How Many Minutes Does Texting Cost For Tracfone?

How Much Does Texting Cost for Tracfone?

This is a relatively common question many people have when looking at buying a Tracfone cell phone.

Cell Phone Closeup By seanmcmenemy

Tracfone is a prepaid, no-contract cell phone service provider. They have low cost minute cards, and many cell phones for under $100 (and even under $20). With Tracfone service, you pay for how much you use the phone, and you have to buy prepaid minutes to put on the phone before you can use it.

Texting with Tracfone is very reasonable, and we are going to share exactly how it works, and how much it will cost you.

Before we get to the cost, we must explain that texting charges are different for Tracfone's newer, Android powered smartphones. These smartphones put minutes into three separate 'pools' of calling/texting/data.

Read our guide, How Minutes Work on Tracfone Smartphones to get the full explanation. We will share below how much texting will cost on the smartphones as well as regular Tracfone devices.

Now, let's first explain the cost for texting with Non-Android phones:

Texting, or SMS, costs 0.3 units (or minutes) for each text (sent or received) on non-Android phones

Sending an MMS costs 0.5 unites, and pictures cost 1 unit on non-Android phones.

Sometimes pictures can cost more, especially if they are larger images. And remember that you get deducted for every text you send or receive.

What about Android phones? How much does texting cost on a Tracfone smartphone?

This is a very straightforward answer, because texts are already separated from calling and data on the smartphones.

Texting on a Smartphone costs 1 text (sent or received)

Sending a photo deducts from your data based on the size of the photo

So with a smartphone, each text deducts one text from your 'text pool'. At this time, here is no way to just buy texts, so if you run out you will have to buy another prepaid minute card.

Some users have experienced problems sending photos on smartphones. This may be due to these users leaving their data turned off (which is usually a good idea, because it keeps apps from using data). Data is used when sending pictures.

If you have more questions about the smartphones from Tracfone, check out our Android vs non-Android comparison, that covers many of the differences.

Texting with Tracfone is very reasonable, although if you send thousands of texts per month, you may want to look for an unlimited plan.

There are also some other costs that you should be familiar with when using Tracfone:

Surfing the web browser costs 0.4 units per minute on older, non-Android phones

On newer Tracfone Cell phones, such as the LG 840G or any Android Smartphones, using the web browser costs differently based more on the amount of data used, instead of time online. Additionally, the LG 840G and all the Android phones have WiFi connectivity, which is free to use on the phone when you are connected to a WiFi network.

Using Tracfone prepaid cell phones is great for those who want an emergency phone, don't use their phone too often, or just need a phone in a hurry. And with many of the newer Android powered smartphones, they have become even more economical for daily use.

To learn more, read our Beginners Guide to Tracfone, to answer many of the comment questions consumers have.

We hope this has been helpful! Leave a comment if you have questions, and thanks for visiting!

Keep up with the latest from our blog by following us on Facebook!

(This post was originally published 1/9/2013, but was updated and republished 2/23/2015 with more accurate information)

4G Lte With Tracfone Byop

Use 4G LTE Smartphones with Tracfone BYOP program

This post details the latest on Tracfone BYOP and 4G LTE. We will continue to update it, as well as our main Tracfone BYOP page which also contains a list of compatible phones. 

Tracfone BYOP 4G LTE 

We are excited to share the news that Tracfone has now opened their BYOP agenda to 4G Smartphones! Previously, only Verizon compatible 3G phones were capable of being used with Tracfone BYOP (Bring Your Own Phone). This meant the best phones you could get were the iPhone 4s, Moto G, and other similar types. While these smartphones are great, they are not top of the line.

With 4G LTE now available with Tracfone, you can use the iPhone 6, or a Samsung Galaxy S6, or many other high-end devices and get the fastest data speeds. The only requirement is that it must be able to connect with Verizon 4G service to activate.

We will dive into more details on activating your phone and what kind of requirements there are after we cover the basics of how the Tracfone BYOP agenda works.

UPDATE: Tracfone is now offering Activation Kits for both CDMA and GSM devices. It appears that you can bring GSM devices compatible with AT&T to use with Tracfone BYOP. We will be sharing more details about this in a new post very soon.

How Tracfone BYOP 4G LTE Works

Using a 4G LTE device with Tracfone BYOP works similarly to bringing a 3G device to Tracfone. You will need to have your own smartphone, and it needs to be compatible with Verizon service.

Tracfone contracts with Verizon to use their cell towers for service, but everything goes through Tracfone. If you go outside the coverage of Verizon, you may lose service, or run on lower speeds.

To get started with Tracfone BYOP, you will visit this Tracfone page and check that your phone is compatible by entering your ZIP code and MEID/ESN. Following the steps, you will be prompted to buy an activation kit, which will give you a SIM card and Network Access Code.

Additionally, you can go over to SaveonTracfone.com and buy the Activation kit there. You can choose between the 4G LTE and 3G kits, and it might be a few dollars cheaper.

Most users are reporting a quick and painless process, but you should be prepared if something doesn't work right, and you need to make a phone call to customer service.

Phone Requirements and Activating on Tracfone BYOP

Activation Card for 4G LTE

The requirements for what kind of phone can be activated with 4G service on Tracfone seems a little more straightforward than before. You need a device that is compatible with Verizon 4G LTE, which includes a wide variety of top of the line devices. It also needs a clean ESN, which means it can't be in contract, or stolen.

A 4G LTE device will need a SIM card to connect with Tracfone, and this will come with your activation kit. On a side note, once you have activated a Verizon compatible 4G LTE device, you can take the SIM and move it to many other devices that would not be able to activate on their own. Not all the details are clear on this, but many users are confirming switching between devices.

This could be very convenient for those who want to have a backup device, since you could just buy another phone, and then switch the SIM card to it if you ever needed to.

To activate your phone, make sure you have the 4G LTE activation kit (or start by getting it, which will be mailed to you in about a day) and then proceed through the steps on the Tracfone website or by calling Tracfone.

To review, here are the steps:

1. Get a 4G LTE compatible smartphone that runs on Verizon and has a clean ESN (is not on contract or stolen) and test it on the Tracfone BYOP website.

2. Follow the steps on Tracfone and purchase your Activation kit (SIM card) and Network Access Code. The SIM card will be mailed to you. You can Also purchase this through SaveOnTracfone.com.

3. Activate your 4G device only at Tracfone.com or over the phone.

If you have thoughts or questions on this process, check out the comments below.

Where to Find Phones for Tracfone BYOP

You need a 4G LTE capable device that is for Verizon service (CDMA) to use it with Tracfone BYOP. Fortunately, there are many different phone options, and many different retailers to choose from. Used or new will work, as long as they are not currently under contract.

One of the cheapest and easiest places to find phones is online. You can quickly browse many different options and price points, as well as used, new and refurbished. Follow the links below to get started and see some of the options. Once you have a certain phone in mind, you can search for that device.

Search for Verizon 4G LTE phones on Amazon

Search for Verizon 4G LTE phones on eBay

There are many more retailers to search including Newegg, BestBuy and more.

To get some ideas, and for a full list of compatible phones for both 3G and 4G LTE, visit our Tracfone BYOP page.

We hope this covers the exciting news about Tracfone's slow expansion into 4G LTE and hope that they will also add support for 4G on GSM networks.

Please let us know if we missed anything, we strive to provide accurate and helpful information!

If you're interested in other phone options, visit our LG Ultimate 2, which was our pick for the Best Tracfone Smartphone.

We have also created a list of the best Apps for Android with more than 40 great apps, almost all of which are free. I have found Clean Master App to be very handy for keeping my phone running well, and reducing wasted space.

Thanks for Visiting!

Use 4G LTE Smartphones with Tracfone BYOP program

This post details the latest on Tracfone BYOP and 4G LTE. We will continue to update it, as well as our main Tracfone BYOP page which also contains a list of compatible phones. 

Tracfone BYOP 4G LTE 

We are excited to share the news that Tracfone has now opened their BYOP agenda to 4G Smartphones! Previously, only Verizon compatible 3G phones were capable of being used with Tracfone BYOP (Bring Your Own Phone). This meant the best phones you could get were the iPhone 4s, Moto G, and other similar types. While these smartphones are great, they are not top of the line.

With 4G LTE now available with Tracfone, you can use the iPhone 6, or a Samsung Galaxy S6, or many other high-end devices and get the fastest data speeds. The only requirement is that it must be able to connect with Verizon 4G service to activate.

We will dive into more details on activating your phone and what kind of requirements there are after we cover the basics of how the Tracfone BYOP agenda works.

UPDATE: Tracfone is now offering Activation Kits for both CDMA and GSM devices. It appears that you can bring GSM devices compatible with AT&T to use with Tracfone BYOP. We will be sharing more details about this in a new post very soon.

How Tracfone BYOP 4G LTE Works

Using a 4G LTE device with Tracfone BYOP works similarly to bringing a 3G device to Tracfone. You will need to have your own smartphone, and it needs to be compatible with Verizon service.

Tracfone contracts with Verizon to use their cell towers for service, but everything goes through Tracfone. If you go outside the coverage of Verizon, you may lose service, or run on lower speeds.

To get started with Tracfone BYOP, you will visit this Tracfone page and check that your phone is compatible by entering your ZIP code and MEID/ESN. Following the steps, you will be prompted to buy an activation kit, which will give you a SIM card and Network Access Code.

Additionally, you can go over to SaveonTracfone.com and buy the Activation kit there. You can choose between the 4G LTE and 3G kits, and it might be a few dollars cheaper.

Most users are reporting a quick and painless process, but you should be prepared if something doesn't work right, and you need to make a phone call to customer service.

Phone Requirements and Activating on Tracfone BYOP

Activation Card for 4G LTE

The requirements for what kind of phone can be activated with 4G service on Tracfone seems a little more straightforward than before. You need a device that is compatible with Verizon 4G LTE, which includes a wide variety of top of the line devices. It also needs a clean ESN, which means it can't be in contract, or stolen.

A 4G LTE device will need a SIM card to connect with Tracfone, and this will come with your activation kit. On a side note, once you have activated a Verizon compatible 4G LTE device, you can take the SIM and move it to many other devices that would not be able to activate on their own. Not all the details are clear on this, but many users are confirming switching between devices.

This could be very convenient for those who want to have a backup device, since you could just buy another phone, and then switch the SIM card to it if you ever needed to.

To activate your phone, make sure you have the 4G LTE activation kit (or start by getting it, which will be mailed to you in about a day) and then proceed through the steps on the Tracfone website or by calling Tracfone.

To review, here are the steps:

1. Get a 4G LTE compatible smartphone that runs on Verizon and has a clean ESN (is not on contract or stolen) and test it on the Tracfone BYOP website.

2. Follow the steps on Tracfone and purchase your Activation kit (SIM card) and Network Access Code. The SIM card will be mailed to you. You can Also purchase this through SaveOnTracfone.com.

3. Activate your 4G device only at Tracfone.com or over the phone.

If you have thoughts or questions on this process, check out the comments below.

Where to Find Phones for Tracfone BYOP

You need a 4G LTE capable device that is for Verizon service (CDMA) to use it with Tracfone BYOP. Fortunately, there are many different phone options, and many different retailers to choose from. Used or new will work, as long as they are not currently under contract.

One of the cheapest and easiest places to find phones is online. You can quickly browse many different options and price points, as well as used, new and refurbished. Follow the links below to get started and see some of the options. Once you have a certain phone in mind, you can search for that device.

Search for Verizon 4G LTE phones on Amazon

Search for Verizon 4G LTE phones on eBay

There are many more retailers to search including Newegg, BestBuy and more.

To get some ideas, and for a full list of compatible phones for both 3G and 4G LTE, visit our Tracfone BYOP page.

We hope this covers the exciting news about Tracfone's slow expansion into 4G LTE and hope that they will also add support for 4G on GSM networks.

Please let us know if we missed anything, we strive to provide accurate and helpful information!

