Metro PCS experienced massive growth over the past year on clarkhoward.com

Clark is excited to report that he recently read Metro PCS increased its subscriber base by 50% over the past year. For those of you who are unfamiliar, Metro PCS is a no-contract cell phone carrier. All their plans range from $25-$50 and all offer unlimited calling.

The difference in price points is based on how many other features you want -- texting, web surfing, etc. But there are never any contracts or overages.

At a time when people are feeling pinched, companies like Metro PCS, Cricket and Boost Mobile -- all unlimited with no contracts -- are the future of telephoning in the United States.

So that begs the question: Why do you still have a home phone that you don't use that costs you $360 to $600 annually? Why are you with one of the Big 4 cell providers (AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint or Verizon) who give you a block of minutes and eat you alive if you go over those minutes?

For light cell phone users, there's always Net10.com. No roaming charges, no long distance charges, no monthly fees and a flat 10 cents per minute for calls.

You can see why Clark is pushing you to think outside the box. When your contract with the Big 4 is up, break out of your inertia and examine the alternatives before you sign another 2-year contract.

What others are saying

lack of coverage
We are on our third cell phone company and still do not have a cell phone that works at out home. We do not have cable or DSL available either; our internet connection is via satellite which we dislike intensely because it is slow and unreliable. They have universal coverage in Asia and Europe but it seems to be beyond our ablilities here in the U.S.
By javapoppa @ 05/17/09 08:43:41 PMreport abuse
Not bad
Been with Cricket for 3 years now. Have the $50 plan. Sometimes signal won't "let go" of previous tower and transfer to next. Have to reboot phone sometimes to do this. Other times, As soon as it drops, it goes from no bars to 4 instantly. Couple days ago, a neighbor had a 911 problem on cricket and his house and garage burned down due to the delay that the local police dept was answering and not the county 911 call center. Happened in Miamisburg, OH. I still have a bare bones landline for 911 and alarm monitoring. Don't put your life or property on the line not knowing where your 911 call will actually ring to.
By Chris in Dayton area @ 04/09/09 05:48:12 AMreport abuse
Metro PCs
Been with Sprint/Nextel since 2000. Switched to Metro PCS now I'm saving Hundreds of dollars. THANKS CLARK :)
By Will @ 04/08/09 11:59:12 PMreport abuse
Broadband
To JD: "Most of us still use dial up"? Not sure who most of us is, but in the U.S, about 90% of internet users now have broadband. Low end DSL can be had for $10/month. Remember, wasted time has a cost too.
By Techie @ 04/08/09 08:53:43 PMreport abuse
Or ditch the cell phone
And keep your landline. Landlines are still far more reliable than cell phones. The sound quality is usually better than either cell or VoIP. I shopped around a few weeks ago and found landline service is also MUCH cheaper than it used to be now that cell services are competing. I can get local service with unlimited long distance, voicemail, a bunch of features, etc. for $35/month. That's cheaper than my AT&T cell phone plan with limited minutes. I guess some people truly need a cell phone, but otherwise, why are we all paying extra so we can have pointless phone conversations in grocery store aisles?
By Jayde @ 04/08/09 08:35:19 PMreport abuse
Virgin Mobile
I pay $15/3 months for Virgin Mobile (preauthorized to my credit card). They deduct 18 cents/minute for what I use and roll over what I don't use. Since I don't even use five minutes a month, but really want to have a mobile phone on the rare occasions I do need one this is ideal for me. I found I was getting a couple of wrong number text messages a month so I had that (and voice mail) turned off. Obviously not a good plan for teens, but great for this guy born in 1947.
By JK @ 04/08/09 07:51:27 PMreport abuse
GPS
my $105 Garmin Nuvi 205w I picked up during a Black Friday price match at Staples blows away my cell phone GPS and my car's built in GPS. Why not use one of those?
By Mike @ 04/08/09 03:26:57 PMreport abuse
hmm
I use Metro PCS, and I plan to switch to Boost for nationwide coverage soon. I told the land-line company to shove it years ago, and know I eat out more. Land lines are obsolete for personal use. Business may be different.

About the internet...JD you will not be able to view the next generation of websites or any for that matter if you are on Windows 98. If you are using Internet Destroyer 6 or below....good luck

I am a web developer and your computer is not supported anymore. Maybe you just start sending tele-types insted of emails.
By A concerned web developer @ 04/08/09 03:15:59 PMreport abuse
el-cheapo
quit beating up on poor ol JD. If he wants to live in the stone ages of technology, who cares. I guess he places very little value on his time.

