We have two phones with data plan, one slightly higher because it has hotspot capability. We have no texting plan but have a third regular cell phone that serves as our home phone since we discontinued land line. We pay about $180 per month though I do get a bit of a discount on AT&T sevice through my company.

I'm in the same boat but only have two phones on a Verizon plan. Dh's company pays for his phone thankfully, and so far only my oldest has a phone, but w/o a data plan. We have the 700 minutes of talk, but I only pay $80 for that, not $125 (I have my bill in front of me). I then pay, for my phone, a line access charge of $9.99, and $30 for a data package (I have 2GB and have never gone over). For dd's phone, I just pay the line access charge of $9.99. However, with all taxes, etc, the Verizon Wireless bill just for our two phones is $144, which seems ridiculously high to me for two of us. What's funny is that despite my dd being nearly 14 y/o, *I* text more than she does! Last month, I had 319 texts and she only had 146.

Prior to dd getting a phone, I did not have the unlimited texting plan and rarely went over my allowance. I paid $45 total for calls/texting, then $30 for the data plan. I assumed dd's texting would be more than what my plan allowed, so decided to go for unlimited texting for both of us. Now in hindsight, I probably could have kept my plan and gotten her the same one for her phone (minus data plan) and be paying less than I am now! I really should talk to Verizon about my options. I still have at least a year before ds gets a phone of his own, but I don't see him texting much either (he has an iTouch where he can text w/Wifi and he rarely uses it at home).

Are you planning on paying for your college kids to have data plans? I've told my teen that if/when she gets a smartphone, she will pay the data plan. I don't mind paying for the phone/texting b/c I use that to contact her, but if she wants data, that is purely a "want" not a need and she'll have to pay out of her own money for it. Not too long ago, I kept hearing, "Mom, ALL of my friends have smartphones!" - she was one of the last in her class at school to even get a phone at all but her best friend doesn't have a smartphone either LOL.

Anyway, that was a long winded answer to your question and I didn't give you any helpful info! I think w/o a data plan, you can probably find cheaper plans than what Verizon offers, but if you are adding in data, not sure how they compare to other providers. Most of my friends have Verizon as they offer the best coverage in our area.

We have AT&T - We have 5 phones, 4 are iPhones and 1 Blackberry. I have an iPad, but just use wireless for it. We were grandfathered in under unlimited texting (thank goodness), but we still pay about $350 a month. Sill paying for our three in college!

We have Verizon too. We have the ShareEverything Plan. Unlimited calling and unlimited text. We have 2 phones (1 is a smartphone) and a 3rd phone which used to be our landline and we ported the number. Just plug our house phone into a "box". We also have a hot spot with 4G of data that we can use up to 5 (or is it 10?) different devices to share the data. I use it for my computer and am planning on getting DH either a Kindle or an IPad. We have only had it for about 1 month, but loving it. Our bill is $180 plus tax.

Mary lu, what is a ported number? We used to have a "landline" but when we switched to FIOS, they made us get rid of the landline so our phone runs through our modem. I HATE it though b/c we frequently lose power so if our power goes out, our phone only works for about 6 hours using the battery back up for our modem. Is this basically what you have or something different?

Also, is your hot spot like a wireless router? We have WiFi so I think we can have unlimited devices (just off the top of my head, we have 2 iPads, three iPod Touches, my Mac and dh's laptop, plus dh and my smartphones).

We have Verizon for everything and get one bill - it runs roughly $340/month - of that, we pay $125 for Triple Freedom (home phone line, FIOS TV and internet), $144 for the two cell phones (one is smartphone with data plan, both have unlimited texting), then the rest is taxes and rentals for the various "boxes" we need for the TVs to work. Drives me crazy how much we pay to Verizon, especially because we watch very little tv (kids aren't allowed during week, I only watch maybe 5 weekly programs, plus daily news, dh only watches sports on the weekends). I'm sure there is a better, cheaper solution but it's so overwhelming trying to compare all that is out there! Marylu, do you have cable/FIOS tv? How much do you pay for that and who is the provider, if you don't mind me asking?