If you're interested in other phone options, visit our LG Ultimate 2, which was our pick for the Best Tracfone Smartphone.

We have also created a list of the best Apps for Android with more than 40 great apps, almost all of which are free. I have found Clean Master App to be very handy for keeping my phone running well, and reducing wasted space.

Thanks for Visiting!

Use 4G LTE Smartphones with Tracfone BYOP program

This post details the latest on Tracfone BYOP and 4G LTE. We will continue to update it, as well as our main Tracfone BYOP page which also contains a list of compatible phones. 

Tracfone BYOP 4G LTE 

We are excited to share the news that Tracfone has now opened their BYOP agenda to 4G Smartphones! Previously, only Verizon compatible 3G phones were capable of being used with Tracfone BYOP (Bring Your Own Phone). This meant the best phones you could get were the iPhone 4s, Moto G, and other similar types. While these smartphones are great, they are not top of the line.

With 4G LTE now available with Tracfone, you can use the iPhone 6, or a Samsung Galaxy S6, or many other high-end devices and get the fastest data speeds. The only requirement is that it must be able to connect with Verizon 4G service to activate.

We will dive into more details on activating your phone and what kind of requirements there are after we cover the basics of how the Tracfone BYOP agenda works.

UPDATE: Tracfone is now offering Activation Kits for both CDMA and GSM devices. It appears that you can bring GSM devices compatible with AT&T to use with Tracfone BYOP. We will be sharing more details about this in a new post very soon.

How Tracfone BYOP 4G LTE Works

Using a 4G LTE device with Tracfone BYOP works similarly to bringing a 3G device to Tracfone. You will need to have your own smartphone, and it needs to be compatible with Verizon service.

Tracfone contracts with Verizon to use their cell towers for service, but everything goes through Tracfone. If you go outside the coverage of Verizon, you may lose service, or run on lower speeds.

To get started with Tracfone BYOP, you will visit this Tracfone page and check that your phone is compatible by entering your ZIP code and MEID/ESN. Following the steps, you will be prompted to buy an activation kit, which will give you a SIM card and Network Access Code.

Additionally, you can go over to SaveonTracfone.com and buy the Activation kit there. You can choose between the 4G LTE and 3G kits, and it might be a few dollars cheaper.

Most users are reporting a quick and painless process, but you should be prepared if something doesn't work right, and you need to make a phone call to customer service.

Phone Requirements and Activating on Tracfone BYOP

Activation Card for 4G LTE

The requirements for what kind of phone can be activated with 4G service on Tracfone seems a little more straightforward than before. You need a device that is compatible with Verizon 4G LTE, which includes a wide variety of top of the line devices. It also needs a clean ESN, which means it can't be in contract, or stolen.

A 4G LTE device will need a SIM card to connect with Tracfone, and this will come with your activation kit. On a side note, once you have activated a Verizon compatible 4G LTE device, you can take the SIM and move it to many other devices that would not be able to activate on their own. Not all the details are clear on this, but many users are confirming switching between devices.

This could be very convenient for those who want to have a backup device, since you could just buy another phone, and then switch the SIM card to it if you ever needed to.

To activate your phone, make sure you have the 4G LTE activation kit (or start by getting it, which will be mailed to you in about a day) and then proceed through the steps on the Tracfone website or by calling Tracfone.

To review, here are the steps:

1. Get a 4G LTE compatible smartphone that runs on Verizon and has a clean ESN (is not on contract or stolen) and test it on the Tracfone BYOP website.

2. Follow the steps on Tracfone and purchase your Activation kit (SIM card) and Network Access Code. The SIM card will be mailed to you. You can Also purchase this through SaveOnTracfone.com.

3. Activate your 4G device only at Tracfone.com or over the phone.

If you have thoughts or questions on this process, check out the comments below.

Where to Find Phones for Tracfone BYOP

You need a 4G LTE capable device that is for Verizon service (CDMA) to use it with Tracfone BYOP. Fortunately, there are many different phone options, and many different retailers to choose from. Used or new will work, as long as they are not currently under contract.

One of the cheapest and easiest places to find phones is online. You can quickly browse many different options and price points, as well as used, new and refurbished. Follow the links below to get started and see some of the options. Once you have a certain phone in mind, you can search for that device.

Search for Verizon 4G LTE phones on Amazon

Search for Verizon 4G LTE phones on eBay

There are many more retailers to search including Newegg, BestBuy and more.

To get some ideas, and for a full list of compatible phones for both 3G and 4G LTE, visit our Tracfone BYOP page.

We hope this covers the exciting news about Tracfone's slow expansion into 4G LTE and hope that they will also add support for 4G on GSM networks.

Please let us know if we missed anything, we strive to provide accurate and helpful information!

If you're interested in other phone options, visit our LG Ultimate 2, which was our pick for the Best Tracfone Smartphone.

We have also created a list of the best Apps for Android with more than 40 great apps, almost all of which are free. I have found Clean Master App to be very handy for keeping my phone running well, and reducing wasted space.

Thanks for Visiting!

Use 4G LTE Smartphones with Tracfone BYOP program

This post details the latest on Tracfone BYOP and 4G LTE. We will continue to update it, as well as our main Tracfone BYOP page which also contains a list of compatible phones. 

Tracfone BYOP 4G LTE 

We are excited to share the news that Tracfone has now opened their BYOP agenda to 4G Smartphones! Previously, only Verizon compatible 3G phones were capable of being used with Tracfone BYOP (Bring Your Own Phone). This meant the best phones you could get were the iPhone 4s, Moto G, and other similar types. While these smartphones are great, they are not top of the line.

With 4G LTE now available with Tracfone, you can use the iPhone 6, or a Samsung Galaxy S6, or many other high-end devices and get the fastest data speeds. The only requirement is that it must be able to connect with Verizon 4G service to activate.

We will dive into more details on activating your phone and what kind of requirements there are after we cover the basics of how the Tracfone BYOP agenda works.

UPDATE: Tracfone is now offering Activation Kits for both CDMA and GSM devices. It appears that you can bring GSM devices compatible with AT&T to use with Tracfone BYOP. We will be sharing more details about this in a new post very soon.

How Tracfone BYOP 4G LTE Works

Using a 4G LTE device with Tracfone BYOP works similarly to bringing a 3G device to Tracfone. You will need to have your own smartphone, and it needs to be compatible with Verizon service.

Tracfone contracts with Verizon to use their cell towers for service, but everything goes through Tracfone. If you go outside the coverage of Verizon, you may lose service, or run on lower speeds.

To get started with Tracfone BYOP, you will visit this Tracfone page and check that your phone is compatible by entering your ZIP code and MEID/ESN. Following the steps, you will be prompted to buy an activation kit, which will give you a SIM card and Network Access Code.

Additionally, you can go over to SaveonTracfone.com and buy the Activation kit there. You can choose between the 4G LTE and 3G kits, and it might be a few dollars cheaper.

Most users are reporting a quick and painless process, but you should be prepared if something doesn't work right, and you need to make a phone call to customer service.

Phone Requirements and Activating on Tracfone BYOP

Activation Card for 4G LTE

The requirements for what kind of phone can be activated with 4G service on Tracfone seems a little more straightforward than before. You need a device that is compatible with Verizon 4G LTE, which includes a wide variety of top of the line devices. It also needs a clean ESN, which means it can't be in contract, or stolen.

A 4G LTE device will need a SIM card to connect with Tracfone, and this will come with your activation kit. On a side note, once you have activated a Verizon compatible 4G LTE device, you can take the SIM and move it to many other devices that would not be able to activate on their own. Not all the details are clear on this, but many users are confirming switching between devices.

This could be very convenient for those who want to have a backup device, since you could just buy another phone, and then switch the SIM card to it if you ever needed to.

To activate your phone, make sure you have the 4G LTE activation kit (or start by getting it, which will be mailed to you in about a day) and then proceed through the steps on the Tracfone website or by calling Tracfone.

To review, here are the steps:

1. Get a 4G LTE compatible smartphone that runs on Verizon and has a clean ESN (is not on contract or stolen) and test it on the Tracfone BYOP website.

2. Follow the steps on Tracfone and purchase your Activation kit (SIM card) and Network Access Code. The SIM card will be mailed to you. You can Also purchase this through SaveOnTracfone.com.

3. Activate your 4G device only at Tracfone.com or over the phone.

If you have thoughts or questions on this process, check out the comments below.

Where to Find Phones for Tracfone BYOP

You need a 4G LTE capable device that is for Verizon service (CDMA) to use it with Tracfone BYOP. Fortunately, there are many different phone options, and many different retailers to choose from. Used or new will work, as long as they are not currently under contract.

One of the cheapest and easiest places to find phones is online. You can quickly browse many different options and price points, as well as used, new and refurbished. Follow the links below to get started and see some of the options. Once you have a certain phone in mind, you can search for that device.

Search for Verizon 4G LTE phones on Amazon

Search for Verizon 4G LTE phones on eBay

There are many more retailers to search including Newegg, BestBuy and more.

To get some ideas, and for a full list of compatible phones for both 3G and 4G LTE, visit our Tracfone BYOP page.

We hope this covers the exciting news about Tracfone's slow expansion into 4G LTE and hope that they will also add support for 4G on GSM networks.

Please let us know if we missed anything, we strive to provide accurate and helpful information!

If you're interested in other phone options, visit our LG Ultimate 2, which was our pick for the Best Tracfone Smartphone.

We have also created a list of the best Apps for Android with more than 40 great apps, almost all of which are free. I have found Clean Master App to be very handy for keeping my phone running well, and reducing wasted space.

Thanks for Visiting!

Worst Tracfone Cell Phones

List of the Worst Devices from Tracfone

This post is created by and shares some of the phones we wouldn't recommend for most Tracfone users. 

Worst Tracfone Cell Phone - photo from PicJumbo.com

Tracfone is a prepaid wireless cell phone company that provides low cost phones and cell coverage. The phones they offer are usually a few years behind the latest technology, and sometimes have some serious drawbacks.

Here at we provide lots of cell phone reviews, and are generally very excited about the new phones Tracfone releases, because we like the value (cost vs benefits) Tracfone provides and the new phones bring.

However, over the years there have been several phones released by Tracfone that have really been pretty poor, especially as we've had time to look at user reviews and compare them to other devices.

So which Tracfone cell phones are the worst? We're going to share our pick below!

Before we get to our pick, we want to clarify a few things first.

What Makes a Phone 'Bad'

We want to quickly clarify how we are defining a 'bad' phone. Basically any phone that either:

• Has issues that the majority of users experience - thus not a case of one defective phone, but all phones being defective.
• Or lacks proper features/specs to make the phone usable for the majority of people (and there are other phones available that do).

Both of these points are sometimes hard to recognize in a newly released phone because we either don't have enough input from user reviews, or we don't have other phones to compare the new device to.

Over time we are able to gain a better picture of whether a phone is 'good' or 'bad' based on how it is performing, and how it compares to other phones available.

This brings us to an important point:

'Bad' Phones can Still be 'Good' for Some People

Let's be clear, each person has different needs and expectations for a phone, and so some phones may not meet the needs/expectations of the majority of people, but for a few people it may perfectly meet their need.

Some Tracfone users prefer a smaller touchscreen and don't want the features that come with an Android powered smartphone.

So while we will be highlighting a few phones and designating them as 'bad' phones, they may still be a good choice for some people.

Drop a comment below if you want to add your thoughts on 'good' and 'bad' phones, or if we weren't clear in defining this.

Now, let's get to our picks for the worst Tracfone cell phones.

The Worst Tracfone Cell Phone

There are three phones that rise to the top of the list for worst cell phone from Tracfone. Number two and three are the ZTE Valet and the LG Optimus Dynamic. These two phones are basically tied for second worst phones from Tracfone.

The LG Optimus Dynamic, when it was released, had some of the best and most advanced features for a Tracfone device yet. It came with Android version 2.3 which allowed users access to thousands of apps on Google Play. Until the Optimus Dynamic, Tracfone users had not had access to a true smartphone.