Just be glad you aren't married to him, or someone like him.
By brian @ 04/08/09 02:22:29 PMreport abuse
T-Mobile deal
I basically only use my cell phone for emergencies and contacting my family.
I get 1000 minutes for $100 a year and the minutes roll over every year.
Last year I used less than 500 minutes so over 500 minutes rolled over.
You do have to renew during a specific time every year but T-Mobile notifies you when the next $100 payment is due so it is very easy. This has served me very well over the years.
By Sherri @ 04/08/09 01:54:58 PMreport abuse
What about GPS
I use one of the Big 4 because I have to have GPS. Do any of the others even provide GPS?
By Hugh @ 04/08/09 01:38:31 PMreport abuse
Pay as you go
I think virgin is still the best for light users. $20 every 90 days instead of $45 for 90 days with net10.
By Jim @ 04/08/09 11:58:56 AMreport abuse
JD Adams (earier commenter) may be smug about his antiquated computer, old-fashioned landline, and slow dialup, but he won't be so smug when his grandkids send him a 10 megapixel photo of their school play.

DSL is as low as $10/mo ($20/mo w/o landline) in some areas. If you've got a laptop, Cricket even offers mobile broadband for much less than the big 4 carriers.
By John Wallaby @ 04/08/09 11:01:23 AMreport abuse
Wish AT&T's landline was an option.
We only use AT&T's landline for faxing and dialup internet. Most of us still use dialup; it's cheap, reliable and the computer hardware I use won't support high-speed-anything. (I paid $38.00 for an IBM desktop server in 1996 and I'm not quite done getting my money's worth out of this thing!) It get's worse: I still run Windows 98SE which is bulletproof and cheap and I can still back the entire HD up to CD-RW's. How's THAT for cheap? I still use a calculator I bought in 1975, so you can't convince me that newer is better. As for AT&T's landline and dialup combined, I pay about $27 per month, which is less than most pay for DSL alone. So by keeping the landline around, I'm being as miserly as possible. Beat that!
By JD Adams @ 04/07/09 10:08:27 PMreport abuse
Why do we still have a landline? WE MUST!
There still are places where there is no cell service. I live up in the forest, high in the mountains. There is no cell service, and unless a cell company wants to lose money in this unpopulated area we will still not have cell service in the future. Some of us have to be low tech in order to live in paradise!
By Julie @ 04/07/09 05:16:20 PMreport abuse
Home Phone
We still have our home phone because every so often our cell phone doesn't have good coverage (don't ask why). I stay at home with our kids and like the security a home phone brings...if the cell phone is out, the home phone is a great back up. We do not have a long distance plan for the the house phone and we have the bare bones plan for the house phone...no caller ID, call waiting, etc. We tried using just our cell phones in our last house and it was a disaster...we lost coverage for a month because the company was installing a new tower nearby and for some reason made us lose coverage. Never again will I be without communication!
By Becky @ 04/07/09 03:55:31 PMreport abuse
T-mobile service
T-Mobile just sent me an email for unlimited calls for 49.99 a month, or 89.98 for my wife and I for unlimited. We are turning off our home phone this week.
By Rich @ 04/07/09 03:23:13 PMreport abuse

lack of coverage

We are on our third cell phone company and still do not have a cell phone that works at out home. We do not have cable or DSL available either; our internet connection is via satellite which we dislike intensely because it is slow and unreliable. They have universal coverage in Asia and Europe but it seems to be beyond our ablilities here in the U.S.

By javapoppa @ 05/17/09 08:43:41 PMreport abuse

Not bad

Been with Cricket for 3 years now. Have the $50 plan. Sometimes signal won't "let go" of previous tower and transfer to next. Have to reboot phone sometimes to do this. Other times, As soon as it drops, it goes from no bars to 4 instantly. Couple days ago, a neighbor had a 911 problem on cricket and his house and garage burned down due to the delay that the local police dept was answering and not the county 911 call center. Happened in Miamisburg, OH. I still have a bare bones landline for 911 and alarm monitoring. Don't put your life or property on the line not knowing where your 911 call will actually ring to.

By Chris in Dayton area @ 04/09/09 05:48:12 AMreport abuse

Metro PCs

Been with Sprint/Nextel since 2000. Switched to Metro PCS now I'm saving Hundreds of dollars. THANKS CLARK :)

By Will @ 04/08/09 11:59:12 PMreport abuse

Broadband

To JD: "Most of us still use dial up"? Not sure who most of us is, but in the U.S, about 90% of internet users now have broadband. Low end DSL can be had for $10/month. Remember, wasted time has a cost too.

By Techie @ 04/08/09 08:53:43 PMreport abuse

Or ditch the cell phone

And keep your landline. Landlines are still far more reliable than cell phones. The sound quality is usually better than either cell or VoIP. I shopped around a few weeks ago and found landline service is also MUCH cheaper than it used to be now that cell services are competing. I can get local service with unlimited long distance, voicemail, a bunch of features, etc. for $35/month. That's cheaper than my AT&T cell phone plan with limited minutes. I guess some people truly need a cell phone, but otherwise, why are we all paying extra so we can have pointless phone conversations in grocery store aisles?

