Free Cell Phones Everywhere: Cashing in on Consumerism

There is no better way to win the hearts of consumers than to give them something for nothing. In our society of advanced communication devices and cutting-edge technology, one of the best commodities for these giveaway tactics is the cell phone. From simple port-to-port communication to comprehensive electronic office functions, these portable units have become quite a luxurious necessity in these “need to know” times that we live in.

Of course, no legitimate business can hope to prosper by giving away its merchandise. Since cell phone companies actually make money through the purchase of calling plan contracts, the phones themselves aren’t really an issue. So, from the operators’ perspective, the “free cell phone” strategy offers the best of both worlds: consumers are happy, thinking they’re getting a substantial gift, and companies are making money selling phone services or specific calling contracts. . , which are necessary to use those shiny new phones. To ensure your victory in the race to win more customers, some cell phone companies offer packages that even include a discount. In other words, they’ll give you a free cell phone and then offer you a substantial mail-in rebate (usually $25 or more) to make it look like they’re paying you to take the device. Kudos to the marketing folks who conceptualized that strategy!

Verizon Wireless

As a major cell phone carrier, Verizon offers free devices when consumers purchase one of a variety of calling plans. These cell phone deals include your choice of model (many offered) and, in some cases, a mail-in rebate. Other benefits may include:

• free long distance
• Unlimited calls within the network
• Unlimited night and weekend minutes
• free roaming
• Up to $250 in mail-in rebates (allowing for free cell phones plus cash rebate)

Of the various calling plans on offer, you can expect to find:

• Discounts on personal plans
• Discounts on family plans (shared minutes)
• free long distance
• Unlimited nights and weekends (most plans)
• Free long distance plus unlimited nights and weekends (some plans)

Wireless Cingular

Another strong competitor in the cell phone systems arena, Cingular has also capitalized on the “free cell phones” marketing strategy, offering consumers a variety of calling plan perks and benefits in addition to cutting-edge devices. generation. and discounts. Among the many “extras” offered by this company are:

• Roll-Over Minutes (i.e. you don’t lose any unused “anytime” minutes)
• Free National Long Distance
• free roaming
• The largest mobile digital network
• free voice mail
• free call waiting
• free caller id
• free call forwarding
• free three way calls
• Up to $225 in mail-in rebates (allowing for free cell phones plus cash rebate)

Available calling plans may include:

• Discounts on personal plans
• Discounts on family plans (shared minutes)
• Unlimited night and weekend minutes
• Unlimited mobile to mobile minutes
• Unlimited night, weekend and mobile-to-mobile minutes (some plans)
• Primary and secondary line offers
• Multiple phones for family members

pique

While the plans that Sprint offers aren’t as high-end as those of more competitive cell phone providers, they do offer some consumer benefits, including free cell phones and a small variety of perks to entice potential customers to commit to one of their plans. your calling plans. Some of the special offers that can be included in your packages are:

• Free National Long Distance
• Free roaming (only with phones that are also on the Sprint PCS network)
• Unlimited night and weekend minutes

In addition, special calling plans are also provided, which may include:

• personal calling plans
• Family Calling Plans (Shared)
• Wide Area Calling Plans
• Unlimited PC to PC calling
• Multiple phones with family calling plan
• Two lines of service on one bill
• Up to $200 in mail-in rebates (allowing for free cell phones plus cash rebates)

T Mobile

The benefits offered by this carrier are similar to those offered by Sprint although, by comparison, T-Mobile seems to do a little better in the area of ​​the number of benefits offered, which translates to more consumer benefits than those offered. standard benefits offered, you can expect to find:

• No roaming charges
• free long distance
• free voice mail
• free caller id
• free call waiting

Your variety of calling packages may include:

• personal calling plans
• family calling plans
• Unlimited weekend minutes
• Unlimited mobile to mobile minutes
• Two lines of service on one bill
• Unlimited mobile to mobile minutes plus unlimited weekend minutes (for some plans)
• Up to $250 in mail-in rebates (allowing for free cell phones plus cash rebate)

Nextel

Of the many cell phone providers, Nextel doesn’t seem, at first, to have as much to offer as most others, but the options they offer are pretty impressive in some areas, which would make up for the lack of some of the more standard benefits. that its competitors offer to the consumer. Although they don’t actually list any specific “standard benefits”, they do offer special calling plan packages, which may include:

• personal calling plans
• family calling plans
• Multiple phones for family plan packages
• Unlimited night and weekend minutes
• Free roaming (within your network)
• Free long distance (within your network)
• 250 minutes of direct connection (most plans)
• Unlimited direct connection minutes (only on certain plans)
• Up to 25 cell phones ($15 each additional line)
• Up to $300 in mail-in rebates (allowing for free cell phones plus cash rebates)

While each of these carriers offers a specific number of benefits to its consumers, some much more than others, the calling plans differ depending on whether you opt for a personal or family package, and the number of minutes that are included in each package. for a fixed fee each month will also vary. To view the latest special offers, simply log into one of the major Internet search engines and type the operator’s name in the keyword area.