I've been complacent on Verizon for years because it is easy, it always works, I never have to think about it. But last month I stopped and thought about just how much I'm spending on phones that are on WiFi 98% of the time and what I could be doing with that money instead (spoiler: have phone service and an extra several hundred dollars a year).
My last bill on Verizon was $142 for two lines. And we weren't getting much data at all, just 1GB each. Times 12 months per year and that's more than $1,700 a year. For two people to have phones that are almost always on WiFi.
So I decided to cut it all out. I did a bunch of research, and found out that Tracfone owns a bunch of small carriers and that it supports many Verizon phones for BYOD. Unfortunately, my phone doesn't support it but the other does, so I moved that over: boom, it's now $20/month for 1GB of data, 1000 texts and 300 minutes. That works for her because she rarely ever texts or uses minutes, everything is done with messaging apps now.
I couldn't use Tracfone for whatever reason, it says my device isn't supported, and things like Page Plus were more expensive than I liked, so I signed up for Ting. 500MB of data, 100 mins, 100 texts for $22/month. It would be pretty pricey if I needed a lot of texts and mins, but I don't, so it's cheap.
That's $42/month (the title's wrong, lol) for two phones. That's $504 for a year versus $1700, or better put, a $1200 savings. I'm pretty disappointed I've blown money on phones for so long.
Keeping data down
So, obviously I'm on a very restricted plan, here's how I swing it.
1) Opera Max data saver app for Android does a good job of crunching data and keeping it down.
2) Android has a mobile data limit feature, I set it so that if it goes over 50MB of mobile data, it cuts off. That's because sometimes I forget to turn WiFi on and this means i'll realize it's off before I burn through all the data.
3) Uninstalled Facebook since I rarely look at it anyway, I just use the mobile website now if I need to check something. I restrict background data when I'm out of the house and doing things where I won't be looking at or using my phone.
4) Installed TextNow app, it gives you a phone number and calls are free and unlimited. Calls sound exactly like ordinary phone calls. I use this when I need to call a company or something, and I also gave it to a couple people who insist on calling over voice minutes rather than through something like WhatsApp (namely grandma, lol). This means I use almost no plan minutes.
5) Be disciplined. This was the hardest change for me. I had a habit of mindlessly looking at pics on Reddit and I've stopped doing that if I'm not on WiFi. I also make sure I download podcast episodes on WiFi now instead of anywhere.
6) Uninstalled data-heavy apps I don't need or use. I had a ton of apps I never use that Android showed consuming data in the background, and while none used a bunch on its own, they collectively chewed up a lot of data. So they had to go. Restricting background data also stops this, but it means no WhatsApp messages come in on mobile, etc, so sometimes I don't use it.
7) I use WiFi Map app -- this is an app that lists public WiFi hotspots and, when applicable, their passwords. And since once you connect the phone connects automatically next time, it means you only have to worry about it once at places you visit regularly. Opera has a free VPN app that can be used to protect data while on public WiFi.
Conclusion
It sounds like a hassle, but really, it's not. I don't even think about it 99% of the time now. I always leave WiFi on and it automatically connects when I'm home, at work, and at school, plus anywhere I've used it before like Starbucks, etc. It's definitely worth having an extra $1,200 a year, that's for sure.
April 01, 2017 at 08:13PM