By Jayde @ 04/08/09 08:35:19 PMreport abuse

Virgin Mobile

I pay $15/3 months for Virgin Mobile (preauthorized to my credit card). They deduct 18 cents/minute for what I use and roll over what I don't use. Since I don't even use five minutes a month, but really want to have a mobile phone on the rare occasions I do need one this is ideal for me. I found I was getting a couple of wrong number text messages a month so I had that (and voice mail) turned off. Obviously not a good plan for teens, but great for this guy born in 1947.

By JK @ 04/08/09 07:51:27 PMreport abuse

GPS

my $105 Garmin Nuvi 205w I picked up during a Black Friday price match at Staples blows away my cell phone GPS and my car's built in GPS. Why not use one of those?

By Mike @ 04/08/09 03:26:57 PMreport abuse

hmm

I use Metro PCS, and I plan to switch to Boost for nationwide coverage soon. I told the land-line company to shove it years ago, and know I eat out more. Land lines are obsolete for personal use. Business may be different.

About the internet...JD you will not be able to view the next generation of websites or any for that matter if you are on Windows 98. If you are using Internet Destroyer 6 or below....good luck

I am a web developer and your computer is not supported anymore. Maybe you just start sending tele-types insted of emails.

By A concerned web developer @ 04/08/09 03:15:59 PMreport abuse

el-cheapo

quit beating up on poor ol JD. If he wants to live in the stone ages of technology, who cares. I guess he places very little value on his time.

Just be glad you aren't married to him, or someone like him.

By brian @ 04/08/09 02:22:29 PMreport abuse

T-Mobile deal

I basically only use my cell phone for emergencies and contacting my family.
I get 1000 minutes for $100 a year and the minutes roll over every year.
Last year I used less than 500 minutes so over 500 minutes rolled over.
You do have to renew during a specific time every year but T-Mobile notifies you when the next $100 payment is due so it is very easy. This has served me very well over the years.

By Sherri @ 04/08/09 01:54:58 PMreport abuse

What about GPS

I use one of the Big 4 because I have to have GPS. Do any of the others even provide GPS?

By Hugh @ 04/08/09 01:38:31 PMreport abuse

Pay as you go

I think virgin is still the best for light users. $20 every 90 days instead of $45 for 90 days with net10.

By Jim @ 04/08/09 11:58:56 AMreport abuse

JD Adams (earier commenter) may be smug about his antiquated computer, old-fashioned landline, and slow dialup, but he won't be so smug when his grandkids send him a 10 megapixel photo of their school play.

DSL is as low as $10/mo ($20/mo w/o landline) in some areas. If you've got a laptop, Cricket even offers mobile broadband for much less than the big 4 carriers.

By John Wallaby @ 04/08/09 11:01:23 AMreport abuse

Wish AT&T's landline was an option.

We only use AT&T's landline for faxing and dialup internet. Most of us still use dialup; it's cheap, reliable and the computer hardware I use won't support high-speed-anything. (I paid $38.00 for an IBM desktop server in 1996 and I'm not quite done getting my money's worth out of this thing!) It get's worse: I still run Windows 98SE which is bulletproof and cheap and I can still back the entire HD up to CD-RW's. How's THAT for cheap? I still use a calculator I bought in 1975, so you can't convince me that newer is better. As for AT&T's landline and dialup combined, I pay about $27 per month, which is less than most pay for DSL alone. So by keeping the landline around, I'm being as miserly as possible. Beat that!

By JD Adams @ 04/07/09 10:08:27 PMreport abuse

Why do we still have a landline? WE MUST!

There still are places where there is no cell service. I live up in the forest, high in the mountains. There is no cell service, and unless a cell company wants to lose money in this unpopulated area we will still not have cell service in the future. Some of us have to be low tech in order to live in paradise!

By Julie @ 04/07/09 05:16:20 PMreport abuse

Home Phone

We still have our home phone because every so often our cell phone doesn't have good coverage (don't ask why). I stay at home with our kids and like the security a home phone brings...if the cell phone is out, the home phone is a great back up. We do not have a long distance plan for the the house phone and we have the bare bones plan for the house phone...no caller ID, call waiting, etc. We tried using just our cell phones in our last house and it was a disaster...we lost coverage for a month because the company was installing a new tower nearby and for some reason made us lose coverage. Never again will I be without communication!

By Becky @ 04/07/09 03:55:31 PMreport abuse

T-mobile service

T-Mobile just sent me an email for unlimited calls for 49.99 a month, or 89.98 for my wife and I for unlimited. We are turning off our home phone this week.

By Rich @ 04/07/09 03:23:13 PMreport abuse

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Apr 07, 2009 -- Metro PCS experienced massive growth over the past year

What others are saying