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Prepaid phone plans, often referred to as a pay-as-you-go plans, can be one of the best ways to save money while enjoying the many advantages of owning a cellphone. In just a handful of years, the advance of the cellphone has taken the world by storm, and people from all across the globe and from all walks of life and all income levels spend hours with their faces gazing down upon the lighted screen of a smart phone. With a pay as you go plan you only pay for the minutes you use, and you’re not tied in to a lengthy service contract. This can work out very well for the consumer, but make no mistake, your cellular carrier will certainly try to tempt you with a contract that not only gives you a ‘free’ phone, but also hundreds of voice minutes, gigabytes of free data and thousands of free text messages, all to ensure that every month you are paying them a sum of money for the privilege.

On the other hand, for those who prefer to pay only for what they use, a pre-paid service is simply a matter of choosing a phone and then paying a certain amount through regular top-ups based purely on consumption.

The question is, what makes more sense for you; a regular contract with a monthly allowance of calls, data and messaging, or just a pay as you go plan?

Pay as you go or no? Pre-paid pros

• No waste

One of the greatest benefits in using a pay-as-you-go cellphone is the amount of money you can save on contract fees and purchased minutes. All you need is to top-up the phone as and when you run low on credit. If you tend to use free communication apps such as Facebook, Twitter, Whatsapp or Skype, this kind of plan can make a lot of sense, as you are not even using any call credit, and yet you are still communicating. Pre-paid users only buy minutes they think they will use with the option to buy more as they need it. Top-ups can be as little as $5.00 (US).

On the other hand, with a set monthly contract you might, for example, have 500 voice minutes assigned to you each month. If you only consume 200 minutes, you are paying for 300 minutes per month that you do not use. Paying for minutes as you need them makes it easy to control your phone usage and assures that there are no eye-watering surcharges, should you exceed your allotted call minutes.

• No contract

Pay as you go also means you are not tied to any contract. You are free to try various service providers to arrive at the best solution for your needs. You have no monthly bills, no contracts to sign, and no early termination fees. Also, and just as importantly, there are no credit checks for pay as you go, so there is no fear of rejection by any cellphone carrier should you be a low income earner.

• Parental control

Pre-paid plans can also work extremely well for children and teens, as it means you are in control of how much they consume. This way you won’t have to worry that they are logging on to costly online video games, which produce nasty surprise bills that can often run to hundreds of dollars.

Pay as you go or no? Pre-paid cons

• Lack of cellphone choices

If you visit the large, high-end cellphone carriers you will quickly discover that most of the cellphones available for pre-paid plans tend to be entry level models, and the store assistant has been trained to be dismissive of such plans, trying instead to tempt you into a big fat 24 month contract. The pre-paid phones they offer lack features, processing power, and the quality that you might want. If you want a cellular device designed with a high pixel rate camera, a great music player, high processing power and access to a wide variety of apps, a traditional pre-paid cellphone may not satisfy your needs.

However, as reliable online cellphone unlock services such as UnlockBase are proving every day, what once was a distinct disadvantage for pre-paid plans – a very limited choice in pre-paid handsets – is rapidly becoming a thing of the past.

UnlockBase has a huge database of cellphones of all types and hundreds of cellphone carriers from all over the world. With a simple code they can help the customer to simply ‘jail-break’ the cellphone model of their choice.

• Lack of cellphone credit

The other disadvantage with a pre-paid plan is that you need to keep a regular check of your available credit, because you will literally be cut off in mid-sentence once your credit runs out. Imagine if your car happens to breakdown in a cold and lonely spot miles from anywhere or anyone, this can quickly become a real and dangerous problem. It’s also highly inconvenient even if you are simply trying to have a conversation.

One way to overcome this problem is to always carry an extra top-up card with you in case of emergencies.

Pay as you go or no?  So should I opt for pre-paid?

Pre-paid plans are ideal for those who do not consume excessive amounts on phone calls and for controlling the spending habits of children and teenagers. These plans also work well for those with few cellular needs. New SIM deals such as Vectone, Lycamobile and Lebara also offer pay as you go with the benefit of significant savings on overseas texts and calls – and free calls if made from one Lycamobile number to another in certain countries.

Decide what you need most with your cellular plan and see if a pay-as-you-go deal works best for you!

There is a great deal of confusion over the act of ‘jailbreaking’ a cellphone, and it’s certainly not made any clearer by the cellphone carriers who want you to stick with them for the full term of a 24 month contract. According to U.S. wireless carriers, unlocking a phone bought after January 26 2012 without your carrier’s permission violates the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) whether the phone is under contract or not.

