying for the innocents in Lebanon)
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To: 2Jedismom
Yep. Voicemail is free. And caller ID too.

You know, it was the 90s before I got rid of my eight-track tape player and finally got a CD player.

Me too! LOL.

31 posted on 08/01/2006 3:29:27 PM PDT by Sue Perkick (...heavy strings, tune low, play hard and floor it. Floor it. That's technical talk....)
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To: Sue Perkick; pbear8; angkor; Enterprise; Ptaz; osagebowman; RichardW; Osage Orange; The Chief; ...
Ok! Here's what I got! I got it at Walmart and activated it online when I got home. Every 90 days, it auto-tops off $15. So I'm effectively buying the service for $5 a month.

I'm greatly relieved.

Thank you all so much for your help!

32 posted on 08/02/2006 2:38:04 PM PDT by 2Jedismom (Expect me when you see me!)
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To: 2Jedismom

To what address do I bill you?


33 posted on 08/02/2006 2:40:35 PM PDT by Osage Orange (MOLON LABE)
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To: Osage Orange

Uh...do you take hen eggs?

Heh heh!

Actually, I don't have any more hen eggs. Neighbor dog dug under my fence and killed my sweet girls. Even my Benny Hen, whom I used to Freep with.


34 posted on 08/02/2006 2:48:46 PM PDT by 2Jedismom (Expect me when you see me!)
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To: 2Jedismom

35 posted on 08/02/2006 3:02:04 PM PDT by Enterprise (Let's not enforce laws that are already on the books, let's just write new laws we won't enforce.)
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To: 2Jedismom

oooooh nice! I love a flip phone. Hope you like it.


36 posted on 08/02/2006 3:11:14 PM PDT by Sue Perkick (...heavy strings, tune low, play hard and floor it. Floor it. That's technical talk....)
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To: 2Jedismom
Even my Benny Hen

ROFLOL! Funny!

37 posted on 08/02/2006 3:13:51 PM PDT by Sue Perkick (...heavy strings, tune low, play hard and floor it. Floor it. That's technical talk....)
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To: 2Jedismom
Shame about the dog. But that is so original & cute!

Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting

Hope your Benny was better lookin'

38 posted on 08/02/2006 3:48:35 PM PDT by Sue Perkick (...heavy strings, tune low, play hard and floor it. Floor it. That's technical talk....)
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To: 2Jedismom

I really liked my Virgin Mobile phone until I started courting with Talon and we needed to talk a lot more :-) You could do all the buying minutes online, which I liked, and it was very hassle-free. My sister had some other plan, Tracfone maybe, and she didn't like it as much.


39 posted on 08/02/2006 3:51:43 PM PDT by JenB
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To: 2Jedismom

Way to go 2 Jedismom, you're part of the cell phone generation now. That sounds like a very good deal, cool phone too. OB & LSA


40 posted on 08/02/2006 4:17:12 PM PDT by osagebowman
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