[Q] Prepaid Data Carriers in the US/California? - Networking

I'm heading to the states tomorrow for a month, and have been looking into taking my phone over there for google maps, gtalk and skyping. Really just data. I don't even need 3g, edge will do.
I have noticed that most tecos are extremely focused on their long term contract customers, and the only carrier that looks alright to me is SIMple Mobile (which is still pretty pricey, and I don't need those minutes).
Is there anywhere where I can just buy a chunk of data to use in a month? Here we can purchase 1gb for $20 on prepaid, and use it in 30 days. This is really annoying me, because everything is budled with minutes and texts.
Any help on other prepaid carriers guys? Even if you know any small local companies.
Thanks,
Peter.

Related

limited by service provider

here in canada as many already knows data plans prices are off the roof. However, they recently came out with a $30 for 6g data plan which i find reasonable for canada. (since the land lines internet has a cap itself then wireless is hard not to have cap) but the only problem is, unlike the flex data plans, they claim that this data plan will not work with pc cards, so that does mean it wouldnt work with the htc shift? on the other hand, this same plan will for sure work for windows mobile. so my question is, is there a way to use vista's side wireless data making the computer think that its hooked up with a modem which will be the windows mobile side?
That is the beauty with the shift. If it works in a pda phone, it should work in the shift. I also have a data card that is supposed to be used with a pda phone but i use it in my shift. The vista side basically taps into the WM side and borrows the data connection from the phone. That is also why SMS and other "phone like" features work on the shift.
The short anser is yes, it should work just fine.
o wow, thats great to hear, o basicly you're saying shift uses the hspa network through the wm side without needing to link it up ourselves. so unlike other umpc, we wouldnt need a pc card data plan to work, as long as it works for wm then shift will run just fine. but disreguard of all the good news, canada still sucks with the capping.
data plans
are you able to get 6 GB data plan from Rogers and use it on shift?
I have a Shift and use PDA Net to connect to Telus
for $30 I would consider a Rogers connection
Even better would to use wife; on snapview
yes, you should be able to use the 6gb data plan from rogers on the shift. According to x5-rwk, the vista side of shift uses the wm side as a modem for hspa meaning rogers will assume that u're using the data for windows mobile which is allowed. Moreover, I have also comfirmed with some rogers rep that the data plan works for ALL devices expect pc cards. but i guess as long as okay on windows mobile, we're good to go
Rogers Data
Thank You for the update.
The final question. what about voice, do you need a voice plan to get 6GB data plan?
I have HTC Touch on Telus and have unlimited data for $15 and voice plan, I would not want a Rogers voice plan as well.
Any suggestions?
Thank You
Dave
No you do not need to get a voice plan with it. As since Shift doesn't have voice calling and the fact that rogers launched the shift already themselves. however, i am still unclear on if there will be a $10 fee per month to maintain the account. That fee is meanly for people who wants to open a plan with nothing, no minutes or price plan. However, as since the 6gb data is an option, the $10 fee may apply. Too bad you can't use your telus phone to hook up to the shift and use it as a modem since the $15 is limited. What you want to get is a lot like what i want to get too. So I've been looking at the price plans for a while thinking about it.
Currently I'm with fido (which luckily has the same data plans as rogers). After being in a contract with them for 3 years and loyal customer for 4, they said they can knock $10 off my plan. But since the shift can't have voice, i'm looking into getting the iphone to run it as a modem, sounds stupid and all but best i can do with a small buget. Or another thought would be to get a cheap family plan, for fido, all the family minutes is sheared (rogers has pool of minutes + each line's own) so if you add data plan for shift on one line and the other line only for voice, that works cuz you'll have too much minutes to use from a pool of family minutes into one line. Lol So i'll advice on waiting if you can. The offer for 6gb will be up till end of aug thus theres a high chance of back to school offers will be launch mean while. moreover, i'll try to stay in touch with my buddy who works at rogers see what kind of under table offeres he can give me.
ps: in case you're wondering, the 6gb data option does not allow data pooling which sucks.
Roger Data
Thank You for the update.
When Rogers announced the new data plans, I went to a Rogers store, they told me I could not use 6GB plan on Shift.
I sounds like I need to be vague with Rogers when signing up for plan so they think I am using on unlocked windows mobile device.
Did you advise Roger your intention to use data for Shift?
Can I get 6GB plan for unlocked phone?
As for the Telus and using Touch as modem, I can and haved used it to connect, I do not think the Snapview side can use the Touch as modem.
I do have to be careful, tethering is not included in data plan, I have to use PDAnet to get under the radar screen.
If Apple offers the ability to use iPhone 3G as modem, that would be excellent for you, I am still guessing you will need additional solution for Snapview side of Shift (can you remove SIM from iPhone as install in Shift, that would be ideal for you)
I also have AT&T Pay as you Go for US, unlimited data for 30 days for $20, I activate when I travel to US.
Thank You
Dave
PS: If you move to Telus, they have Touch Diamond coming, you can use PDAnet and tether for unlimited data for better deal!!!!
called Rogers
I called Rogers to ask about data plan.
After being on hold and transferred numerous times, I was advised I needed a voice plan to get the $30 data plan.
Cheepjing, if you have any further information as to how to get the $30 data plan even if I have to pay an extra $10, I would be very appreciative of the assistance.
Dave
I have thought about switching to telus many times. Mainly since they have the thought of adding GSM before the olympics in canada. Too bad nothing have been comfirmed yet and I know its a fact its gonna cost them way too much to do so. Maybe Kodoo is making them enough for that plan, who knows. lol. But anyways.
