FreedomPop

Simple living, extreme early retirement, becoming and being wealthy, wisdom, praxis, personal growth,...
DW
Posts: 13
Joined: Wed Jul 28, 2010 12:24 am

Re: FreedomPop

Post by DW »

Ting is having a problem with MMS messages. But they know about it.

Lucky C
Posts: 755
Joined: Sat Apr 16, 2016 6:09 am

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Lucky C »

Thanks for the heads up on FreedomPop. I received no notification about it. I was actually happy with Freedompop as lately the service has been improved - I was able to do text and voicemail through the default Android apps rather than the Freedompop app, but this was probably related to the plan to discontinue service.

Now my freedompop.com account says that there is an exclusive Ting deal to save my number. Other Freedompop users who want to save their number, see if this works for you: https://ting.com/mobile/freedompop

User avatar
Sclass
Posts: 2791
Joined: Tue Jul 10, 2012 5:15 pm
Location: Orange County, CA

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

Yeah I’ve tried the link to no avail. One of my phones gets to the payment page. The other says it isn’t ready for transfer and I should try back in a few hours. It has been like this a few days. Eventually I’ll get it sorted.

Nomad
Posts: 389
Joined: Wed May 16, 2018 5:23 pm
Location: UK

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Nomad »

The thing that alarmed me was on the page here https://uk.freedompop.com/uk?experience=organic.default it says to get started buy the SIM, download their messaging app etc. Why do I need to use their messaging app?

prognastat
Posts: 991
Joined: Fri May 04, 2018 8:30 pm
Location: Texas
Contact:

Re: FreedomPop

Post by prognastat »

Since the SIM/service only provides cellular data their app is effectively a VoIP app for both calls and messaging which is how they manage o count them as messages and call minutes rather than cellular data usage. You can use third party messaging/VoIP apps for those functions then it would be counted as MBs used rather than call minutes or messages.

I actually use Google Hangouts to have my cellphone number as I trust my phone number with them more than Freedompop and Google Voice/Hangouts provides free voicemail service which Freedompop charges extra for. If you want to use the minutes/messages provided with the Freedompop contracts though the only way to use them rather than use up cellular data is to go through their app.

Nomad
Posts: 389
Joined: Wed May 16, 2018 5:23 pm
Location: UK

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Nomad »

In the UK, I'm thinking of switching to Tesco Mobile. It is quite cheap and runs on the 02 network.

User avatar
Sclass
Posts: 2791
Joined: Tue Jul 10, 2012 5:15 pm
Location: Orange County, CA

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

prognastat wrote:
Tue Jul 23, 2019 2:29 pm
You can use third party messaging/VoIP apps for those functions then it would be counted as MBs used rather than call minutes or messages.
I had a funny experience with Freedompop while trying to do just this. It’s a moot point because they’re gone but it happened like this. I was at a friend’s and I tried to run a VoIP app on my iPhone that allowed me to use my VoIP provider’s number on my iPhone (not Freedompop). I was connected to WiFi. I thought it wouldn’t count towards my data or minutes because I was not really using Freedompop in any way. Funny thing was when I finished up my call using my Phonepower app, I noticed Freedompop deducted the call’s minutes from my Freedompop minute balance. My friend with me who codes messaging apps said the two VoIP apps are using the same libraries and they’re not keeping the minute balances separate. Maybe, but I thought it was kind of intentional.

Still trying to port over to Ting. One phone is good to go, the other keeps saying it isn’t ready come back later. I am so looking forward to getting my Mint Mobile sims and not looking back.

prognastat
Posts: 991
Joined: Fri May 04, 2018 8:30 pm
Location: Texas
Contact:

Re: FreedomPop

Post by prognastat »

Interesting, I doubt it's intentional since they don't seem to have ay messaging related to this on their website. Probably just easier to use a third party library in their app rather than building the software themselves.

I haven't prepared for the possibility of this happening to the non Sprint SIMS, but since I run all my stuff through Google Hangouts/Voice and the number is with with google too I'm not too concerned as all that would be necessary if it happened would be to get a new contract and SIM and not even port any numbers.

Lucky C
Posts: 755
Joined: Sat Apr 16, 2016 6:09 am

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Lucky C »

FWIW, Ting chat support was quick and helpful when I had to contact them (I had two FreedomPop numbers and had to remove the unused one from the Ting port). Maybe Ting chat support could help move things along. Now I'm all set with $6/month + $4/GB through the end of the year until switching to standard Ting rates.

