Forum: General Talk
02-11-2011, 07:57 PM
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The only thing that worked was text messaging, voice calling was hosed from all providers because everything to a 504 number was routed through the ATT building in downtown news orleans and every circuit was jammed.
I evacuate early anyway so it is not a huge deal for me and like I said I plan on having a prepaid SIM so that I have access to the cellular networks on an as needed emergency basis.
I have been doing some research and I am leaning towards grabbing an android device and using Sipdroid with Google Voice which are both free so it would mean paying the cost for the handset and a $20 charge for porting my current number to Google Voice. And it looks like to make a phone call over the cell network you just dial the phone number and put a + after the phone number and it dials out over the SIM card.
I just find that I am paying $130/month for 2 lines with voice, text and data and using it almost exclusively in places where I have wifi (home, work, and friends/family houses) or places where I don't want to be disturbed (namely when I am driving b/c I hate to talk and drive). One of the things about carrying a cell phone that has always grinded on me was that I am too available to people and I want to cut back other people's access to me. I think I will be able to make it work because I can still check my messages when I am on the go by stopping for a minute anywhere with wifi and checking. I haven't been satisfied with the data speeds of the cell networks either.
I will still have a cell phone bill for my wife but I am hoping that if it is easy to use this setup that she will follow suit, but I don't have my hopes too high.
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Forum: General Talk
02-11-2011, 01:28 PM
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My smart phone recently died and I am switching back to my old dumb phone to ride out the last 4 months of my contract with sprint. After this contract is done it is my intention to completely ditch the traditional cell phone company relationship in favor of an Line2 ($10/month or $50/6 month) using either an iPod Touch, an iPhone, or an Android handset. As a backup for when I am not around a wifi connection I was planning to do a prepaid SIM card with either ATT ($.10/min) or T-Mobile ($100 for 1000 min that lasts 1 year). The other option would be a mobile hot spot ($40/month) but that is pretty expensive IMHO since I already have wifi at home and work and would require carrying and charging an extra device. The dream is to be able to have a smart phone for internet access anywhere with wifi and a phone available anywhere for $200/yr or less.
Has anyone else done this or something else similar? If so could you please share your experiences, tips, pitfalls, etc...
Like I said I have 4 months to plan this out so I have time to find a device and I don't have my heart set on an iPhone or Android so I could go with either.
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