When the LG Optimus Dynamic was only about $20, I picked one up and enjoyed using it for a while.

However, the Dynamic had a major flaw which brings it onto our list - very little internal memory for installing apps (the phone has 1 GB internal memory, but less than 200 MB that is actually usable)

One of the major strengths of a smartphone is the ability to install applications that can do many different things. So when the Optimus Dynamic could only hold a small handful of apps, it was defeating the purpose of being a smartphone. Some users were able to move apps to the external SD card, but not all users were interested in trying this, and were left with a phone that would often have 'memory full' messages pop up.

If you're looking for new apps, take a look at our List of the Best Apps for Android which may contain some new ideas for you!

The ZTE Valet came after the Optimus Dynamic, and improved on it in a few ways, such as a newer OS, Android 4.1. However the quality of the Valet was soon brought into question as many users noticed both poor sound quality when making phone calls, and poor WiFi reception in their home.

The Worst Tracfone is the Unimax MaxPatriot

These issues were prevalent for the majority of Valet users and caused many to look for a new phone soon after getting the Valet. The new and improved LG Optimus Dynamic II was a popular choice. Let's hope the issues with the ZTE Valet are cleared up for the more recently released ZTE Quartz.

And finally, the worst phone released by Tracfone is the Unimax MaxPatriot.

Unlike the ZTE Valet and LG Optimus Dynamic, the MaxPatriot was an inferior phone from the start. When it was released there were several other phones from Tracfone that were significantly better (specifically, the LG Ultimate 2). Plus, user comments and reviews quickly outlined a number of quality issues with the phone, and the phone manufacturer.

It is the only phone that we couldn't recommend for anyone, because there were phones that were both better and cheaper available at the same time. But some people still decided to try out the Unimax, and here are some of their comments:

Comment on the Unimax MaxPatriot

Comment on the Unimax MaxPatriot

And finally this user was clearly unhappy with the Unimax phone:

Comment on the Unimax MaxPatriot

Other comments were more restrained and merely read, "ditto on all the bad reviews."

To be fair, there were some comments from users who actually liked the phone, or at least weren't unhappy with it.

While there are other phones from Tracfone that do have their issues, none (as far as we know) were as bad as the Unimax MaxPatriot.

Let us know in the comments what your choice for the worst Tracfone would be, or if you have had a good experience with any of the phones in our list.

If you're looking for a new phone, we recommend taking a look at our Tracfone BYOP page where you can learn all about bringing your own phone to Tracfone. This includes a wide variety of GSM and CDMA phones, and even 4G LTE devices. You can find a list of compatible phones on that page as well.

We also recently reviewed the Call Detector App, which you can use on Android devices to block unwanted calls.

Stay up to date with the latest Tracfone news and information by following us on Facebook! As Black Friday and Christmas approach, Tracfone has traditionally released new phones or great deals, and we will share them both on the Facebook page, and here on the blog as we find them.

Thanks for visiting and we hope this post was useful and informative!

List of the Worst Devices from Tracfone

This post is created by and shares some of the phones we wouldn't recommend for most Tracfone users. 

Worst Tracfone Cell Phone - photo from PicJumbo.com

Tracfone is a prepaid wireless cell phone company that provides low cost phones and cell coverage. The phones they offer are usually a few years behind the latest technology, and sometimes have some serious drawbacks.

Here at we provide lots of cell phone reviews, and are generally very excited about the new phones Tracfone releases, because we like the value (cost vs benefits) Tracfone provides and the new phones bring.

However, over the years there have been several phones released by Tracfone that have really been pretty poor, especially as we've had time to look at user reviews and compare them to other devices.

So which Tracfone cell phones are the worst? We're going to share our pick below!

Before we get to our pick, we want to clarify a few things first.

What Makes a Phone 'Bad'

We want to quickly clarify how we are defining a 'bad' phone. Basically any phone that either:

• Has issues that the majority of users experience - thus not a case of one defective phone, but all phones being defective.
• Or lacks proper features/specs to make the phone usable for the majority of people (and there are other phones available that do).

Both of these points are sometimes hard to recognize in a newly released phone because we either don't have enough input from user reviews, or we don't have other phones to compare the new device to.

Over time we are able to gain a better picture of whether a phone is 'good' or 'bad' based on how it is performing, and how it compares to other phones available.

This brings us to an important point:

'Bad' Phones can Still be 'Good' for Some People

Let's be clear, each person has different needs and expectations for a phone, and so some phones may not meet the needs/expectations of the majority of people, but for a few people it may perfectly meet their need.

Some Tracfone users prefer a smaller touchscreen and don't want the features that come with an Android powered smartphone.

So while we will be highlighting a few phones and designating them as 'bad' phones, they may still be a good choice for some people.

Drop a comment below if you want to add your thoughts on 'good' and 'bad' phones, or if we weren't clear in defining this.

Now, let's get to our picks for the worst Tracfone cell phones.

The Worst Tracfone Cell Phone

There are three phones that rise to the top of the list for worst cell phone from Tracfone. Number two and three are the ZTE Valet and the LG Optimus Dynamic. These two phones are basically tied for second worst phones from Tracfone.

The LG Optimus Dynamic, when it was released, had some of the best and most advanced features for a Tracfone device yet. It came with Android version 2.3 which allowed users access to thousands of apps on Google Play. Until the Optimus Dynamic, Tracfone users had not had access to a true smartphone.

When the LG Optimus Dynamic was only about $20, I picked one up and enjoyed using it for a while.

However, the Dynamic had a major flaw which brings it onto our list - very little internal memory for installing apps (the phone has 1 GB internal memory, but less than 200 MB that is actually usable)

One of the major strengths of a smartphone is the ability to install applications that can do many different things. So when the Optimus Dynamic could only hold a small handful of apps, it was defeating the purpose of being a smartphone. Some users were able to move apps to the external SD card, but not all users were interested in trying this, and were left with a phone that would often have 'memory full' messages pop up.

If you're looking for new apps, take a look at our List of the Best Apps for Android which may contain some new ideas for you!

The ZTE Valet came after the Optimus Dynamic, and improved on it in a few ways, such as a newer OS, Android 4.1. However the quality of the Valet was soon brought into question as many users noticed both poor sound quality when making phone calls, and poor WiFi reception in their home.

The Worst Tracfone is the Unimax MaxPatriot

These issues were prevalent for the majority of Valet users and caused many to look for a new phone soon after getting the Valet. The new and improved LG Optimus Dynamic II was a popular choice. Let's hope the issues with the ZTE Valet are cleared up for the more recently released ZTE Quartz.

And finally, the worst phone released by Tracfone is the Unimax MaxPatriot.

Unlike the ZTE Valet and LG Optimus Dynamic, the MaxPatriot was an inferior phone from the start. When it was released there were several other phones from Tracfone that were significantly better (specifically, the LG Ultimate 2). Plus, user comments and reviews quickly outlined a number of quality issues with the phone, and the phone manufacturer.

It is the only phone that we couldn't recommend for anyone, because there were phones that were both better and cheaper available at the same time. But some people still decided to try out the Unimax, and here are some of their comments:

Comment on the Unimax MaxPatriot

Comment on the Unimax MaxPatriot

And finally this user was clearly unhappy with the Unimax phone:

Comment on the Unimax MaxPatriot

Other comments were more restrained and merely read, "ditto on all the bad reviews."

To be fair, there were some comments from users who actually liked the phone, or at least weren't unhappy with it.

While there are other phones from Tracfone that do have their issues, none (as far as we know) were as bad as the Unimax MaxPatriot.

Let us know in the comments what your choice for the worst Tracfone would be, or if you have had a good experience with any of the phones in our list.

If you're looking for a new phone, we recommend taking a look at our Tracfone BYOP page where you can learn all about bringing your own phone to Tracfone. This includes a wide variety of GSM and CDMA phones, and even 4G LTE devices. You can find a list of compatible phones on that page as well.

We also recently reviewed the Call Detector App, which you can use on Android devices to block unwanted calls.

Stay up to date with the latest Tracfone news and information by following us on Facebook! As Black Friday and Christmas approach, Tracfone has traditionally released new phones or great deals, and we will share them both on the Facebook page, and here on the blog as we find them.

Thanks for visiting and we hope this post was useful and informative!

List of the Worst Devices from Tracfone

This post is created by and shares some of the phones we wouldn't recommend for most Tracfone users. 

Worst Tracfone Cell Phone - photo from PicJumbo.com

Tracfone is a prepaid wireless cell phone company that provides low cost phones and cell coverage. The phones they offer are usually a few years behind the latest technology, and sometimes have some serious drawbacks.

Here at we provide lots of cell phone reviews, and are generally very excited about the new phones Tracfone releases, because we like the value (cost vs benefits) Tracfone provides and the new phones bring.

However, over the years there have been several phones released by Tracfone that have really been pretty poor, especially as we've had time to look at user reviews and compare them to other devices.

So which Tracfone cell phones are the worst? We're going to share our pick below!

Before we get to our pick, we want to clarify a few things first.

What Makes a Phone 'Bad'

We want to quickly clarify how we are defining a 'bad' phone. Basically any phone that either:

• Has issues that the majority of users experience - thus not a case of one defective phone, but all phones being defective.
• Or lacks proper features/specs to make the phone usable for the majority of people (and there are other phones available that do).

Both of these points are sometimes hard to recognize in a newly released phone because we either don't have enough input from user reviews, or we don't have other phones to compare the new device to.

Over time we are able to gain a better picture of whether a phone is 'good' or 'bad' based on how it is performing, and how it compares to other phones available.

This brings us to an important point:

'Bad' Phones can Still be 'Good' for Some People

Let's be clear, each person has different needs and expectations for a phone, and so some phones may not meet the needs/expectations of the majority of people, but for a few people it may perfectly meet their need.

Some Tracfone users prefer a smaller touchscreen and don't want the features that come with an Android powered smartphone.

So while we will be highlighting a few phones and designating them as 'bad' phones, they may still be a good choice for some people.

Drop a comment below if you want to add your thoughts on 'good' and 'bad' phones, or if we weren't clear in defining this.

Now, let's get to our picks for the worst Tracfone cell phones.

The Worst Tracfone Cell Phone

There are three phones that rise to the top of the list for worst cell phone from Tracfone. Number two and three are the ZTE Valet and the LG Optimus Dynamic. These two phones are basically tied for second worst phones from Tracfone.

The LG Optimus Dynamic, when it was released, had some of the best and most advanced features for a Tracfone device yet. It came with Android version 2.3 which allowed users access to thousands of apps on Google Play. Until the Optimus Dynamic, Tracfone users had not had access to a true smartphone.

When the LG Optimus Dynamic was only about $20, I picked one up and enjoyed using it for a while.

However, the Dynamic had a major flaw which brings it onto our list - very little internal memory for installing apps (the phone has 1 GB internal memory, but less than 200 MB that is actually usable)

One of the major strengths of a smartphone is the ability to install applications that can do many different things. So when the Optimus Dynamic could only hold a small handful of apps, it was defeating the purpose of being a smartphone. Some users were able to move apps to the external SD card, but not all users were interested in trying this, and were left with a phone that would often have 'memory full' messages pop up.

If you're looking for new apps, take a look at our List of the Best Apps for Android which may contain some new ideas for you!

The ZTE Valet came after the Optimus Dynamic, and improved on it in a few ways, such as a newer OS, Android 4.1. However the quality of the Valet was soon brought into question as many users noticed both poor sound quality when making phone calls, and poor WiFi reception in their home.

The Worst Tracfone is the Unimax MaxPatriot

These issues were prevalent for the majority of Valet users and caused many to look for a new phone soon after getting the Valet. The new and improved LG Optimus Dynamic II was a popular choice. Let's hope the issues with the ZTE Valet are cleared up for the more recently released ZTE Quartz.

And finally, the worst phone released by Tracfone is the Unimax MaxPatriot.

