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Top 3 Reasons Why People Use Tracfone

3 Reasons Why People Like Using Tracfone

A lot of people use Tracfone for a lot of different reasons. But what are the top three reasons why consumers use Tracfone, making it one of the fastest growing cell phone companies in America?

Many tech-savvy gadget heavy Americans wonder why anyone would want a prepaid cell phone with basic features and limited minutes. But apparently, there are a lot of consumers who are looking for just that, because of several key reasons. Below are the top three, with the biggest reason at the end.

3. Ease of Use

While the phones from Tracfone are not always simple and intuitive to use, it is very simple to buy a Tracfone, activate it and add minutes. In just an hour or two anyone can have a mobile phone with no further monetary obligations.

Although contract phones don't take very long to set up either, they do require a bit more ink.

Thus many people are choosing a prepaid carrier such as Tracfone, simply because it is easy to deal with, and there are no strings attached as far as keeping up with payments or upgrades.

2. Convenience

Along the same lines of ease of use, Tracfones and other prepaid mobile phones tend to be very convenient in that when you need them, you can add minutes and they are ready to use. If you don't need it for a few months, then no need to waste money on it, you can just not buy any minutes for it.

This convenience of choosing when you want to have a cell phone is another significant reason for consumers picking Tracfone. However, the biggest reason is next.

1. Cost

By a large margin, consumers choose no contract prepaid cell phones like the ones from Tracfone because of the low cost and no fees.

With Tracfone, a family of four can each have a cell phone with minutes and service, for $30 a month with the Tracfone Family Value Plan (read our review of it to learn more!). Yes, that is $30 total, per month, or less than $1 a day for 4 phones!

Along with low cost minutes and service bundles, Tracfone also keeps the cost of phones very low, typically under $60 for their best phones like the LG 840G or Samsung S390G

What about people who need to use their phone a lot for talking or texting? Plenty of prepaid cell phone companies (but not Tracfone) offer monthly unlimited plans for less than what the major contract companies offer.

In a time when economic conditions have made many people more money-conscious, the low cost of prepaid cell phones is getting noticed.

Many people choose Tracfone for a variety of other reasons as well, perhaps as a back up or emergency phone, or just for a short time while they look into other mobile phone options.

So why do you use Tracfone? Leave a comment with your top 3 reasons for using Tracfone.

Affordable and Easy, TracFones Make for Great Gifts

Do you know someone who doesn't own a cell phone? Maybe a son or daughter, niece or nephew, grandfather or grandmother, or other friends. If you are looking for a gift idea, a TracFone might be it!

Nothing says 'I want to talk with you more often' than giving someone a cell phone. And prepaid phones make it easy to manage costs and avoid the hassle of contract phones.

How Easy is it to Give a Cell Phone?

It is actually quite easy. There are two general decisions to make when buying a TracFone. The first is which phone to buy, and the second is what airtime cards or plans to get.

We will cover both below, starting with cell phone buying options.

Buying a TracFone

TracFones are available in many locations and are easy to find. Retail stores such as Walmart and Target sell a few varieties of the phones and you can also buy directly from TracFone.com. Amazon is another internet location where you can often find TracFones on sale for less.

What can be challenging is choosing which phone to get. So we will provide a few options below to help give you some ideas. If you want to view more phone options, just visit TracFone.com and browse their phone selection.

LG 500G

LG 500g - One of the least expensive but most dependable phones from TracFone, this cell phone has a full QWERTY keyboard which makes texting easy and simple. This is a great phone for people of all ages, especially younger people. The small keys may make it hard for older people to use, but it is easy to get accustomed to and there is no bothering with learning to use T-9 or something else.

Financially, this phone makes a lot of sense typically priced at $20, and sometimes even less from Amazon.

LG 840G

LG 840g - This is one of TracFones top of the line options. It is a touchscreen with a sleek appearance and great functionality. It includes 2GB of memory, and is 3G/Wifi enabled. It also comes with Triple Minutes for life, making this a great choice for those who might use their phone more often.

This phone is typically priced well under $100, and can be purchased through Amazon with minutes included for a good deal. This is another option that almost anyone can enjoy and use.

