Prepaid Reviews Blog » T-Mobile

T-Mobile introduces prepaid BlackBerry

Joe — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:30:29 +0000

It’s getting harder to believe, but there were days when prepaid phones were limited to very basic and usually outdated models. That still exists, of course, but over the years we’ve seen prepaid companies upgrade their offerings. Now, instead of offering only three- and four-year-old phones, some companies are offering two-year-old phones — and some are even offering new models. Earlier thi year we saw MetroPCS introduce the BlackBerry Curve 8330. Since then they and other carriers have added more advanced devices. T-Mobile jumped into the fray this week with their new deal, T-Mobile Complete.

Complete isn’t much different than T-Mobile’s normal prepaid offering. The difference is that instead of the pay-as-you-go style, they will operate in the same way as a flat-rate, unlimited carrier. Customers will be able to buy a phone from Best Buy or Wal-Mart and instantly activate it. Instead of buying refill cards, customers can select from unlimited plans starting at $50 per month. And, like the unlimited regional carriers, the first month is free with T-Mobile Complete.

What makes this offer a bit more enticing is the inclusion of the BlackBerry Curve 8520 smartphone. There’s no word on how much the device will cost, nor exactly how much the unlimited plan will cost (expect up to $65 per month). It won’t be cheap, but it’s an advanced device on a prepaid basis. T-Mobile knows that this is a significant offer, as they’re playing up their status as the first national carrier to offer a prepaid BlackBerry. I’m still wondering how much attention they will get for it.

T-Mobile is playing this up as a holiday gift, as can be expected this time of year. I’m not sure the devices will sell that well, though. The device itself will probably be around $150, and the service plan won’t be cheap. Any takers?

Update: The Curve 8520 will cost $299.99. That’s a bit steep.

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T-Mobile introduces prepaid BlackBerry

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile introduces prepaid BlackBerry

T-Mobile emphasizes FlexPay in Project Dark

Joe — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 16:27:23 +0000

As expected, T-Mobile announced a new set of plans yesterday as part of Project Dark. In an effort to supplant Sprint as the No. 3 carrier in the country, T-Mobile has introduced a series of simple service plans to along with their new crop of high-end handsets and their eventual 21Mbps HSDPA upgrade. The plans aren’t quite as good as the rumored $50 all-in, but they do bring quality prices to prepaid. In fact, the FlexPay plans, which require no contract, are priced lower than their contractual counterparts.

T-Mobile has three tiers of voice usage: 500 minutes, 1,000 minutes, and unlimited minutes. It breaks down this way:

	Talk	Talk + Text	Talk + Text + Web
Unlimited	$49.99	$59.99	$79.99
1,000	$39.99	$49.99	$69.99
500	$29.99	$39.99	$59.99

The expected issue at this point is that T-Mobile does not subsidize handsets for FlexPay. They’ve come up with a solution to this, though. Instead of paying full price up front for the handset, T-Mobile is allowing customer to finance them at zero percent interest. Customers can break payments down into monthly payments, as few as four and as many as 20. That will act as a contract, keeping customers on T-Mobile at least until they pay off the handset, and then probably a while afterwards. The handset, after all, will be pretty expensive.

T-Mobile might not list FlexPay on the prepaid section of their website, but it’s still a prepaid plan. With these new improvements, it might be the best prepaid plan out there.

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile emphasizes FlexPay in Project Dark

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile emphasizes FlexPay in Project Dark

T-Mobile bringing smartphones to prepaid

Joe — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 12:30:45 +0000

While it’s not listed in the prepaid section of the website, T-Mobile FlexPay is prepaid in nature. It has the two most important aspects of prepaid service: no contract and no credit check. The draw of FlexPay is that customers can have a normal T-Mobile postpaid plan, but prepay for it. This allows the use of smartphones and other advanced services — in theory. In practice, that can get expensive. Most prepaid customers, therefore, will not use smartphones. That’s true, but only if things remain the same. A new T-Mobile program could change that notion.

Rumors have circulated over the past week regarding T-Mobile’s Project Dark (or Project Black, depending on who says it). It’s supposed to be T-Mobile’s big splash, their charge to move out of the No. 4 spot in America. The plan is to:

Offer the fastest possible service with 21Mbps 3G coverage.
Offer the latest and best smartphones, including the new BlackBerry 9700 and a couple of Android devices (and, of course, more to come).
Offer the cheapest service plan: $50 for unlimited everything.