Unlike the ZTE Valet and LG Optimus Dynamic, the MaxPatriot was an inferior phone from the start. When it was released there were several other phones from Tracfone that were significantly better (specifically, the LG Ultimate 2). Plus, user comments and reviews quickly outlined a number of quality issues with the phone, and the phone manufacturer.

It is the only phone that we couldn't recommend for anyone, because there were phones that were both better and cheaper available at the same time. But some people still decided to try out the Unimax, and here are some of their comments:

Comment on the Unimax MaxPatriot

Comment on the Unimax MaxPatriot

And finally this user was clearly unhappy with the Unimax phone:

Comment on the Unimax MaxPatriot

Other comments were more restrained and merely read, "ditto on all the bad reviews."

To be fair, there were some comments from users who actually liked the phone, or at least weren't unhappy with it.

While there are other phones from Tracfone that do have their issues, none (as far as we know) were as bad as the Unimax MaxPatriot.

Let us know in the comments what your choice for the worst Tracfone would be, or if you have had a good experience with any of the phones in our list.

If you're looking for a new phone, we recommend taking a look at our Tracfone BYOP page where you can learn all about bringing your own phone to Tracfone. This includes a wide variety of GSM and CDMA phones, and even 4G LTE devices. You can find a list of compatible phones on that page as well.

We also recently reviewed the Call Detector App, which you can use on Android devices to block unwanted calls.

Stay up to date with the latest Tracfone news and information by following us on Facebook! As Black Friday and Christmas approach, Tracfone has traditionally released new phones or great deals, and we will share them both on the Facebook page, and here on the blog as we find them.

Thanks for visiting and we hope this post was useful and informative!

How To Block Unwanted Calls And Texts On Tracfone - The Call Detector App

Block Telemarketing Calls on your Smartphone with Call Detector App

Below we review and discuss an app available for Android users that can block unwanted calls. is a blog dedicated to providing resources and information about Tracfone, and we share lots of different things from cell phone reviews to promotional codes. So have a look around if you want to learn more about Tracfone!

How to Block Unwanted Phone Calls

Many Tracfone users find it even more annoying than the average person when they receive a telemarketing or other unwanted call because it costs airtime. Even if you answer, then then hang up moments later, it will still deduct minutes form your Tracfone account.


The only way to combat this for many users was to try and pay close attention to who was calling, and then simply try to avoid answering it. But this isn't always possible, and sometimes we answer the phone without thinking.

Unwanted texts are also another way we lose valuable minutes. And on Android phones, there isn't a way to choose which texts you open (and pay for) and which you don't. So any text you receive on an Android phone reduces your remaining text balance.

Well Tracfone must have noticed consumers dissatisfaction with this, because they recently started promoting a free App for Android phones that says it will, "block any unwanted phone calls as well as automatically block all known scam callers."

So does this app work and will it block those annoying telemarketers? We're here to test it and find out, and then share the results with you below.

For those who might not know, Tracfone is a prepaid wireless cell phone company. They offer both cell phones, and prepaid airtime that allows users to pay for only what they plan to use. You can learn more about Tracfone by reading our Beginners Guide to Tracfone.

What is the Call Detector App?

The Call Detector App makes it possible to select numbers from your contact list or recent callers and choose to block their number. This is really great if you tend to get a lot of unwanted calls form the same number.

Call Detector offers several more features as well:

• Automatically block known scammers
• Identify incoming telemarketing and debt collection calls
• block all incoming private or blocked numbers
• Easily report telemarketers/debt collectors through the app
• Caller ID (only limited number of uses on free version of the app)
• Reverse number lookup (only limited number of uses on free version of the app)

The app is free to download, but does offer a premium upgrade that removes ads, and allows users to have unlimited Caller ID and Reverse number lookup, among other bonuses.

The Call Detector App says it was specifically created for Tracfone and Tracfone's other companies like Straight Talk and Net10.

Now we want to share what we thought of the app in our review of the Call Detector app.

Call Detector App Review - Testing the App

Call Detector App Homescreen

We tested the LG Ultimate 2 active with Tracfone service and had no trouble downloading the app from Google Play, and quickly loading it up onto our homescreen. (we also tried downloading it on a Moto G 1st Gen that isn't active on any network, and the app wouldn't connect.)

The app takes up about 9 MB of space on the internal memory, which isn't very much, and not a duduk masalah for the Ultimate 2 that comes with around 4 GB internal memory, but for some of the older Android phones you may not have much room to work with.

When loading up the app you will have to give Call Detector access to a number of different things on your phone, but this is what allows the app to automatically block calls, and select numbers to block from your list of received calls.

The home screen is simple, and we were able to quickly view either a list of our contacts, or recently received calls and choose from these lists any phone numbers we wanted to block. You can also choose to view the apps activity (what phone calls it has blocked), file a complaint through the app, look up a number, or purchase the full version.

We selected a few numbers to block, and then tested the app by using those numbers to call the phone. When a blocked number calls, you briefly see the call screen flash on the smartphone's screen, and then the call is disconnected. In the app's activity section, you get to see who called and what time they called.

We also tested blocking text messages, which we can't tell if this app is supposed to block. It does track both the number of calls blocked and texts, but in our test the text message was not blocked. We're going to continue testing this.

Looking up numbers is also a convenient feature on the Call Detector app and sometimes we would get the name of the caller, other times just the location of where they were calling from. With the free version of the app you only have a certain number of numbers you can look up.

We were not able to test the app's claim that it automatically blocks known scammers, or can automatically notify you if the caller is a telemarketer or debt collector - we just haven't received any calls like this yet. But if you test this out, let us know in the comments how the app functions for you.

Does the Call Detector App Work?

Well, yes, it does seem to work well at blocking numbers you choose for it to block. This is very handy if there are certain callers who keep bothering you. Will it block text messages or automatically block telemarketers? We couldn't quite determine this and will continue to investigate.

Overall we found this app was well designed, looked good and functioned as expected. On Google Play it is rated 4.2 stars out of 5, which is a good rating. It also has more than 100,000 downloads and will work on Android versions 2.3 or higher.

There are a variety of other call blocking apps available on Google Play, but none of them seemed any better than Call Detector.

If you're tired of getting sales calls, or just want to block a few numbers, Call Detector is a great app for doing that.

You can read more about Call Detector, and download it for yourself, on Google Play.

We hope this information is helpful for you! Leave a comment if you have any questions, or want to share your experience using this app.

If you're interested in what Android phones Tracfone has to offer, take a look at our recently updated List of Tracfone Android phones. You can see all the smartphones available from Tracfone, and quickly compare some of the key features from each phone.

You may also be interested in the Tracfone BYOP program, which allows consumers to bring their own smartphone to use with Tracfone, including both GSM and CDMA 4G LTE devices.

Thanks for Visiting, and don't forget to join us on Facebook!

Block Telemarketing Calls on your Smartphone with Call Detector App

Below we review and discuss an app available for Android users that can block unwanted calls. is a blog dedicated to providing resources and information about Tracfone, and we share lots of different things from cell phone reviews to promotional codes. So have a look around if you want to learn more about Tracfone!

How to Block Unwanted Phone Calls

Many Tracfone users find it even more annoying than the average person when they receive a telemarketing or other unwanted call because it costs airtime. Even if you answer, then then hang up moments later, it will still deduct minutes form your Tracfone account.


The only way to combat this for many users was to try and pay close attention to who was calling, and then simply try to avoid answering it. But this isn't always possible, and sometimes we answer the phone without thinking.

Unwanted texts are also another way we lose valuable minutes. And on Android phones, there isn't a way to choose which texts you open (and pay for) and which you don't. So any text you receive on an Android phone reduces your remaining text balance.

Well Tracfone must have noticed consumers dissatisfaction with this, because they recently started promoting a free App for Android phones that says it will, "block any unwanted phone calls as well as automatically block all known scam callers."

So does this app work and will it block those annoying telemarketers? We're here to test it and find out, and then share the results with you below.

For those who might not know, Tracfone is a prepaid wireless cell phone company. They offer both cell phones, and prepaid airtime that allows users to pay for only what they plan to use. You can learn more about Tracfone by reading our Beginners Guide to Tracfone.

What is the Call Detector App?

The Call Detector App makes it possible to select numbers from your contact list or recent callers and choose to block their number. This is really great if you tend to get a lot of unwanted calls form the same number.

Call Detector offers several more features as well:

• Automatically block known scammers
• Identify incoming telemarketing and debt collection calls
• block all incoming private or blocked numbers
• Easily report telemarketers/debt collectors through the app
• Caller ID (only limited number of uses on free version of the app)
• Reverse number lookup (only limited number of uses on free version of the app)

The app is free to download, but does offer a premium upgrade that removes ads, and allows users to have unlimited Caller ID and Reverse number lookup, among other bonuses.

The Call Detector App says it was specifically created for Tracfone and Tracfone's other companies like Straight Talk and Net10.

Now we want to share what we thought of the app in our review of the Call Detector app.

Call Detector App Review - Testing the App

Call Detector App Homescreen

We tested the LG Ultimate 2 active with Tracfone service and had no trouble downloading the app from Google Play, and quickly loading it up onto our homescreen. (we also tried downloading it on a Moto G 1st Gen that isn't active on any network, and the app wouldn't connect.)

The app takes up about 9 MB of space on the internal memory, which isn't very much, and not a duduk masalah for the Ultimate 2 that comes with around 4 GB internal memory, but for some of the older Android phones you may not have much room to work with.

When loading up the app you will have to give Call Detector access to a number of different things on your phone, but this is what allows the app to automatically block calls, and select numbers to block from your list of received calls.

The home screen is simple, and we were able to quickly view either a list of our contacts, or recently received calls and choose from these lists any phone numbers we wanted to block. You can also choose to view the apps activity (what phone calls it has blocked), file a complaint through the app, look up a number, or purchase the full version.

We selected a few numbers to block, and then tested the app by using those numbers to call the phone. When a blocked number calls, you briefly see the call screen flash on the smartphone's screen, and then the call is disconnected. In the app's activity section, you get to see who called and what time they called.

We also tested blocking text messages, which we can't tell if this app is supposed to block. It does track both the number of calls blocked and texts, but in our test the text message was not blocked. We're going to continue testing this.

Looking up numbers is also a convenient feature on the Call Detector app and sometimes we would get the name of the caller, other times just the location of where they were calling from. With the free version of the app you only have a certain number of numbers you can look up.

We were not able to test the app's claim that it automatically blocks known scammers, or can automatically notify you if the caller is a telemarketer or debt collector - we just haven't received any calls like this yet. But if you test this out, let us know in the comments how the app functions for you.

Does the Call Detector App Work?

Well, yes, it does seem to work well at blocking numbers you choose for it to block. This is very handy if there are certain callers who keep bothering you. Will it block text messages or automatically block telemarketers? We couldn't quite determine this and will continue to investigate.

Overall we found this app was well designed, looked good and functioned as expected. On Google Play it is rated 4.2 stars out of 5, which is a good rating. It also has more than 100,000 downloads and will work on Android versions 2.3 or higher.

There are a variety of other call blocking apps available on Google Play, but none of them seemed any better than Call Detector.

If you're tired of getting sales calls, or just want to block a few numbers, Call Detector is a great app for doing that.

You can read more about Call Detector, and download it for yourself, on Google Play.

We hope this information is helpful for you! Leave a comment if you have any questions, or want to share your experience using this app.

If you're interested in what Android phones Tracfone has to offer, take a look at our recently updated List of Tracfone Android phones. You can see all the smartphones available from Tracfone, and quickly compare some of the key features from each phone.

You may also be interested in the Tracfone BYOP program, which allows consumers to bring their own smartphone to use with Tracfone, including both GSM and CDMA 4G LTE devices.

Thanks for Visiting, and don't forget to join us on Facebook!

The Future Of Tracfone In 2016

What to Expect in 2016 with Tracfone and a Look Back at 2015

What does the Future hold for Tracfone in 2016?