Back to the point of rogers. Most of the agents on the phone are not well trained. I can bet 90% of people on this site who lives in canada knows more than most of the reps they have at the call center. I'm sure the agent advised you to get a voice plan cuz of two main reasons. 1: he/she has no freaken clue on why or what you want. 2: after asking his/her manager, they were advised to just sign you up for something and maybe they'll get a sale too! So far, i'm almost 100% sure you can just open a line with rogers for $10 with no voice and just add the 6gb option. Just the matter of the sales you talk to if he/she is dying for a sale or not then most likely they'll just force you into something you don't want. Thus, my advise would be, just wait for a few weeks if you can. Mean while, i'll ask the other rogers reps i know. Just to give you heads up, most likely i'll find a chinese sales since those are the only ones i know. lol. I'm going to wait till aug before i ask for some rogers plans for the end of summer cuz even if i ask know they know very little. But as back to school comes closer, more info will be release.
now side track a bit, damn i wish that rogers/fido offers two sim in one number or something. If there are anyone here who has or knows people who can do that let me know! I guess my best chance is still family plan, gotta somehow think of a way to bypass their system a bit.
Moreover, rumors says rogers maybe launching the touch pro or diamond.
Cut Off Date 6GB
Hi Cheapjing,
Thank You
Is the cut off date for 6GB plan end of Aug or Aug 6th?
Dave
the offer stops end of aug. mind if i ask where u get aug 6th from?
Aug6th
I thought I read it in Toronto Star somewhere, I am wrong.
Dave
hey, just comfirmed with fido that offer ends aug 31st. also, i'd also asked about not getting voice but data only plan from them (since rogers and fido offers the same data plans now) they told me that u can get a base plan of $15 which includes system access fee (6.95) and 911 fee (50cents) and then add on a 6gb option on top of that. catch is, it must be on a three year contract good and i'm not too too sure if u'll be able to get that as a new costumer but then again, it wouldnt be too too hard to get a frd whos with fido to open a new line in the same account for that plan and then transfer that line to ur name one or two months down the road. also, this plan cannot be purchases at any retail store, u'll have to call rentention department for that. good news is, since u'll be signing a 3 year contract for that, might as well get an iphone 3g for the 3 year contract price and resell it back out, or gift it, or use it as a mouse for your shift! lmao. choice is your's, i'll sure let you know on any updates with going around the data plans.
Follow Up
I will call Fido and ask for retention dept. I will likely wait until middle of Aug, I am waiting for Telus to release EVDO Rev A update for HTC Touch.
My issues are simple:
Is $45/month worth it to have SIM Card in Shift vs the 3 min it takes to connect Touch via PDAnet and use as modem, this is as long as Telus does not charge me for tethering.
Telus has the HTC Touch Diamond coming out, would I rather pay upgrade for Touch Diamond or purchase iPhone
with DAVE and Globalive winning spectrum, when will Rogers/Fido lower their data prices, if I am locked into a 3 year contract with Fido, will they lower prices for existing contracts when other GSM carriers enter market?
One other thing I have is once I liberate Shift, there is a way to use Wifi with Snapview (need Vista on/battery drain)
Since I have the Touch, it provides me all the Windows Mobile capabilities I need in Canada and I use Snapview in US with AT&T MediaNet service @ $20/month for unlimited data (I can add feature when needed, based on having pre paid plan with AT&T).
I am leaning towards not moving on the Fido plan for the above reasons, if it was $30 and only system access fee and not a long term contract or if Fido/Rogers offered data on pre-paid plans I would consider.
I also have to consider my past experience with Rogers, they truly suck at customer service, I understand Fido is pretty good, however, I am not sure if I want to contribute to the 300 plus million profit Rogers earned. I also have friends who have contracts with Rogers that Rogers lied/changed.
i fully understand what you're worried about. However, like you said with Globalive winning a high amount (while in the end it was still rogers who took the most spending just under 1billion) thinking deeper into it, yes, they should drop their prices. But once again, after spending that amount of money how much are they willing to drop prices by? nevertheless, they already knew that they were gonna blow 1billion away before where as i'm sure that was one of the main reason to wanting to launch the iphone with choppy data plans. and with new companies coming in, yes they will drop the price, but on data? highly unlikely. if a new company was to come into the three way battle, its hard for them to start up with both voice and data. personally, i love fido. though rogers is kind of effecting fido's customer's services, in the end, they are still the best i've had out of so many other places i called for help.
Either ways, personally, i would go on with what u had in mind as long as telus does not charge u extra. reason being, the longer you stay with a company and then call to have upgrades, the better deals you'll get. i've been with fido for 4 years now with two lines. my main line's price went from $50+ (150day, unlimited eve, fido-rogers free +plus all the junk) now it went down to $28 after tax with everything i need and a little bit more. took me a while to get a deal like that, were as i'm sure telus can do the same since i've heard some frds of mine who's been with telus for long and now have really really cheap plans. but in the end, that is all about the voice plans. in order for us to afford fair data plans, we'll need cheap voice. in the end, rogers should go right into the trash can unless you get ur plans for like $10 from your work place and or able to retention a $15 plan where i've seen happening but its one of those dont try it urself risks. luckily fido started having data plans. (i'm a apple hater somewhat) but it was all because of them thats why now we have cheaper plans so, good stuff. lol
if you ask me, is paying $45 for 6 gb on shift worth it, my answer is no. unless you're always on the go online, which cannot happen since shift has short battery life. other options includes investing a little on the side. you've heard of the unplugged dsl, right? offered by both rogers and bell. that could work in the car too (as i heard) costing almost the same price with 4 more gb of data but, limited to when u're near a power supply. on the side, you can always use your touch to modem up with ur shift. but in the end, will rogers drop the hspa data prices? i'll recommand not to have hopes up though in canada people knows how to complain, but they have no clue what they were complaining about to begin with. wait till mid aug and see, we still have some time.
on the side note, if only the us cdma shift can make it work here with telus or bell. if so, i'll really think about it. maybe i should read up on that. ha
Follow Up
Hi,
I agree with you 100% on almost everything.
I may call Fido to see if they can cut me a deal for the 6GB plan for convenience, I would be willing to pay around $40, for Fido, they get a brand new customer for 3 years.
BTW, I have a friend who used to work at Rogers as a executive, he told me Rogers rapes their customers on long distance (they use their own backhaul network to carry voice), LD calls cost Rogers same as local calls.
Rogers screws their customers on data because if you have GSM device, you have only one choice.
