Shopping for a Smartphone to Use with a Voice Only Wireless Plan

A reader,fil726, writes…

“I want to buy a unlocked at&t(or any carrier)smartphone and use that with a data-less pre-paid plan. I would like to use the wifi whenever I have a hotspot. Just like a ipod touch for example. I dont know if a need a new sim card or can I keep my old one. Would my phone work properly? I am using at&t now. I have a talk only plan and I’m interested in buying a Htc Inspire Android phone I need some clarification please”

Hi fil726,
I think this is a great idea for many people. My wife has used a smartphone using the T-Mobile 1000 minutes a year for $100 because she did not want to pay for a data plan. Smartphones are very useful tools and if you have access to Wi-Fi during most of the day you can use your phone to connect using your home or office’s Internet connection.

To answer your question. You may be able to use the SIM in your current phone with a smartphone. If your current phone is using a SIM (technically a mini SIM), it should just fit in the HTC Inspire. So you should be able to get the phone, move the SIM to the new phone and start using it.

Taking a look at the bigger picture, you might want to review your overall costs to see if you can save money or get more for your money. For example, you didn’t mention what your current monthly bill is and how much you plan to pay for the phone, or what you want to do with the phone. Are you using ATT or ATT’s prepaid Pay N Go service.

I am not familiar with the HTC Inspire but I noticed in the specs that the phone is using Android 2.3.5. I’d strongly recommend looking for a phone that uses the latest Android 4.4 (kitkat) or at least Android 4.0. You’ll get the better application compatibility and be able to run apps like Google’s Chrome web browser which is significantly better than the old Android web browser.

If you can afford it, the Motorola Moto G is a great deal starting at $179. That might be more than you are willing to spend, but if you can find a better deal on your voice service it might become an affordable option.

I hope this helps. Let me know if you have any more questions.

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