T-Mobile prepaid "Pay By The Day"

[Spicedaddy]

I'm going to NYC for 3 days at the end of May, so I just bought a T-Mobile Prepaid activation kit on ebay, and I'll probably just put 10$ airtime on it. (won't be using it much...)

I just saw on their web site that I can choose Pay By The Day, which would give me 70 minutes + free from 7pm to 7am for my 10$, instead of only 30 minutes of airtime with regular PAYG.

Are there any catches with Pay By The Day? It seems like a better idea for short trips...

How's T-Mobile coverage in NYC?


Thanks for your help! I'll be using an unlocked BB 8320 which was originally locked to T-Mobile, that'll work fine for PAYG, right?

 

[vshah]

tmobile coverage is great in nyc and surround areas, but i can't speak to the intricacies of the pay as you go program. the blackberry should work fine although you may not have data access

 

[rudeguy]

BB should be fine, voice is voice. Data might be a crapshoot. I've honestly never heard of Tmo's pay by the day but it sounds perfect for your needs.

Curious though...are you from outside the US or do you not have a regular cell phone?

 

[Spicedaddy]

I'm from Montreal, Canada. I won't really need data as we'll have net access at the place we're renting, and my BB has WiFi anyways.

Rogers charges 1.50$/minute for roaming on ATT, and I think it's even more expensive if I call back to Canada, while T-Mobile Pay By The Day is 10cents/minute to anywhere in the US (free 7pm->7am), and 50cents/minute to Canada.

It's kinda depressing to see a prepaid service in the US is almost as cheap as my monthly plan in Canada, and I've been with Rogers for 10 years, have a retentions plan, etc.

 

[SunnyD]

Nope. No catches. In fact it's semi-nice, because if you DON'T use the phone a given day, you pay nothing.

As far as data goes though, you're screwed. You'll be limited to T-Mo's severely walled garden. It says T-Zones, but it's not remotely the same as the old T-Zones internet access. Pure walled garden, and about 7 websites worth of access (CNN, NBC, etc.)

If you need data, get the Sidekick plan. It's $1/day whether you use it or not, and $0.25/minute for voice calls. Data is unlimited on it, but you'll likely be stuck on EDGE.