Re: Beware of No-Contract Virgin Mobile

At 14 May 2008 23:53:34 -0700 Mr. Usenet wrote:
> Beware of Virgin Mobile. For their no-contract phones which
> you have to activate at least every 3 months with a top-off
> card, you often end up being cheated of time because of the
> way they add activation time. Time is added to the date of
> when you use the card rather than starting from the expiration
> date of the last card. For example, what happened to me was
> that I bought 2 cards hoping to add 6 months. But when I
> added them over 2 days, all that happened was that I got 3
> months beyond the date I used the 2nd card rather than 3
> months beyond the expiration date of the first. I felt
> ripped off.

That's actually how EVERY prepaid mobile provider I've ever used works- AT&T,
T-Mobile, PagePlus, etc.

> The only way to maximize activation time is
> to wait to the last minute before adding the next card which
> is very risky to me.

Agreed. I usually refill the day before, preferring to sacrifice one day
of service in return for a 24-hour window to fix any potential problem.

> "Tracfone", which does cost a little
> more, at least will add time after the current expiration
> date. Be aware of this before you buy their phone.


That's good to know. Unfortunately, their monthly minimum and per minute
rate is so high compared to T-Mo and PagePlus that I could throw away every
other card and still be ahead of Tracfone! ;-)

But if you're unwilling or unable to read a calendar (or set the calendar
alarm on your phone) to refill on the appropriate date, I guess that'd make
a good case to own a Tracfone...