Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

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impatientInv
Posts: 349
Joined: Fri Sep 03, 2021 1:26 pm

Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by impatientInv »

Carriers T-Mobile and Verizon are all marketing $100 for four lines. We need 3 cell phones lines - one or two with unlimited data.

We had switched to Google Fi - but not super happy. Also need to buy one iPhone, none of our phones are valuable enough for trade-in.

What would you recommend for carrier for 3 lines? Should I buy the iPhone through the carrier or from eBay/Amazon? We could get a second iPhone if the deal is really good..
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CharlatanPrime
Posts: 26
Joined: Mon Mar 20, 2023 7:50 am

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by CharlatanPrime »

I switched from Google Fi to Mint Mobile when I got my new iPhone 13 about 9 months ago. They have some low-cost plans. The cheapest is the one I'm on, 4 GB/month; you can get it down to $15/month if you pay far enough in advance. I prepaid for 6 months and it's been no sweat. Looks like they have a family plan where different phones can have different data capacities (they have 4GB, 10GB, 25(?)GB and unlimited, which I think slows down after 35GB in a month). For the family plan it appears you add the lines and add a plan for each separately, so you could in theory have 2 phones on 4GB and 2 phones on Unlimited. The initial family plan looks like a 3 month sign up with the lowest rates ($15/mo for the 4GB and $30/mo for Unlimited).

They use the T-Mobile network, and in fact T-Mobile just entered an agreement to purchase them but I read somewhere that they were going to keep offering the Mint brand. It's unclear to me if the price will change.

Overall quality is fine, but of course it depends on the network strength where you live and work.

One negative is that foreign travel is handled with credits as opposed to purchasing a flat-rate plan. Foreign calling at Mint is accomplished by purchasing foreign credits at $100 a pop. When we went on a cruise last year I blew through the credits like crazy while my wife's $100 foreign calling plan from Verizon worked fine all 2 weeks of the trip. So maybe not the best choice if you are doing a lot of foreign travel.
johnjay06
Posts: 18
Joined: Fri Nov 11, 2016 7:52 pm

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by johnjay06 »

Switched my 6 family lines to US mobile and have been more than happy. We have good Verizon service where I line so it works out well. Saved me a load over Verizon directly. Definitely look into a mvno if you don’t always need the latest and greatest phones
rich126
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Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2018 3:56 pm

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by rich126 »

The first priority is cell phone service and that can vary greatly depending on where you live. We recently switched over to T Mobile and that has worked well...so far. Since we are over 55 we only pay $90 total for 2 lines unlimited data.
----------------------------- | If you think something is important and it doesn't involve the health of someone, think again. Life goes too fast, enjoy it and be nice.
02nz
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Joined: Wed Feb 21, 2018 2:17 pm

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by 02nz »

CharlatanPrime wrote: Sat Mar 25, 2023 2:13 pm One negative is that foreign travel is handled with credits as opposed to purchasing a flat-rate plan. Foreign calling at Mint is accomplished by purchasing foreign credits at $100 a pop. When we went on a cruise last year I blew through the credits like crazy while my wife's $100 foreign calling plan from Verizon worked fine all 2 weeks of the trip. So maybe not the best choice if you are doing a lot of foreign travel.
Mint's international roaming rates are outrageous - typically 20 cents per megabyte = $200 per gigabyte. Better to get an eSIM (supported by newer iPhones and many Android phones) and pay around $5/GB.
02nz
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Joined: Wed Feb 21, 2018 2:17 pm

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by 02nz »

rich126 wrote: Sat Mar 25, 2023 4:57 pm The first priority is cell phone service and that can vary greatly depending on where you live. We recently switched over to T Mobile and that has worked well...so far. Since we are over 55 we only pay $90 total for 2 lines unlimited data.
That's rather pricey, actually. Are you using that much data? With Mint, T-Mobile Connect (prepaid), or US Mobile, you could be paying more like $30/mo for 2 lines if you can live with 4-5 GB/mo per line.
Bikes4life
Posts: 139
Joined: Wed Dec 28, 2022 4:51 am

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by Bikes4life »

As mentioned, varies greatly by location.
There are usually coverage maps you can look up for your area. Around here verizon is the best
Mudpuppy
Posts: 7409
Joined: Sat Aug 27, 2011 2:26 am
Location: Sunny California

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by Mudpuppy »

CharlatanPrime wrote: Sat Mar 25, 2023 2:13 pm They use the T-Mobile network, and in fact T-Mobile just entered an agreement to purchase them but I read somewhere that they were going to keep offering the Mint brand. It's unclear to me if the price will change.
Here's the announcement from T-Mobile about acquiring Mint: https://www.t-mobile.com/news/business/ ... tra-mobile

Essentially, Mint will remain a separate business unit, with Mint's founders staying on as T-Mobile managers/execs and Ryan Reynolds staying on in a "creative role" (like his YouTube videos/ads).