2016 is upon us and its time to share our thoughts on what to expect from Tracfone in the new year. We will cover what direction we think Tracfone is moving, any changes to the products and services they offer, and some things we hope they will do in the next 12 months.

While is not associated or affiliated with Tracfone in any way, we carefully follow and try to stay up to date on everything going on with Tracfone so that we can share it with our readers and followers on the blog. Below we will give some general opinions and thoughts on what to expect from Tracfone in 2016, but remember that these are just educated guesses based on our experiences. Please share your thoughts and expectations in the comments at the end of this post.

Before we jump into 2016, lets review what Tracfone did in 2015, as it has been a year full with new phones, progression and expansion in service from Tracfone, and various other changes.

Tracfone Year in Review - 2015

While plenty has happened with Tracfone in 2015 we want to highlight three particular changes that were greeted with excitement and enthusiasm from consumers. The Three changes were airtime cards for smartphones, expansion of the BYOP program, and new smartphones available from Tracfone.

Data-Only and Text-Only Airtime Cards for Smartphones
When smartphones came to Tracfone in 2013, the airtime added to these phones was changed to split into three categories - Talk, Text and Data. What this meant was that if you ran out of one category, like text messages, you would have to buy more airtime for all three, even if you only need more texts!

A lot of Tracfone users were annoyed that they had an abundance of one or two categories, but were always running low on another category. Thus, when Tracfone released Data-Only Airtime cards and eventually Text-Only cards, many users were very happy to see them.

You can take a look at our post on the Tracfone Data Cards and Text Cards to learn more about them, and if they are a good deal.

Tracfone also released smartphone-only airtime cards that give you specific amounts of Talk time, Texts and Data and do no triple. We Analyzed the New Tracfone Smartphone Airtime Cards and offered our opinion on what ones are the best deal.

4G LTE BYOP for both GSM and CDMA
4G LTE coverage with Tracfone BYOP was probably the most exciting advance Tracfone made in 2015. They opened the door to a host of much more advanced smartphones that could be used with their service and many users took advantage of this and upgraded. Now you can bring an iPhone 6 or a Samsung Galaxy S6 to use with either GSM or CDMA cell service through Tracfone's prepaid service.

LG Sunset with 4G LTE Service
For all of 2014 Tracfone only offered 3G CDMA smartphones for sale and many consumers who didn't have good CDMA coverage were frustrate that they couldn't upgrade to a smartphone. But in 2015 Tracfone released the LG Sunset, which was the second Android phone from Tracfone that uses GSM coverage, and the first with 4G LTE service.

We hope the Sunset will be the first of many more advanced 4G phones coming to Tracfone.

Now that we've looked back at the year, time to see what's in store with Tracfone for 2016!

What to Expect from Tracfone in 2016

We believe Tracfone will move in two primary directions for 2016; release more low-end smartphones and continue to promote the BYOP program.

Already we have seen significant advertising and promotions for bringing your own phone to Tracfone. They have done a lot to improve the process, including webpages dedicated to checking your phone's compatibility and activating the device. Tracfone has also released a number of smartphone-only airtime cards, that can be used with either BYOP devices or Tracfone smartphones.

It would appear that Tracfone has found a successful niche for themselves in providing pay-as-you-go service to consumers who don't want contracts or don't need unlimited service. The major carriers like Verizon and AT&T don't really compete with Tracfone because they sasaran very different segments of the cell phone market (heavy users vs light users).

Tracfone has the opportunity to release their own smartphones and we hope they will continue to advance and catch up with the kind of phones you can use on the BYOP program. However, Tracfone will likely only offer devices in the $100-200 range that are a few years old. If consumers want a high-end phone to use with Tracfone, they will have to bring their own.

We do expect Tracfone to continue offering non-smartphones, but don't expect they will be offering any new or updated devices. They released very few, if any, non-android phones in 2015, and that Trend will probably continue. You can still buy plenty of 'dumb' phones from Tracfone, so don't worry about that disappearing anytime soon, it is a strong part of their profitability.

One of the weaknesses that Tracfone faces and needs to fix in 2016 is their somewhat complicated airtime structure. For new users, it can be confusing to know what which airtime is best for them to purchase, and exactly how it will be added to their phone. Right now, Tracfone offers both regular airtime cards that triple when added to a smartphone, and also smartphone-only cards that don't triple. There are airtime plans that give you minutes and 30 days of service every month, and there are auto-renewal options that automatically add a new 90 day airtime card to your phone every 3 months. We will have to wait and see if any changes come, but it is a small barrier for new customers.

Finally, we would recommend our readers continue in the direction that best suits them. So if you prefer the features and speed that a higher-end smartphone can give, then buy your own phone on Amazon, eBay or other retailers and bring it to use with Tracfone. You will have a great device and only be paying a small amount each month for service.

If you prefer a more simple device and less hassle in activating it, then go with a Tracfone branded phone. These won't be disappearing anytime soon.

We also suggest looking into some of the value plans Tracfone offers, or at buying the 1 Year/ 400 Minute Airtime card because these are some of the better deals offered by Tracfone and will help save you money if you're currently buying a 60 Minute Card every 3 months or so.

Tracfone looks like they are growing and pushing their BYOP kegiatan and we think they will continue in 2016 as the leaders of pay-as-you-go service.

We hope this post was help and gives you some perspective and ideas on where Tracfone may be heading in the coming months. Please leave a comment below with any questions or thoughts from this post.

If you are still looking for gift ideas, or have a gift card to spend, take a look at our Top 10 List of Tracfone Gift Ideas which includes many fun ideas for Tracfone users.

Thanks for vising and for another great year here at . Happy New Year!

What to Expect in 2016 with Tracfone and a Look Back at 2015

What does the Future hold for Tracfone in 2016?

2016 is upon us and its time to share our thoughts on what to expect from Tracfone in the new year. We will cover what direction we think Tracfone is moving, any changes to the products and services they offer, and some things we hope they will do in the next 12 months.

While is not associated or affiliated with Tracfone in any way, we carefully follow and try to stay up to date on everything going on with Tracfone so that we can share it with our readers and followers on the blog. Below we will give some general opinions and thoughts on what to expect from Tracfone in 2016, but remember that these are just educated guesses based on our experiences. Please share your thoughts and expectations in the comments at the end of this post.

Before we jump into 2016, lets review what Tracfone did in 2015, as it has been a year full with new phones, progression and expansion in service from Tracfone, and various other changes.

Tracfone Year in Review - 2015

While plenty has happened with Tracfone in 2015 we want to highlight three particular changes that were greeted with excitement and enthusiasm from consumers. The Three changes were airtime cards for smartphones, expansion of the BYOP program, and new smartphones available from Tracfone.

Data-Only and Text-Only Airtime Cards for Smartphones
When smartphones came to Tracfone in 2013, the airtime added to these phones was changed to split into three categories - Talk, Text and Data. What this meant was that if you ran out of one category, like text messages, you would have to buy more airtime for all three, even if you only need more texts!

A lot of Tracfone users were annoyed that they had an abundance of one or two categories, but were always running low on another category. Thus, when Tracfone released Data-Only Airtime cards and eventually Text-Only cards, many users were very happy to see them.

You can take a look at our post on the Tracfone Data Cards and Text Cards to learn more about them, and if they are a good deal.

Tracfone also released smartphone-only airtime cards that give you specific amounts of Talk time, Texts and Data and do no triple. We Analyzed the New Tracfone Smartphone Airtime Cards and offered our opinion on what ones are the best deal.

4G LTE BYOP for both GSM and CDMA
4G LTE coverage with Tracfone BYOP was probably the most exciting advance Tracfone made in 2015. They opened the door to a host of much more advanced smartphones that could be used with their service and many users took advantage of this and upgraded. Now you can bring an iPhone 6 or a Samsung Galaxy S6 to use with either GSM or CDMA cell service through Tracfone's prepaid service.

LG Sunset with 4G LTE Service
For all of 2014 Tracfone only offered 3G CDMA smartphones for sale and many consumers who didn't have good CDMA coverage were frustrate that they couldn't upgrade to a smartphone. But in 2015 Tracfone released the LG Sunset, which was the second Android phone from Tracfone that uses GSM coverage, and the first with 4G LTE service.

We hope the Sunset will be the first of many more advanced 4G phones coming to Tracfone.

Now that we've looked back at the year, time to see what's in store with Tracfone for 2016!

What to Expect from Tracfone in 2016

We believe Tracfone will move in two primary directions for 2016; release more low-end smartphones and continue to promote the BYOP program.

Already we have seen significant advertising and promotions for bringing your own phone to Tracfone. They have done a lot to improve the process, including webpages dedicated to checking your phone's compatibility and activating the device. Tracfone has also released a number of smartphone-only airtime cards, that can be used with either BYOP devices or Tracfone smartphones.

It would appear that Tracfone has found a successful niche for themselves in providing pay-as-you-go service to consumers who don't want contracts or don't need unlimited service. The major carriers like Verizon and AT&T don't really compete with Tracfone because they sasaran very different segments of the cell phone market (heavy users vs light users).

Tracfone has the opportunity to release their own smartphones and we hope they will continue to advance and catch up with the kind of phones you can use on the BYOP program. However, Tracfone will likely only offer devices in the $100-200 range that are a few years old. If consumers want a high-end phone to use with Tracfone, they will have to bring their own.

We do expect Tracfone to continue offering non-smartphones, but don't expect they will be offering any new or updated devices. They released very few, if any, non-android phones in 2015, and that Trend will probably continue. You can still buy plenty of 'dumb' phones from Tracfone, so don't worry about that disappearing anytime soon, it is a strong part of their profitability.

One of the weaknesses that Tracfone faces and needs to fix in 2016 is their somewhat complicated airtime structure. For new users, it can be confusing to know what which airtime is best for them to purchase, and exactly how it will be added to their phone. Right now, Tracfone offers both regular airtime cards that triple when added to a smartphone, and also smartphone-only cards that don't triple. There are airtime plans that give you minutes and 30 days of service every month, and there are auto-renewal options that automatically add a new 90 day airtime card to your phone every 3 months. We will have to wait and see if any changes come, but it is a small barrier for new customers.

Finally, we would recommend our readers continue in the direction that best suits them. So if you prefer the features and speed that a higher-end smartphone can give, then buy your own phone on Amazon, eBay or other retailers and bring it to use with Tracfone. You will have a great device and only be paying a small amount each month for service.

If you prefer a more simple device and less hassle in activating it, then go with a Tracfone branded phone. These won't be disappearing anytime soon.

We also suggest looking into some of the value plans Tracfone offers, or at buying the 1 Year/ 400 Minute Airtime card because these are some of the better deals offered by Tracfone and will help save you money if you're currently buying a 60 Minute Card every 3 months or so.

Tracfone looks like they are growing and pushing their BYOP kegiatan and we think they will continue in 2016 as the leaders of pay-as-you-go service.

We hope this post was help and gives you some perspective and ideas on where Tracfone may be heading in the coming months. Please leave a comment below with any questions or thoughts from this post.

If you are still looking for gift ideas, or have a gift card to spend, take a look at our Top 10 List of Tracfone Gift Ideas which includes many fun ideas for Tracfone users.

Thanks for vising and for another great year here at . Happy New Year!

Tracfone Samsung Galaxy S5 Review

Samsung Galaxy S5 Review - Tracfone Android Smartphone

Below we share our review of the Samsung Galaxy S5 that is for use with Tracfone prepaid service. TracfoneReviewer is a blog that shares information, reviews and much more about Tracfone Wireless to help consumers save money and find answers to their questions.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Review for Tracfone

If you're looking for a powerful smartphone to use with Tracfone and don't want to try out the BYOP program, the Samsung Galaxy S5 from Tracfone might be the phone for you.

Three new (to Tracfone) phones recently became available including the Samsung Galaxy S5, which was the most notable of the trio for us (the other two are the Samsung Galaxy E5 and Samsung Galaxy Core Prime).

