Yep mine used to be that way. I am not trying to say this is the best but I use Net10 I can buy 60 days service of 300 minutes for $30 or 1 months for $15 of 150 minutes works for me and I have as good reception as anyone.
I have a TRAK phone from Walmart. I pay 10 bucks for 100 minutes per month. I don’t use it that much so I’ve got like 972 mins available. I use ClearWire for my internet.