Do you purchase a new cell phone every two years, going from contract to contract?
Do you purchase a new cell phone and keep for as long as you can past the two year mark?
Do you purchase a refurbished phone so you are never under contract?
Did you know the last one was even an option?
I have not purchased a new phone- or had a contract with AT&T for years. I buy refurbished phones from reputable vendors (it tends to be ebay, but there are other options if you look around) and keep them until they are dead.
My plan does not charge me any more for not having a new phone.
The batteries tend to last past the two year mark, which is not guaranteed, but is a bonus.
And, since I tend not to pay more than $200 (usually closer to $100) per phone I am not upset if I damage it or when it eventually needs to be replaced.
After all, unless there is something you really need on that $1,000+ phone, what are you paying for?
ACTION STEP:
– take the monthly amount you are paying for your current cell phone
– multiply it by the number of months you are locked into that phone
– add any down payment or upfront cost you had to pay on it
The number is shocking, right?
Even when the cell phone companies are promoting “free phones”, they are almost never free. Read the fine print and do the math.
Then do what works best for you, not necessarily what the marketers are trying to talk you into doing.