On the subject of CDMA Shift, Bell and Telus will not allow any ESN (Electronic Serial Numbers) that they do not sell on their networks.
I do think you will see competition on data from Globalive, maybe Quebecor and maybe DAVE, the money backing Globalive has 70 million wireless users globally and have the better clout than Rogers with Erisson and handset manufacturers to build a network more cost effectively than Rogers. They can also use current technology like Dragonwave for backhaul or Wi-Max to lower their costs.
In the short term, they will have to sign roaming agreements with Rogers, however, they will be able to offer more affordable voice and data.
If these new entrants do not lower prices, Jim Prentice(Industry Canada) should be lynched.
Remember, the Canadian government allowed Rogers to purchase Fido, Rogers is just taking advantage of the cards that were delt.
Sounds like a plan to me. To be honest, they wouldn't be cutting the cost ON the data plan itself. As contract with iPhone and the fact that data is all on rogers network. The rep told me that himself. However, that all just means not to pitch them that way. They do have $10 plan with no minutes, you may be able to pull it off IF u already have a relation with them. Nevertheless, give it a shot. The $10 plan i was told that was ONLY for people who paused their accounts (though most of the time that $10 is a CR for max of a year) Also, like i said before, $15 plan does include the SAF fee. Come to think about it, you might just be able to pull it off. They might ask you to sign contract for 2 or 3 years giving you a $5cr for the contract term and give u the $15 plan. Moreover, if they still hard push you to the full $15, just be like, "I'm signing a contract WITHOUT taking a phone" so that itself is a $75cr.
Yes, rogers are sons of scammers. I guess thats why they offer so many rogers to rogers accross canada. If you were to go with fido, i highly recommand to do it before fido becomes more n more like rogers (as i see them going that path). Well, fast i don't mean like within days, more like within a year.
I do see strong advancments with Yak. But honestly, i highly doubt thats going to happen anytime soon. With Kodoo (from telus) entering this year bombing the lower class market like mad, it makes it harder. I'm sure they can pull it off. How, i will not question yet since most likely they going to blow us with some surprises (but to me those surprises does not worth the chance of not being able to sign a 6gb deal on HSPA network). I look forward in the upcoming battle.
BUT with all aside, we should just take most advantage out from what we have now. Only god knows how long we'll have to wait till canadian data prices drops. Good luck with Fido! I'll keep you updated if i found out any more info.
WooHoo
According to Fido customer service, I can get plan for $30/month plus $7.95 access fee.
Wooo Hoo
Dave
Holy good stuff! Might as well strike for unlimited text! Since shift works with that. Also, just have the agent confirm that the $30 data plan does come with unlimited emails as i've been told so. Just tell them its for a Windows Mobile device, they don't need that much details, it'll just confuse them. Btw, SAF is only 6.95, if they are charging u 7.95 i honestly wouldn't complain.

Prepaid data plans in Canada

I will be travelling to Manitoba Canada for a couple of months this summer and I am looking for a prepaid data plan. I have searched the web but did not come up with anything so far. Since I have noticed a few Canadians on this forum I would appreciate if somebody would give me some suggestions.
Thanks
tedkopp said:
I will be travelling to Manitoba Canada for a couple of months this summer and I am looking for a prepaid data plan. I have searched the web but did not come up with anything so far. Since I have noticed a few Canadians on this forum I would appreciate if somebody would give me some suggestions.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My suggestion is travel to a different country, or avoid using data in Canada.
I'm not aware of any prepaid data plans that Fido or Rogers offers.
These are the only two GSM providers in Canada that will work with an unlocked GSM phone (They're actually the same company).
www.Rogers.com (They do Cable TV, etc, so select they're mobile wireless)
www.Fido.ca
Safe Travels!
tedkopp said:
I will be travelling to Manitoba Canada for a couple of months this summer and I am looking for a prepaid data plan. I have searched the web but did not come up with anything so far. Since I have noticed a few Canadians on this forum I would appreciate if somebody would give me some suggestions.
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, since you'll only be staying with us for a couple of months, it might be better to check with your local provider and see if they have any 'international roaming' plans. If I understand the way things work correctly, ROGERS/FIDO will simply pass on any roaming charges to your home provider, who will then charge you...
Unfortunately, I don't believe there is any way in Canada to get a 'pay as you go' SIM card including data that's anywhere near reasonable rates.
Thanks guys for your help.
I do have a prepaid sim with Rogers but I cannot figure out what they would charge for data. Their customers service is unbelivably bad.
I did check with Swisscom and the best deal I could find so far is 125 sfr or approx. 100 cad$ for 200 MB/month.
If anybody has more suggestions please let me know.
Thanks again.
Rogers data rate for pay per use is CAD$ 0.05/KB
You can get roughly 2Mb for your CAD$ 100.
Welcome to our nightmare...
http://www.rogers.com/web/content/w...t10=paygo_rates&setLanguage=en&setProvince=MB
stepw said:
Rogers data rate for pay per use is CAD$ 0.05/KB
You can get roughly 2Mb for your CAD$ 100.
Welcome to our nightmare...
http://www.rogers.com/web/content/w...t10=paygo_rates&setLanguage=en&setProvince=MB
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, Swisscom would charge me 100 times less in Canada than what Rogers would. And they go through Rogers!!
You guys should sign up with Swisscom !! http://www.swisscom-mobile.ch/scm/kd_datentarif-en.aspx
When I travel in Italy I can get 1GB with Tim for approx. 30 Cad$ !!!
Sorry I don't mean to make you guys feel bad but I always thought that North America was the leading edge on technology.
I was living in Canada when cellphone started to come out at an affordable price and in Europe they were still a luxury item. Now it seems it's the other way around.
hmm, this is indeed interesting to me too.
I'll be travelling to ontario for a short time, probably more often somewhat soon.
The data is not too big a deal, I plan to go pretty much only to places with wifi, and otherwise, AT&T gives me USD$0.015/KB data - cheap enough for a quick check of something.
