patrick.net

Yes, I did that with TMobile and an unlocked iPhone.

But AT&T is planning to buy TMobile to prevent customers from having that option though.

SF ace says

There’s no value in not having a contract, you pay the same overall anyway without the benefit of a phone.

Depends on your usage. Pay by the minute works great for me. If you really need to get online at any time, OK, but $600+/year?! I'll stay with my Thomas Brothers map and wait to update Facebook until I get home, thanks.

Yes, I did that with TMobile and an unlocked iPhone.
But AT&T is planning to buy TMobile to prevent customers from having that option though.

Thanks Patrick, how is TMobile? Are they all right with reception?

TMobile reception is very good for me at home, but my wife has trouble with it at her work. But in general I hear it's better than AT&T reception.

I have Sprint and the coverage is "fairly good." However, with Sprint I can roam on Verizon for free. I can even roam with data up to a generous limit for free too. I don't think we roam on AT&T or T-Mobile but I can't guarantee that. I do know that between the Sprint network and free roaming I get a signal just about everywhere in the Bay Area. The only place that gets dicey is up in the Hills on Grizzly Peak. But I don't think any company can do much about that but put a tower on every peak and valley... LOL.

From what I have researched Sprint has the cheapest plans. I have their $69.99 plan that is unlimited for data, texts, and mobile to mobile calls. It provides 750 any time minutes to and from land lines. Nights which start at 7:00pm and end at 7:00am and weekends (Friday 7:00pm to Monday 7:00am) have unlimited minutes to and from land lines. Almost everyone I call uses a mobile phone. I never even get close to using up my minutes. Most months I'm well under 200 minutes without monitoring who I'm calling. I do pay a $10 fee for having a 4g capable phone. That's the only charge that kind of sucks on Sprint. So my plan is up to $79.99 per month before fees and taxes.

Oh and I guess I'm a sucker because I pay $29.99 per month to turn my phone into a hotspot. I use it to surf the web on my desktop at home. If I rooted my phone I could get an app and use my hotspot for free. But, that would be against the contract and I don't like being nervous that Sprint would find out. If they find out you get dropped by Sprint, you pay the early termination fee, and you can't be a Sprint customer for years (I'm not sure how long that is).

I've been a Sprint customer since I've owned a mobile phone (12 years or so). I've never seen the need to switch to anyone else, mainly out of laziness. I've learned from friends who use other companies that they are all kind of the same. However as a 10+ year customer of Sprint I'm a "Premier Gold Customer" and I get to upgrade my phone every year with the full discount instead of waiting 24 months. There are other perks, I just forget about them. Their premier customer plan is split into two levels:

Effective April, 1, 2011, to qualify for Premier you must be a Sprint customer for at least 6 months, your account must be in good standing and you meet one of the following criteria:
S|P Gold Customers:
Maintain a 3-month average of at least $89.99 for individual plans, or
Maintain a 3-month average of at least $169.99 for shared plans, or
Have been a Sprint customer for 10 years or more.
S|P Silver Customers:
Maintain a 3-month average of at least $69.99 - $89.98 for individual plans, or
Maintain a 3-month average of at least $99.99 - $169.98 for shared plans,
Note: Once you reach 10 years of service with Sprint, you are automatically graduated to S|P Gold status regardless of the plan you are on.

And no, I don't work for Sprint. I'm just sharing information. :-)

Thanks guys.

SF ace says

There’s no value in not having a contract, you pay the same overall anyway without the benefit of a phone (which is an asset and can be sold, gift).

I just like the convenience of switching providers if they don't perform well. If I'm stuck in a contract I'm tied for a while with a hefty fee.

It's a good way to stick it to the carriers so they don't skimp out on quality.