Sewing - we pay Verizon $212.00 on a Family Share plan for 3 smart phones with data all unlimited. However if any of us decides to upgrade or if we change our plans I was told we'd lose our unlimited option.

This phone stuff makes me hyperventilate! Thanks for the info. It seems I am not getting screwed anymore than anyone else.

I have 300 talk minutes, unlimited texting and unlimited data for $25 a month through Virgin Mobile.

The downside of this is that you have to pay for your phone upfront. But on the plus side, there's no contract, no plan, no being locked into anything for years.

Although the data is unlimited, once you've used 2.5GB/month the speed slows down, so if you're streaming Netflix or whathaveyou, it will be very slow.

Data plans are the worst. They cost so much, and most companies seem to be offering less and less, in terms of speed or how much you can use a month, for the cost. I really think it's time that data either comes down in price or gets folded into the regular monthly cost of the plan.

I too have Virgin Mobile -- same plan as camlan's, but I'm paying $35/month for some reason. My son has the very same phone & plan, & he pays $25. Not sure why that is, as he bought his phone/plan immediately after I did.

Phone coverage is good near civilization; not so good in the boonies (we often travel in rural areas).

I paid $50 for a Samsung Intercept last summer from Radio Shack/Virgin Mobile. Not the latest, blingiest, or speediest, but it suffices very well as a handheld computer/communication device. On the whole, I'm happy.

Here is a link that might be useful: Virgin Mobile plans

I had Straight Talk - $45 per month �" unlimited Data, Talk & Text.

I just switched to Go Red Pocket - $30 per month for unlimited talk and text, with 10 MB mobile web.

After this conversation, I called Verizon and asked about lowering my monthly charges. Not cell phone related, but I have a triple play package (tv, internet and home phone) and they lowered my plan by $30/mth. At least I'm saving there now while getting gouged by my cell phone.

And coincidentally, after mentioning above about my daughter complaining that she is the only one without an iPhone at school (WTE of her best friend), she came home today and said her friend just got an iPhone today - her dad decided they would all get them (her parents didn't have them either). So yay me - now I get to listen to dd complain even more that now she really is the ONLY one of her friends w/o an iPhone. I just keep telling her to get used to - it will only get worse when she is old enough to drive and they all start getting cars, LOL!

I use Straight Talk's $45 a month plan. It has unlimited text, talk and "unlimited" internet (which is really said to be about 2GB a month of data before they seriously throttle your speed). I have a phone that uses Verizon phone lines but I spend much less than I would if I signed up directly with Verizon.

My husband rarely talks on the phone and he uses a Tracfone and we spend about $12 per month on minutes for him.

ETA - We got rid of our home phone a few years ago and I don't miss it at all. If my husband wants to make a long phone call to family, he uses my phone.

This post was edited by newbuyer2007 on Mon, Mar 4, 13 at 17:26

My husband and I switched a few months ago from an old Verizon expired contract plan we had for years, to Page Plus Cellular (pre paid company who uses Verizon towers). They have different pre paid plans to choose from, we pay 55.00 each for unlimited talk and text to anyone any time, and 2GB of data. So we pay 110.00 a month total. We still have complete Verizon coverage which has been great and no different than before we switched, and we could use our old Verzion non prepaid phones. However we ended up buying refurbished Verizon smart phones in great condition for 100.00 each off of ebay from a reliable seller.

We haven't really needed 2GB of data, considering we just use WIFI when at home, but it's nice to have. Love the simple data switch apps and data management apps.