However, having something with which I can call for relatively cheap would be great...
With any prepaid (I am not going in often enough to use a monthly plan) plan, can rogers beat that data rate or USD$0.79/minute phone calls? The website is hideously annoying to use... I thought I too might ask a canadian.
Hmm, did some research on Fido:
1. It never makes sense to use their data unless you use A LOT of data (a lot being a lot for a day when you're cutting back, not a lot for a month or so).
2. It always makes sense to get their prepaid service for voice - compare either CAD$0.50/minute or [CAD$0.60/minute with CAD$0.30/minute nights + weekends + CAD$1/day] with USD$0.79/minute.
Good thing I have a simunlocked kaiser lying around with nothing much to do
In my country, Indonesia, is extremely cheap, just $ 0.0001/Kb data
bmw2320 said:
In my country, Indonesia, is extremely cheap, just $ 0.0001/Kb data
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Canada phone companies are all bloody ripoffs, I hate it
stepw said:
Rogers data rate for pay per use is CAD$ 0.05/KB
You can get roughly 2Mb for your CAD$ 100.
Welcome to our nightmare...
http://www.rogers.com/web/content/w...t10=paygo_rates&setLanguage=en&setProvince=MB
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a friend who has to travel to Canada frequently for work (from the US). He has a work blackberry on ATT, and he just got a $3000 bill for data usage during a 3 day trip. I think he said it was $15/MB.
Hi. Sorry to dig this topic, but my question is very similar and I don't know if I could create a new thread with the same subject.
I'm from Brazil but I usually travel to Toronto once a year, so I'm used to buy Prepaid SIM Cards to use in my cellphone, but this time will be the first time I will go with a 3G Smartphone (French LG Optimus 7 - WP7). So my doubt is all about prepaid data plans
I was browsing Fido website and I saw the "Unlimited Mobile Browsing" for 10 bucks a month, but isn't clear for me if this pack is unlimited only when I am using the cellphone's web browser or if it's valid for Apps, Mail, Push, Bing Maps et al. too.
Someone more familiar with the Canadian providers could help me with this issue?
PS.: I need a prepaid plan because I will stay for a month only.
Thanks
I need something similar as well, I'm actually Canadian, but a friend is going to be here for a couple of weeks, and was asking... any help would be nice
I would also be interested on Canadian prepaid data plans.
There is a mention of prepaid 500MB data plan on Rogers website:
http://www.rogers.com/web/content/wireless-products/plans
But I can not find any info on how much does it cost .
Yeah, plans tend to suck in Canada. You can get pretty cheap ones from Mobilicity/Wind Mobile, with "unlimited" data (5GB, after that they may or may not throttle your speeds). Not sure how their prepaid works though.
I just bought a Bell prepaid tablet plan a few days ago for my Nexus S, seemed like the best I could get from the big three, Bell/Telus/Rogers. No voice in the plan, but I just use Google Voice for that anyway. It's $15 for 250MB, $20 for 500MB, or $35 for 5GB.
EDIT: Plus $5 charge for the SIM card.
Bell plan sounds reasonable. I guess I will have to cancel after 30 days in order not to be charged again. Is it freely available for walk-in customers for overseas?
Any other suggestions, which would include voice, would also be much appreciated.
Right, you just cancel before 30 days end.
Mobilicity/Wind/Videotron are probably the best you can get in terms of price. As an alternative to the Bell one but with voice, you might be able to go with something like Koodo, which has fairly cheap voice plans (starting at $15), and the data kinda scales ($10 for 100MB, $15 for 200, $20 for 300, $25 for 500, $30 for a GB). That's not pre-paid though, just no contract.
Not really sure how it works for walk-in customers / non-residents. I believe the first three I mentioned have prepaid you can just buy, not entirely sure though. Bell did make me sign up as a customer even though it's prepaid, but that might be because I wanted it activated in-store. Maybe find a Canadian friend to sign up for you and then cancel soon after?
AerialX said:
Yeah, plans tend to suck in Canada. You can get pretty cheap ones from Mobilicity/Wind Mobile, with "unlimited" data (5GB, after that they may or may not throttle your speeds). Not sure how their prepaid works though.
I just bought a Bell prepaid tablet plan a few days ago for my Nexus S, seemed like the best I could get from the big three, Bell/Telus/Rogers. No voice in the plan, but I just use Google Voice for that anyway. It's $15 for 250MB, $20 for 500MB, or $35 for 5GB.
EDIT: Plus $5 charge for the SIM card.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This sounds sweet. Some help if you would though please:
They mention a $35 activation fee on sim card packages (which cost more- $10 at kiosks). Did you get around that?
Did you activate sim online, by phone, in person? Any tips on IMEI to use?
Thanks!
whitebreadstyle said:
This sounds sweet. Some help if you would though please:
They mention a $35 activation fee on sim card packages (which cost more- $10 at kiosks). Did you get around that?
Did you activate sim online, by phone, in person? Any tips on IMEI to use?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nevermind, all sorted!
Phone rep activated without IMEI, and no activation fee because it's prepaid.
I'm now running a Bell Atrix on the Bell tablet ($35/5gb) plan. Since it's a Bell phone to begin with, I think things were a little more seamless. No need to manually enter APN's or anything like that.
Once again, the website to top up / check balance is mobile.mselfserve.ca/tablet/login.htm -- NOT the one on the self serve app (which is where the phone rep sent me incidentally). It was quite obviously the wrong page because there was no $35 top up choice and no mention of tablets.
Thanks, people in the thread, for your tips.

How I Cut My Cellphone Bill In Half !!!

Hey guys, like you, even though we have to manually do alot to get our HD2's in perfect condition. I wanted to hip you all to something that I'm currently taking advantage of, which is saving me major money each month.
Went to Wal-Mart on the lauch date of the infamous HD2, and paid full price for one, thinking that it would end up saving me money in the long run, because I had my own equiptment, therefore, I wasn't under a 2 year aggreement for T-Mobile.