The Samsung Galaxy S5 was first released to the public in April of 2015, making it one of the most recent phones Tracfone has added to their lineup. Many of the phones that Tracfone releases to use with their service are several years old, which is challenging for smartphone users where technology is progressing at a rapid pace. A phone that is a few years old will generally do the basic functions just fine, but will struggle and run slowly when trying to operate with multiple applications running at one time.

The Galaxy S5, however, is a phone that can keep up with multiple programs running at once, or even more resource intensive apps and games, due to its fast, quad-core processor and 2 GB of RAM.

Before we get too far, let's look at some pro's and con's we've discovered.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Quick Facts

The Good Points:
-Great Camera - 16 MP
-Lots of Memory/Storage - 16 GB
-Large Touchscreen - 5.1"
-4G LTE

The Not so Good:
-Expensive - currently $500 with 1 Year/400 minute airtime card bundle
-Older OS - Android 4.4

The Samsung Galaxy S5 from Tracfone is basically a really great smartphone with a lot of impressive features that users have been desiring for a long time. But, its expensive. Let's dig into the full list of features and phone specifications for the Galaxy S5 to see how this phone is better than any other device offered by Tracfone at this time.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Features and Specs

Below are the features for the Galaxy S5, followed by the phone specifications.

• Android 4.4.2 KitKat
• 4G LTE service through Verizon CDMA cell towers
• 16 MP Rear Camera, 2 MP Front
• WiFi and Bluetooth
• GPS
• NFC
• 3 Home Screens
• Access to over 1 Million Apps on Google Play
• Triple Talk, Text and Data
• Caller ID, Voice Dialing, Voicemail
• Hearing Aid Compatible
• Alarm Clock
• MP3 Player
• Hadsfree Speaker
• Heart rate sensor
• Air Gestures, Smart Scroll and Smart Pause
• IP67 Certified - Dust and Water Resistant (1 Meter/30 Minutes underwater)

Samsung Galaxy S5 Technical Specs

• Size: 5.59" x 2.84" x 0.31"
• 5.1" Touchscreen (capacitive) at 1080x1920 resolution (432 ppi pixel density)
• 2.5 Ghz Quad core processor
• 2 GB RAM
• 16 GB Internal Memory
• Battery: 2800 mAh with 29 hrs talk time, 27 days standby (removable)

This phone brings a whole host of features and upgrades that most Tracfone users haven't experienced because no other Tracfone device at this time can compare to the Samsung Galaxy S5 (except, perhaps, the Galaxy E5). The LG Sunset, for example, has 1 GB RAM, 8 GB Internal Memory and  a 5 MP Camera, about half as good on each of those features compared to the Galaxy S5. But the Sunset does have 4G LTE just like the S5.

Let's get into what we like and don't like about this phone, where we will also review many of the great features the Galaxy S5 comes with.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Review - What we Like (and don't like) About the S5 for Tracfone

What we Like:
The Samsung Galaxy S5 was the flagship phone for Samsung when it was launched, which means it was loaded up with the best tech and newest features. We like a lot of things about this phone, because it comes with a lot. So let's break it down and get into reviewing some of the most exciting features.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Front and Back

The first thing you notice about this phone is the screen, which is an impressive 5.1" and has a resolution of 1080x1920, which is better than any other Tracfone smartphone at this time. It also has a pixel density of about 430, making for very crisp, clear viewing on this phone.

Internal memory and RAM are both great features on the S5, which comes with 16 GB for storing apps, photos and other things, and 2 GB for running multiple apps at once. The 2.5 Ghz processor is also very good, and should have no dilema keeping up with the latest games and applications you may want to run on your phone.

For Tracfone users who want to do some phone photography, the Galaxy S5 has a very impressive 16 MP rear camera that comes with a host of features all to itself. You also get a 2.1 MP front camera for selfies and video chatting. The rear camera has auto-focus and flash, and will record video at UHD 4K quality. Take a look at some photo samples on flickr to see the quality for yourself.

One additional feature that we're quite impressed by is the Galaxy S5's IP67 rating, which means that it is dust resistant, and water resistant up to 1 meter deep, for 30 minutes. You can watch some of the waterproof tests on YouTube if you're interested. It is never a bad thing to have a phone that won't be ruined because of an accident or a moment of forgetfulness.

Finally the S5 does come with a handful of extra features that may or may not be useful to you, like a heartbeat sensor, gesture controls, smart scrolling and more.

For performance and features, the Galaxy S5 is unmatched by any other Tracfone device at this time, and delivers a full smartphone experience.

It's not all good news though, we do want to share a couple of concerns about the Galaxy S5.

Dislikes for the Samsung Galaxy S5
While there are so many great features with the Samsung Galaxy S5, there are two things we don't like, that might be deal-breakers for some Tracfone users. The first is the price, which is rather steep. The Galaxy S5 is only available through online retailers HSN.com and it is listed for $499 bundled with a 1 Year/ 400 Minute card, and some additional items. The airtime card is worth $100, making the phone cost closer to $399.

Our issue with the price is that you can find an unlocked Samsung Galaxy S5 on Amazon for $325 (and closer to $200 if you're willing to buy a refurbished model). You can then get a SIM card from Tracfone, and use the phone on the BYOP program.

The second negative about the Samsung Galaxy S5 is that it comes with Android 4.4.2, and cannot be updated. If you get the unlocked version, and bring it to Tracfone's BYOP program, you will be able to update it to version 5.0.1, but the Tracfone version is locked at Android Kitkat, which has some known security issues. If you are concerned about your phone's security, then look into the BYOP program.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Overview and Additional Resources

If the two negative aspects of the S5 don't worry you, then the Samsung Galaxy S5 is a great buy and a great smartphone to use on Tracfone's low cost prepaid network. You will be getting high performance at low monthly costs.

But if the price and possible security issues are a worry, we strongly recommend looking into the BYOP jadwal from Tracfone which allows consumers to bring a wide variety of devices to use with Tracfone.

The Samsung Galaxy S5 is available from HSN with a minutes bundle and is listed for $499.

We will update this when we find the phone available from other sources.

View the Galaxy S5's Interactive Tutorial to learn more about how the phone works, or visit Samusng's website for the S5 to read up on what they have for the phone, which includes a user manual.

If you're new to using smartphones with Tracfone, take a look at some of our popular articles we've posted including:
How to Check your Airtime on Tracfone Android Phones
How Minutes Work on Tracfone Smartphones
How to Buy Only Texts for your Smartphone
Are Data Cards a Good Deal from Tracfone?
Analysis of the New Smartphone Only Airtime Cards from Tracfone

If you have any further thoughts or questions, leave a comment below. Each comment is reviewed before posting.

Stay up to date with the latest Tracfone news and gosip by joining over 1700 others who follow us on Facebook!

And if you're new to Tracfone, start with our Beginners Guide to Tracfone which explains some of how using Tracfone service works.

Thanks for visiting!

Samsung Galaxy S5 Review - Tracfone Android Smartphone

Below we share our review of the Samsung Galaxy S5 that is for use with Tracfone prepaid service. TracfoneReviewer is a blog that shares information, reviews and much more about Tracfone Wireless to help consumers save money and find answers to their questions.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Review for Tracfone

If you're looking for a powerful smartphone to use with Tracfone and don't want to try out the BYOP program, the Samsung Galaxy S5 from Tracfone might be the phone for you.

Three new (to Tracfone) phones recently became available including the Samsung Galaxy S5, which was the most notable of the trio for us (the other two are the Samsung Galaxy E5 and Samsung Galaxy Core Prime).

The Samsung Galaxy S5 was first released to the public in April of 2015, making it one of the most recent phones Tracfone has added to their lineup. Many of the phones that Tracfone releases to use with their service are several years old, which is challenging for smartphone users where technology is progressing at a rapid pace. A phone that is a few years old will generally do the basic functions just fine, but will struggle and run slowly when trying to operate with multiple applications running at one time.

The Galaxy S5, however, is a phone that can keep up with multiple programs running at once, or even more resource intensive apps and games, due to its fast, quad-core processor and 2 GB of RAM.

Before we get too far, let's look at some pro's and con's we've discovered.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Quick Facts

The Good Points:
-Great Camera - 16 MP
-Lots of Memory/Storage - 16 GB
-Large Touchscreen - 5.1"
-4G LTE

The Not so Good:
-Expensive - currently $500 with 1 Year/400 minute airtime card bundle
-Older OS - Android 4.4

The Samsung Galaxy S5 from Tracfone is basically a really great smartphone with a lot of impressive features that users have been desiring for a long time. But, its expensive. Let's dig into the full list of features and phone specifications for the Galaxy S5 to see how this phone is better than any other device offered by Tracfone at this time.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Features and Specs

Below are the features for the Galaxy S5, followed by the phone specifications.

• Android 4.4.2 KitKat
• 4G LTE service through Verizon CDMA cell towers
• 16 MP Rear Camera, 2 MP Front
• WiFi and Bluetooth
• GPS
• NFC
• 3 Home Screens
• Access to over 1 Million Apps on Google Play
• Triple Talk, Text and Data
• Caller ID, Voice Dialing, Voicemail
• Hearing Aid Compatible
• Alarm Clock
• MP3 Player
• Hadsfree Speaker
• Heart rate sensor
• Air Gestures, Smart Scroll and Smart Pause
• IP67 Certified - Dust and Water Resistant (1 Meter/30 Minutes underwater)

Samsung Galaxy S5 Technical Specs

• Size: 5.59" x 2.84" x 0.31"
• 5.1" Touchscreen (capacitive) at 1080x1920 resolution (432 ppi pixel density)
• 2.5 Ghz Quad core processor
• 2 GB RAM
• 16 GB Internal Memory
• Battery: 2800 mAh with 29 hrs talk time, 27 days standby (removable)

This phone brings a whole host of features and upgrades that most Tracfone users haven't experienced because no other Tracfone device at this time can compare to the Samsung Galaxy S5 (except, perhaps, the Galaxy E5). The LG Sunset, for example, has 1 GB RAM, 8 GB Internal Memory and  a 5 MP Camera, about half as good on each of those features compared to the Galaxy S5. But the Sunset does have 4G LTE just like the S5.

Let's get into what we like and don't like about this phone, where we will also review many of the great features the Galaxy S5 comes with.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Review - What we Like (and don't like) About the S5 for Tracfone

What we Like:
The Samsung Galaxy S5 was the flagship phone for Samsung when it was launched, which means it was loaded up with the best tech and newest features. We like a lot of things about this phone, because it comes with a lot. So let's break it down and get into reviewing some of the most exciting features.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Front and Back

The first thing you notice about this phone is the screen, which is an impressive 5.1" and has a resolution of 1080x1920, which is better than any other Tracfone smartphone at this time. It also has a pixel density of about 430, making for very crisp, clear viewing on this phone.

Internal memory and RAM are both great features on the S5, which comes with 16 GB for storing apps, photos and other things, and 2 GB for running multiple apps at once. The 2.5 Ghz processor is also very good, and should have no dilema keeping up with the latest games and applications you may want to run on your phone.

For Tracfone users who want to do some phone photography, the Galaxy S5 has a very impressive 16 MP rear camera that comes with a host of features all to itself. You also get a 2.1 MP front camera for selfies and video chatting. The rear camera has auto-focus and flash, and will record video at UHD 4K quality. Take a look at some photo samples on flickr to see the quality for yourself.

One additional feature that we're quite impressed by is the Galaxy S5's IP67 rating, which means that it is dust resistant, and water resistant up to 1 meter deep, for 30 minutes. You can watch some of the waterproof tests on YouTube if you're interested. It is never a bad thing to have a phone that won't be ruined because of an accident or a moment of forgetfulness.

Finally the S5 does come with a handful of extra features that may or may not be useful to you, like a heartbeat sensor, gesture controls, smart scrolling and more.

For performance and features, the Galaxy S5 is unmatched by any other Tracfone device at this time, and delivers a full smartphone experience.

