Tracfone vs. Gophone Prepaid Cellphone Service

Tracfone and Go Phone are tow of the top prepaid cell phone services. Prepaid cell phone services allow you to refill you phones at your convenience. There are no bills and no surprises. Services like Go phone and Tracfone are handy for those who don't use them often like myself. I have two cell phones. One has Go Phone and the other is Tracfone. Each has differences and similarities. Which service is best?

The first thing I look for in prepaid cell phone services are the features. I like cell phone services with a variety of features that give you what you need. There is no sense in buying features you don't need. This is the nice thing about Tracfone and Gophone.

Gophone offer basic and advanced features. The basic features are voicemail, caller ID, three-way calling, call waiting, call forwarding, call, hold, international, long distance, and directory assist. Advanced features are text messaging, Media Net, parental controls, and instant messaging. You can send pictures and files by picture messaging.. International texts are allowed in over one hundred countries. Media Net connects you to mobile web. You can filter content on Media Net with parental controls. Instant messaging allows you to send and receive messages from AOL and Yahoo.

Tracfone offers voice mail, text messaging, ring tones, graphics, international calls, and mobile internet on some phones. There are more than sixty international calling destinations. International text messaging isn't available on Tracfone. You can download graphics, ring tones, get news and weather with mobile internet. Not all Tracfones have mobile internet. I have trouble accessing the browser sometimes my Tracfone. You are locked to one WAP browser. Gophone gives you more flexibility on some features. You can buy data and text packages separately. Text messaging come sin packages of 200 messages, 1000 messages, or unlimited. Data packages come in 1 MB or 100 MB.

Make sure your phone is activated before adding airtime. Gophone refill cards are the bright orange and blue ones. Refill amounts are $15, $25, $75, and $100.You can buy airtime online from you land line, one of 200000 locations. A Go Phone airtime card has a fifteen digit pin number to enter online or on your phone. Feature packages are bought separately. There is a daily access fee of $1 to use your phone. To stay active, your account needs $1. Any left over minutes or feature packages roll over if you renew before the last month runs out. Text messages cost $.20 and picture messages cost $.25.

Tracfone refill cards are green. First , use the activation card that came with your phone. Plans start at $9.95 monthly for 50 minutes. Tracfone refill cards come in 60, 120, 200,and 400 minutes. Each card is good for ninety days. A yearly Tracfone card of 400 minutes is $49.95 and gives you 365 service days. A Double Minutes for Life card for $29.95 adds double the minutes you buy for life. Say if you buy 60 minutes, you will have 120 minutes. Tracfone deducts 0.50 units for accessing the mobile internet and 0.30 units for each text. You can add minutes from the prepaid menu on your phone or online. Your phone needs ten minutes to stay active. Bonus codes are available online to add extra minutes with each refill.

Prepaid services are convenient for those who want more control over their cell phone usage. You can fill up anytime and there are no contracts. However, it can get expensive at times. If you want a no-frills kind of service, Tracfone Tracfone is for you. I don't use my Tracfone often so the minutes last longer. For someone who talks quiet a bit, Gophone's unlimited talk and text plan is the better choice. Both services are great but I prefer Gophone because of the variety it offers.