This started as a rumor, but publications like Boy Genius Report have confirmed different aspects throughout the week. Over the weekend, they confirmed another aspect that could have a big impact on prepaid customers.

FlexPay is included in Project Dark. The problem is how FlexPay customers will afford these high-end handsets, which can cost $500 or more. T-Mobile’s plan: to offer financing for FlexPay customers. That way, FlexPay customers can get a brand new, top of the line phone, an affordable $50 service plan, and superb coverage without signing a contract. It’s the high-end of prepaid.

Chances are T-Mobile will make an announcement this week, and we’ll have all the details. This certainly could open up a whole new world for prepaid customers — especially those on other $50 unlimited plans.

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile bringing smartphones to prepaid

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile bringing smartphones to prepaid

Expensive option for T-Mobile prepaid

Joe — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 12:30:33 +0000

Good news for T-Mobile prepaid subscribers: there’s a new handset out, and you’re eligible. It’s the Samsung T659, and it’s a slider phone with a 3G radio. So if you live within the T-Mobile 3G map (check to see if you’re in one), you can take advantage of faster speeds and better overall coverage. The T659 really isn’t much: a 2.2 QVGA display with a 2.0 megapixel camera, Bluetooth, GPS support, and some music capabilities. Yet the device won’t come cheap: $199.99 without a contract. But that’s about the going rate for mid-range phones on prepaid these days. You can check out the selection and prices on from our other pay as you go cell phone providers and see that it’s not the worst deal out there. Still, $200 for a phone that looks like it hit Virgin Mobile two years ago isn’t really something to brag about.

Via Phone News.

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Expensive option for T-Mobile prepaid

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

Expensive option for T-Mobile prepaid

T-Mobile prepaid adds subscribers, ditches iPhone users

Joe — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 12:30:44 +0000

We kick off this Friday with a bit of news on T-Mobile. Over the past few quarters, we’ve seen T-Mo add more prepaid subscribers than postpaid. Of the Big Four carriers, they are the only self-branded prepaid service which has done this. That trend continued in Q2 2009, as only 17 percent of T-Mo’s 325,000 subscribers were of postpaid ilk. That means nearly 270,000 of the adds were prepaid, which puts T-Mobile up there with the likes of Cricket and MetroPCS. While the company plans to add devices, like the MyTouch and eventually the BlackBerry 9700, to boost postpaid sales, perhaps T-Mobile is better off focusing on the sector which is powering the majority of their quarterly adds.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t appear that T-Mo is thinking this way. Instead of embracing prepaid subscribers, they seem to be shunning them in ways. For instance, they recently discontinued service for iPhone users on Sidekick plans. Why they did this is unclear. But they did send out a message on their Twitter account that they would no longer allow unlocked iPhones to use the Sidekick plan. That’s a shame, because the plan meshed so well with the iPhone.

It’s strange to see T-Mobile act this way, and it makes me wonder if something else is afoot. Why would they tell iPhone customers to stop paying them a dollar a day to use the network? This goes especially because T-Mobile is benefitting so much from prepaid users. If it weren’t for them, T-Mo’s subscriber stats would look pretty puny. Anyone care to speculate a reason behind the maneuver?

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile prepaid adds subscribers, ditches iPhone users

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile prepaid adds subscribers, ditches iPhone users

T-Mobile reducing packaging materials

Joe — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 12:30:57 +0000

Anyone who’s bought a prepaid phone at Target, Wal-Mart, or any other retailer knows that the phone comes wrapped in armor. It’s that thick, impossible to tear plastic that encases many electronics these days. This might make it tougher for shoplifters to remove the item from its case and get out without setting off an alarm, but it’s a royal pain to consumers. Plus, it uses tons of plastic, which as we know isn’t the best thing for thee environment. T-Mobile is looking to change this. They’ve begun using a new packaging material which reduces materials by 45 percent. Best of all, the material is recyclable.

As the following video shows, getting the package open is fairly easy. No, you can’t tear it (that would defeat security purposes), but you can easily take scissors to the flat surface and cut it enough that opening is easy. Or, as the video shows, relatively easy. Hey, at least you won’t be cutting your hands trying to get it open.

The cardboard is 100 percent recyclable, but apparently there are programs that will not take the plastic. Why, I have no idea. Apparently some programs require it be in bottle form, but in the three places I’ve lived since college I’ve been able to recycle all sorts of plastics. I’m guessing most people won’t have trouble throwing this in with comingled recycling.