It's not all good news though, we do want to share a couple of concerns about the Galaxy S5.

Dislikes for the Samsung Galaxy S5
While there are so many great features with the Samsung Galaxy S5, there are two things we don't like, that might be deal-breakers for some Tracfone users. The first is the price, which is rather steep. The Galaxy S5 is only available through online retailers HSN.com and it is listed for $499 bundled with a 1 Year/ 400 Minute card, and some additional items. The airtime card is worth $100, making the phone cost closer to $399.

Our issue with the price is that you can find an unlocked Samsung Galaxy S5 on Amazon for $325 (and closer to $200 if you're willing to buy a refurbished model). You can then get a SIM card from Tracfone, and use the phone on the BYOP program.

The second negative about the Samsung Galaxy S5 is that it comes with Android 4.4.2, and cannot be updated. If you get the unlocked version, and bring it to Tracfone's BYOP program, you will be able to update it to version 5.0.1, but the Tracfone version is locked at Android Kitkat, which has some known security issues. If you are concerned about your phone's security, then look into the BYOP program.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Overview and Additional Resources

If the two negative aspects of the S5 don't worry you, then the Samsung Galaxy S5 is a great buy and a great smartphone to use on Tracfone's low cost prepaid network. You will be getting high performance at low monthly costs.

But if the price and possible security issues are a worry, we strongly recommend looking into the BYOP jadwal from Tracfone which allows consumers to bring a wide variety of devices to use with Tracfone.

The Samsung Galaxy S5 is available from HSN with a minutes bundle and is listed for $499.

We will update this when we find the phone available from other sources.

View the Galaxy S5's Interactive Tutorial to learn more about how the phone works, or visit Samusng's website for the S5 to read up on what they have for the phone, which includes a user manual.

If you're new to using smartphones with Tracfone, take a look at some of our popular articles we've posted including:
How to Check your Airtime on Tracfone Android Phones
How Minutes Work on Tracfone Smartphones
How to Buy Only Texts for your Smartphone
Are Data Cards a Good Deal from Tracfone?
Analysis of the New Smartphone Only Airtime Cards from Tracfone

If you have any further thoughts or questions, leave a comment below. Each comment is reviewed before posting.

Stay up to date with the latest Tracfone news and gosip by joining over 1700 others who follow us on Facebook!

And if you're new to Tracfone, start with our Beginners Guide to Tracfone which explains some of how using Tracfone service works.

Thanks for visiting!

Samsung Galaxy S5 Review - Tracfone Android Smartphone

Below we share our review of the Samsung Galaxy S5 that is for use with Tracfone prepaid service. TracfoneReviewer is a blog that shares information, reviews and much more about Tracfone Wireless to help consumers save money and find answers to their questions.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Review for Tracfone

If you're looking for a powerful smartphone to use with Tracfone and don't want to try out the BYOP program, the Samsung Galaxy S5 from Tracfone might be the phone for you.

Three new (to Tracfone) phones recently became available including the Samsung Galaxy S5, which was the most notable of the trio for us (the other two are the Samsung Galaxy E5 and Samsung Galaxy Core Prime).

The Samsung Galaxy S5 was first released to the public in April of 2015, making it one of the most recent phones Tracfone has added to their lineup. Many of the phones that Tracfone releases to use with their service are several years old, which is challenging for smartphone users where technology is progressing at a rapid pace. A phone that is a few years old will generally do the basic functions just fine, but will struggle and run slowly when trying to operate with multiple applications running at one time.

The Galaxy S5, however, is a phone that can keep up with multiple programs running at once, or even more resource intensive apps and games, due to its fast, quad-core processor and 2 GB of RAM.

Before we get too far, let's look at some pro's and con's we've discovered.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Quick Facts

The Good Points:
-Great Camera - 16 MP
-Lots of Memory/Storage - 16 GB
-Large Touchscreen - 5.1"
-4G LTE

The Not so Good:
-Expensive - currently $500 with 1 Year/400 minute airtime card bundle
-Older OS - Android 4.4

The Samsung Galaxy S5 from Tracfone is basically a really great smartphone with a lot of impressive features that users have been desiring for a long time. But, its expensive. Let's dig into the full list of features and phone specifications for the Galaxy S5 to see how this phone is better than any other device offered by Tracfone at this time.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Features and Specs

Below are the features for the Galaxy S5, followed by the phone specifications.

• Android 4.4.2 KitKat
• 4G LTE service through Verizon CDMA cell towers
• 16 MP Rear Camera, 2 MP Front
• WiFi and Bluetooth
• GPS
• NFC
• 3 Home Screens
• Access to over 1 Million Apps on Google Play
• Triple Talk, Text and Data
• Caller ID, Voice Dialing, Voicemail
• Hearing Aid Compatible
• Alarm Clock
• MP3 Player
• Hadsfree Speaker
• Heart rate sensor
• Air Gestures, Smart Scroll and Smart Pause
• IP67 Certified - Dust and Water Resistant (1 Meter/30 Minutes underwater)

Samsung Galaxy S5 Technical Specs

• Size: 5.59" x 2.84" x 0.31"
• 5.1" Touchscreen (capacitive) at 1080x1920 resolution (432 ppi pixel density)
• 2.5 Ghz Quad core processor
• 2 GB RAM
• 16 GB Internal Memory
• Battery: 2800 mAh with 29 hrs talk time, 27 days standby (removable)

This phone brings a whole host of features and upgrades that most Tracfone users haven't experienced because no other Tracfone device at this time can compare to the Samsung Galaxy S5 (except, perhaps, the Galaxy E5). The LG Sunset, for example, has 1 GB RAM, 8 GB Internal Memory and  a 5 MP Camera, about half as good on each of those features compared to the Galaxy S5. But the Sunset does have 4G LTE just like the S5.

Let's get into what we like and don't like about this phone, where we will also review many of the great features the Galaxy S5 comes with.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Review - What we Like (and don't like) About the S5 for Tracfone

What we Like:
The Samsung Galaxy S5 was the flagship phone for Samsung when it was launched, which means it was loaded up with the best tech and newest features. We like a lot of things about this phone, because it comes with a lot. So let's break it down and get into reviewing some of the most exciting features.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Front and Back

The first thing you notice about this phone is the screen, which is an impressive 5.1" and has a resolution of 1080x1920, which is better than any other Tracfone smartphone at this time. It also has a pixel density of about 430, making for very crisp, clear viewing on this phone.

Internal memory and RAM are both great features on the S5, which comes with 16 GB for storing apps, photos and other things, and 2 GB for running multiple apps at once. The 2.5 Ghz processor is also very good, and should have no dilema keeping up with the latest games and applications you may want to run on your phone.

For Tracfone users who want to do some phone photography, the Galaxy S5 has a very impressive 16 MP rear camera that comes with a host of features all to itself. You also get a 2.1 MP front camera for selfies and video chatting. The rear camera has auto-focus and flash, and will record video at UHD 4K quality. Take a look at some photo samples on flickr to see the quality for yourself.

One additional feature that we're quite impressed by is the Galaxy S5's IP67 rating, which means that it is dust resistant, and water resistant up to 1 meter deep, for 30 minutes. You can watch some of the waterproof tests on YouTube if you're interested. It is never a bad thing to have a phone that won't be ruined because of an accident or a moment of forgetfulness.

Finally the S5 does come with a handful of extra features that may or may not be useful to you, like a heartbeat sensor, gesture controls, smart scrolling and more.

For performance and features, the Galaxy S5 is unmatched by any other Tracfone device at this time, and delivers a full smartphone experience.

It's not all good news though, we do want to share a couple of concerns about the Galaxy S5.

Dislikes for the Samsung Galaxy S5
While there are so many great features with the Samsung Galaxy S5, there are two things we don't like, that might be deal-breakers for some Tracfone users. The first is the price, which is rather steep. The Galaxy S5 is only available through online retailers HSN.com and it is listed for $499 bundled with a 1 Year/ 400 Minute card, and some additional items. The airtime card is worth $100, making the phone cost closer to $399.

Our issue with the price is that you can find an unlocked Samsung Galaxy S5 on Amazon for $325 (and closer to $200 if you're willing to buy a refurbished model). You can then get a SIM card from Tracfone, and use the phone on the BYOP program.

The second negative about the Samsung Galaxy S5 is that it comes with Android 4.4.2, and cannot be updated. If you get the unlocked version, and bring it to Tracfone's BYOP program, you will be able to update it to version 5.0.1, but the Tracfone version is locked at Android Kitkat, which has some known security issues. If you are concerned about your phone's security, then look into the BYOP program.

Samsung Galaxy S5 Overview and Additional Resources

If the two negative aspects of the S5 don't worry you, then the Samsung Galaxy S5 is a great buy and a great smartphone to use on Tracfone's low cost prepaid network. You will be getting high performance at low monthly costs.

But if the price and possible security issues are a worry, we strongly recommend looking into the BYOP jadwal from Tracfone which allows consumers to bring a wide variety of devices to use with Tracfone.

The Samsung Galaxy S5 is available from HSN with a minutes bundle and is listed for $499.

We will update this when we find the phone available from other sources.

View the Galaxy S5's Interactive Tutorial to learn more about how the phone works, or visit Samusng's website for the S5 to read up on what they have for the phone, which includes a user manual.

If you're new to using smartphones with Tracfone, take a look at some of our popular articles we've posted including:
How to Check your Airtime on Tracfone Android Phones
How Minutes Work on Tracfone Smartphones
How to Buy Only Texts for your Smartphone
Are Data Cards a Good Deal from Tracfone?
Analysis of the New Smartphone Only Airtime Cards from Tracfone

If you have any further thoughts or questions, leave a comment below. Each comment is reviewed before posting.

Stay up to date with the latest Tracfone news and gosip by joining over 1700 others who follow us on Facebook!

And if you're new to Tracfone, start with our Beginners Guide to Tracfone which explains some of how using Tracfone service works.

Thanks for visiting!

New Lg And Samsung Smartphones Coming To Tracfone

Samsung Galaxy S6 and other New Android Phones on the Horizon for Tracfone

Below are some details from several new phones that will be coming to Tracfone in the near future. If you're unfamiliar with the blog, take a look around, we share lots of information about Tracfone including reviews, news and promotional codes. 

New Tracfone Smartphones are on the Way!

There is a handful of new Android powered smartphones on the horizon for Tracfone and we are excited to be sharing the details on some of these phones below, including the Samsung Galaxy S6.

While some of these devices will be mid-range phones similar to the LG sunset, many appear to use Android 5.0 or newer. There are also several, including the Galaxy S6, that will have more robust features and performance.

Tracfone continues to expand its offering of smartphones as it slowly works to phase out older, non-smartphone devices. While they still sell and support non-Android phones, many customers have already switched to a smartphone. In a recent survey we conducted here on the blog, 65% of the 260 respondents already used a Tracfone Android device, while only 17% still used a non-Android phone. The remaining 18% use a smartphone on Tracfone BYOP.

We are excited to see more smartphones coming as these new phones might make for good options to upgrade to for those with older Android devices. (also take a look at our Android Tracfone List for the full list of Tracfone's smartphone options.)

The time-frame for when these new devices will be released is unknown, and it could be days or months. We're not even sure where they will be offered, as several recent smartphones, like the Samsung Galaxy Core Prime, have only been available from 3rd party retailer HSN.com. We will update as soon as these details become clear.

The question we are wondering is whether we will see a higher-end smartphone at a more reasonable price. The Samsung Galaxy S5 is a high-end phone, but it also comes at a high cost, which many users cannot afford.

Let's go through and take a closer look at some of the more interesting phones that will be coming to Tracfone in the near future. (Note - below are just the Samsung and LG phones coming to Tracfone, we will be writing about the new ZTE phones that are also coming in a future post.)

Samsung Galaxy S6 - Samsung S906L - 4G LTE (CDMA)

Tracfone Samsung Galaxy S6

The Galaxy S6 is Samsung's flagship phone from 2015 and the new version of the Galaxy S5 which was released by Tracfone a few months ago.

