FreedomPop

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cmonkey
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FreedomPop

Post by cmonkey »

I am wondering if anyone has heard of this or has tried it? I am curious what the catch is. Tons of ads? Selling private data to third parties? Nothing new I guess.

http://www.freedompop.com/home.htm

Edit - Having gone through the checkout process, they are probably making most of their money on overages/higher plans. The highest they have is 19.99 a month for unlimited everything, however, which isn't that bad if you are a regular joe phone user. They also charge you for voicemail, 2.99 a month.

For the diglient ERE type this might be a great deal.
Last edited by cmonkey on Fri May 29, 2015 10:00 am, edited 1 time in total.

jacob
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by jacob »

DW uses one. Anecdotally I recall the complaints to be bad coverage (not a problem if you call from wifi spots) but it makes it hard to receive calls which necessitates voicemail, and voicemail costs money. There were many complaints initially but either coverage got better or she simply found a way to work around it.

Also nonwifi-data costs money beyond a certain point.

Finally, it is or was a new technology so they're still working out bugs. This also means that you can actually get in touch with senior techies... and you aren't forced into dealing with some virtual assistant running a script telling you to try to switch it on and off.

Haven't heard anything about ads ... dunno about selling data.

cmonkey
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by cmonkey »

jacob wrote:... telling you to try to switch it on and off.
:D https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nn2FB1P_Mn8

I currently have an android tracphone and get the 3 month plan since its the best deal. I am already used to using it only on WIFI for data. The voicemail could be a problem though.

bottlerocks
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by bottlerocks »

I got one during the invite system back in 2013. It was something like 200 MB/month free and 1 month of a 2 GB trial. They promised they wouldn't try and upsell after the trial and that it would be on me to request continuation of 2 GB for $20 or $30 per month, can't remember exact numbers. Otherwise it was $10/GB on overage.

Unfortunately they auto enrolled me in the high data non-free subscription and it took me around 5 hours of phone time and arguing to get the charges reversed. Then they did the same thing next month, had to go through the same process and ultimately just removed my account with them altogether. I've heard good things recently but that experience left a bad taste in my mouth. Everyone goes through growing pains so maybe I'll give them another chance one day.

Coverage wise I had no problems in a city with good coverage from all major networks. The speeds back then were on the order of 3-5 Mb/s which was fine as a mobile hotspot (didn't have LTE back then). I don't know about selling data and I didn't notice any ad focusing or increase. The tech worked, customer service blew.

jacob
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by jacob »

Yes, I also remember her sitting on hold with customer service for 60+ minutes several times only to have the call dropped. This was last year. Also how she got the "direct line"(*) to tech.

(*) If a techie ever give you a direct way to contact you, hang on to that number. They're so much easier to deal with!

George the original one
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by George the original one »

Too many personal questions when checking availability, especially when I know darn well that they won't have coverage at my retirement location. If they were being straight-forward, they would display a map like everyone else.

The Old Man
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by The Old Man »

Freedom Pop is a reseller of Clear (now owned by Sprint) and Sprint. Sprint as of late last year is in talks to buyout FreedomPop.

arrrrgon
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by arrrrgon »

I think the Republic Wireless $10 plan is the best plan money can buy personally (I wish there was a $15 plan with 500mb of data though). My wife is on the $25 plan, but we'll likely both be on the $10 plan by the end of the year.

slimicy
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by slimicy »

I tried freedompop for a few months while still on my Verizon contract to compare, and the step down in service and performance was way too noticeable. When my contract was up I took a middle-ground approach and went with Cricket Wireless. 35$ a month for unlimited everything (4GLTE throttled after 2.5G/month) and a 10$ android phone.

jacob
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by jacob »

If a smartphone is not required, I liked my $10/3 month plan ($40/year!). Since I really do hate phones, I'm once again phonefree and my flip-phone is up for trade should anyone feel inclined to go that way.

cmonkey
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by cmonkey »

jacob wrote:If a smartphone is not required, I liked my $10/3 month plan ($40/year!). Since I really do hate phones, I'm once again phonefree and my flip-phone is up for trade should anyone feel inclined to go that way.
Where do you find a $40/year cell plan? I thought my $120/year tracfone plan was about as cheap as you can go!
Last edited by cmonkey on Tue Jun 02, 2015 7:08 am, edited 1 time in total.

jacob
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by jacob »


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Sclass
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

I've used Freedompop for almost a year. I posted on the forum about it. Coverage is spotty. If you cannot get strong 3G it won't work. Not even txt. At my usual hangouts 3G is weak and I go offline. Other bad is the 3G is a waste of RF power for voice calls. I eat through my iPhone 4s battery in 20 hrs.