For more phones and reviews by us, visit our Cell Phone Reviews page!

Buying Minutes for your TracFone

Getting minutes for a TracFone is quite simple to do. There are two prepaid options: pay as you go minute cards or monthly installment plan.

Pay as you go means you buy minute cards and load them onto the phone, giving you anywhere between 60-800 minutes and 90-365 days of service, depending on which card you buy.

Monthly Installment plan means that you pay each month for 30 days of service, and a certain number of minutes to use that month.

The monthly installment plan offers simplicity, and is very financially enticing. Plans can be as low as $10 a month for 50 minutes.

1 Year and 400 Minutes

The pay as you go option simply means you buy airtime cards whenever you need them. Talking on the phone more this month than you usually do? Just buy an extra card and load the minutes on your phone.

Pay as you go is convenient because you can get a 1 year/400 minutes of service card for less than $100 and not need to worry about the phone for the whole year! If at any time the phone starts to run low on minutes, you can just get more from many stores and even online.

What about Activation and other Quesitons?

Activating a new TracFone follows simple steps and can be completed in less than an hour! For those who might want to use an existing phone number, that can also usually be done at no extra cost.

For other questions, feel free to ask in the comments section.

Interested in more information? Visit our Overview of TracFone page for more info.

What is the Cheapest Prepaid Cell Phone?

While many people buy a cell phone based on the features, coverage, ability to surf the web and other things, some people just want a cheap cell phone for backup, emergencies or because they want to save money.

Save A Big stack of coins with Prepaid

If you buy a cell phone from one of the major service providers such as Verizon, Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile or any of the others, you will typically pay a few hundred dollars just for the phone, pay around $70 per month for service, and sign a contract that lasts 2 years.

You could be paying around $1000 a year just to use a cell phone.

While this does usually include unlimited talking, texting and web browsing, not everyone needs that.

Lets look at the extreme opposite end of the cell phone spectrum. What about a cell phone plan that costs less than $10 a month?

Cheapest Prepaid Plan - Less Than $10 a Month

Imagine paying $10 a month, or $120 a year for your cell phone. You could be saving $880 a year, or $1760 with a standard 2 year contract phone.

What would you do with $1760? We can think of lots of things! Like a new computer or TV.

So what is this prepaid plan? Well, it is very simple, and many of the major prepaid cell phone companies have plans that cost less than $10 per month. Some of the prepaid companies are Net 10, Straight Talk, Cricket, and Tracfone.

But Here at TracfoneReviewer, we are going to look at the options from Tracfone.

How to Pay Less Than $10 a Month for a Prepaid Plan:

If you are looking for a way to save money, but still have a cell phone, here is how to do it.

LG500g from Amazon

Tracfone offers several phones for $9.99. The 376g (click to read our review) is a simple but durable flip phone. It is an older model, so it might not be available everywhere. The Samsung S125G is another phone option from Tracfone that is a little newer.

Another option is the LG500g (click for our review!) with full QWERTY keypad, and many other impressive features. It is currently on sale from Amazon for $9.99! It usually sells for $29.99 from Tracfone.

After you choose which cell phone, (and make sure it comes with Double Minutes) buy a 60 minute phone card for $20 from Tracfone.

Thus, you get a cell phone, 3 months of service, and 120 minutes (with double minutes) plus bonus minutes from a promo code, all for $30, which works out to $10 a month for the first three months, and about $6.65 for every month after that.

If 40 minutes a month is not enough, you can always purchase another minutes card, or even get the 120 minute card which costs $30 and comes with 3 months of service. With double minutes for life, that's 240 minutes for 3 months, or about 80 minutes a month, (20 per week) for $10 per month.

Tracfone offers some even better options with their Tracfone Family Value Plan. You can get 50 minutes a month and 30 days of service for $10 for the first person, and 40 minutes/30 days of service for only $6 a month for each additional person! To learn more, read our full Tracfone Family Value Plan review.

The Bottom Line - How Much Can You Save?

While some people do need to use their cell phones a lot for work or to keep in touch with needy friends or family, not everyone needs an unlimited plan from a major cell phone provider.