User avatar
Sclass
Posts: 2791
Joined: Tue Jul 10, 2012 5:15 pm
Location: Orange County, CA

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

Yeah I’ll try that. I tried chat a few days ago and they didn’t respond for hours. When they did they said I needed to go through the web portal and they couldn’t help since I was a Freedompop transplant. My new phones are in the mail. The Mint Sims are on my desk. I think I’m just going to switch over and inform everybody I have a new number. One of my phones at least can get to the port out info and password, the other seems stuck. Eventually I’ll sort it all out.

It seems the norm these days to just change phone numbers every few years. I have a google voice number that is more or less permanent compared to the mobiles.

User avatar
Sclass
Posts: 2791
Joined: Tue Jul 10, 2012 5:15 pm
Location: Orange County, CA

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

I got one of my phones ported to Mint Mobile. I’m very impressed with the quality of service and coverage. It is a big step above Freedompop. $15 a month if you commit for a year. I had to buy a new handset but the going rate for iPhone 6 unlocked refurbs on eBay is $105. I bought two. Big upgrade from our iPhone 4ss.

Unfortunately my second phone number isn’t released from Ting yet. They’re kind of holding the number hostage. I snuck the other phone’s number out through Freedompop but that trick didn’t work on the second phone. Odd because they are identical phones ordered at the same time. Totally different from the point of view of the FP database. Hoping they’ll let me port out soon.

Mint has some neat deals. They sent me a trial sim that works for a week to see if I liked the service before buying. I didn’t bother using it. Also, I got their $15/month rate on a three month period rather than the 12 month period they usually require for that rate. I’ll just have to remember to refill a year in three months.

It seems that a lot of MVNOs are offering this level of voice, text and data (unlimited, unlimited, 3GB) for $12-15. I guess that’s the level where they can compete at. Freedompop was just too crazy with the Fremium model (200 min voice, 200 texts, 500MB free). I’d stay way under their limit and only pay $1 per month for voice mail. It was a pretty sweet deal. I had five iPhone 4ss going at one point. Three of the phones didn’t have voicemail or MMS so they were free. Oh well, that doesn’t sound like a lasting business model.

So I have these old iPhones. There is certainty a use for them. Music players and cams at least. They work over WiFi but the browser is old and crippled.

Ok. Fingers crossed I’ll be able to release my wife’s number for porting.

Lucky C
Posts: 755
Joined: Sat Apr 16, 2016 6:09 am

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Lucky C »

Just paid my first Ting bill. This may have been mentioned elsewhere but there are additional fees not mentioned in Ting's base price. Including my state's sales tax it is nearly $5/month extra on top of the advertised monthly plan price.

Frita
Posts: 942
Joined: Thu Mar 15, 2018 8:43 pm

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Frita »

I like my iPhone for other things but dislike taking on it, texting, etc. When my T-Mobile plan ran out, I thought about switching. I got a Google Voice number that has worked so well I decided to not get a cell plan. I can download Google Maps (or maps.me if in Central America) and use without WiFi.

DS and DC14 both use TracFone, $15/month and $60/year plans. They are happy with the service. There are no hidden fees, though the website is hard to navigate.

User avatar
Ego
Posts: 6357
Joined: Wed Nov 23, 2011 12:42 am

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Ego »

Sclass wrote:
Sat Jul 27, 2019 9:04 pm
I had to buy a new handset but the going rate for iPhone 6 unlocked refurbs on eBay is $105.
I am probably going to have to buy a new phone soon and I'm trying to calculate the sweet spot of longevity and initial outlay.

Right now my Oneplus One (ebay refurb) is beginning to show signs of obsolescence. Several apps have recently stopped appearing in the Google Play Store for my phone. I've figured out workarounds for most by installing older versions of apps for the time being but I expect them to begin to fail sooner or later. I am considering switching to iphone.

How many years does an iphone typically last before experiencing the problem of app obsolescence? Is the obsolescence churn faster with an iphone than top end android phones? If the iphone 6 last for several years it could be the sweet spot.

I am also going to go with Mintmobile this time around as I will need more data. Do they give you a number or must you port? Also, is it possible to buy a sim from them in person at a Target store?