Went to the T-Mobile store to get setup with service. Deciding on getting the T-Mobile unlimited everything plan (voice,sms,data) it ended up costing me around $92 a month (including taxes, fee's, and the $5 discount). So, I began thinking, "this is not the significant discount I was looking for". I asked the salesman what was the benefit of me purchasing this phone outright, he told me that if I got the same package and features, with the phone discount, under contract, it would cost me around $120-$130 a month. I began to seek other options to lower my bill. However, I was hesitant to lower anything, because I did one time, and got fuked over with crazy overage charges! I even thought about switching it over to AT&T, but then realized I'd be loosing out on the high speed data, because of the incompatibilities of the 3G radios between the 2 networks (and who wants edge speed on a smartphone these days!).
Then I did some research and found out about Simple Mobile, this is a Virtual carrier of T-Mobile (like how Virgin is to Verizon, and Boost is to Sprint). Anyway, after a couple of emails, and phone calls, I decided to make the switch. I found a nearby retailer (or u can check them out online) And I never looked back!
I now play EXACTLY $60 a month, for unlimited everything (voice,sms,data). And I was able to port and keep my same number. While this is truly great in of itself. Another great feature is because it's still a subsiary of T-Mobile, I didn't have to software unlock the HD2 at all. It was literally a matter of taking the old Sim card out and putting the new one in. The only thing that I did have to reconfig was the internet settings and the MMS settings to be able to have those 2 things function correctly. (which is very easy, I provided a link to the instructions below)
Instructions on changing internet settings and MMS settings.
http://www.mobile-files.us/showthread.php?2245-HD2-wap-mms-settings-for-SimpMo
The internet is exactly the same, I'm still getting the H icon at the top, with about 4 MB sec speeds. Call quality and range is the same, and so is the txting features. Because it's using the same T-Mobile towers as before. (which T-Mobile is very good, in Costa Mesa, CA )
Don't know about you all, but especially in these times, when money is tight, I have to really buckle down to budget and plan for big ticket items. So when I spend $400+ on a device. I truly want to be able to see more of the savings, in the long run. And thats how I cut my bill in half! They even offer plans at $30 and $40 if you don't want or need unlimited data for your phone, therefore saving your even more money.
This may not help some of you guys out there, but if your like me, and not in a contract, or you may be in a contract, and thinking this may be a better route for you in the long run (make sure you do your math beforehand, and make sure your savings outweigh your ETF from T-Mobile) I just wanted to let you know, that you do have an option out there.
Simple Mobile
http://www.mysimplemobile.com/
Hope it helps!
Eddie
so are you truly getting 3g speed? this sounds promising.
smokeingit said:
so are you truly getting 3g speed? this sounds promising.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes sir, I sure am, it displays the H icon, so I know its the HSDPA speed, which is alittle faster then 3G...however, i'm not sure if its the new HSDPA+ that you might have been hearing lately. I say that because, I dont believe WM have a status icon to show you that (because the technology is so new), so my theory is that, IF the HD2 supports it, AND its is getting the HSDPA+ signal, it'll still show the H icon at the top right of the device. But to answer your question, its DEFINITELY gets the high speed, because its still using the same towers!
I have friend that works in one of those smokes, cell, and gun stores and he has been trying to get me into this program.
It's good to go and legit.
Unfortunately I am only 6 months into my new 2 year contract...had to for my $190 Leo.
dangit.
I believe this has been discussed many times already.....
Simple mobile does not provide unlimited data. I believe it's still capped at 1GB/month. Which is a big no no for people who like to tether and abuse the network.....
calc said:
I believe this has been discussed many times already.....
Simple mobile does not provide unlimited data. I believe it's still capped at 1GB/month. Which is a big no no for people who like to tether and abuse the network.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So your saying their "Unlimited Everything Talk, Text & Web" plan, which is labeled as "New", is not actually unlimited?
Paten said:
So your saying their "Unlimited Everything Talk, Text & Web" plan, which is labeled as "New", is not actually unlimited?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://consumerist.com/2010/07/simple-mobile-unlimited-data-plan-is-of-course-secretly-limited.html
http://www.prepaidreviews.com/blog/mvno/simple-mobile-limits-unlimited-data-plan-36148/
Both reported and the end of July of this year.... so unless something has changed in 3 months time, NO it is not unlimited.
I was suckered into a new mobile phone plan with a new company called Simple Mobile. They are a T-mobile MVNO (essentially a reseller) claiming to offer UNLIMITED talk, text, and data for $60/mo.
The reality is... Their $60 plan is NOT unlimited. When you hit 1000MB in one month your data service is simply terminated without warning.
They will offer to sell you an additional 100MB for $10. This policy is not stated anywhere on their website. If you call or write and complain, they will simply tell you to go elsewhere and will not provide any refund.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I mean really............. just think about it for a minute, do you really think T-Mobile is going to allow another company to use their network and infrastructure all the while having them undercut their own prices too.....not to mention the toll and expense of all pushing out all that bandwidth at "unlimited" rates.
calc said:
I believe this has been discussed many times already.....
Simple mobile does not provide unlimited data. I believe it's still capped at 1GB/month. Which is a big no no for people who like to tether and abuse the network.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All I can do , is speak from my experience. Since having this service, I KNOW that I used more than 1GB (stream music all day, watch YouTube, use it for general internet browsing, and logging into my Orb media server at home, and streaming TV from my PC). So I would definitely consider myself a above average data user, and have not once, been capped or throttled (trust, I would be *****ing and complaining, with everyone else). I've even checked my usage online to see it and its a little under 2Gigs of data transfer, and everything is ok. I not sure if maybe I have a magic bean, VIP, IMEI on my device (joke-e-joke ) , which is given unlimited data usage, without penalty, or maybe they've modified their contract and upped the data usage cap or something. Again, I can only speak from my personal experiences, within the last 3 months, reguarding my device and service. I don't use my phone for tethering, but I do consider myself a heavy data usage user and not had any problems regarding their quality of service thus far.
Get rid of the unlimited voice and txt, then with this guide I wrote:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=19619155#post19619155
You can cut your phone bill even more sharply. I'm paying about ~$20/month right now depending on my voice usage when out and about.