The $10 a month plan described here works great for those who only make a few calls or texts a week.

For those who use their phone a little more often, there are plenty of prepaid options.

For example, a 200 minute phone card from Tracfone is $40. With a double minutes, that is instantly turned into 400 minutes for 3 months, or about $13 per month, for 133 minutes per month!

Perhaps it is time to start saving money, by looking at your prepaid cell phone options. Just think about what you could do with the money saved?

Interested in more money saving tips? Check out our article on How to Make your Minutes Last Longer!

Christmas and Birthday Gift Idea - Tracfone Prepaid Cell Phone

While many teenagers might already have a cell phone, those that don't (and even 11 and 12 year old's) really want one.

Cell Phones - From Microsoft

Cell phones give a sense of freedom for teenagers. It also makes them feel more grown up because they are responsible for the phone.

Many parents face a problem; contract cell phones are expensive, and if the teenager somehow breaks or looses their phone, the parents are often stuck spending hundreds of dollars to get a replacement.

While unlimited call, texting, and data is fun, no teenager actually needs an unlimited plan. And while an iPhone or other smartphone is fun to use, few teenagers even need that.

Which is where prepaid cell phones become an inexpensive, and beneficial option.

Prepaid Cell Phone's have Several Great Benefits:

Giving a prepaid cell phone as a gift for a teenagers first phone has several valuable life lessons which many parents might not think of.

It teaches kids to manage prepaid minutes, be more responsible, and it is inexpensive.

A Prepaid Cell Phone Teaches Management Skills

With Tracfone, you buy minutes for the phone using minutes cards. The phone then has a certain number of minutes remaining on it.

As the teenager uses the phone for calling and texting, the balance of minutes will slowly be reduced. If the teenager calls all of his or her friends in the first few days of owning the cell phone, then the phone will likely run out of minutes very quickly.

This is where the learning happens. The teenager must learn to manage the minutes remaining on the cell phone, or be willing to buy extra minutes.

This management skill quickly transfers to managing money because it is the same principle. If the teenager gets $50 in their bank account for the month, but uses it all in the first few days then they will have to find a way to make more money, or just suffer being penniless for the rest of the month.

Cell Phones Teach Responsibility

When a teenager owns a cell phone, it teaches them to be responsible for it. They must make sure not to lose it, not to break it or drop it. If something happens to the phone, they must know it is up to them to fix the phone or get a new one.

Cell phones also tend to make a young kid feel older because they recognize the extra responsibility they are receiving when given a cell phone.

Prepaid Cell Phones are very Inexpensive

The final benefit of giving a prepaid cell phone as a gift to teenagers is that it is very inexpensive compared to other cell phone companies.

A good Tracfone cell phone is $10-$30 and available at many stores. Enough minutes to last a month can be purchased for $20 in store, or even online.

It can cost as little as $10 a month to own and sue a prepaid cell phone. And the great thing is, if more minutes are used, one can simply buy another minutes card.

Conclusion - A Great Gift Idea for Teenagers, or Anyone Else

Obviously contract cell phones have certain benefits for those who use their phone often or want certain features. But a prepaid cell phone makes a perfect gift for a young teenager, or anyone who doesn't have a cell phone.

It will teach them several valuable skills and help them stay connected with friends and family.

How to Make Your Prepaid Minutes Last Longer

Running out of minutes for your prepaid cell phone is no fun, so here are a few tips to help make those minutes last longer

5 Tips for Managing Your Prepaid Minutes

Use these practical tips to help control how fast your minutes escape from your cell phone.

1. Always Use a Promo Code

When you add a new minutes card to your prepaid cell phone, always make sure you use a promo code to get free bonus minutes.

Most promo codes give you 20-50 bonus minutes.

While 20 or 30 minutes does not seem like much, it actually does make a difference.

With 30 bonus minutes you can send 100 more texts, or enjoy a few longer talks on the phone.

Check out our full list of updated Tracfone Promo Codes and find one to use next time you add minutes to your phone.

