Hobby Phone suggestions

actionjackson647's Avatar
ok its time for me to get a hobby phone. any suggestions? i want one that is prepaid where the minutes dont expire after a short period of time. One i can keep plugged in and charged in my office out of sight of wandering eyes
ok its time for me to get a hobby phone. any suggestions? i want one that is prepaid where the minutes dont expire after a short period of time. One i can keep plugged in and charged in my office out of sight of wandering eyes Originally Posted by actionjackson647
I have used a TracFone for several years without a problem!
runswithscissors's Avatar
I have to second TracFone; had one for years now also and never let me down.
Powderhound's Avatar
Me too on the TracFone. I've had mine for over 4 years and never had an issue.
GneissGuy's Avatar
Be sure and get one with a SIM card. (i.e. a GSM phone) You can move the sim card to a new phone and take your number, or hide the SIM card separately from the phone.

AT&T plan is OK. $25 card lasts 90 days. $100 card lasts a year. Minutes roll over if you don't use them up and renew before they expire. Multiple plans. Flat 25 cent per minute; $1 per day you use the phone plus 10 cents per minute - 0 cents per minute to AT&T cell customers; or $3 per day you use the phone, no per minute.

Get a rechargeable refill card at 7-11 or Walmart, and you never have to punch in any numbers to do a refill. Be sure the refill card doesn't give you away to the wife.

Read the plan on whatever service you use. You'll get screwed on text and data on any of the plans.
Tracfone for me too! Six yrs with no problems. I've yet to find place nationwide where I can't get a signal on it. I can't say the same for ATT or Verizon.

Look for a model that has "double minutes for life", it saves me a ton! Pay cash for the phone and minute cards. Activate your tracfone via a pay phone. Put your real zip code in when prompted but other bogus info. No IPs or phone numbers will be connected to your hobby phone.You'll be anonymous!
Happy hobbying!
Tess
You'll be anonymous!
Happy hobbying!
Tess Originally Posted by Topshelf Tess
Not completely anonymous. I was able to find you and I am damn glad I did!
VictoriaLyn's Avatar
I love my Virgin mobile had it for 6 years ...Thou I only picked that brand because I thought the hobby and virgin mobile was a funny combo
guest031812's Avatar
The best way to go for most of my clients who have told me what service they use was the at&t go phone..

The cheapest phone is at walmart for 19.99 just a simple throw away phone. But it does the job for texting and calling.

http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-pho...hone-plans.jsp

they have a few plans but to get started you just buy the cards in the same section you found the phone at wal-mart and register the phone with fake info.. you wont ever need anything but the zip code..

the trac phone has been a popular option too
right now you can get a Reconditioned LG 410G + 60 Minute Card $19.99

http://www.tracfone-orders.com/bpdir...sionId=6958303
AustinBusinessTraveler's Avatar
Just like anything else... don't assume it is safe for months or years on end. The phones are dirt ass cheap now (9.99 for some Virgin phones), and minutes are as well. Get one, use it for a month or two, and... bye bye. On to the next one.

All the services are the same at the end of the day.
GneissGuy's Avatar

they have a few plans but to get started you just buy the cards in the same section you found the phone at wal-mart and register the phone with fake info.. you wont ever need anything but the zip code.. Originally Posted by xnaughtygurlzx
Write down all the info used to register the phone. Name, address, etc. If you damage or lose the phone and want to keep the minutes and the same number, you may need the info. Or if you lose the phone and want to deactivate the old number you may need it.
nuglet's Avatar
Write down all the info used to register the phone. Name, address, etc. If you damage or lose the phone and want to keep the minutes and the same number, you may need the info. Or if you lose the phone and want to deactivate the old number you may need it. Originally Posted by GneissGuy
Right Genius; "write down......"? Kinda defeats the purpose of keeping NO records doesn't it?
Doesn't offer all the benefits of a throw away, but works nicely.
ofcoursenot's Avatar
I think that T-Mobile has the cheapest plan. You can pick up a Nokia phone (with sim card and texting)) for $17, and spend just $90/year to keep it active. For each $90, you get 1000 minutes that last a full year, and rollever when you buy the next refill. That works out to 9 cents/minute total. No taxes, fees, or surcharges. Texting costs 10 cents to send and 5 cents to receive.

Buy your refills from callingmart.com.

You can still activate online (this may be changing soon).

If anyone knows of another plan that costs less than $7.50/month, I'd like to hear about it.
GneissGuy's Avatar
Right Genius; "write down......"? Kinda defeats the purpose of keeping NO records doesn't it? Originally Posted by nuglet
No need to be sarcastic.

You need to figure out the appropriate level of security for each piece of information. The fact that you have possession of the phone is more problematical than a piece of paper with a made up name and other pieces of information on it. And a piece of paper or a file with the information is a lot easier to hide than a phone.

Even if someone does find the name and other info, they then have to link it to your hobby phone. As long as you don't label it as "My secret phone that I use to call hookers with," it's not really that likely that someone finding the info will be able to link it to you in a bad way.