Lucky C
Posts: 755
Joined: Sat Apr 16, 2016 6:09 am

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Lucky C »

I don't know about iPhones but I have a Galaxy S5, which came out 5 years ago, and that would make it equivalent age to iPhone 6. With the Galaxy S5 I have had no problems with not being able to find apps that I wanted. Then again, I don't use many apps. I did recently have slowdown with Google Maps, so I just uninstalled updates and now it runs great and I'm not missing any important features. I think the most important thing is never set apps to auto-update. Just check the store once in a while to see if the updates are important enough to get.

User avatar
Chris
Posts: 773
Joined: Thu Jul 22, 2010 2:44 pm

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Chris »

Ego wrote:
Thu Aug 29, 2019 3:25 am
I am also going to go with Mintmobile this time around as I will need more data. Do they give you a number or must you port?
When you activate the SIM, they will give you a number.

User avatar
Sclass
Posts: 2791
Joined: Tue Jul 10, 2012 5:15 pm
Location: Orange County, CA

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

So my iPhone 4s phones still work. You can make a call. Send a text. Use the gps. Read email. Settle an argument with Wikipedia. They are from 2012. I bought them in 2015. Roughly. Some key apps like Chase banking stopped working in 2018. The older version of Safari wouldn’t show modern websites. The phone couldn’t be updated past iOS 9. It also got slow and everything seemed to eat up its already low 8gb of ram. The gps was a power hog making the battery drain in an hour mostly by producing a lot of heat.

So the phone was still useable but it was annoying.

Now with my new 6, 6s and SE (I bought several phones to play with) I read that they would take iOS 12 which is great because they are several years old. I read somewhere that iOS 13 will not be available on the 6 but will be released for the 6s. I’m hoping the SE which has 6s chipsets will take iOS 13. Apple seems to do a decent job of maintaining OS for old devices.

The economics is actually quite interesting. On one hand they probably want people to upgrade phones. However, keeping the resale value up by allowing an older iPhone 6s to run iOS 13 brings the trade up cost to an iPhone X down which can spur a sale if you know how to put your old phone up on eBay. Keeping new low rent users like me on old Apple devices may generate more income by connecting me to Apple Music, Apple TV and other stuff. Apparently Google pays Apple to be the iPhone default browser.

Further, I’ve noticed my phones always seem to cost around $100 on eBay. I got my 4s when it was about four years old. The recent flock of phones I’ve picked up are about four years old. All about $100 and all capable phones at their release. I guess there is a certain price I’ll pay for a certain level of performance. Apple marketing probably knows it’ll never sell a current phone to my market segment.

Mint Mobile is exactly $15 a month. No hidden fees. That has been it. I actually got even better deals by buying the SIM cards on Amazon. The prepaid cards sold for less than those directly from Mint. Like the $45 card was actually $50 with shipping from Mint, and then I got the same card on Amazon for $35 a week later with free shipping. It actually was even worse because Amazon accidentally sent me the $60 card that had more data for my $35. Go figure. :D

Hope that helps. I’m pretty happy with the service quality in Orange County, GLA and the Bay Area where I spend most of my time.

User avatar
Ego
Posts: 6357
Joined: Wed Nov 23, 2011 12:42 am

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Ego »

Very helpful, thanks.

I hate the fact that I am getting caught up in the product churn. I am going to wait and see what roadblocks I hit with my current phone before buying something new/different. I can anticipate problems with a selling app or two which would cause me to have to upgrade.

It looks like Mint Mobile will work well.

Freedom_2018
Posts: 479
Joined: Sat Dec 18, 2010 12:10 am

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Freedom_2018 »

After 3 plus yrs on a Microsoft Lumia 640 which I really liked, switched to Android and so far after 3 months really liking the Google Pixel 3a XL.

Wanted something that would replace a camera (Sony rx100 ver 1) for traveling. Perhaps a good phone option for those wanting decent camera functionality also. So far pretty happy with that. A sample of some pics I took:

https://500px.com/mike_raina

User avatar
Sclass
Posts: 2791
Joined: Tue Jul 10, 2012 5:15 pm
Location: Orange County, CA

Re: FreedomPop

Post by Sclass »

Just a follow up. Mint service has been good. I’m coming up on the end of my three month service period so I reloaded my phones yesterday. The $15/month turned out to be $16.66/month with some hidden taxes. Not bad enough to dump the service but I was under the impression it was $15 including all taxes and regulatory fees based on their advertising.

As far as the service goes it is great. Coverage is good and I don’t get texts ten minutes after the fact like I did with Freedompop. It acts more like a T-mobile phone in my area which is challenging due to topography.

Still feels like a lot at $200 a year.

Post Reply