Aria IMEI

I know it is a sensitive topic, but I'm so frustrated with ATT, and was wondering if I could get any directions from you guys.
I bought for my wife new Aria (full price) so she can collaborate with me without using her brain. Few days after the change I realized att changed her unlimited data plan to tiered one. That move really pissed me off, and I had to switch her back to old nokia to preserve unlimited plan. I used to have an iphone with this plan (unlimited data for $15/month), and it looks like they are enforcing new, more expensive plans not only on new customers, but also on existing ones.
Enough said... I would like to get some hints on changing imei, so I get to keep my old plan...
Thanks
Not 100% sure but just swap the sim and it should work. ATT are assholes for doing away with unlimited data made the mistake of losing my unlimited data plan when the iPhone 4 was released thanks iphone!
Sent from my Liberty using XDA App
I upgraded to the aria And had the unlimited data plan transfered..if u just call customer service and tell them that u have been a loyal customer for a long time now and u should be able to keep the plan u have had..u should mention being grandfathered in, be polite and tell them if they can't help u then u might be looking at other carriers. U would be amazed at the things I have gotten for free or discounted by just calling and talking to customer service..if they say they can't do it ask to be transfered to to the person who can, u might be on the phone for a minute but u can get it done I promise u
Sent from my Liberty using XDA App
Post this same info on ATT's Facebook.
Same thing happened to me, I went from an iPhone to the Aria, and had the unlimited data removed, put a post on ATT's facebook, and within the day, I was talking to a guy who gave it back, credited my account, and gave me an additonal discount, to make my bill cheaper.
Interesting... if that's what they did to you then I may actually get somewhere. I just pulled the plug on one line to get G2 from tmo, and may threaten to close another line if they refuse to keep my plan...
If it comes to sim swap then it won't work with att branded phones. The only thing that may work (it worked with my old line) is to use unlock phone and ask them to update imei. They will mark your line as unlocked phone and never update your plan again. It worked for iphone...
Thx for your input.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
How much data do you actually use on your plan? I use my phone's data very regularly throughout the month and the most I've ever managed to use in a month was a gigabyte, making the $25 plan a cheaper solution than the $30 PDA Smartphone plan that preceded it.
I work in a retail position in which I handle AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile customers on a daily basis, and I have yet to meet anyone who uses more than 2GB a month, and some of these people use the phone as if they do not have a home internet service!
Thankfully AT&T has a very easy way of checking to see the monthly data usage you use, and even gives you a nice graph of the last six months of data usage, so you can decide for yourself what data plan is right for you.
"Unlimited" 3G data (w/ 5gb limit) for $30 on a smartphone is going the way of direct connect. Verizon will not be far behind with unveiling their new data plans and T-Mobile is talking about doing the same thing. I think once it is all said and done, we won't even see unlimited plans on 4G networks, especially once Sprint gets enough people back onto their service.
Just do the switch yourself. If you bought the phone full price you could have gotten it anywhere besides AT&T, swapped the SIM and been on the same plan. that's what i did coming from my Fuze. I just moved the SIM card to the new phone, and it worked flawlessly. kept my unlimited plan and everything.
as for data usage. When i had my Fuze i used maybe .5gig a month, but as soon as i got the Aria my usage spiked. I use consistently well over 2 gigs a month, breaking 4 gigs in August. I don't use it for tethering, i don't download huge video files, in fact i'm pretty tame with my phone usage. I'll be keeping my unlimited plan when i get a free upgrade in January.
shark0807 said:
How much data do you actually use on your plan? I use my phone's data very regularly throughout the month and the most I've ever managed to use in a month was a gigabyte, making the $25 plan a cheaper solution than the $30 PDA Smartphone plan that preceded it.
I work in a retail position in which I handle AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile customers on a daily basis, and I have yet to meet anyone who uses more than 2GB a month, and some of these people use the phone as if they do not have a home internet service!
Thankfully AT&T has a very easy way of checking to see the monthly data usage you use, and even gives you a nice graph of the last six months of data usage, so you can decide for yourself what data plan is right for you.
"Unlimited" 3G data (w/ 5gb limit) for $30 on a smartphone is going the way of direct connect. Verizon will not be far behind with unveiling their new data plans and T-Mobile is talking about doing the same thing. I think once it is all said and done, we won't even see unlimited plans on 4G networks, especially once Sprint gets enough people back onto their service.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You sound like att spokesperson addressing all dumbasses that purchased smartphone thinking it will make them look smarter. Your data usage statistics are off, and just because you ask your customers about their data usage, it doesn't mean it makes you right. I have observed the data usage by mobile devices in the enterprise I manage in the past 3 years. It seems people spend more time using internet driven apps when their experience improves. That pretty much means the faster mobile network becomes the more bandwidth is consumed. Another huge impact on data usage comes from pushed advertisement. People love free apps, but in order to support brightminded developers those apps have to display small banners. lets do quick math here... each banner is about 5KB. Popular apps rotate them in intervals of 10s, or display new ad whenever you go to new page. If your phone supports multitasking, for example new iphone, then if you don't close the app (for example weather app) it may actually keep rotating those ads in the background eating up your bandwidth. That's 5KB every 10s throughout billing cycle gives us total of about 1.3GB each month. That's based on single app that probably won't be running 24/7, but you may have few of such apps running at the same time, so this will definitely bring you close to that number.
Now, lets talk about 4G, and your assumption of all carriers going with tiered plans. I've been enjoying my G2 over HSPA+ so much. You tube videos are actually in visible quality now. Those very same videos over att 3g were just a joke, and waste of time. What do you think how much bandwidth those HQ videos consume? How about video calls? How about flash driven apps? Limiting users to tiered plans would mean blocking all those services, and worse it would bring technology development for mobile devices to a halt (at least in US).
