My Quest To Find A Cheap Wireless Plan (I Finally Got A Cell Phone)

Yes, I know, you’re shocked. How can I not have a cell phone, right? Well, it all comes down to money and the lack thereof. By the way, I did not have a home computer until the summer of 2008. Priorities, people, priorities. We’re a one income, one car family living in Southern California, so money is very tight. I have always known that a cell phone was something we needed, but the cost was just not meshing with our budget. Imagine my surprise when I discovered Walmart Family Mobile has unlimited plans with no contracts and no deposits for about $40/month. I was ecstatic! I can afford $40 a month and I’ll be getting pretty much everything people with the other big cell phone providers have, not be stuck in a contract AND the service is through T-Mobile, so it’s fairly reliable. SCORE!

Back in 2005, after The Diva was born, I bought pre-paid cell phones for my husband and I, but they ended up costing us far more than we expected. They had to go. Last December, I won a Razr HD phone from a blog contest and thought to myself, “HA! I will finally be able to have a cell.” Yeah, not so much. When I called Verizon to find out how much it would be to have that phone activated and another for my husband, I nearly fainted. It would have been $140/month PLUS A FIVE HUNDRED DOLLAR DEPOSIT.

Yes, you read that right.

I also called AT&T because I have been a home phone customer of theirs for over fifteen years and surely that would carry some weight…I got the same result. Although, I could have gotten free phones and wasn’t that enough?

::facepalm::

Apparently, if you have never had contract cellular service before, you get nailed ahead of time just in case you don’t pay your bill. Nice, eh?

So, one very hot Saturday afternoon, off to Walmart I went.

I found the Connection Center in my local Walmart extremely busy and not very well stocked. They were out of the Concord phone ($49.88) I originally wanted, so I had to get the next step up. I purchased a myTouch 4G smart phone ($129.88) instead of the Concord and the $25 starter/activation kit, for a total out-of-pocket cost of $154.88. The associate who helped me was very nice. The actual purchasing of the phone was truly quite painless. I told the employee what I wanted and she took it from there — all I had to do was give her my driver’s license and sign a couple of agreements. She did the rest.

Oh, yeah, I had to pay for it. Let’s not forget that part, shall we?

Three of the coolest things about Walmart Family Mobile are the ease of picking a plan, the wide range of phones to choose from and almost any unlocked phone can be used. There are only two plans and the prices are wonderful — $39.88 for unlimited talk, text and web and $29.88 for unlimited talk and text (additional lines are $34.88 and $24.88, respectively). There are no data limits with the top tier plan, so no outrageous overage fees, unlike some other plans. *cough*Verizon*cough* The available selection of cell phones range from a Samsung old school flip version for $29.88 to an iPhone 5 16GB for $549.88 to a Samsung Galaxy S4 for $624.88 (there are also a couple LG models thrown into the mix).  And, like most contracted plans, you can take care of your account online.

Did I mention that you can use practically any unlocked phone on the Walmart Family Mobile plan? The only contract phone you can’t use, according to the sales associate at my local store, are those from AT&T. Obviously they are a wee bit territorial about their phones and customers.

If I’d had the money, I would have gotten an iPhone — because SIRI and a TARDIS phone cover — but the cost for me is prohibitive. It sucks that you have to buy your phone upfront, but that seems to be the only advantage of going with a contract plan. The huge bill every month is certainly not a plus for anyone. I’m telling you #FamilyMobileSaves!

After my purchase, I walked away with a fully functioning cell phone that even worked while inside the store with amazing clarity. I think I might be hooked. I also think having a cell phone with web access may make me one of those annoying people who lie in bed and troll Facebook before actually falling asleep.

Tags: #CBias, Cell Phones, featured, Reviews, Walmart FamilyMobile

Category: Reviews And Giveaways