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Old 10-26-2013, 08:12 AM   #1
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Cellular ?

Question.... We are currently using one of the large providers for cell service. We are considering Consumer Cellular as a change. Anyone have any thoughts on this. We are getting tired of contracts and the pricing of plans. We would like your thoughts on this and what services you are happy with. We looked at coverage maps and they all appear very similar.

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Old 10-26-2013, 10:19 AM   #2
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Question.... We are currently using one of the large providers for cell service. We are considering Consumer Cellular as a change. Anyone have any thoughts on this. We are getting tired of contracts and the pricing of plans. We would like your thoughts on this and what services you are happy with. We looked at coverage maps and they all appear very similar.

Thanks,
Aracnid 50 & Flynlow53
I use T-Mobile pay as you go. No monthly fees and I pay for only the minutes I use. With CC you still have to pay the monthly fee, but be careful, you go over you limit you will be paying .25/min for overages.

You need to figure your usage and go from there.
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Old 10-26-2013, 04:28 PM   #3
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If you look at the coverage maps carefully you will see that there are large sections of the western US where there is no coverage whatsoever. That's most likely because Consumer Cellular is a "reseller" of, most probably, Verizon service but it does not have the ability to sell you service in areas that are considered "Extended Network" which are areas were Verizon is using towers provided by another company. That's pretty common for resellers. If this limitation doesn't bother you then this service may work for you.
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Old 10-26-2013, 04:34 PM   #4
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Verizon is probably the best overall coverage network. Have you considered going to Verizon pay as you go service? I think you would be far happier with Verizon service.
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Old 10-26-2013, 05:04 PM   #5
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Tracfone works well for us. We have travelled around the I think everywhere we were we had service. They piggy back on other cell towers. No monthly fee, no contract but you do pay for minutes.
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Old 10-26-2013, 05:15 PM   #6
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Verizon is probably the best overall coverage network. Have you considered going to Verizon pay as you go service? I think you would be far happier with Verizon service.
We pay for Thom's mom and dad's pay as you go phone. Went to Target and got one for the Verizon network. We pay Verizon $50 a month. It has unlimited talk/text. Now we no longer have to worry about them when they are snow birding from MI to FL and back again or when his dad goes in the hospital. They tried a Trak Phone and then a Net 10 and then I don't know what. No more problems with the one we got them.
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Old 10-26-2013, 07:09 PM   #7
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Tracfone works well for us. We have travelled around the I think everywhere we were we had service. They piggy back on other cell towers. No monthly fee, no contract but you do pay for minutes.
No they are not, piggy backing on other towers; they are using the whichever network the phone you buy is designed for. There is a misconception among TracFone users that their phones can use more than one network--they cannot. TracFone itself sells phones that use different networks but each phone uses only one.

TracFone provides six brands of service: TracFone, NET10 Wireless, Safelink Wireless, Straight Talk, Telcel América, and SIMPLE Mobile.

TracFone Wireless is subsidiary of Mexico's largest telecommunications company América Móvil and operates as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) having multiple agreements to provide service utilizing the networks of the United States largest wireless carriers including AT&T Mobility, Sprint Corporation, T-Mobile US, and Verizon Wireless.

Essentially, TracFone is just another reseller. They don't have any of their own equipment; they just cell service on other carriers' systems.
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Old 10-27-2013, 05:43 AM   #8
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Question.... We are currently using one of the large providers for cell service. We are considering Consumer Cellular as a change. Anyone have any thoughts on this. We are getting tired of contracts and the pricing of plans. We would like your thoughts on this and what services you are happy with. We looked at coverage maps and they all appear very similar.

Thanks,
Aracnid 50 & Flynlow53
Because we need cell coverage in as many areas as possible, we have capabilities for Verizon, Sprint, and ATT networks. Verizon coverage is by far best for us, but there are still areas where the other networks are better for our needs. We took a cross country trip a couple years ago with a grandson who had Consumer Cellular. There were huge areas where he had limited or no cell coverage. I am not certain which network his phone was tied to, but he was frustrated enough that he contracted with Verizon before the trip was half over.
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Old 10-27-2013, 10:21 AM   #9
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We use Consumer Cellular. We get 500 minutes voice, 5000 texts and 500 mb of data for $56 per month for 2 phones. CC uses the AT&T network that we have used for years with no problems. For internet we use Wifi when we need it.

Consumer Cellular has a very good customer service system and we are very pleased....
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Old 10-27-2013, 11:16 AM   #10
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There are just a few cellular providers. Consumer's Cellular is **NOT** one of them, they are re-seller/aggrators.

Sprint, T-Mobile, ATT and Verizon are the big providers.. There are some other smaller ones... Most of the discount plans, (Consumer Cellular, Smart Talk, And so many others I can't list 'em all) buy up time from one of the biggies and re-sell it at a discount.. They can do this cause thy buy millions of minutes at one time. (One giant family plan basically).

You need to find out who Consumer's Cellular buys from before you buy from them.

Example: Virgin Mobile broadband is.... Sprint/Nextell.
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Old 10-27-2013, 02:25 PM   #11
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WA8, read my post just above. Consumer Cellular uses AT&T network....
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Old 10-27-2013, 02:38 PM   #12
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I switched from AT&T to consumer cellular and couldn't be happier. When I switched, they told me I could keep my same phone and number, if they were AT&T, so that means they are using AT&T service don't you think? The thing I like is no contract to lock you in. You may cancel or switch at any time. The service is so good, I don't plan on switching anytime soon. You can also change your plan or add minitues any time. They also send you an alert when you have used up 75% of your minutes.
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Old 10-27-2013, 03:48 PM   #13
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Thanks to all for the valuable info. We have done some research since our original question, and with your input we are going to stay with our service and check into their pay as you go plans. Again, Thank you
Aracnid50 & Flynlow53
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Old 10-27-2013, 06:03 PM   #14
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We switched to Consumer Cellular when our Sprint contracts were up. Had great service and no problems with coverage. So far have traveled from Oklahoma up through Kansas, Iowa and into Minnesota. Followed by Minnesota through South Dakota and into Colorado. Presently parked in Golden, Colorado. Maybe not exactly a test of nationwide coverage and not a lot in western US but still no problems coverage as yet. And we do travel the back roads and arterial routes rather than the interstates.
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