Cell Phone Plan - Part 2
Cell Phone Plan Part 1 - Cell Phone Plan Part 2
Time Usage (Frequency of use)
Almost all carriers offer packages based on the usage of the phone the payment rates are different. There are economy plans you can select if you plan to use the phone only occasionally but if you make frequent calls, it may be more economical to sign up for a plan that provides a certain amount of free minutes of usage. It is recommended that heavy users should sign up for a service plan which provides a higher monthly fee, several free hours and the lowest rate of air time.
Minimal usage : safety and emergency
Under 20 minutes or so a month goes into minimal usage cathegory. You fit into this category if you want to have a phone handy in case of emergencies or want to give your child a phone in case they are late. Providers offer plans such as “security plan” which normally keep your phone active without any included minutes and per minute costs can go anywhere from 25-40 cents so you can see that these plans are intended for those who won’t use the phone too often. This option normaly costs fewer than 20 dollars a month but alternatively, you can seriously consider a prepaid plan.
Medium usage : keeping in touch with a number of close people
Anything from 100-500 minutes a month is considered to be Medium usage. You would be surprised how quickly minutes go by although 500 minutes seems a lot at first sight. It is natural that people who begin with the security plan and start using an average of 50 or so minutes a day are much better off choosing a plan with at least 100 minutes . You can really see the difference , as 100 minute plans normally cost between 20-25 dollars a month.
On average,most plans in the 100-500 minute range cost anywhere from 20-30 dollars. They are designed for those people who don’t want to use their phone extensively . but at least a little bit per month.
High usage
What goes over 500 minutes can be considered high usage. The type of customers requiring these amount of minutes are using them either for business or to stay in touch with all of their friends at all times of day.It often happens that people actually cancel home phone service and use their cell phones instead in the case of the higher packages such as 2000 minutes or so. Prices for these plans can range from 35-70 dollars a month.
Technology Difference: Digital or Analog
There are two main technologies available to wireless users in the cellular world: analog and digital. Your preference for one or the other depends on where you’ll want to do the majority of your calling.
The next step is to consider whether you want analog or digital service. You must know thar Digital service it is said to be clearer and more secure than analog an it is necessary for features like wireless Internet and e-mail ,but the coverage can be spotty.The analog network ,an older technology, which transmits sounds like radio waves, has the widest coverage, especially in rural areas. An important measure you should take if you want digital service,is to make sure your cellular company has a ”roaming” agreement that lets your phone work on an analog system when you are outside digital range. The bad side of this is that roaming can be expensive, and it requires a ”dual mode” phone.
The analog standard, otherwise referred to as AMPS or NAMPS, offers coverage for over 80% of the U.S., including many rural areas not covered by digital technology , but it is however dropping out of popularity. The advantages offered by Analog are low pricing and large calling area. The disadvantages of this technology are : low sound quality and reduced privacy or security .
The digital standard, which encompasses the CDMA, TDMA and GSM platforms, is a superior choice for allows for highly populated or metropolitan areas because it enables more callers to concurrently occupy space on each of a service provider’s cells. Each platform comes with its own pluses, ranging from the reduced background noise and earlier WAP adoption of CDMA phones, to the clearer sound and security protection of TDMA phones and the near global roaming ability that accompanies GSM phones.PCS,a brand new concept, is a marketing term for a CDMA digital network. But digital systems have also some disadvantages such as their lack of unified technology and a small, metropolitan-focused calling area.
You will notice when going to the country that you won’t have no coverage if your phone is digital only. Because remote locations are not covered by the digital network, using a digital & analog phone enables you to switch automatically to analog when digital service is not available for a better overall coverage.
Cell Phone Plan Part 1 - Cell Phone Plan Part 2