7-11 Speakout a good way to test cell waters?

[Ustauk]

I've been thinking of getting a cell phone for very casual use, like calling or texting my girlfriend if I'm running late, or letting Mr. Analog know I'm late picking him up at D&D because I went to get sandbags for the car (sorry about that again  )  Most of the time I'm by a land line at home or at work.  Anyways, I was thinking of getting a 7-11 Speak Out cell phone, most of the details of which can be found in this blog, and in the below quote from this thread.

For those who missed the free phone promotion last year, 7-11 now gives you free $50 airtime voucher when you buy a phone.

You can get a Nokia 1112 (unlocked) for $75 with $10 airtime preloaded and a free $50 airtime voucher which is good for a year.

7-eleven now has other phones, also with free $50 airtime voucher:
Nokia 2610 $100, locked?
Nokia 6061 $125,
Nokia 3120b $103.99 tri-band, unlocked (old stock, if you can find one)

Rate:
20 cents per minute,
30 cents long distance US & Canada (local airtime charge included),
text message 5 cents in and out,
911 fee 99 cents per month,
no activation fee,
free voice mail if accessed from landline,
$10 start up airtime credit,
365 days expiry,
$25, $50, $100 voucher.

I'll probably splurge for the colour phone at $100.  The rates are better then Rogers and Virgin.  I was planning to get an emergency cell phone for my Dad anyways, so if I find my usage rates exceed a basic pay-as-you go plan I'll just give this one to my father and upgrade to a more extensive main-line provider pay as you go  or monthly plan.  So do you guys think I'm out to lunch as usual, or is this a good way to try a cell phone for the first time?  Thanks.

[Lazybones]

Do some research at http://www.howardforums.com/index.php? first. There are only 3 true cell networks in Canada (Telus, Rogers and Bell), everything else is a virtual reseller of these services.

Going direct with Telus or Rogers/Fido should net you better customer service and coverage than the other options. Telus is launching a new sub provider this month called Amped and there has been some buz in howardforums about it.

Pay as you go is a great option for super low use, however you might blow through your cash fast as text messaging is over priced on most pay as you go plans, where as you can get 100 message or unlimited text messaging tacked on to a regular plan very easy.

[Mr. Analog]

You could get a cheap ass phone and plan thru Telus mobility.

http://www.telusmobility.com/ab/plans/pcs/

As low as $20 /m with 175 minutes. Not sure what you want for a phone though.

[Ustauk]

Do some research at http://www.howardforums.com/index.php? first. There are only 3 true cell networks in Canada (Telus, Rogers and Bell), everything else is a virtual reseller of these services.

Going direct with Telus or Rogers/Fido should net you better customer service and coverage than the other options. Telus is launching a new sub provider this month called Amped and there has been some buz in howardforums about it.

Pay as you go is a great option for super low use, however you might blow through your cash fast as text messaging is over priced on most pay as you go plans, where as you can get 100 message or unlimited text messaging tacked on to a regular plan very easy.

I know 7-Eleven is a virtual provider.  It runs off the Rogers network.  It used to have the same coverage as Fido, ie not much out of urban areas, but the current coverage area is the same as Rogers, ie not too bad.  Text messaging is 5 cents, and according to the fellows blog above incoming is now free.  I know if could easily blow through the limits if I'm not careful.  I just don't know how much I'll use the thing until I get it, and I don't want to lock myself into a plan until I have a better idea of usage.  It'd really only cost me the $50 of airtime to figure that out, or about two months on a plan.  If I manage to keep the usage down to $10 a month or so, I'll keep the phone.  If I go over that, it goes to my Dad, who could use one anyways.  No harm, no foul.  I'll look into that Amped plan you were talking about, Lazy, thanks.

[Tom]

I have a fido cell, it works great and uses the Rogers+Fido network, but the pay as you go plans are crazy now. the cards are only good for anywhere from 15 to 60 days, you run out of time, too bad. and the rates go from 20-30 cents a minute. I used to blow through near 40$ a month, which is why I got the VOIP service, so I only use the cell when I'm out.

