Virgin Mobile - Best prepaid smart phone ever!

by David
(Az)

There was a time when prepaid cell phones were frowned upon by the mobile phone community for various reasons. The phones were poor quality, plans were rather expensive, etc. I've been a prepaid user for about four years now, mainly because of my bad experiences with contract plans. I can't say that I loved all the prepaid plans I've tried, but at the time it beat the alternative.



Last year, after having been on the market for several years already, I finally got the urge to get a "smartphone". But alas, this would mean signing a dreaded 2 year contract with a provider I probably despised. But I wanted one. So I started doing some research online, and much to my surprise I find out that there are providers out there offering smartphones on there prepaid plans. I couldn't believe it. I didn't believe it. But sure enough it was true. And the more sites I visited and threads I read, I found Virgin Mobile's Beyond Talk plan to be my new plan of choice. And the LG Optimus V to be my first smart phone. I've had the phone for about 6 months and I love it as much today as I did the first day it came in the mail. I'm on the $25 plan which gives me unlimited data, web, email, and 300 voice minutes. But with a little know how and a handy app, I can make free calls till the cows come home.


And the phone, they call it a mid-grade smartphone but this thing rocks. It actually preforms on the same level as my buddy's galaxy, and out preforms another friend's old school iPhone. Bottom line, if you want a well built smartphone and plan that cannot be beat, check out the Optimus V on Virgin Mobiles Beyond Talk plan. I promise you will not be disappointed.

Comments for Virgin Mobile - Best prepaid smart phone ever!

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Aug 31, 2012
 Apps On SD Card
by: PrepaidWirelessGuy

Thank you for the detailed feedback; that's really helpful! I just wanted to add a note for readers of the post that a lot of Android apps can now run from the micro SD card. So if you have an older phone with less internal memory, or find a great deal of a smartphone but it has limited internal memory, you can buy an inexpensive micro SD card and run a lot of apps from there.


The internal Applications manager in the phone (under the System menu from the home screen) lets you move compatible apps to the card.


Anyway, hopefully this tidbit helps. Thank you again for sharing your experience and thoughts!
Aug 31, 2012
 Virgin Mobile LG Optimus V Good experience
by: Mike C.

I wanted to add my comment to those above; I have the Optimus V for over a year now. I'm on the $25 plan. I like Android very much (this uses 2.2.1), and it's going to continue to improve. Prior to getting this I used the LG Rumor Touch, a "feature" phone that gave me good service, though not nearly as powerful and flexible as Android on this phone.

Pros:
Android and all that comes with it
Good quality phone
Low price
No contract; ability to upgrade phone for low cost if I want to or if I lose it
Ease of registering and setting up
Can use MicroSD card to hold music, pictures, (some) apps
No issues with phone call sound or quality.

Cons:
The Optimus V has limited space for apps. If you want a lot more apps to be available on your phone get the Elite or another phone that has more memory built-in.

Bottom line - great value

I notice that Virgin Mobile is now selling the iPhone, but also features several other Android phones, all of which speaks to the fact that this company seems to be following a good strategy.
Nov 07, 2011
 Loving My Virgin Motorola Triumph
by: Anonymous

I have to say that I'm very impressed with this phone! Most of my friends are on contracts and sometimes make jabs at me about having a prepaid phone. But now that they've seen my Motorola Triumph Android phone, they're really impressed. In fact, they're even a little embarrassed by the fact that their phones aren't any better, and they're paying a lot more on their contract plans. It makes me laugh!

$300 for a phone is a lot of money, yes. But I used to pay about $200 on a contract phone anyway, and the extra $100 is quickly made up by the fact that my plan is actually cheaper than my friends' contract plans, and actually has even more included features.

I really don't ever see myself going back. It's prepaid wireless all the way for me now!
Jul 29, 2011
 Prepaid Smartphones CAN Compete
by: PrepaidWirelessGuy

I think a lot of people are starting to feel the same way you are. Even since your post, Virgin has launched additional prepaid smartphones that are even more capable than the LG Optimus, including the Motorola Triumph with a 1GHz processor, 4.3" screen, 5MP camera, HD camcorder, etc.


Other carriers have launched additional high performance smartphones as well, and are planning on launching some really exciting smartphones for the remainder of 2011.


It's only a matter of time before more and more people catch on!

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