Thanx so much for passing this along. I wish they’d stated however, where/how to obtain this new service, sense I’m really interested in trying it. I really need to cut back as much as possible on my spending, so this may be right up my alley. I wonder however, if they’re apparently affiliated with Sprint, and you’re a current Sprint customer who joins the service and not satisfied with it, what the likelyhood would be that you could go back to Sprint. > On Aug 15, 2017, at 1:24 AM, M. Taylor <mk...@ucla.edu> wrote: > > CNET News - Monday, August 14, 2017 at 6:50 AM > Get an unlimited no-contract phone plan for $45 - CNET > CNET's Cheapskate scours the web for great deals on PCs, phones, gadgets and > much more. Questions about the Cheapskate blog? Find the answers on our FAQ > page. Find more great buys on the CNET Deals page and follow the Cheapskate > on Twitter! > ________________________________________ > > Rok Mobile's new plan undercuts Sprint by $5 a month. You can use that > savings to buy them some vowels. > Rok Mobile > How much data do you typically consume in a month? The average is somewhere > around 3-4GB, in which case Cricket Wireless offers arguably the best deal > around: $35 a month (with autopay) for a plan that includes 4GB of 4G LTE > data. Cricket is a GSM carrier, however, and 4GB may not be enough for > everyone. > Indeed, if you're packing a Sprint-compatible CDMA phone and you like to > stream a lot of video, you're probably more interested in an unlimited plan. > Verizon charges $80 per month for the privilege, while Sprint is quite a bit > more affordable at $50. But now there's an even better deal. > Mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) Rok Mobile just introduced an > unlimited Sprint-network plan for $45 per month. That would save you $60 a > year over Sprint and $420 over Verizon. What's more, that plan includes 24/7 > roadside assistance -- kind of a weird extra, but also a pretty nice perk if > you don't already have AAA or the like. > Rok who-now? > Rok Mobile has been around for a few years; the carrier's early claim to > fame was a bundled music-streaming service, but that option is no more. > Instead, you're basically scoring Sprint's $50-a-month plan for $45 a month > and getting the aforementioned tow-truck benefit. > That plan includes unlimited voice minutes, text messages and 4G LTE data. > Is the data really unlimited, though? Rok "may reduce to slower speeds after > 20GB of LTE usage," according to a company rep. That's a common practice; > I'm pretty sure Sprint does likewise after 22GB. > Another common practice: Rok's "Data Stretcher" streams video at a lower > resolution so you consume less data. Curiously, however, this works only on > Android devices, according to the carrier's FAQ page. > Speaking of phones, you should be able to bring any unlocked, > CDMA-compatible model to Rok, though of course you'll need to do an > IMEI-number check before signing up. It's worth noting that many modern > phones (Google Nexuses, some Samsung Galaxys, late-model iPhones, and so on) > can work on both GSM and CDMA networks, so if you were previously with a GSM > carrier, you should be able to make the move. > Deal or no deal? > The other consideration, of course, is coverage. For many users (myself > included), Sprint coverage is, um, not excellent. Rok notes that it now > leverages both Sprint and "the nation's most reliable other CDMA network," > which is MVNO-speak for "Verizon." > This particular plan is specifically identified as a "Sprint Unlimited," > however, which suggests to me that you'll be limited to Sprint's network > only. I asked Rok for clarification on that; the answer I got was a little > vague. > But here's the beauty of no-contract services like this: You try it out for > a month or two, and if you're not happy, you move on. > Your thoughts? > Bonus deal: It's not exactly an impulse buy, but if you've had your eye on a > big iPad, here's a significant savings: For a limited time, and while > supplies last, BuySpry (via eBay) has the Apple iPad Pro 12.9 256GB Wi-Fi + > Cellular for $799.99 shipped. Apple charges $1,029. > > Pull in local stations (hopefully) with this amplified antenna. > Vansky > What's the catch? These are new, sealed iPads, but apparently they're also > the "European model with US charger" -- meaning no discernible difference > from the US model, at least according to the seller. And it comes with a > full Apple warranty. So if you want the premium, loaded iPad Pro 12.9 for > the price of the entry-level model, here you go! > Bonus deal No. 2: Ditching cable usually means ditching local channels -- > unless you connect an antenna and take advantage of your TV's built-in > tuner. (You remember antennas and tuners, right?) > OK, but can one of those flat, plastic antennas really do the job? Depends > on where you live, how the antenna is positioned and other variables. But > here's your chance to test-drive the setup on the cheap: Vansky's > transparent indoor amplified antenna is $16.99 shipped (with Prime) when you > apply promo code IIJUEF17 at checkout. > Promising to pull in channels up to 50 miles away, this mostly see-through > antenna will work best when mounted high up on a window. How far do you live > from the stations in your area? Visit AntennaWeb to find out. Products like > these can be very hit-and-miss, working great for some folks and poorly for > others. Fortunately, Amazon makes it easy to return items that don't work, > so you've got nothing to lose by trying. > > Original Article at: > https://www.cnet.com/news/get-an-unlimited-no-contract-phone-plan-for-45/#ft > ag=CAD590a51e > > > -- > The following information is important for all members of the Mac Visionaries > list. > > If you have any questions or concerns about the running of this list, or if > you feel that a member's post is inappropriate, please contact the owners or > moderators directly rather than posting on the list itself. > > Your Mac Visionaries list moderator is Mark Taylor. You can reach mark at: > macvisionaries+modera...@googlegroups.com and your owner is Cara Quinn - you > can reach Cara at caraqu...@caraquinn.com > > The archives for this list can be searched at: > http://www.mail-archive.com/macvisionaries@googlegroups.com/ > --- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "MacVisionaries" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
-- The following information is important for all members of the Mac Visionaries list. If you have any questions or concerns about the running of this list, or if you feel that a member's post is inappropriate, please contact the owners or moderators directly rather than posting on the list itself. Your Mac Visionaries list moderator is Mark Taylor. You can reach mark at: macvisionaries+modera...@googlegroups.com and your owner is Cara Quinn - you can reach Cara at caraqu...@caraquinn.com The archives for this list can be searched at: http://www.mail-archive.com/macvisionaries@googlegroups.com/ --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "MacVisionaries" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to macvisionaries+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to macvisionaries@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/macvisionaries. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
