the Cost of Shared Cell Phone Plans

I have a 2-line shared minutes plan. It's part of a 2 year contract and includes 1,400 minutes per month that do not roll over. $0.40 for minutes over my monthly amount (peak and off peak.) $0.20 per text message to send or to receive. In my regular usage, the coverage area is sufficient for my needs, and I've never had the experience of being "out of area" and having to pay roaming charges. It's very easy to check my minute balance. It's also a simple task to pay my bill. It literally takes me less than five minutes to do it from my phone at any time. This service also allows me to download content such as music and games, and it adds the cost to my monthly bill which is very convenient.

The service is very good. I haven't had any problems, and it's very easy to contact a customer service person. They are also always very helpful. I have a consistent signal when I need it. My only complaint is that there isn't a set amount of text-messages already included in the price. I don't often use the downloading feature, so I've never run into a problem because of using up too much bandwidth. The selection of available games is decent, but so far I haven't found anything remotely resembling a "killer app." For an occasional diversion, it's a nice feature.

Definitely know how well the network works in your area. Some providers may be great in a big city but awful where you actually live. Also, consider what extras you're actually likely to use. In retrospect, I would have chosen a plan with text-messaging included if I realized how much I would be using it.