The Real Deal

Sometimes things just aren’t what they appear to be. How often have we signed a contract promising us the lowest monthly charges but end up paying more than our last cellphone contract? Choosing a cellphone plan is easy but getting out of the plan is another story.

Popular services included in cellphone contracts are free call minutes, free text messaging and internet services. With network services competing for a piece in the cellphone service market, mobile providers have not only improved their services but have even offered free Motorola AT&T Phones or free Motorola qwerty phones. However, before considering signing that contract, here are some important things to consider:

Trap 1: Too good to be True

People looking for the best plans sometimes end up choosing the cheapest plan available. These plans may seem the cheapest with some going for around $20 -$30 a month but a careful study would show that they come with the most expensive per minute charges. This is good if you never make calls or text messages but defeats the purpose of having a cellphone in the first place.

Some cellphone networks also charge us even though we don’t make a call. These are charges made even if we just receive calls or if we keep other cellphone services like ringtones and call forwarding for example. It is always important to get the whole picture; sometimes the cheapest plan is just cheap on paper.

Trap 2: The Price of Freedom

Getting a free Motorola QWERTY phone or free Motorola AT&T phone with free minutes would seem to be the best deal that any subscriber may get from their cellphone provider. Some cellphone plans even offer us 400 to even 1000 free minutes but a quick look at our monthly bills would leave us wondering where did those free minutes end up. The simple fact is that free minutes or unlimited minutes aren’t absolutely free. There are many factors that define the term “free” in our contracts and some of the things that we should first consider are:

• Who me make our calls to

Mobile providers charge incoming calls from other providers to their network. Calls are only considered as “free minutes” when this calls are made within the mobile provider’s network.

• When do we make the calls

Some plans offer us free minutes when they are made on certain times of the day or times of the week. Cellphone plans may offer us free weekend minutes or free nighttime minutes. Charges are made automatically when calls are made outside the cellphone plan’s free calls period.

• Where do we make the calls

Making international calls or areas not covered by our networks don’t fall under “free minutes.”

Trap 3: Roaming Charges

Mobile providers have different coverage areas. Coverage areas are defined as those where wireless communication companies have mobile towers and service areas. A quick check with your customer service representative could provide you with information regarding your mobile provider’s coverage areas. Calls made to friends on the same network are not always free. They might be outside your cellular networks are and these incur roaming charges.

Some mobile providers may charge a bit higher when compared to other networks. The tradeoff is that have a wider coverage area. One factor to consider in choosing a mobile provider is one which has a better coverage area to try avoiding costly roaming charges.

Trap 4: Vague Charges

Be wary of all your calls and make sure that you keep track of all your minutes. Some network providers only tell us how many calls and how many minutes we consume without giving us further details. Checking with the networks customer service could help you determine what types of call you’ve made and help clear up some charges.

The Fine Print

Cellphone plans require their subscribers to lock in on their networks for a period of time. We all know that cancelling a cellphone contract can sometimes be costly. Most network providers charge subscribers an early termination fee or ETF. Transferring to another mobile provider is not merely changing your network. Choosing the best cellphone contract and getting it right the first time definitely saves us money.

The best plan is not always the cheapest plan; in fact they might just turn out to be the exact opposite. We should always consider everything before locking in any type of contract. Contracts are legally binding and failure to comply with any of the terms in the contract comes with a penalty. When cellphone contracts just seems too good to be true, consider reading the fine print to know exactly what were getting yourself into.

Ronald explains how cell phone subscribers can make the best use of best free cell phones. Like you Ronald wants to be a better and more informed mobile user of free verizon phones

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