Beware Straight Talk
 

If considering the "No Contract" phone and internet provider Straight Talk offered through Walmart be aware of these facts. With them from Mid December through March, left them and now with Verizon.
- Straight Talk phones purchased at Walmart cannot be used with other providers if you change. Samsung Galaxy S3 for $399.00 & traded it in to Verizon for $63.00. Big $ loss.
- If there is a problem with your phone (even within 30 days of new) they send you a "Refurbished" phone as warranty.
- pay monthly (not 6 months at a time like we did) since you will not get any money refunded for unused time if you leave them.
- So many issues with their warranty service and phone service (terrible in Fla and GA), anyone I spoke to on the multiple calls (over 15 people including supervisors) ALL foreign, many with broken English so bad I had to request someone else.
- BBB.com-They have over 2445 complaints lodged on Better Business Bureau against them. Many of those complaints are the same issues I had. HIND SIGHT IS 20/20!

We've used Straight for almost a year and no problems at all.

I know it probably feels miserable to have a problem and people chime in and say, "Oh, I love that company," but I've used Straight Talk for almost five years and I love their service. Depending on the type of phone you purchase, the Straight Talk service uses AT&T and Verizon cell towers. The only place I have sketchy service is one area just off of Pinellas on Fenwick Loop. Other than that, Straight Talk is perfect for me in Florida. Sorry to hear you had problems.

I purchased a Google Nexus 5 smartphone and I have it on Straight Talk. My bill is $48 a month ($45 plus $3 in fees/taxes) for unlimited talk, text, and data. I have had very good service except for just a few places in The Villages. I go "month to month" with my billing and if something comes along that is better than Straight Talk I may switch. But until then.... I am happy.

I would be interested in what Verizon is charging you now on a monthly basis....

Take care,
Gordy

I have Verizon. $50/month for no contract. Unlimited everything. And if you set up auto payment, they give you a $5.00 credit each month you can use for anything besides getting the actual cash in hand.
They said when you build up enough credit all you have to do is withdraw the auto payment for that month & apply the credit to pay your bill. It's like getting a free month.

Glad some are having good service
 

But my experience with the actual service was poor. We rarely had over 2 bars of reception and calls dropped regularly around the Villages and upand down the road to Middle Georgia. My kids all have Verizon and I asked them if they had service in the areas that I had none and they did. Last week going back up to Georgia with the new Verizon service I had service the whole way with NO dead spots and rarely got BELOW 3 bars on my phone.

I hope any one having good luck thus far continues to have no issues. If you ever have to turn in your phone for some reason you may get a taste of the issues I outlined in the original post. The 2445 complaints logged on BBB.com verified there are plenty of issues with this company.

I now pay $60.00 per month with unlimited Text, Talk and 1gb of Data. It would have been $50.00 IF I already had Verizon on their Loyalty program. My kids have that price since they have been with Verizon for a while. The last 6 days with the new phone and Verizon service is SIGNIFICANTLY BETTER than Straight Talk ever was.

Straight talk
 

Been with Straight Talk for about 2 years and have never had even one problem, so I can't comment on customer service, etc. I bought a phone that works off of Verizon towers and always have excellent service in The Villages as well as frequent traveling.

I have Straight Talk for my IPhone 5 and have no problems whatsoever! ATT Towers.......Verizon dropped calls in NY home and here in TV on my Android Phones. Love Straight tALK!

I have unlimited talk, text and data on th IPhone 5s from Straight Talk and pay the same as your plan (above), with Verizon for 700 min., unlimited text, and limited date I was paying $129.00. Dropped Verizon and purchased MetroPCS, loved that too, but could not talk in my home on the phone and switched to StraightTalk......

Do any of the plans for unlimited talk include International calling?

Barefoot,
Have you checked out "magic jack".

I have many friends who have family reside out of the country. Lots of different countries......Most have bought a magic jack, had a local number assigned and sent the MJ to their family. Free unlimited calling. Cheap to install via computer modem.

I think it was $60 at Radio Shack. The cost of the device included service or a year. We LOVE it!!

Straight Talk offers unlimited talk, text and Internet with international calling for $60 a month. No contract. Month to month.

I have had Straight Talk for over 2 years and love it! I plan to purchase an Iphone, either 4s or 5s and will have to pay full price since Straight Talk is without contract. After the initial phone cost, I will only pay $45 per month, unlimited everything, no hidden costs. And, you can't beat the reception!

Thanks Dottie ...
Yes we have Magic Jack for our residence phone here in The Villages.
We also have it in Canada.
We have two modems since we sometimes forget to pack our modem.
We used to have a plan with Vonage.
We find we save a lot of money using Magic Jack with unlimited International calling.

However, I should have been clear that my question was about cell phone plans.
Thanks BKC for the info.

I too have Straight Talk for my iPhone 5, and haven't had any problems. But I'm curious if anyone has used them overseas. I think I've heard there are big roaming costs if used overseas.