The YouTube announcement also said the $15 plan would remain, with a little bottom-of-the-screen fine print of course (and an inkling of the "creative role" Ryan Reynolds will keep playing): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UnYuN24kKd8
Blue456
Posts: 2152
Joined: Tue Jun 04, 2019 5:46 am

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by Blue456 »

impatientInv wrote: Sat Mar 25, 2023 2:02 pm Carriers T-Mobile and Verizon are all marketing $100 for four lines. We need 3 cell phones lines - one or two with unlimited data.

We had switched to Google Fi - but not super happy. Also need to buy one iPhone, none of our phones are valuable enough for trade-in.

What would you recommend for carrier for 3 lines? Should I buy the iPhone through the carrier or from eBay/Amazon? We could get a second iPhone if the deal is really good..
Not to side track this thread can you be more specific why you are not happy with Google Fi? I was planning to switch from ATT to Google.
bluebolt
Posts: 2137
Joined: Sat Jan 14, 2017 8:01 am

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by bluebolt »

02nz wrote: Sat Mar 25, 2023 5:22 pm
CharlatanPrime wrote: Sat Mar 25, 2023 2:13 pm One negative is that foreign travel is handled with credits as opposed to purchasing a flat-rate plan. Foreign calling at Mint is accomplished by purchasing foreign credits at $100 a pop. When we went on a cruise last year I blew through the credits like crazy while my wife's $100 foreign calling plan from Verizon worked fine all 2 weeks of the trip. So maybe not the best choice if you are doing a lot of foreign travel.
Mint's international roaming rates are outrageous - typically 20 cents per megabyte = $200 per gigabyte. Better to get an eSIM (supported by newer iPhones and many Android phones) and pay around $5/GB.
And if you have a dual SIM phone that supports wifi calling, you can still make/receive calls on your US number using the data from your local SIM card.
Topic Author
impatientInv
Posts: 349
Joined: Fri Sep 03, 2021 1:26 pm

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by impatientInv »

Blue456 wrote: Sun Mar 26, 2023 4:50 pm
impatientInv wrote: Sat Mar 25, 2023 2:02 pm Carriers T-Mobile and Verizon are all marketing $100 for four lines. We need 3 cell phones lines - one or two with unlimited data.

We had switched to Google Fi - but not super happy. Also need to buy one iPhone, none of our phones are valuable enough for trade-in.

What would you recommend for carrier for 3 lines? Should I buy the iPhone through the carrier or from eBay/Amazon? We could get a second iPhone if the deal is really good..
Not to side track this thread can you be more specific why you are not happy with Google Fi? I was planning to switch from ATT to Google.
GoogleFi is OK. I might stick with them for longer. Their support is not so great. I had issue with them once, they couldn't resolve. I had to create a new account.

I need to get one Apple phone. That is primary reason to switch. Apple closed ecosystem discriminates against Android. Text messages are treated differently.

Anyone have experience where to buy an apple device (non cellular)? iPhone 12, 13 or 14.
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TheHiker
Posts: 491
Joined: Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:34 pm

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by TheHiker »

impatientInv wrote: Mon Mar 27, 2023 3:32 pm Anyone have experience where to buy an apple device (non cellular)? iPhone 12, 13 or 14.
In my experience, for unlocked iPhones, direct from Apple is the best place.
Cheaper prices on Amazon, ebay etc are likely scams or used phones sold as new.
For Apple gear other than iPhones (Macs, iPads) bhphotovideo or adorama may have a small discount (they do not carry iPhones).
chinchin
Posts: 830
Joined: Tue Nov 14, 2017 7:02 pm

Re: Best cell phone carrier with 3 lines + 1 new iPhone

Post by chinchin »

impatientInv wrote: Mon Mar 27, 2023 3:32 pm

Anyone have experience where to buy an apple device (non cellular)? iPhone 12, 13 or 14.
apple.com

or

Apple Refurbished Store
not financial advice
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