For some minute cards, like the 400 minute and 1 year of service card, you can get as much as 250 bonus minutes! That is a huge boost to your minutes, so go check out those promo codes!

2. Get a Phone with Double Minutes (or Triple Minutes!)

Double Minutes is a feature from Tracfone that doubles every minute you buy for your phone. So if you buy a 60 minute phone card, when you enter it you will get a total of 120 minutes.

Double Minutes comes on almost all Tracfone prepaid cell phone and is a must have. If you don't have it with your cell phone, we suggest you buy a Tracfone that has it. A new Tracfone cell phone with Double Minutes included can be as cheap as $10.

Some newer Tracfone prepaid phones have Triple Minutes included with the phone. If you are looking for a nicer phone, and are planning to use it often, we strongly recommend Tracfone's Triple Minutes phones.

3. Don't Answer Calls from Telemarketers

While you might be tempted to answer every call you get, this quickly uses up your minutes.

So check the phone number before you answer, and if it is unfamiliar or from a 1800 number, think twice before answering it.

It might just be a lot easier to listen to any message they leave, and then determine if it is worth your time.

4. Don't Give Your Number Out to Everyone

Avoid as much as possible giving your number out online. Try not to post it on any websites, or when you signup for accounts unless it is required.

The more often you give your number out online, the more likely it is a telemarketer will find it, and try to call you.

Also be careful who you give your number out to. If you are checking out at a store and they ask you for your number, think twice before giving it. Offer your email instead.

We are not suggesting you stop giving your number out to friends and family, that would eliminate the whole reason you got the cell phone!

Just be mindful who you give your cell phone number out to, and if you think they don't really need it, then don't give it.

5. Know When to Text

Texting using Tracfone prepaid cell phones costs much less then a phone call, about .3 minutes epr text vs 1 minute per minute talking.

So when you just have a simple question or statement, try sending a text instead.

Do recognize that if you start carrying on a long conversation through text messages, you could probably have had the same conversation using less minutes if you had called.

So just be aware when sending a text is better than a phone call.

Interested in more information about Triple Minute phones from Tracfone? Check out our Tracfone Cell Phone Reviews Page!

Dropping Your Cell Phone in Water can Happen to Anyone

Maybe your phone fell into the toilet, or your friends pushed you into a pool, or even some water just splashed onto your cell phone, no matter how it happens, it can be a problem.

But with this simple guide, you might be able to save your cell phone from it's watery grave.

How to Fix a Cell Phone Dropped in Water

Cell Phone in Water By brokinhrt2

The first thing you should do is don't panic, and quickly grab your phone out of the water. Maybe it is in the pool, or a toilet, no matter where it is get it out of the water as quickly as you can.

1. Use a Towel to Dry it Off

Next, grab a towel, toilet paper or t-shirt and dry off the excess water on the outside. Don't worry about getting in between the keys, just get any water drops dried up.

2. Use your Vacuum Cleaner

Yep, that's right, if you have a vacuum cleaner, use it to suck out the moisture and water from the cracks on the phone between keys or the screen. Note: Don't use any heating devices like hairdryers because these can do more damage than good.

3. Take the Battery Out

Take off the back cover and the battery. Take off anything you can remove that covers the phone like a case or screen cover. Remove the SIM card, which is usually located next to the battery. If there is any water in these areas, dry it out with a paper towel and set these pieces aside on a paper towel.

4. Get a Bowl of Rice

Rice is a great at absorbing water, so get a bowl or Tupperware full of rice, and bury your phone in it. Let it say in there for at least a full day before removing it. The rice will slowly absorb any moisture from the inside of the phone and hopefully restore it to functioning condition.

5. Try Turning it On

Once the phone has sat in the rice for at least 24hrs, take it out and check for any moisture. If it is still wet, then repeat the process.

If it is dry, which it should be if you did the previous steps correctly, then replace the SIM card, battery and anything else you removed. Now, cross your fingers and turn it on.

In our experience, this worked perfectly on a Tracfone prepaid flip phone that was dropped in a toilet. After a few days in rice, it worked just fine.

If your phone doesn't turn on for some reason, try charging the battery. We also had a phone go through a washing machine and it worked ok after a charge of the battery.