We went through an authorized online Page Plus dealer (Kitty wireless) and they were fantastic, only 5.00 each to port our numbers over and get our new phones activated, plus they have us set up on their automatic payment schedule for free, so they take care of buying our prepaid cards and setting everything up on time month to month and if something goes wrong with the billing they fix it, so no hassle on our end. It's been great, like we never left Verizon contract with no billing issues or extra fees, yet we're pre paid no contract now. That said, I don't think I would use this prepaid company without going through an authorized dealer, I've heard customer service/billing can be difficult otherwise.

4iPhones with unlimited texting and calls within family and no charge when using WIFI (I think). AT&T $200/month. We sometimes go over on data, but then it only seems to go to about $225. Seems high to me, but guess it really isn't. I would like to replace home phone with an iPhone, too, get rid of cable, and only have internet with tv that is a Smart tv and WIFI.

fourkids, basically our home phone is now a cell phone and we ported or moved our landline number to a cell phone, except we continue to use the regular landline phone only it plugs into a box which picks up the cell signal.

We do not have TV as part of our package. For TV we have Dish satellite. Yes, it is expensive any way you look at it, but this was about the cheapest we could find in our rural area. Previously we were paying for cell phones with a set number of minutes and $76 a month to CenturyTel for landline and DSL internet (low speed). I do feel sorry for those of you who have teenagers in this day and age. Can't imagine paying for cell phones for them too!

Graywings - how have you liked Go Red Pocket so far? Son's birthday is coming up and we want to get him a new phone and plan since he will be moving out and going away to college this year. Currently we have Virgin Mobile - $25.00 per month each with unlimited texting, web, and 300 minutes of talk time. That has been fine so far but won't be near enough when he moves out. I went to the Go Red Pocket website and it looks like you can pretty much use any phone (and they have links to their advertisers phones) and keep your same number. Have you had to use their customer service yet? TIA

joanie check their coverage map to see if your area is well supported. Follow the link and then click on View Full Coverage Map.

Here is a link that might be useful: Go Red Pocket Coverage

Joanie, I switched to Go Red Pocket just in the last week and so far it is working fine. I had some problem with signing on and went to their online web chat people to resolve it. It took two chats, but we worked it out.

Thanks dlm and graywings. I went to the coverage map and it looks like it's a little sketchy in my area. I will probably have to call or do an online chat to verify coverage between my area and my son's college. Thank You!

Even if you verify coverage, sometimes a phone won't get a signal where you need it, like in your house.

Most phone companies will let you buy a phone and test it out in before activating the account, so you can see if you get a signal where you need it. You can return the phone as long as you haven't activated it yet. (I know because I once returned two phones to two different companies before I found a company that really had coverage where I lived, instead of just claiming to have coverage where I lived.)

If you are getting a new phone, or changing an existing phone to a new company, it's worth seeing if they have a similar deal.

One of three words was added to the Oxford Dictionary today. "Dumbphone." That's what we have. lol.

1 Dumbphone with hundreds of minutes, with great reception in rural areas, AT&T = $47/mo.

Landline with caller i.d., internet, wi-fi, $86/mo.

Saying that, I am SO glad my kids are no longer using the cell phones we paid for! lol

Here is a link that might be useful: Dumbphone

Yes, you absolutely cannot trust coverage maps. According to all the major carriers we have 3G/4G here, and we actually don't have any service at all. In the winter when the tourists come, it's like that old "can you hear me now?" commercial outside in the parking lot.

I'm actually pleased about this. I have a real dumbphone (not even texting), prepaid, for $100 a year, landline plus internet for $104 a month (I'm jealous of your rate, oakleyok), and then for traveling I have a mifi which costs $5 only in the months when I use it, plus a fairly high per MB charge, but since I only use it occasionally in the car or when I'm in a place where there's no wifi network, that comes to about $50 a year.

We have two iphones with text/shared minutes/data. Our service is through AT&T - which has been great. I do get a discount. Hubby could not do without a phone for his contract work, so at least we can count his off as a business expense.

Our cost for both phones is right @ $120/mo. I can't imagine not having text and data now. LOL There's no going back!

tina