Hay Wireless

(Page 6 of 7)

August/September 1999
by ROBIN THOMAS  
Article Tools
Print
Comments
RSS
Bookmark and Share

Other, pricier options include things like voice mail or e-mail. These can quickly add up, so be realistic when factoring them into your budget. One of Prime Co.'s all-digital rate plans, for example, advertises at a very reasonable base rate of $24.99 per month for 100 minutes. But add to this a "Pre-Pay Set-vice Fee" of $4.99 a month, an extra 320 a minute for retrieving voice mail, plus another $9.95 a month for the company's "Text Messaging" e-mail option and suddenly that original $24.99 has shot up closer to $40. By contrast, Sprint offers a base plan of 120 minutes for $29.99 that includes voice mail and has no monthly maintenance fee.

RELATED CONTENT

THE FINE PRINT

Find out if here are start-up fees or monthly service charges that an swell the bill. I Note that most companies require one-year contracts, charging you a fee if you don't fulfill that contract.

Find out what options you have to pay for and compare
the price with those plans that
include things like voice mail
and text messaging.

Get a list of accessories that
an or cannot be added to the
phone you want.

Find out if a long-distance
option is included in the plan.

Ask how much you are charged if you go over the monthly minutes on your plan.

Find out what your "roaming"
charges will be.

Ask whether you can purchase
unlimited or large amounts of "off peak" minutes for evenings and/or weekends and at what cost.

Remember, you use up minutes when you receive calls as well as when you make them.

One more thing to keep in mind is that most service providers bind you to a contract that says you will use their service for a certain amount of time and that you will use one of the phones they carry. The AT&T Digital One Rate, for instance, has a contract stipulation that says subscribers must sign on for a term of one year, use a digital multi-network phone from AT&T (a Nokia) and subscribe to AT&T Wireless Services long-distance. If you don't feel comfortable partaking of all of these options, you'll have to look for another service provider. GTE, on the other hand, offers the GTE Riskless Wireless service, which allows you to change the plan or the required GTE phone if you are not happy with either. But watch out: the fine print says "within 30 days of purchase." The bottom line is you still have to sign a one-year contract with GTE. They just give you 30 days to renege on it.

Cellular Life

After carrying around a number of phones for three months, we found that the cellular life could be remarkably convenient at times and more than mildly irritating at others. That we could contact or be contacted by others regardless of whether we were outside working or in town buying groceries was at the same time comforting and exasperating. Not only are there moments when you don't want to talk to anyone, but the creeping insinuation of the thing into our lives caused some staffers a good deal of discomfort. Learning to flick off the power switch quickly became as tricky an enterprise as using it.

Page: << Previous 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | Next >>
Bookmark and Share
RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print
FEATURED ARTICLES
MOST POPULAR


Subscribe Today - Pay Now & Save 66% Off the Cover Price

First Name: *
 Last Name: *
Address: *
 City: *
State/Province: *
 Zip/Postal Code:*
Country:
 Email:*
(* indicates a required item)
Canadian subs: 1 year, (includes postage & GST). Foreign subs: 1 year, . U.S. funds.
Canadian Subscribers - Click Here
Non US and Canadian Subscribers - Click Here

Lighten the Strain on the Earth and Your Budget

Mother Earth News is the guide to living — as one reader stated — “with little money and abundant happiness.” Every issue is an invaluable guide to leading a more sustainable life, covering ideas from fighting rising energy costs and protecting the environment to avoiding unnecessary spending on processed food. You’ll find tips for slashing heating bills; growing fresh, natural produce at home; and more. Mother Earth News helps you cut costs without sacrificing modern luxuries.

At Mother Earth News, we are dedicated to conserving our planet’s natural resources while helping you conserve your financial resources. That’s why we want you to save money and trees by subscribing through our Earth-Friendly automatic renewal savings plan. By paying with a credit card, you save an additional $4.95 and get 6 issues of Mother Earth News for only $10.00 (USA only).

You may also use the Bill Me option and pay $14.95 for 6 issues.