After a while, if you're like me, you've cut all the expenses that you can or are willing to cut. My rent, and internet are a fixed amount. My utilities, I try to keep low, but when it's 15 degrees out, a girl needs to stay comfortable. Gas for my car, phone bills, groceries--I try to keep those as low as I can without feeling like I'm depriving myself, but it still feels incredibly frustrating to get my paycheck and spend it all in a single day with little-to-nothing left over for savings.
So this is why I'm really, really excited to have found a way to cut back on one of those bills.
I've been with Sprint for nearly ten years, and I've hated Sprint for nearly that entire time. Their service in the part of town where I live is lousy; they renew your contract for two years every time you get a new phone; they've tricked me into getting a new phone when I didn't actually want one; for some reason, they claim that my email address doesn't work every time I sign up for paperless billing (note: I've had the same email for longer than I've had sprint--it works fine); and for what I use my phone for, I'm just paying what feels like way too much money. For instance, last month's bill, I used eight minutes of talk time, and sent and received 48 text messages. My bill was $46. That $46 also includes a 15% discount that I get because I used to work for Pepsi. For what I use my phone for, that's just too much money, but I've always been too lazy to shop around for a better deal--if there even is one.
I've had Ting on my radar for a while now. I actually blogged about them a year and a half ago, but at that time, if I had switched, I would have had to get a new phone, the only phones they supported were smart phones, and you couldn't keep your current phone number. So I got on their email list and kept up with new developments. Finally, they posted that you could port your number from your old phone AND, they had a lovely picture of my current cell phone on their website:
Last night, I made the switch, and when I woke up this morning, I had an email telling me how to reactivate my phone.
So this is why I'm really, really excited to have found a way to cut back on one of those bills.
I've been with Sprint for nearly ten years, and I've hated Sprint for nearly that entire time. Their service in the part of town where I live is lousy; they renew your contract for two years every time you get a new phone; they've tricked me into getting a new phone when I didn't actually want one; for some reason, they claim that my email address doesn't work every time I sign up for paperless billing (note: I've had the same email for longer than I've had sprint--it works fine); and for what I use my phone for, I'm just paying what feels like way too much money. For instance, last month's bill, I used eight minutes of talk time, and sent and received 48 text messages. My bill was $46. That $46 also includes a 15% discount that I get because I used to work for Pepsi. For what I use my phone for, that's just too much money, but I've always been too lazy to shop around for a better deal--if there even is one.
I've had Ting on my radar for a while now. I actually blogged about them a year and a half ago, but at that time, if I had switched, I would have had to get a new phone, the only phones they supported were smart phones, and you couldn't keep your current phone number. So I got on their email list and kept up with new developments. Finally, they posted that you could port your number from your old phone AND, they had a lovely picture of my current cell phone on their website:
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| It's not fancy, but I love it |
So far, there are two downsides:
- I use google voice instead of listening to voicemail, and that feature was disabled. I'm not sure if I can get it back, but I haven't tried yet.
- There are issues with texting pictures to your email, which is something I did do a lot. I saw that in their terms of service, so I was prepared for it, but I'm not sure how much I'm going to miss having that option.
The upside: Currently my bill is $6. Obviously, that will go up when I send more texts, etc., but now I have a lot more control of my expenses AND I'm not locked into a stupid plan. If I decide that Ting doesn't work for me, I can just bail.
I'll keep you posted, but I'm feeling pretty smart right now.
HI, I am a fellow Ting customer, and a Ting evangelist! Welcome to the fold! I am also a member of the Ting Army (just a bunch of geeks who like to help where we can).
ReplyDeleteI can say this, if you were frustrated with Sprint service, that may remain with ting. While the billing is different, it uses Sprint's network, so coverage, call quality, etc. will be the same or similar.
As far as MMS (picture texts), it normally only requires changing a setting or two in your phone to get it to work. Open a support ticket and one of their excellent representatives will guide you through, or post in the forum and someone will help (or they will open a ticket as the reps watch the forums!)
I use the Google Voice app on a smartphone so that I can have two different numbers, and can get use google voice for my voicemails. There are a lot of different ways to set it up, but since you have a flip phone it is probably a bit more limited and easier. There is a huge post in the ting forums on working with Google Voice, so check there and ask around, I bet you will be up and running soon!
If you get more questions about Ting, you can always send people to my article explaining it: http://bradthegeek.hubpages.com/hub/Saving-Money-on-your-Mobile-Phone-Bill-with-Ting
Take care!
Thanks William! I knew that ting uses Sprint network, so I figured that that frustration won't go away, but at least I'll pay less. I'll look into the picture mail thing and take a look at the forums!
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