Does SmartTalk Wireless suck?

November 5, 2009 8:44 AM

I am considering switching to Straight Talk Wireless when my Sprint contract expires in January, and I am looking for people's experience with Straight Talk. The pricing looks too good to be true, the phones look kind of sucky, and I read somewhere that their customer support isn't great. It is also difficult to find reviews on their phones. Can anyone who has actually used their service testify to it either way?

Also, if I port my number to them, and then want to leave after a month, can I port my number to another carrier?

Thanks for your insight.

posted by 4ster to Technology (2 answers total)

I've never used it, but to give you more info: Straight Talk is a MVNO brand owned by TracFone. They use Verizon's CDMA network so the coverage should be excellent.
posted by zsazsa at 9:16 AM on November 5, 2009

Best answer: Howard Forums is the go-to resource for questions like this. This thread in particular is a good introduction to Straight Talk and related TracFone products. The main competition I can see is from Page Plus. Their unlimited plan does not include unlimited data but costs about the same. In my experience Page Plus' customer service is good, probably a lot better than Straight Talk because they don't (apparently) outsource. Page Plus also uses Verizon's CDMA network so coverage will be identical. You can use your own Verizon branded phone to Page Plus (lots of cheap used phones on Ebay), Straight Talk is probably the same way. TracFone has a long history of using double-minute/secret bonus code/hoop jumping games as a means of price discrimination and for that reason I would skip them unless you are willing to spend the time to make sure they don't pull a fast one on you.
posted by ChrisHartley at 10:10 AM on November 5, 2009