I have no experience with Virgin. I've never tried Virgin. I don't know of anyone, personally, who uses Virgin. (heck, I don't even like virgin daquiris or daquiris for that matter... but I digress)

I thought I'd put this offer out there for those of you looking for cell phone deals. Everyone out there has an unlimited plan offer out there, it seems. Now Virgin's throwing its hat into the ring, too.

 Virgin Mobile USA will unveil its new "Totally Unlimited" calling plan for $79.99 on July 1, the lowest priced and first unlimited nationwide calling plan without roaming charges or an annual contract that can be purchased by cash or credit. Bob Stohrer, chief marketing officer of Virgin Mobile USA, said, "It is simply not necessary to sign a two-year contract to get real worth with your wireless plan. This offer surpasses the regional carriers unlimited calling plans as well, as most addd on roaming charges that can cost customers as much as 79 cents per minute."

Continue reading "Virgin Mobile's "totally unlimited" deal" »

Posted by Dan Thanh Dang at 7:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
                    

Tamara Granger feels like the belle of the ball now.

Do you remember Granger? I wrote about the 38-year-old account executive in Sunday's paper when AT&T sent her a Dear John letter, asking her to please take her business elsewhere.

To paraphrase the letter, AT&T basically told her: It's not you. It's not me. It's no one's fault. These things happen. Our relationship just isn't working anymore. We think you should move on. You'll find a better relationship with someone else. Call us if you need closure.

Needless to say, after five relatively good years together, Granger felt snubbed and unloved. Unloved, that is, until Verizon started wooing her this week.

Continue reading "Verizon woos customer spurned by AT&T" »

Posted by Dan Thanh Dang at 11:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

This week's Cheap Trick Thursday will be inspired by Kevin Martin, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission.

Martin recently lead a hearing on the early termination fees charged by mobile phone service providers and made some remarks that really deserve some applause.

According to his prepared statement, Martin noted in his remarks that cell phone early termination fees, which can range from $150 to $225, are "a significant sum for a subscriber to pay who is dissatisfied with the quality of service. In practice, it can lock people into a service they really want to leave."

"I believe early termination fees can be a legitimate means of recovering legitimate costs," he said. "But they shouldn’t be abused."

Here's more:

"The hallmark of a free market is the ability of consumers to choose from a variety of services and service providers.  I am concerned that early termination fees are being used not as a means of recovering legitimate costs but as a means of locking consumers into a service provider.  Early termination fees shouldn’t function as a hindrance to consumers’ ability to choose, or switch to, the service or provider they want."

Right now there are a bunch of class action lawsuits on early termination fees on the state level but the chairman said not all consumers benefit from class action suits and developing 50 different sets of regulations isn't good for consumers or for business.

Martin proposed five changes to the current system that make my heart go aflutter:

Continue reading "Cheap Trick: send us your cell phone saving tips" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 9:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
                    

The Hispanic Institute applauded the Federal Trade Commission's recent move to halt sales of fraudulent phone cards distributed by several major calling card companies.

THI President Gus West says, "Hispanics have been an unwitting target for unscrupulous calling-card firms. We at the Hispanic Institute applaud the FTC for acting on behalf of consumers and call on other leaders to do so as well."

Defendents in the case are: Alternatel, Inc.; G.F.G. Enterprises, LLC, also d/b/a Mystic Prepaid; Voice Prepaid, Inc.; Voice Distributors, Inc.; Telecom Express, Inc.; and their principals.

The FTC said the companies marketed their prepaid calling cards through small retailers such as newsstands, kiosks, grocery and convenience stores, and over the Internet. The cards, which sell for between $2 and $10, are marketed under a wide variety of names, including “Aló Mamá,” “Coffee Time,” “Rey de Florida,” “Tree Monkey,” and “Voz do Brasil.”

Continue reading "Avoid these Prepaid Calling Cards, FTC says" »

Posted by Dan Thanh Dang at 2:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

Don't wait until it's too late to take precautions to safeguard your computers and other electronic items from storm damage.

After the tornado watch and other foul weather yesterday, Tech Whiz Mike Himowitz has a very timely story today about protecting against power surges and other potential power mishaps.

According to him, you don't need to spend much to insure your hardware --- and the precious data stored within --- stays functioning through many a surge caused by weather or even the cycling of appliances within your home.

Surge protectors start at $8 and go way up from there, but just make sure you look for a few basic characteristics before you invest: 

Continue reading "Storm-proof your electronics" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 3:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

Tuesday's column focused on the spread of Voice over Internet Protocol phone service, or VoIP as its better known, and the concerns behind relying on a telephone that you might not work when the power goes out or when your Internet service is interrupted.