Mobile carriers are facing very hard times. There is more bandwidth demand than they estimated. ATT for example chose greed, and decided to oversubscribe their infrastructure hoping iphone will save them. Verizon however, invested in their network to ensure they can handle the growth. They all should be thankful to Apple for stealing the name "smartphone", and introducing it to masses in the form of a dumbphone. That move changed the industry, and right now we're all paying for it through higher cost, development by spending more time rooting devices than coding new apps, and reliability. I love my mac, but I hate Jobs for the iphone so much...
cegna09 said:
Just do the switch yourself. If you bought the phone full price you could have gotten it anywhere besides AT&T, swapped the SIM and been on the same plan. that's what i did coming from my Fuze. I just moved the SIM card to the new phone, and it worked flawlessly. kept my unlimited plan and everything.
as for data usage. When i had my Fuze i used maybe .5gig a month, but as soon as i got the Aria my usage spiked. I use consistently well over 2 gigs a month, breaking 4 gigs in August. I don't use it for tethering, i don't download huge video files, in fact i'm pretty tame with my phone usage. I'll be keeping my unlimited plan when i get a free upgrade in January.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Aria is the only woman friendly (small) android phone that supports att 3G. I paid for it $300 (new). Legacy, which seems to be pretty much same phone is $200 more, and doesn't support att 3g frequencies. It looks like att is getting better in cat/mouse game. I may just have to threaten to leave, to get something done...
BTW
any android phone is concidered by att as smartphone, and they require smartphone plan with it. My wife previously had unlocked nokia, so they did not know what kind of phone it was, and allowed regular $15/month unlimited data plan. Once you put your sim into device that they have in their database they enforce on you smartphone plan that's currently available. If her previous plan was unlimited data for smartphone ($25/month), then I agree, she would be able to keep it.
chopperpl said:
BTW
any android phone is concidered by att as smartphone, and they require smartphone plan with it. My wife previously had unlocked nokia, so they did not know what kind of phone it was, and allowed regular $15/month unlimited data plan. Once you put your sim into device that they have in their database they enforce on you smartphone plan that's currently available. If her previous plan was unlimited data for smartphone ($25/month), then I agree, she would be able to keep it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
didn't realize you came from a non-smartphone. I came from a Fuze (touch pro), so i was already on the $30 unlimited smartphone plan. I made the phone switch right after they announced the end of unlimited plans, and just swapped the phone on my own. Their system caught it, changed my profile on AT&T's site, but did nothing to the plan. I still have the unlimited plan, and will be keeping it as i foresee my usage staying hight.
Do what i did.
Change the sim into a dumb phone and turn it on, wait about an hour, then log into your account online. The options for the medianet packages will reappear. Remove the smartphone data plans then enable the medianet plan for unlimited data. After switch the sim back to the smart phone, if you get a text or email saying they detected your smartphone just call them up and tell them you do not have a smartphone and give them the IMEI number of the dumb phone and have them remove the data and restore the medianet.
I know its a bit much to lie to them but it is robery that pay as you go data is $2 per 1MB, $15 for 200MB and $25 for 2GB when the service sucks inside any building in lower Manhattan.
joshua54 said:
I upgraded to the aria And had the unlimited data plan transfered..if u just call customer service and tell them that u have been a loyal customer for a long time now and u should be able to keep the plan u have had..u should mention being grandfathered in, be polite and tell them if they can't help u then u might be looking at other carriers. U would be amazed at the things I have gotten for free or discounted by just calling and talking to customer service..if they say they can't do it ask to be transfered to to the person who can, u might be on the phone for a minute but u can get it done I promise u
Sent from my Liberty using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this is what i did.
I called cancellation dept, and they still refused to roll my old plan back
Going back to my initial request... Any hints on changing imei?
Thanks
Is it doable at all?
I don't want to waste anymore time on it. Can some of the bright ones just tell me, if imei on this phone is "burned-in" or is it changeable via software?
Thanks
So... I've done more research, and seems people are saying it is illegal to change imei... Illegal???? I think, if changing/spoofing for criminal activities then it is illegal. Carriers clearly abuse that id to rip more money from people. Where is the government to protect us? I wouldn’t mind, if there was an alternative, but there is none. How come I pay full price for the smartphone, and can’t deny data plan? I want to roam through local hot spots offered for free by my cable provider to sync phone instead of X fuc…ing G!!!! I think it is time for people to start filing complaints with FCC...
chopperpl said:
I don't want to waste anymore time on it. Can some of the bright ones just tell me, if imei on this phone is "burned-in" or is it changeable via software?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First off AT&T can see immediately when you switch, and to what phone you are using, as well as the kind of traffic, to categorize your phone... so spoofing an IMEI won't get you anywhere - the bandwidth usage from a regular phone vs a smartphone is miles apart.
Second and more importantly Unlimited data for smartphones ($30) vs unlimited data for a regular phone ($15) are two completely different plans. Your old nokia was clearly not a smartphone if you were paying $15 for unlimited data.
I had a blackberry 9700 and went to an Aria, smartphone to smartphone. They let me keep my same smartphone unlimited data plan.
Bottom line you can't switch from a regular phone unlimited data to a smartphone unlimited data plan and keep the same plan.
You're SOL.
Your best bet is to talk to a manager in a retail store - as they are the only people who can work miracles. AT&T grants them special privileges, like allowing you to "early upgrade" (essentially re-start your contract) for a fee + regular advertised phone prices (way cheaper then a new phone at full retail price), and then allowing you to spend that "fee" as a credit on retail store accessories.
dexmix said:
First off AT&T can see immediately when you switch, and to what phone you are using, as well as the kind of traffic, to categorize your phone... so spoofing an IMEI won't get you anywhere - the bandwidth usage from a regular phone vs a smartphone is miles apart.
Second and more importantly Unlimited data for smartphones ($30) vs unlimited data for a regular phone ($15) are two completely different plans. Your old nokia was clearly not a smartphone if you were paying $15 for unlimited data.
I had a blackberry 9700 and went to an Aria, smartphone to smartphone. They let me keep my same smartphone unlimited data plan.
Bottom line you can't switch from a regular phone unlimited data to a smartphone unlimited data plan and keep the same plan.
