I have two kids on Virgin Mobile prepaid plans, $25. I have two other kids with Straight Talk at $35 a month with $100 iPhones bought to use with that plan. My phone is an iPhone that I bought through prepaid Virgin Mobile that cost me $42 a month for the same service my husband’s post paid Verizon work phone has (he doesn’t pay for his). When we bought my phone at Best Buy the salesman tried to tell me that my service coverage would not be the same as a post paid account. I am glad he was wrong! We go Up North a lot and I need to have coverage in the middle of nowhere.
I think the main reason people get into contracts is the “free” phone that they think they are getting and the upgrades every year or two. The guy selling me my last phone at Best Buy told me if I could get the same coverage as the postpaid account then everyone would do it. Not true. I don’t think any of my friends have prepaid phones like we do. They all have their families on $200+ monthly plans for 4 phones. Or worse. I recently got my youngest their first phones at the age of 14. They had to use their iPods to communicate with people up till then. My friends like their fancy phones, I could care less as long as it takes a picture and has decent memory.