Kudos to T-Mobile for picking up on this new technology. Hopefully all other prepaid carriers pick up on this. Our uncut hands will thank you.

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile reducing packaging materials

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile reducing packaging materials

T-Mobile could be readying prepaid BlackBerry

Joe — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 15:00:43 +0000

A while back I wondered if T-Mobile should offer a prepaid BlackBerry plan, like its prepaid Sidekick. That was in regards to the Pearl flip 8220. While T-Mobile won’t be offering that specific Pearl for prepaid, it does appear they will be offering the traditional Pearl for prepaid. As the ad shows, it will cost $299.99, so quite a chunk of change, but expected for prepaid. A CrackBerry commenter notes that you get 600 minutes and unlimited data and email for $65 per month, so a bit higher than the MetroPCS plan. The ad says available in New Jersey, but apparently it’s available elsewhere at Best Buy stores. I couldn’t find it on T-Mo’s or Best Buy’s websites.

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile could be readying prepaid BlackBerry

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile could be readying prepaid BlackBerry

Samsung releases T239 on T-Mobile prepaid

Joe — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 12:49:32 +0000

For those looking for a cheap, basic slider phone for T-Mobile prepaid, you can check out the Samsung T239, which the company has just released. It’s a pretty basic model, sporting Bluetooth and a VGA camera among the basics. While it’s certainly not the same model, it reminds me of the Samsung Slash from Virgin Mobile. The best part about the T239 is the price: $59.99. You can also choose between a gray and maroon finish.

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

Samsung releases T239 on T-Mobile prepaid

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

Samsung releases T239 on T-Mobile prepaid

T-Mobile adds even more prepaid customers in Q1

Joe — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 12:44:28 +0000

Slowly but surely, T-Mobile is growing their prepaid business. Unfortunately for them, it appears to be coming at the cost of their more profitable postpaid service. This week we learned what T-Mo did in the first quarter, and like the past two it added more prepaid customers than postpaid. This time, though, the proportion was even larger. While they added 57 percent prepaid in the fourth quarter of 2008, they increased that to 60 percent in the first quarter of 2009. The bummer is that they added only 415,000 total subscribers, so the hard number of additions didn’t quite match Q4.

So is T-Mobile really moving into the prepaid business? Perhaps a better way to put this is, are they going to embrace prepaid, or are they going to fight it in favor of the more profitable postpaid sector? Craig Moffett, senior analyst at Bernstein Research, thinks they should do the former.

“We believe T-Mobile will have no choice but to match the new $50 level going forward – being priced twice as high as the market is not a viable strategy,” Moffett said in a research note. “And when that happens, the competitive dynamic of the unlimited pre-paid segment will be exactly where it was a few quarters ago … but with a lower price point. Whatever momentum Sprint has gained as a result of its Boost Unlimited offering will become much more challenging to maintain beyond that point.”

The $50 price point appears the place to be. Both MetroPCS and Cricket wireless offer their best plans at this rate. We know Boost Unlimited has set a new bar here, offering $50 unlimited on a nationwide basis. Even Virgin Mobile has reduced their unlimited voice plan to $50. If T-Mobile wants to capitalize on their newfound prepaid success, they’d be wise to do the same.

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile adds even more prepaid customers in Q1

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

T-Mobile adds even more prepaid customers in Q1

Looks like the Nokia 1661 will hit T-Mobile prepaid

Joe — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 12:30:51 +0000

Late last week we learned that T-Mobile will release the Nokia 1661 later this month. There wasn’t much by the way of details, though, so we skipped it, thinking it would be a low-end phone for postpaid. However, Mobile Burn has a rumor about T-Mobile’s 2009 roadmap in which they mention that the 1661 “will apparently be available for the prepaid side of the market on April 29.” Awesome. There’s still no pricing, though that should come soon enough. As for the phone, there’s really nothing to it. It’s just a basic candybar with an FM radio and a 128×160 display. No Bluetooth, no nothing. Oh, well, it does have a “torch,” which apparently lets you cut through the darkness.

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

Looks like the Nokia 1661 will hit T-Mobile prepaid

This post originated at PrepaidReviews.com - The number one resource for NET 10 Prepaid information on the web!

Looks like the Nokia 1661 will hit T-Mobile prepaid