Boost Mobile Plans
Boost mobile prepaid cell phone plans are originally marketed to the young hip crowd. Yet, the plans are actually pretty good so you might consider them even if you don't want to be part of that crowd.
Coverage
Coverage is pretty good. Boost is owned by Sprint/Nextel, so their coverage should be the same. To check out your . . . Coverage MapGo to the Boost Mobile Coverage Map and enter your zip code to see the coverage in your area.Where to getYou can purchase a Boost prepaid cell phone and refill cards from pharmacies, convenience stores like The Pantry, and superstores like Target.Rates and PlansBoost Mobile has made some changes to their plans to give you more value. When you first go to their plans page, it seems as though they only have unlimited plans, but when you select "All Plans" you see a tab for their Pay as You Go prepaid plan as well.So you have a choice between the PayGo plans, daily unlimited plans, and monthly unlimited plans. Paygo Basic PlanThe Boost Mobile PayGo plan is actually pretty expensive.Calling and Texting RatesAll domestic calls cost 20 cents per minute all the time, i.e. on days, nights and weekends. They had dropped this rate down to 10 cents per minute, but they've raised it back up again. Text messages also cost 20 cents each (!) to send and receive.50 Cents a Day for WebThe one good thing about this plan is that web usage costs just 50 cents per day which does limit the damage if you do a lot of web surfing on your phone. However, they use to charge this whether you used the web that day or not - which means it effectively adds $15 to your monthly cost.Other parts of this plan are unlimite walkie-talkie usage for $1.00 a day on the days that you use it. If you never use it, you can have this deactivated. MMS-type (picture and audio) messages are 25 cents to send and receive. InternationalThere's a $5 International Connect package for unlimited texting to international numbers plus unlimited calling to Mexico. There's also a $10 International package for unlimited calling to over 30 countries (check which ones first before you sign up).Yearly CostIf you don't use the web or walkie-talkie service, then using, say, 1000 minutes or messages in a year would cost you $200.If you want the web, then add about $180 to that for a total of $380 minimum for the year. Daily Unlimited Plan$2 and $3 Boost PlansFor $2 a day you get unlimited everything (except international stuff) on all phones except for Blackberry phones. So it's $2 per day for unlimited talk, text, web, walkie talkie etc. This is even on Android smartphones (except for walkie-talkie which I don't think exists on Android phones anyway).For Blackberry phones, the same unlimited features cost $3 per day. Note: The daily charge is deducted every day whether you use the phone or not. Therefore this plan is NOT like the Verizon or AT&T Gophone $2 a day plans. Annual Cost$2 a day works out to $730 a year.$3 a day works out to $1095 a year.So this plan is not really worth it compared to the monthly unlimited plans unless you plan to switch back and forth between the daily and pay as you go plans. Monthly Unlimited Plans with ShrinkageFor $50 a month you get . . . unlimited everything - talk, text, and web on regular phones. On Android phones is costs $55 per month, and on Blackberry phones it's $60 per month.ShrinkageYour bill goes down steadily with on-time payments. You can reduce your $50 and $55 per month plan to about $40 per month and your Blackberry plan to about $45 per month.Annual CostAt $50 per month, you pay $600 per year. At $55 per month it costs $660 per year and $720 at $60 per month.With "Shrinkage" you'll actually pay a lot less. If you stay with Boost Mobile until your bill is $40 - $45 per month, then you'll save up to $180 off your annual cost. Boost Mobile MinutesMaintaining your MinutesYou have to "recharge" your Boost Mobile account at least once every 90 days to keep your minutes from expiring. If your account balance goes to zero you have 60 days to add money to keep using your number and the service.ReBoost Card PricesReBoost cards come in denominations of $20, $30, and $50. You can buy them in retail stores like Best Buy, Walmart, and Target.There are lots of other ways to add money to your account. Online Re-BoostYou can use your debit/credit card or bank account to ReBoost your account. You can recharge automatically with Auto-ReBoost or only when you want to such as when you're low on minutes or your minutes are expiring.Boost PhonesYou can choose from a wide range of phones ranging from a Samsung Transform Android 2.3 smart phone for $229.99 down to an basic LG 102 for $29.99 for calling and texting purposes.
CommunityTo maintain its image Boost sponsors many athletes from "extreme" sports such as snowboarding.There is even a Boost Mobile Facebook page. It was pretty empty May 2008 with only 162 fans. Your friend's local rock band probably has more fans that that. However, there are now (April, 2011) over 45,000 fans. Get One?Good phones and affordable unlimited plans make Boost a good choice for those who use their phones a lot.
Do you already use Boost Mobile?Tell us about it!Your Boost Mobile ReviewShare your experience with Boost Mobile! What Other Visitors Have SaidClick below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...
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