[Ustauk]

I have a fido cell, it works great and uses the Rogers+Fido network, but the pay as you go plans are crazy now. the cards are only good for anywhere from 15 to 60 days, you run out of time, too bad. and the rates go from 20-30 cents a minute. I used to blow through near 40$ a month, which is why I got the VOIP service, so I only use the cell when I'm out.

The nice thing about Speakout  is all cards ($25, $50, $100) are good for  a year from activation, whereas most of the other providers only have that on the $100 cards.  How much do you use your cell now that you only use it when you're away from your home?

[Ustauk]

I looked at the Howardforums Amped sections.  A couple of promises from forum goers that it'll be good, but no specifics.  I've waited this long to get a phone, so I'll probably wait until Amped comes out with its rates before making a final decsion.

[Lazybones]

I looked at the Howardforums Amped sections.  A couple of promises from forum goers that it'll be good, but no specifics.  I've waited this long to get a phone, so I'll probably wait until Amped comes out with its rates before making a final decsion.

Unless you can't pass the credit check or only plan on using the phone for a few months, I find pay as you go far more expensive than the most basic of the network plans out there.

I find it interesting that the Speakout cards are good for a year... how much do they charge per text message and per minute?

[Tom]

I edited this into my last post a little too late so here it is:

My VOIP service is pretty decent, $0.015 outgoing (in North America), and $0.011 incoming, with a $3.50 monthly charge for the local phone number (4 concurrant calls). If I need to, I can upgrade to the $8.88/mo flat rate plan, and not pay for incoming at all (2 concurrant calls). But I doubt I'll need that any time soon.

[Ustauk]

I looked at the Howardforums Amped sections.  A couple of promises from forum goers that it'll be good, but no specifics.  I've waited this long to get a phone, so I'll probably wait until Amped comes out with its rates before making a final decsion.

Unless you can't pass the credit check or only plan on using the phone for a few months, I find pay as you go far more expensive than the most basic of the network plans out there.

I find it interesting that the Speakout cards are good for a year... how much do they charge per text message and per minute?

The year-long cards is one of the biggest advantages of the phone.  You get dinged a $1 for every month you use the phone for 911/service charges, but you only have to use the phone once every 120 days to keep the number active, so it is ideal if all you ever use it for is emergencies.  As I put in my first post, its 20 cents a minute for voice and 5 cents per text message.  

The guy in the blog said they no longer charge for incoming text messages, so I could receive messages on the phone and send them from a computer for free if I'm nearby one, at least to Rogers and Telus phones.

  According to the guys on the forums at redflagdeals.com, the rates for Speak out are the best you can get for straight pay-as-you-go.  Petro Canada has a similar plan with the same virtual provider, but the $50 airtime included with the phone until the end of March skews things 7-11's way.

Rate:
20 cents per minute,
30 cents long distance US & Canada (local airtime charge included),
text message 5 cents in and out,
911 fee 99 cents per month,
no activation fee,
free voice mail if accessed from landline,
$10 start up airtime credit,
365 days expiry,
$25, $50, $100 voucher.

[Lazybones]

Ya, that does seem like a good deal.

[Mr. Analog]

Eh, if you're going for cents per minute (which I think is a naff way of thinking about it) you could get 500 minutes a month for $50 (10 cents a minute). It would include features like:

• up to 500 minutes
• unlimited local nights and weekends ?
• free 6 pm early nights and weekends for 1 year ?
• unlimited local calling for 3 months ?

? Offer available to new activations only on a 3 year contract until March 31, 2007.
? Offer available to new activations on select rate plans until March 31, 2007. Clients who sign a 1, 2 or 3 year contract will receive 1, 2 or 3 months respectively of unlimited local calling.
? Offer available to new activations only on a 1, 2, or 3 year contract until March 31, 2007.

You'd also get call waiting and conference calling with any but the cheapest of digital PCS plans.

