Depending on coverage area, you may find this one fits your needs: "STI Mobile" PLAN 1: .10/min + (.10/day = about $3.00 /month) I use about 20 mins/ month = $2.00 + $3.00 = $5 TOTAL, no other fees! It's a third party company that uses Sprint's BASIC (only) network. $4.95 one-time setup fee NO roaming available NO text messaging (extra service avail.) CAN port your current phone number. Includes FREE* voice mail. *Voice mail is free if retrieved from another phone (home phone, ect) *Voice mail is DOUBLE (=.20/min) if retrieved from the cell phone. http://www.stimobile.com/ (I believe) the coverage map: ONLY THE DARK GREEN (and orange), but you must live in the ORANGE AREAS http://www.stimobile.com/coverage-map.aspx purchase phone and refill cards from: http://www.cheapphonecards.com/ click ENTER HERE, then "phones" on light green band (not red) under picture. (slow !!!) "STI Mobile" refill cards also avail at some Family Dollar Stores. I've had their service for a few years after switching from Sprint.

I had no set age but figured I'd wait until they actually "need" them. Until the age of 13, my oldest was always in the presence of an adult, whether at school, camp, sports, activities, etc. Sure, it is a convenience, but I didn't feel like forking out the money if it was really necessary. In 7th grade, I started getting pressured by her because nearly all of her friends had them. By Christmas that year, she was one of about 3 kids in her class of 90 at school that did not have a phone. By spring, she was going through a bit of a rough patch socially (darn girls, what a tough age!) Much of her social circle's communication (well, basically ALL) was occurring via text and she was not only feeling left out, but actually was being left out. Her self esteem really being affected. Dh and I discussed it and after much annoyance at the feeling of "giving in" we got her a cell phone about two months before her 13th birthday. By the time she got her cheap phone, the majority of her friends had already graduated to iPhones. Don't even get me started on that subject! She is now 14, entering high school and all of her friends have them. I have come to realize now at her age, though, it is a nice comfort to me that she now has a phone because she now goes places with her friends (without parents). It's convenient for me in terms of getting in touch with her for logistical reasons. My son, who just finished 6th grade and turns 13 in five months is one of very few kids in his grade that doesn't have a phone. And there are plenty of kids in his grade that already have iPhones. Blows my mind. So, I guess I would say 12/13 is probably the typical age, but really, it should be what you are comfortable with, not what other people are doing. I don't imagine that my son will have the same social issues as my dd simply b/c his friendships don't operate the same way (let's face it, girls can be very *itchy to each other, especially in the early teen years!). Most of his friends do have cellphones but half the time, the parents have taken them away as punishment, or they've forgotten to bring it with them, etc. So for now, it's a non-issue with him and I don't imagine he'll get one anytime soon.

Another thing I really like with prepaid is if you want to change for whatever reason, it doesn't cost you an arm and a leg. I tried out several different companies before settling on TracFone. For me, $70/month is significant, fer cryin out loud my service costs 1/10 that LOL, plus I only pay one bill a year instead of 12! Less fiddling around. But to each their own. A friend of mine will turn his phone off too. Don't understand that. I realize that if you just use it to call people and don't want them calling you back, fine. But when you are meeting someone and want to contact them that you might be late or something, it's a bit rude to not have it on. I keep a charger in my vehicle to keep it charged. Charge it while I'm driving if I forget to charge it at home, which I often do. This one goes much longer than my other phones did. Oh and I buy cell accessories on fleabay. Much cheaper than retail.

I got that email the other day, and I was mildly surprised at how someone could snoop on another person without them knowing it. I knew that they could listen in while you were on a call, but that's all I knew. I didn't know they could listen in when you weren't even on the phone. I know three people who have scanners, who listen for emergency activity (fire/police /ambulance), but a couple of them also listen in on phone calls (portable phones). This is a small community, and sometimes they know the people they are listening to, and sometimes they don't. One of the people (I really don't care for her), found out a policeman was having an affair, and even though she didn't know him, she found out who his wife was, and went to his wife and told her. Btw... she had an affair herself, not too much later.