Getting on the cellphone bandwagon (at last).

April 10, 2008 10:09 AM

I live on a quiet, forested country lane with no cellphone service. If I purchase a prepaid "burner" cellphone from T-Mobile, will I be able to use it and add minutes to it as needed? Or am I screwed?

My neighborhood is officially a dead zone, and opposition from overzealous environmentalists is destined to keep it that way.

Inspired by posts like this one, I decided to buy a prepaid cellphone from T-Mobile and $100 "Gold Rewards" card to use when I'm driving or visiting nearby cities. But when I called up T-Mobile, I was told that the phones can only be shipped to residences in "live" zones. Corporate policy.

My question is this: If I get the prepaid cellphone and $100 card at a Target located in a "live" zone, will I be able to activate it from the store? And, will I be able to buy new reward cards from Target as needed? Or will activation of the phone result in revealing my address and zip to T-Mobile, and getting the cold shoulder like I did when I attempted my purchase on the phone?

Bonus question: Can the phone, in its locked state, be used in countries outside of the US?

posted by Gordion Knott to technology (9 comments total)

I believe you will be able to do your plan successfully, although I haven't specifically done it.

No, the phone will need to be unlocked before you can use it overseas. I will also note that T-Mobile To Go doesn't have overseas roaming (except for in Canada & Mexico) so you'll need to get it unlocked and buy a SIM card in the foreign country you go to. This is usually cheaper anyway, but I thought I'd mention it.

Re: Your first question, if no one here knows 100% you could post your question in the T-Mobile To Go forum at Howard Forums (the king of cell phone forums) here.
posted by sharkfu at 10:15 AM on April 10, 2008

You should be able to do what you're suggesting, assuming that the store doesn't require you to reveal your zip code to them as part of the purchase transaction. But just as a data point: my Mom and Dad live in a "dead zone", and although they both own cellphones, the darn things practically don't work at all when they're at home.

T-Mobile has likely instituted that corporate policy to cut down on the number of complaints they field from people in dead zones who can't get their cellphones to work.
posted by LN at 10:24 AM on April 10, 2008

At&T go phone doesn't have a policy like that.
posted by cda at 10:32 AM on April 10, 2008

Neither does Virgin Mobile. You can purchase phone and top-up cards at Target (among other places). Plus, Virgin Mobile lets you activate your phone (and top up) online.
posted by xena at 10:43 AM on April 10, 2008

I've been using T-Mobile prepaid for years, I just can't justify a monthly plan. I've also bought other prepaid phones just to try them out. You will not run into a problem. You can actually just go in and pay cash for the phone and cash for the refill cards as you need them. You can activate them anywhere there is coverage. My first phone was activated at a T-Mobile shop, the second was activated in the parking lot of a Wal-Mart.

Or put them on a credit card, T-Mobile doesn't care, you might be buying it as a gift for someone in a service area. I think the deal is T-Mobile doesn't want to get in hot water for shipping customers a product that will not work at their address. We are a pretty litigious society after all.

You also don't have to go to the store to refill it, you can do it over the phone in a few minutes or online in seconds. When I travel into an area not covered by T-Mobile my phone picks up other carriers and works on their networks. I never checked to see if my minutes burn faster on other networks though.
posted by Science! at 10:47 AM on April 10, 2008

You won't have any trouble activating the phone. Can't speak for other carriers, but T-mobile needs little or no info from you to activate a prepaid phone that you bought in a store, not even your name if I recall. It's why drug dealers buy them by the dozens and just toss them out periodically. I can't remember if I even had to speak to a T-mobile human to activate it, but I don't think so. It's been a while, but I believe you just crack open the package, call a number, enter an activation code, and you're good. And nobody at Target is involved in activation - it's just another item in your basket to them.

When I went abroad, I just called T-mobile up and told them and they unlocked it for me. Just check which kind of network and which kind of frequencies are used in the country you travel to. Needs to be GSM and I can't remember the frequencies, but your odds will probably be good.
posted by Askr at 10:56 AM on April 10, 2008

I also live in a rural dead zone. Got a T-Mobile prepaid phone and a $100 card from Amazon. No problems, no questions, no hassle, just no service at home.
posted by sageleaf at 11:23 AM on April 10, 2008

I just unlocked my T-Mobile phone for overseas use, and the rep told me you need three things to do so: refill within the last 30 days, and the phone and your customer record need to be active for at least 90 days.

Also, if you get your phone card PINs through cheapphonecards.com you can get minutes for less than face value. There are also coupon codes floating around the Intarwubs to make them even cheaper.
posted by calistasm at 7:02 PM on April 10, 2008

Depending on where you live, there may be another carrier that has better coverage. T-Mobile's reputation is pretty good, but it might be worth it to check out the others. Some carriers only sell pre- or post- pay service in their own stores (not in Target, etc.), but might have coverage in your area.
posted by altcountryman at 7:33 PM on April 10, 2008