Also, Telus has an extremely wide coverage area (so if you are planning on giving your phone to someone who lives outside of a major metro area you might want to think about that). More importantly, you won't have to @%&# around with buying phone cards at a particular place AND you won't have to worry about losing your phone number.

In fact, if I were you I'd drop the land line altogether and get that number onto a cell phone plan with either Shaw, Telus or fido.

[Thorin]

Reading this post, all I could think was, "Classic Ustauk", especially

The guy in the blog said they no longer charge for incoming text messages, so I could receive messages on the phone and send them from a computer for free if I'm nearby one

But enough poking the bear.  And no, don't text "Kapla!" to her.

Once you get a cell you'll probably find you use it more than you planned.  If at that point you switch from the 7-11 phone to a monthly subscription, you might not be able to bring your $100 phone along.  So, lets compare this offer to a monthly $20 subscription from Telus (gives ya 175 minutes per month), just for fun:

If you spend 20 minutes on the phone per month and send 5 text messages, calculated for a year:

7-11 phone: Spend $106 buying the phone ($100 + GST), get a free $50 time card, get a free $10 airtime credit, use $11.88 of airtime on 911 fees and $48 on minutes and $3 on text messages (that's actually $62.88 on airtime which is more than the $50 and $10 free airtime), total cost $106.
Telus's cheapest plan: Spend $0 buying the phone (Samsung A645 on a 1-year contract), spend $35 activating your account, spend $30.16 per month for the plan ($20 plan + $6.95 network fee + $0.75 911 fee + $0.75 for 5 text messages + GST), total cost $396.92.

Seems like a good deal.  Now, if you use your cellphone more like most people, you'll probably spend 100 minutes on the phone per month and not send any text messages.  Calculated for a year:

7-11 phone: Spend $106 buying the phone ($100 + GST), get a free $50 time card, get a free $10 airtime credit, use $11.88 of airtime on 911 fees and $240 on minutes so spend $200 on more airtime cards, total cost $306.
Telus's cheapest plan: Spend $0 buying the phone (Samsung A645 on a 1-year contract), spend $35 activating your account, spend $29.36 per month for the plan ($20 plan + $6.95 network fee + $0.75 911 fee + GST), total cost $387.32.

Still a better deal, but not nearly as good anymore.  Now, what if your girlfriend likes to call you while you're out places, and you average 150 minutes per month?  Calculated for a year:

7-11 phone: Spend $106 buying the phone ($100 + GST), get a free $50 time card, get a free $10 airtime credit, use $11.88 of airtime on 911 fees and $360 on minutes so spend $325 on more airtime cards, total cost $431.
Telus's cheapest plan: Spend $0 buying the phone (Samsung A645 on a 1-year contract), spend $35 activating your account, spend $29.36 per month for the plan ($20 plan + $6.95 network fee + $0.75 911 fee + GST), total cost $387.32.

The more you talk, the better the monthly plan is.  Having to use a landline all the time just because you have a cellphone is a pain - are you going to use the payphone at the bar to call a cab?  Are you going to tell your girlfriend to call Lazy's phone number if she wants to get a hold of you when you're playing D&D?  Always having to carry an extra airtime card *just in case you actually run out of airtime money during a real emergency* seems like a real hassle, too.

This is why I recommend that if you're going to get a cellphone, go full-bore and get a contract, even if it's just one year.  I agree with Mr. A. that you could easily get rid of your landline and actually spend less on telephony by getting a $40 to $50 per month contract.

[Lazybones]

Telus just added new Pay and Talk features, one is unlimited incoming calls for $30/mo.
http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php?p=8854349#post8854349

Keep watching the providers, Number portability goes into effect on the 14th this month, so expect MANY new deals to be announced both for keeping and stealing customers from other providers.

Also note that of the providers, IF you get a contract with Telus it has the worst canceling penalty, you must pay out a minimum of $20/mo for every month remaining on the contract.

[Tom]

Man, I haven't used my cell much at all lately. I think I can get away with only paying 10 a month for it. I'll have to see.