These days, consumers are scaling back on expenses wherever they can. One such way is to try to save money on your cell phone bill. Most people still want the convenience of a portable phone, so instead of canceling their service together, some are switching to prepaid cell phones.
As the economy seems to be worsening, companies that offer prepaid wireless service like MetroPCS are thriving. In the last quarter of 2008, Metro PCS had the highest new subscriptions in the company’s history, with over half a million new users. This is a very big increase and is a result of the changing attitudes of cell phone users.
The company offers flat-rate unlimited calling services with no contract for right around $40 a month and currently has around 5 million people using their service. That’s a decent sized network.
Leap Wireless, the company that owns Cricket, a prepaid service provider, is also thriving and added a good amount of new patrons. These smaller companies are slowly chewing into the larger marketplace, which is always a good thing for the consumer, who should be able to have a large market of fairly-priced products to choose from.
As people become more savvy about the telecommunications business, they begin to see they have options. They do not have to sign a contract and pay for a certain amount of minutes every month–they can pay for what they use as they go. There are always certain rules and balance requirements, but if you do your research, you should be able to find a good plan for yourself. The hard part is knowing what’s out there. But you have the internet, which is great for research. You can also find a ton of information on this website.
One added bonus with prepaid is that there are usually no roaming charges. These companies are still dwarfed by the giants like Verizon (which just recently acquired Alltel) and AT&T, the second largest wireless provider in the US, but the market for this kind of service is growing and becoming more common.
Read some of the reasons you should consider prepaid. (Some source material found here.)
Find the best deals on Straight Talk phones and plans at Wal-Mart.com
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