AT&T Wireless becomes competitive in prepaid phones

With the success of other prepaid providers offering unlimited plans (Boost Mobile added 1.3 million subscribers when it introduced its $50 unlimited plan) AT&T's offering overs an interesting twist; unlimited domestic calling, and unlimited text to the US and 100 countries worldwide, including Mexico. In addition, AT&T also provides up to $50 in airtime credits on their prepaid phones, depending upon the retail cost of the phone. Your basic $29.99 phone will come with $15 of airtime credit, and their upper tier models at $99.99 and above come with $50 in airtime credits, nearly covering your first months of unlimited service.

Signing up for the plan is a two step process when you set up the phone, and is provisioned as a feature instead of a calling plan. Simply sign up for the .25 per minute pay as you go plan, then call 611 to add the feature through the automated dialing prompts.

While some people will question the wisdom of a conventional provider offering an unlimited plan, remember that a family plan is still a better value when working with three or more phones, and that if you need a full featured, higher quality cell phone, contract still provides a better value.