PLEASE HELP ME! (an offshoot of the cell phone thread)

[KillarneyRose]

Hi everyone! Could someone please give me some advice? I believe I may be the last remaining person in the United States without a cellphone and I would really like to get one. But there are so many different phones and companies and plans out there and it is really overwhelming to me. I am interested in just a basic plan since I would only use the phone for emergencies so I don't need a ton of minutes. Also, I know this sounds really stupid, but I would kind of like a phone that you can change the face plate on (although this is not an absolute necessity!) I don't know if this makes a difference, but I live outside of Baltimore, MD. Thanks for any help you can give me!

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@~Tracy~@

By the light of the lamp, by the light of the lamp, by the bright shiny light, by the light of the lamp...if you are a DeeZee, you're the best that you can be, by the bright shiny light of the lamp!

[veruca76]

Hi,
You can just get the Nokia phone that everyone has (including me.) It's usually just $30 or sometimes free with special offers. I also have a really cheap plan with Voicestream. It's like $20 (little more with tax) a month for 75 minutes of airtime. If I really use it for emergencies only I can come in under that. If I get chatty or friends need to call me on it the bill goes up but if I use just over 100 minutes my bill is still only about $30. Warning - once you have it you'll get hooked on it and start using it more and more.

[KillarneyRose]

Thanks for the info, Veruca76! I HAVE heard that cell phones can be addictive! i.e. calling a friend to see what happened on "Sex and the City" being classified as an emergency!

[KSig RC]

yeah i'm going to agree w/ the 'emergency-use only' thing quickly becoming 'i'm on the subway - be there in two minutes' . . . seen it a million times.

I have sprint - it's more expensive to start-up (expensive phones), but mine can change faceplates (i guess - never done it, i am a dude afterall, couldn't care less), the service is great - totally nationwide, and i've never even been on roam with it (it's digital almost everywhere on the beaten path, including major interstates). I get like 1200 minutes for 35 bucks, but you can get less.

anyway, two cents or whatever

[HeidiHo]

Something we have here in Ohio is a prepaid plan, where you buy minutes before you use them. That usually is about $20-$50 every two months or so. The deal here comes with the Nokia phone that can change faceplates. Cincinnati Bell Wireless does that offer, but they're affiliated with AT&T, so I'd check w/ AT&T people in your area to see if they have a similar offer. Have fun chatting on the cell!
Heidi

[juniorgrrl]

You can change the faceplates on the Nokia 5100 series. You can also do it on the Nokia 8260 phones, but its not as simple as just poppng it off - it requires a screwdriver and some more serious work.

My plan is with SunCom and its great (so far). You can choose local, regional, or national service, depending on what type of coverage you need. Caller ID, call waiting, voice mail and email are included in my (and all) packages. I also got the phone included.

I have unlimited mobile-to-mobile to all SunCom phones, which is my mom and my aunt (and my boyfriend hopefully soon) so I yak on mine ALL the time. I'll run up 4000 minutes a month, and still be way under in my package minutes use