However what this really refers to is the fact that the DMCA prohibits “circumventing” digital locks that “control access” to copyrighted works including movies, music, books, games, and software. In fact this broad and vague ruling bans a lot of useful, and important activities, however, there are exemptions for mobile phones to run unapproved software, and for using clips from DVDs and internet video in non-commercial videos.

Really? Who cares? The vast majority of people who want to jail-break their phone wish to do so in order to avoid lengthy contracts that do not best suit their needs, and they feel locked into a bad relationship.

Unfortunately, wireless carriers such as AT&T, and many others, do not have much sympathy if you want to end your contract. You need to pay an Early Termination Fee, which of course has its own acronym, (ETF) that can add up to hundreds of dollars. In fact AT&T and most major carriers, such as Sprint and Verizon, will charge you an ETF of up to $350, unless you happen to cancel within the first two weeks. T-Mobile users pay up to $200 depending on how many days are left on their contract.

But the reality is, you can still break free or jail-break without handing over rip off penalty fees for the simple reason that carriers are unlikely to start suing customers en-masse.

Here are some crafty ways to get out of a contract that is holding you back.

Unlock Your Phone

This is probably the simplest and most permanent solution of them all. In minutes and for a low cost, online cellphone unlock services such as UnlockBase can send you a code that unlocks your phone so that you can use it SIM free and choose any SIM free plan that takes your fancy. It’s quick, easy, safe and comprehensive, as UnlockBase offers a huge database of phones and service providers from around the world that they can unlock.

Sell Your Plan

You read it correctly. If you want to get out of your contract plan there may be someone interested in buying yours. Sites such as Cellswapper or Trade My Cellular specialize in this. They have found a loophole in most carrier’s rulings that means your carrier will only charge you an Early Termination Fee (ETF) if you do not have somebody to pay the monthly fees for the remainder of the contract. So if you can find someone to take over your plan, this will not violate your terms of service as the other party is fulfilling the terms of your original contract. This means you can also test another carrier’s service. You can trade contracts with someone for 3-6 months and see if you want to jump to that carrier.

Track Changes to Your Contract

Keep abreast of changes to you contract. Cellular carriers regularly make “material changes” to a contract. A material change can be anything from additional service or maintenance fees, to adjustments in the rates you’re charged, or changes in discounts applied to your account. Should you spot a material change, you should be able to contact customer service and end your contract. Cellbreaker helps track these sorts of changes so you can break your contract.

Find a Carrier That’ll Pay Your Cancellation Fee

Yes, it’s true. Did you know that some smaller carriers such as Virgin Mobile, Credo Mobile, and Boost Mobile will let you prepay or pay by the month? Some of these carriers will even pay your cancellation fee for you, and you may even be able to keep your phone too! T-Mobile even promises to pay up to $650 to cover the costs of your Early Termination Fee (ETF) if you switch to one of its plans. A useful option if you just want to switch.

Don’t be held back by a cellphone contract you no longer want, get creative and unlock your phone!

What is the Marketplace for Unlocked Phones?

Do you have an entrepreneurial spirit that is just waiting for the right opportunity or idea to turn your business acumen into a profitable future? Maybe you have a technical aptitude that provides you with just the edge you need to be successful in today’s age of high-tech digital communications technology.

Here’s the great news – the door is wide open to creating your own profitable business through buying and reselling unlocked cell phones. With literally millions of cell phones in use and the market changing constantly, the potential customer base is phenomenal to say the least. Just read any newspaper, blog, technical publication, or retail advertisement and consumers are besieged with the latest models of cell phones with the latest technical features and applications. Consumers line up to get the new technology even though their existing devices are still quite useful. Just because a well-known manufacturer has a newer more powerful device certainly doesn’t mean the prior model is useless. Technology just drives many of us to want the latest and greatest on the market, and advertising convinces us we have to move forward with technology.

So How Do I Turn This Into a Business?

With so many phones readily available at bargain prices it becomes a buyer’s market. You can select from the best manufacturers and the most recent models that you may want to build an inventory for, to resell at a profit. Thousands of cell phones show up on reputable auction sites every day as consumers upgrade to a different carrier or model. But if the original owner cannot get a reasonable price for the device, where does the profit come in?