You're SOL.
Your best bet is to talk to a manager in a retail store - as they are the only people who can work miracles. AT&T grants them special privileges, like allowing you to "early upgrade" (essentially re-start your contract) for a fee + regular advertised phone prices (way cheaper then a new phone at full retail price), and then allowing you to spend that "fee" as a credit on retail store accessories.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm afraid you're wrong, and this is why. I've had iphone 3gs on unlimited data plan ($15/month) for over a year. Before that I had Nokia N95 (which is still much smarter than iphone 4) on the same plan also for about a year.
You're saying they monitor bandwidth usage... How come they never picked up on my international SIP calls, and radio streaming? and yes, spoofing will get me somewhere. ATT holds only imeis from att branded/approved phones. If my imei is not found they assume it is simple multimedia phone. How do I know that? I talked to cancellation dept manager two days ago, and was ensured I will get my plan back once my imei doesn't match any of those from att smartphone lineup.
dexmix said:
Bottom line you can't switch from a regular phone unlimited data to a smartphone unlimited data plan and keep the same plan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So what you are telling me is that basically, you want people on here to help you do something which is admittedly illegal in many counties, so your new smart phone appears as a multimedia phone and you can pay less and keep your unlimited data plan.
*scratches head*
edit: you would have been better off just getting an Aria for free with a 2yr contract and then paying for a 2G plan.
dexmix said:
So what you are telling me is that basically, you want people on here to help you do something which is admittedly illegal in many counties, so your new smart phone appears as a multimedia phone and you can pay less and keep your unlimited data plan.
*scratches head*
edit: you would have been better off just getting an Aria for free with a 2yr contract and then paying for a 2G plan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, not exactly. I've had that plan since gen 1 iphone, which was running on Edge, and three months later I switched to n95 3g. Basically I'm trying to retain my old data plan, and that's because I have not received any special treatment, or services in order to pay more... If they rolled out LTE, and use that for justification then I would agree.
dexmix said:
edit: you would have been better off just getting an Aria for free with a 2yr contract and then paying for a 2G plan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Better off????? 2 year contract means locked in with old technology. Those contracts don't do any good to people. By signing, you let att screw you any way they want. You can't walk away, or negotiate. If I wasn't tied up with the contract when att announced new plans, then I would switch to verizon long time ago... If you are real smartphone user then you better off buying unlocked phone, and use it the way it was designed to use without extra fees (tethering $60 ), but if you are one of those guys thinking "smartphone will make me look smarter", then your best bet is to buy discounted phone with the contract.

[Q] Best pay-as-you-go data plan?

I have a Blackberry supplied by my employer. I can't use it for personal e-mail and Web content is very limited. I'd like to get a smart phone for personal use but wouldn't use it enough to warrant a full plan under my wireless carrier (AT&T). Does anyone have any pay-as-you-go or cheap data-only plan and carrier suggestions? My MB usage would be low as it's really just for e-mail and a small amount of Web use. I'm located in Florida.
i wud say THREE 3 , there best for price plans , but signal isnt all that well . its certain areas .
i pay 15 pound a month and get 600 mins, 3000 texts, 1gb internet . i dont use 600 mins so i wanna go down to £10 a month 300 mins 3000 texts 1gb internet .
hope this helped
just seen ur in florida . sorry , any1 else this may help
three do a good deal for 15.00 a month like the other poster states , but it now offers unlimited internet (yep truely unlimited) same minutes and texts etc, good deal , plus if you buy through say quidco or topcashback websites , you will get a nice rebate also
Virgin Mobile may be your best bet. $25 for unlimited text, data, email etc. and 300 minutes.
http://www.virginmobileusa.com/cell-phone-plans/beyond-talk-plans.jsp
three in uk is best for data plan..
I have the £15 month all you can eat (its not unlimited as most think see the terms and conditions) 80gig data a month yep 80 gig!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I have the normal pay and go topup monthly (not rolling contract) which is 300 mins 3000 texts and 80gig a month the rolling contract is 600 mins and 6000 texts and 80gig a month data.. its £15 no matter which plan you go for..., so pick best for you.
signal is not always the best but data speed is best every had. And does tend to work most every where I go(inc most mountain areas but not all but this is same across the networks)....
word of warning they will soon be stopping the all you can eat sim!!!(friend works for them and told me after I bought it) so get it whilst you can...
Sometimes I wish I was in the UK but I am in the States (Florida). Virgin seems to be the best bet for now. I will go by a local AT&T store to see if they will offer me an unadvertised deal, though. Thanks!
Florida resident here, I'm with tmobile, have 5 phones and a broadband stick. Pay about $200 a month, data, unlimited voice and text on even more plus plan. I'm decently happy with the service. For me, I work at a car dealership, and tmobile gives me a discount for being a "Kia" employee although I technically work for many different dealerships.
Straight Talk I think would be a good choice for you. They have a nice $30/month plan that would work well for you. Check out the Howard Forums Straight Talk threads for info on how to use one of their sim cards in a phone of your choice.
AT&T just took away my unlimited data plan since I upgraded to a Nexus One... I will likely be switching to Straight Talk at the end of the month.
Edit: I forgot to mention that they use AT&T's towers!
If all of this is true Straight Talk may just take over the market I know once get my hands the right equipment they might just win me over!!
Sent from my Synergy Rom using XDA App
styndall said:
Straight Talk I think would be a good choice for you. They have a nice $30/month plan that would work well for you. Check out the Howard Forums Straight Talk threads for info on how to use one of their sim cards in a phone of your choice.
AT&T just took away my unlimited data plan since I upgraded to a Nexus One... I will likely be switching to Straight Talk at the end of the month.
Edit: I forgot to mention that they use AT&T's towers!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you by chance have a link for this I've searched and haven't found it? Thank you in advance
Sent from my Synergy Rom using XDA App
Ack, sorry I took forever to reply.
Here is the link to the threads: http://www.howardforums.com/forumdisplay.php/551-Straight-Talk

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