I don't pay for voicemail so it is indeed free. I pay zero.

It's not the best but I'm cheap and I don't like paying for this kind of thing. Even while watching streaming webcams at two homes I haven't managed to burn through the 500MB of free data each month.

viewtopic.php?f=4&t=5455&p=80707&hilit= ... pop#p80707

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Sclass
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

Ahhh...it was bound to fail.

So I have two freedompop accounts on two iPhone 4s phones. I just got a message that they’ve sold out and they will be handing the subscribers off to other parties. I guess it was good while it lasted. I had two smartphones for five years and I paid roughly seven dollars a month with freemium + add ons.

So now it looks like it’s time to move on. There are a bunch of other outfits doing the same thing (MVNO). I could go with the new service Ting which guarantees $10/phone/month till 2020 which is right around the corner. I think I’ll do this and then it’ll give me some breathing room to find a new service and upgrade to more modern handsets. eBay unlocked phones look discounted enough. I’m thinking iPhone 6.

Just thought I’d mention this. I know others are using freedompop here. It reminds me of many great deals come and gone over the years. Too good to last.

I’m looking at some other options like Cricket and US Mobile. Even though I can easily afford an iPhone X on Verizon I have a problem with actually paying for it. It’ll make me sick to pay the bill every month.

prognastat
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by prognastat »

I didn't receive any information regarding this and am having some trouble determining if I'll even be affected. I use the GSM/AT&T version rather than the CDMA/Sprint version. Is it only the CDMA models being affected by the change?

DW
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by DW »

Looks like just the Sprint lines. They said it was in advance of some Sprint/T-Mobile thing and looks like sprint might be getting rid of boost mobile. I just got notification today, but no email. So irritating. Just paid for one year and took a month and a half and switching from Freedom Pop to Unreal Mobile (their premium service) to get my phone (purchased from them) activated and useable. Now looks like they are going to make me pay again after I paid a month ago and have a $10 credit on my account because of all the problems

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Sclass
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

Ok my phones are dead. I’m having trouble getting ported over to Ting which was supposed to take 2-3 min on the Freedompop to Ting switchover site. I cannot to get past the payment section. I’m going to give up.

It’s been a good run. Five years of smart phone use. I bought my iPhone 4ss back in 2014 for $100 ea. I used the for like $7 a month for two phones.

I just bought two iPhone 6s handsets for $120 each and will try Mint Mobile. They have a $15 a month deal.

I started to look into mainstream providers and was floored at the cost. An iPhone 7 at t-mobile runs $500 and a cheap contract will be $50 a month. No taxes and hidden fees added in yet. I asked around my neighbors what they were using and paying and $100 a month per line seemed typical. I gagged.

Thats a lot considering these figures I hear that 1/2 the people don’t have $400 to cover an emergency expense. I guess it is all sucked up by ongoing costs like phones and interest payments. For example all my mom’s caregivers were using smartphones. They weren’t exactly high earners.

I guess there is some convenience in knowing my wife is in the same district and meeting her for lunch on the fly using the connectivity. Or having my neighbor call to tell me her cat is up in my tree when I’m down at the bar. I’m wondering how things were before all this.

DW
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by DW »

I had a hard time with the Ting payment. I couldn’t use my cc and had to switch to the bank card. Then it went through. I found they have actual people answering their help line. It was amazing after the month and a half of trying to get Freedom Pop and Unreal to get the phone I bought from them working. If you need the support number for Ting I can get if for you. Other than the problem setting up payment I’ve had no trouble with the switch to Ting. Other than trying to get an answer from Unreal about refunding the 11 months that were prepaid.

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Sclass
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

Thanks @DW. Maybe I’ll try the bank card. I think my wife may like some continuity before we go to Mint. She’s stressing me out because she’s missing texts from her friends.

Scott 2
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Re: FreedomPop

Post by Scott 2 »

I switched from Republic Wireless to Mint Mobile a few days ago. My existing number was working in a couple hours. No complaints so far.

My biggest area of concern was being constrained to the T-mobile network. It seems ok the places I go, but lack of roaming is an issue for some.

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