Most individuals do not have the technical ability or knowledge needed to unlock a cell phone or other digital device. This often requires very specific unlock codes and detailed instructions to reliably and safely unlock your phone. These steps and cell phone unlock codes vary significantly among manufacturers, carriers, and models. Further, it can be difficult to gain access to the codes and instructions needed to unlock your specific phone. This makes research time-consuming to obtain the information needed to be successful in unlocking phones. While some information can be found through surfing the Internet for such values and instructions, much of it is unreliable or questionable at best.

Now you know that there is a demand for used phones, that they are readily available at bargain prices, and that you can add value by providing unlocked phones to prospective customers. The remaining question is how you actually get your various devices unlocked so that you can build your inventory. Not many consumers actually know how to unlock a cell phone and nearly as many do not even know that this is an option. Cell phone providers do not want their customers to know that their cell phones can be unlocked either, and may even threaten customers with service cancellation, although it is perfectly legal.

What Are the Opportunities?

Like any money-making business much depends on the time you invest in the enterprise. That being said, here are real-life examples of earnings reported from cell phone resellers:

• Sales of 21 phones in a single month at an average profit of $77 per phone.
  This is strictly a part-time effort netting $1,617 in one month.

• Another reseller flipped 11 phones in a single weekend at a profit of nearly $1,000.

So the opportunity is real and potential is based on the time you have available to spend searching for phones with resale potential and relisting them at a reasonable profit.

Don’t trust yourself to make the right purchase or sale price that will earn you a profit? When you find a phone you’re considering buying, check out the estimated price on Movaluate.com. Also check eBay for recent completed sales of the same item to get a good feel for realistic selling price. This will boost your confidence that you are making a profitable selection.

Partner with an Expert Affiliate

Some technical services are best left to experienced professionals. Cell phone unlocking is one of these tasks where utilizing seasoned technicians provides reliable and successful results. This is where UnlockBase can assist you with consistent reliable phone unlocking services. UnlockBase has a proven track record of expertise in this highly technical field with over 5 million cell phones unlocked in 165 countries.

UnlockBase technicians are the experts who truly know the myriad phone unlock codes that facilitate the reselling of phones to your prospective customers. They can be your critical business partner in providing unlocking support for phones from various carriers, manufacturers, and models.

Why UnlockBase?

UnlockBase is simply the most authoritative cell phone unlocking company in the business. Partnering with UnlockBase as your affiliate will guarantee accuracy in providing phone unlock codes and successfully unlocking your phones. Unlocking services are provided on a timely basis to get your phones unlocked and ready for sale quickly and efficiently. This shortens the turn-around from purchase to re-sale making your business more profitable.

Through partnering with UnlockBase, your customers will receive added value in purchasing an unlocked phone that is not restricted to any particular carrier or service. This gives them flexibility when using the phone and brings you an edge over other cell phone resellers who do not have the expertise or technical knowledge to unlock such a variety of makes and models.

Get Started!

You can make selling unlocked cell phones a lucrative business even in your spare time. All you need to do to get started is:

• Search the recognized and respected auction sites for desirable used phones and add them to your inventory. Use the web sites that can help you determine market value for used cell phones. Do not limit this to the usual sites like Craigslist and eBay. Other sites like Gazelle.com and BuyBackWorld.com are also worth visiting.

• SellCell.com is the US’s largest Mobile Phone & Tablet trade-in comparison site.  They compare all the main BuyBack companies in the US, so the user can quickly find the best price when selling their old device. They also offer a Best Price Guarantee. If a user finds a higher price on another site, SellCell will refund double the difference back.

• Partner with UnlockBase to receive phone unlock codes and services.

• Resell the unlocked phones at a respectable profit.

There is a considerable market for these unlocked phones that are no longer restricted to certain carriers or services. Now is the time to get started turning used cell phones into profit.

Most people who buy a cell phone simply turn up at their local cellphone service provider carrier, sit there a long time while the sales people deal with other customers and then sign up for a 24 month contract with the phone of their choice, or at least, the phone that comes closest to their choice. Unfortunately, most phones from major carriers can only be used for that specific carrier’s network. But what if you decided to do things differently? What if you decided to buy an unlocked cellphone? Here we weigh both the pros and cons.

Unlocked cellphone pros

1) More networks

Manufacturers do not create cellphones to work with just one network, but cellphone carriers prefer to lock you in and tie you to a lengthy contract. With an unlocked cellphone you can access other GSM networks whenever necessary, which is perfect if you travel frequently as you can simply switch to other available network providers once you are out of your current provider’s coverage zone.