If your phone still does not work, then consider taking it to a electronics store, taking it apart yourself, or buying a new cell phone.

If your phone is totally dead, then check out Tracfone Reviewer's Cell Phone Reviews page where we have reviewed lots of great phones from Tracfofne

What is the Cheapest Cell Phone Plan?

Many people need a simple cell phone that can do basic calling and texting without the high price of the major cell phone carriers of AT&T, Verizon and Sprint.

There are many different options for choosing a cheap cell phone plan, and a few different factors one should be familier with.

Questions to ask When Buying the Cheapest Cell Phone Plan:

How much talk/text do you need?
Do you want any extra features like internet access or phone book.
Do you want the cheapest phone, or good value for your money?

How Much Talk Time and Texting do you Need?

This is an important question to ask, how many minutes do you need each month? If you don't plan to use your phone very much; a few texts and phone calls a week, then the cheapest plan could be right for you.

Cheap Cell Phones Are Available, but Which One?

But if you want to make several longer calls a month, and 100 or more texts a month, then consider looking for the ability to buy minutes as you go or from a minutes card.

Tracfone sells minutes cards that range from 60 to 450 minutes for 3 months of service. This allows you to buy more or less minutes depending on how many you use in three months.

Also included on most Tracfone prepaid cell phones are double minutes for life, which doubles all minutes you add to the phone!

So if you add the 60 minute card, you will get 120 minutes total!

An average cell phone user who makes several phone calls a week will need about 100 minutes a month. A 120 minute prepaid minutes card ($30) from Tracfone with Double Minutes for Life, will provide 240 minutes every 3 months. If you add a promo code, you can get an extra 30-60 bonus minutes.

Check out our free promo codes to get bonus minutes every time you add a new minutes card!

This is the cheapest cell phone plan that Tracfone Reviewer has found, at about $10 or less a month. Obviously, if you use the phone only as a backup, you can get the 60 minute card and save even more.

Do You Want Extra Features on your Prepaid Cell Phone?

Do you want a plain flip phone that is bare bones or something with a few features to make using the cell phone easier?

If you are just looking for a prepaid cell phone that will be a backup phone or emergency phone, than the cheapest cell phone will be best for you.

Tracfone sells several phones for $10 that have text messaging, simple features like a phone book and even cameras. But they won't have many features, and will look like a phone from 10 years ago.

But, for another $20, one can find several different cheap cell phones that have a variety of features. The LG 500G (Usually $30, sometimes on sale for $20 or less!) Has voice recording, MP3 playback, video and camera functions.

Read the full review of the LG 500G to learn more about all the features.

Tracfone Reviewer suggest spending a little extra to get a better phone. We have found that while the cheapest cell phones are adequate for a backup phone, a better phone will make life much easier and at only $10 to $20 more, you can have a faster, newer phone.

Also be sure that whatever Tracfone you choose has Double Minutes for Life (which most do).

Do You Want the Cheapest Cell Phone, or a Good Value Cell Phone Plan?

Many people think they want to get just the cheapest cell phone plan they can find, but this has serious drawbacks.

Tracfone Reviewer has found that there are several different cheap cell phones and plans that are also a good value for your money.

Tracfone prepaid cell phones can be the cheapest cell phone option if used only a few times a month. The price per month will be less than $10 for service and minutes.

If you want to use your prepaid cell phone a little more often, but still want to keep prices low, a nice phone can be purchased for $30 or less and a 120 minute card with 3 months of service will average out to about $20 for the first three months, and $10 after that.

Consider the Tracfone Family Value plan (and read our review of it) where you can add several phone onto one plan, with the first phone costing $10 a month for 50 minutes, and all additional phones costing $6 per month for 40 minutes. All minutes are automatically added each month, and if you have a phone with double or triple minutes, then you get 100 to 150 minutes!

There are cheap cell phone plans available, and almost anyone can afford $10 a month especially for the security and comfort a cell phone can offer.

Got Questions? Leave a comment!

Now check out Tracfone Reviewer's pick of the Best Cell Phones from Tracfone for Texting!