While the popularity of VoIP has grown, I'm not altogether sure that consumers are aware of the possible drawbacks to using an Internet phone, which the column pointed out that calling emergency services can be problematic. Please remember that if you move your VoIP service, you must change your billing address AND your emergency address with your provider or your 911 call could get directed to the wrong emergency calling center.

Since I haven't tried to sign on for this service myself, I was really interested to hear from Frank Bonomo who told me about what he discovered when he jumped at a triple play offer:

Continue reading "Voice over Internet phone concerns" »

Posted by Dan Thanh Dang at 11:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

It can be very very difficult to compare cell phone plans. The process grows more complicated when you're trying to decide between handsets that are only supported by one provider (iPhone, anyone?).

You could analyze your usage to determine what time of the day you make the most calls as well as what day of the week. You could plot which numbers you call the most frequently --- and for the longest period of time --- to try to ensure you stay in the same network as those folks.

And then you could make the same calculations for your text messages. 

Or, you could let billshrink.com do it for you --- if you don't mind giving up your cell phone number and password, that is.  

Continue reading "Shrink your cell phone bill?" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 2:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

This morning as I was driving on Falls Road, a woman in a minivan was riding up on my back bumper close enough that I thought she was about to climb right into my passenger seat. Of course, when I looked at her more closely (gosh, I probably could have whispered in her ear she was so close), she was yapping away on her phone.

It almost made me fully support the measure trying to ban cell phone use while driving.

But then I rememberd that Jonathan Adkins from the Governor's Highway Safety Association e-mailed and said, "These bans are popular with the public, but have little impact on safety. If your readers need a resource as to which states ban cell phones while driving, our website is current."

http://ghsa.org/html/stateinfo/laws/cellphone_laws.html

When I mentioned banning texting, he responded by saying: "We don't support the ban on texting either. Very difficult to enforce. That said, it's common sense that drivers shouldn't be texting and driving."

Ah. But see? He makes such a good point. I think he's convinced me. We shouldn't have to legislate common sense, but we sure do try don't we? (cough cough... trans fats anyone?).

Posted by Dan Thanh Dang at 6:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
                    

The issue has come before the General Assembly before and failed to pass. My colleague Tim reported yesterday that legislation to ban using a cell phone while driving once again ran into a bump in the road. Members of the  House Environmental Matters Committee raised skepticism about the bill that already cleared the Senate last week.

If passed, the measure would outlaw talking on a hand-held cell phone or text-messaging while driving. It would still allow, however, hands-free devices and speakerphones. Also, if you are penalized $50 for a first-time offense, you can have that waived if you purchase hands-free gear.

Will it pass? It's hard to say since it's got plenty of support and opposition. Keep in mind that other legislation introduced this year that would have banned text-messaging or forbidden school bus drivers from using cell phones has died in committee.

Depending on which side you support, there have been a lot of studies on the subject. Check out this Insurance Information Institute fact sheet. Some say banning talking while driving is good. Some challenge the theory that hands-free cell use is safer. Some found that drivers were far less distracted by cell phones than by other common activities like reaching for items on the seat or glove compartment or even just talking to other passengers. 

Continue reading "Texting and talking while driving: Yay or Nay?" »

Posted by Dan Thanh Dang at 5:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)
                    

... according to Consumer Reports.

Bloggers there say that the Kansas-based Sprint Nextel's offer of unlimited text/picture/video messaging, mobile Internet and push-to-talk service for $99.99 per month is the best deal, compared to unlimited plans now offered by Verizon Wireless and AT&T.

Those companies charge more for plans that also include unlimited messaging and Internet access. Sprint also offers a discount of $5 for each additional line --- $5 off the first, $10 off the second and so on.

A number of Consuming Interests readers have said that switching to Sprint wasn't worth it ...

Continue reading "Sprint's unlimited plan the best?" »

Posted by Liz Kay at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
                    

How much would you pay for unlimited wireless minutes?

If you're smart, you'll wait for that answer. As you might already know, Verizon Wireless just announced that it's offering a flat-rate calling plan for unlimited wireless minutes. For $99, you get unlimited minutes, no domestic roaming or long distance charges and mobile Web 2.0. (This doesn't include surcharges, taxes and fees, or activation fees)

 
Then AT&T countered by announcing that it would offer it's own unlimited minutes calling plan starting Friday.

Those moves could likely force Sprint to offer a competitive plan to fight against the two bigger giants, the wire story says.

 
What's that mean for you, the consumer?

Continue reading "Do we smell a wireless pricing war in the air?" »

Posted by Dan Thanh Dang at 8:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)