2) Save money

Unlocked phones may appear to be more expensive at first due to the sometimes high upfront cost, but they definitely work out more budget-friendly in the long run. There’s no long-term subscriber contract to worry about, and you can take advantage of the best SIM only deals for your cellphone with no contract and without incurring early termination fees. Prepaid SIM cards also offer cheaper call, data and messaging rates with some very attractive overseas call rates.

3) No roaming charges

Roaming charges are expensive on a contract. The roaming fee is billed on top of the monthly subscriber fee, and can add up to a significant amount. With an unlocked phone you simply buy a SIM card from the local or overseas carrier and immediately save money because you have a local phone number and pay local rates for calls and messages.

4) More flexibility

If for any reason you become unhappy with your current cellular carrier, with an unlocked phone it’s as simple as buying a new SIM card from a different provider.

5) Increased Resale Value

It’s easier to sell an unlocked phone; in fact it can be worth as much as 30% more than a locked one. It also attracts more buyers since they can easily use it with their existing network or change to another one. It also means the phone can be sold either locally or overseas, greatly widening your customer base.

Unlocked cellphone cons

1) Buyer beware

When you buy an unlocked cellphone you need to be sure you are getting what you pay for. It takes more due diligence than entering into a contract because you do not have your friendly, service oriented carrier to protect you if you find the phone has a fault or it is in fact a fake product, and there are more fakes out there than you could possibly imagine.

2) Higher upfront cost

You need to have cash ready to buy an unlocked cellphone, and for the latest models that can easily run to over $1000 or more. Shop wisely and be sure you are getting what you pay for.

3) Bandwidth issues

Wouldn’t you know it, networks in the US use different data frequency bands than those in other parts of the world, so if you spot a bargain buy in the States and think it will do the job, you may need to think again if you are based in Europe or elsewhere. If you are based in the US and want 4g, look for phones offering these bandwidths: LTE 700, LTE 800, LTE 1700, LTE 1900, and LTE 2100. Don’t get stuck with a phone that doesn’t work on your local service provider’s network.

4) Is the cellphone really unlocked?

Unfortunately there are several cowboy dealers out there who will sell you an ‘unlocked’ cellphone that is not properly unlocked, and you could even find that you yourself are locked out of the phone once the service provider discovers the phone is no longer under contract. Ideally, you should examine a cellphone in person before handing over any money.

5) Generic software

Generic software does not support data features such as mms – picture messaging, web browsing, and sending/receiving emails. So as to use data services you will first need to obtain the correct settings from your service provider (e.g. AT&T, EE, Vodafone) and set up the phone manually.

With a little care and attention to detail though, you will find the advantages and cost savings of an unlocked cellphone outweigh the initial start-up costs and need for extra vigilance. If you are not sure whether your cellphone is properly unlocked, check with a reliable and trustworthy online unlock service such as UnlockBase.

Most Android phones are quite simple to navigate.  Best of all, they feature access to a variety of apps that you can use to simply your life.  But what happens if you need to unlock your phone from your network carrier?  The best answer is to contact UnlockBase for an unlock code.  Whether you’re traveling overseas and need your phone unlocked or you simply want to switch carriers, UnlockBase simplifies the process of making your phone compatible with other networks.

“SIM Network Unlock Pin Means” You Need an Unlock Code

When you go to unlock your phone, all you need to do is insert a SIM card from the carrier you want to switch to.  If your phone is locked, it will likely display the message SIM Network Unlock PIN.  This means that you’ll need to buy an unlock code from a reputable service provider.

You’ll Need Your IMEI Number to get an Unlock Code

Keep in mind that you’ll need your phone’s IMEI number to buy the unlock code.  On most phones, you can easily identify your IMEI number by typing *#06# and hitting the send or call button.  You’ll receive a message with the IMEI number.

Unlocking Your Phone is Simple

After giving your IMEI number to an unlock code service provider and receiving the code, you’ll enter it into your phone and hit the unlock button.  It’s as simple as that.  If for some reason the unlock code doesn’t work, this most likely means there have been too many failed attempts.  To overcome this problem, you’ll need to do a full reset on your phone.  You’ll also want to make sure that your new SIM card is valid.  For more information on how to unlock your phone, simply contact us today.

The Takeaway

Basically, if your phone displays “SIM Network Unlock PIN”, it’s asking for an unlock code, which you can purchase from UnlockBase.  We will provide you with a detailed tutorial on how to unlock your phone, and best of all, we provide discounts on many of our unlocking options.