While the S6 does come with a number of nice upgrades and new features, it still shares a number of similarities with the older S5. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as the S5 already had great features, but if you're expecting a significant change, look elsewhere.

A 5.1" touchscreen and 16 MP Camera come with the S6 (same as the S5) but the screen has higher resolution. The Galaxy S6 also runs Android 5.0 and has 3 GB RAM, plus an improved appearance.

When the Samsung Galaxy S5 was released for Tracfone, it started at $499, so we expect the S6 will (unfortunately) be at a similar price.

The Galaxy S6 has been released and is available from HSN. You can also take a look at our full review of the Samsung Galaxy S6 for more details, including a comparison to the S5.

Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime - S920L - 4G LTE (CDMA)

Update - The Galaxy Grand Prime is available for $99 from Bestbuy! (currently on sale, retail price is $149).

The Galaxy Grand Prime is like the older brother of the Galaxy Core Prime which Tracfone released along with the Galaxy S5 a few months ago. The Grand Prime is bigger, more powerful, and can handle more. It comes with Android 5.0, a 5.0" touchscreen and an 8 MP Camera - all improvements over the Core Prime.

This phone (along with some of the others below) will make a great option for many Tracfone users to upgrade to from older smartphones.

No word on the release date, but we think it will be released at the same time as the Galaxy S6 (whenever that might be).

View this devices Tutorial from Tracfone for more details.

(LG K4) -LG L43AL/ LGL44VL

There are quite a few new LG phones on the way, and we will start off with the LG 43AL and 44VL. These two devices are exactly the same, except for one important distinction - the AL version uses AT&T 4G LTE networks while the VL uses Verizon 4G LTE networks. This is great as it allows users to choose this phone no matter if they have CDMA or GSM coverage in their area. (For those who might not know, Tracfone contracts with Verizon for their CDMA network, and AT&T for GSM.)

The L43 and 44 appear to be the Tracfone versions of the LG K4, which is a newer phone only just released in January 2016, and comes with a 4.5" screen, Android 5.1.1, 5 MP camera and quad-core processor among other features. This appears to be very similar to the LG Sunset, but maybe a little newer.

As more details come available we will update them here, but for now you can take a look at the Tracfone tutorials for each of the phones:
LG L43AL Tutorial
LG L44VL Tutorial

LG Treasure (LG K7) - LG L51AL/ LG L52VL

Update - The LG K7 (called the LG Treasure) was briefly available on HSN.com, but after selling out, it is no longer available. The LG Treasure is available for $99 on HSN (listed for $129)

The LG L51AL and L52VL upgraded versions of the two LG phones above, and appear to be the Tracfone version of the LG K7.

It looks like Tracfone will be releasing a whole lineup of LG phones - the K4, K7 and K10 (below) which will provide some really great options for consumers.

As with the K4 above, the LG K7 (L51/L52) was released in the beginning of 2016 and sports some nice features like a 5.0" screen and Android 5.1.1. Further details are a little murky, as there are at least two versions of this phone and we're not sure which version Tracfone will use.

We will be sharing more on this phone as things clear up, for now you can view the Tracfone Tutorials for each device, although we're not sure if they are completely accurate at this time.
LG L51AL Tutorial
LG L52VL Tutorial

LG Premier (LG K10) - LG L61AL/ LG L62VL

Now these new LG phones really start to get interesting. The LG Premier (Tracfone version of the K10) comes with a 5.3" touchscreen, Android 5.1.1, and an 8 MP camera.

It looks like the Premier will also have 16 GB internal memory, a quad-core processor and 1 GB RAM, although we're not sure if the Tracfone version will be exactly the same.

The LG Premier looks like it will make for a really nice upgrade from older Android devices, while hopefully coming in at a price below $200, and maybe even closer to $150.

As with the other phones listed, we will add more details as the information becomes available. For now, take a look at the device tutorials, although we're not confident in their accuracy.
LG L61AL Tutorial
LG L62VL Tutorial

LG Stylo 2 - LG L81L/ LG L82L

LG Stylo 2 for Tracfone

The last phone we're going to look at in this post is the LG L81 and L82, which appear to be the LG Stylo 2.

This phone will have a 5.7" touchscreen display, Android 5.1.1 (or perhaps newer), 8 GB internal memory and 1 GB RAM. There is not a lot of additional information available on the Stylo 2, or what the Tracfone version will offer, but it looks like it will be a fairly powerful but still budget friendly device. We expect it to retail somewhere around $200.

This phone offers a good blend of great features, while still keeping the cost somewhat reasonable and we are excited to see what it will have to offer. You can view the tutorials on the Tracfone website, but, as with some of the other phones above, we're not sure how accurate they are, and some of the information might just be placeholders.

LG L81AL tutorial
LG L82VL tutorial 

Update - The LG Stylo 2 is available on HSN.com with minutes bundle for $199.

That concludes our look at some of the phones that Tracfone will be releasing in the near future. Please leave a comment with which phone is most interesting to you, and if you have any questions or thoughts.

We will be also sharing more about several new ZTE phones in a future post.

For the latest news and updates, follow us on Facebook with more than 1800 other followers.

Check out our recent list of the Best Sales, Discounts and Deals for April 2016.

Thanks for visiting!

Samsung Galaxy S6 and other New Android Phones on the Horizon for Tracfone

Below are some details from several new phones that will be coming to Tracfone in the near future. If you're unfamiliar with the blog, take a look around, we share lots of information about Tracfone including reviews, news and promotional codes. 

New Tracfone Smartphones are on the Way!

There is a handful of new Android powered smartphones on the horizon for Tracfone and we are excited to be sharing the details on some of these phones below, including the Samsung Galaxy S6.

While some of these devices will be mid-range phones similar to the LG sunset, many appear to use Android 5.0 or newer. There are also several, including the Galaxy S6, that will have more robust features and performance.

Tracfone continues to expand its offering of smartphones as it slowly works to phase out older, non-smartphone devices. While they still sell and support non-Android phones, many customers have already switched to a smartphone. In a recent survey we conducted here on the blog, 65% of the 260 respondents already used a Tracfone Android device, while only 17% still used a non-Android phone. The remaining 18% use a smartphone on Tracfone BYOP.

We are excited to see more smartphones coming as these new phones might make for good options to upgrade to for those with older Android devices. (also take a look at our Android Tracfone List for the full list of Tracfone's smartphone options.)

The time-frame for when these new devices will be released is unknown, and it could be days or months. We're not even sure where they will be offered, as several recent smartphones, like the Samsung Galaxy Core Prime, have only been available from 3rd party retailer HSN.com. We will update as soon as these details become clear.

The question we are wondering is whether we will see a higher-end smartphone at a more reasonable price. The Samsung Galaxy S5 is a high-end phone, but it also comes at a high cost, which many users cannot afford.

Let's go through and take a closer look at some of the more interesting phones that will be coming to Tracfone in the near future. (Note - below are just the Samsung and LG phones coming to Tracfone, we will be writing about the new ZTE phones that are also coming in a future post.)

Samsung Galaxy S6 - Samsung S906L - 4G LTE (CDMA)

Tracfone Samsung Galaxy S6

The Galaxy S6 is Samsung's flagship phone from 2015 and the new version of the Galaxy S5 which was released by Tracfone a few months ago.

While the S6 does come with a number of nice upgrades and new features, it still shares a number of similarities with the older S5. This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as the S5 already had great features, but if you're expecting a significant change, look elsewhere.

A 5.1" touchscreen and 16 MP Camera come with the S6 (same as the S5) but the screen has higher resolution. The Galaxy S6 also runs Android 5.0 and has 3 GB RAM, plus an improved appearance.

When the Samsung Galaxy S5 was released for Tracfone, it started at $499, so we expect the S6 will (unfortunately) be at a similar price.

The Galaxy S6 has been released and is available from HSN. You can also take a look at our full review of the Samsung Galaxy S6 for more details, including a comparison to the S5.

Samsung Galaxy Grand Prime - S920L - 4G LTE (CDMA)

Update - The Galaxy Grand Prime is available for $99 from Bestbuy! (currently on sale, retail price is $149).

The Galaxy Grand Prime is like the older brother of the Galaxy Core Prime which Tracfone released along with the Galaxy S5 a few months ago. The Grand Prime is bigger, more powerful, and can handle more. It comes with Android 5.0, a 5.0" touchscreen and an 8 MP Camera - all improvements over the Core Prime.

This phone (along with some of the others below) will make a great option for many Tracfone users to upgrade to from older smartphones.

No word on the release date, but we think it will be released at the same time as the Galaxy S6 (whenever that might be).

View this devices Tutorial from Tracfone for more details.

(LG K4) -LG L43AL/ LGL44VL

There are quite a few new LG phones on the way, and we will start off with the LG 43AL and 44VL. These two devices are exactly the same, except for one important distinction - the AL version uses AT&T 4G LTE networks while the VL uses Verizon 4G LTE networks. This is great as it allows users to choose this phone no matter if they have CDMA or GSM coverage in their area. (For those who might not know, Tracfone contracts with Verizon for their CDMA network, and AT&T for GSM.)

The L43 and 44 appear to be the Tracfone versions of the LG K4, which is a newer phone only just released in January 2016, and comes with a 4.5" screen, Android 5.1.1, 5 MP camera and quad-core processor among other features. This appears to be very similar to the LG Sunset, but maybe a little newer.

As more details come available we will update them here, but for now you can take a look at the Tracfone tutorials for each of the phones:
LG L43AL Tutorial
LG L44VL Tutorial

LG Treasure (LG K7) - LG L51AL/ LG L52VL

Update - The LG K7 (called the LG Treasure) was briefly available on HSN.com, but after selling out, it is no longer available. The LG Treasure is available for $99 on HSN (listed for $129)

The LG L51AL and L52VL upgraded versions of the two LG phones above, and appear to be the Tracfone version of the LG K7.

It looks like Tracfone will be releasing a whole lineup of LG phones - the K4, K7 and K10 (below) which will provide some really great options for consumers.

As with the K4 above, the LG K7 (L51/L52) was released in the beginning of 2016 and sports some nice features like a 5.0" screen and Android 5.1.1. Further details are a little murky, as there are at least two versions of this phone and we're not sure which version Tracfone will use.

We will be sharing more on this phone as things clear up, for now you can view the Tracfone Tutorials for each device, although we're not sure if they are completely accurate at this time.
LG L51AL Tutorial
LG L52VL Tutorial

LG Premier (LG K10) - LG L61AL/ LG L62VL

Now these new LG phones really start to get interesting. The LG Premier (Tracfone version of the K10) comes with a 5.3" touchscreen, Android 5.1.1, and an 8 MP camera.

It looks like the Premier will also have 16 GB internal memory, a quad-core processor and 1 GB RAM, although we're not sure if the Tracfone version will be exactly the same.

The LG Premier looks like it will make for a really nice upgrade from older Android devices, while hopefully coming in at a price below $200, and maybe even closer to $150.

As with the other phones listed, we will add more details as the information becomes available. For now, take a look at the device tutorials, although we're not confident in their accuracy.
LG L61AL Tutorial
LG L62VL Tutorial

LG Stylo 2 - LG L81L/ LG L82L

LG Stylo 2 for Tracfone

The last phone we're going to look at in this post is the LG L81 and L82, which appear to be the LG Stylo 2.

This phone will have a 5.7" touchscreen display, Android 5.1.1 (or perhaps newer), 8 GB internal memory and 1 GB RAM. There is not a lot of additional information available on the Stylo 2, or what the Tracfone version will offer, but it looks like it will be a fairly powerful but still budget friendly device. We expect it to retail somewhere around $200.

This phone offers a good blend of great features, while still keeping the cost somewhat reasonable and we are excited to see what it will have to offer. You can view the tutorials on the Tracfone website, but, as with some of the other phones above, we're not sure how accurate they are, and some of the information might just be placeholders.

LG L81AL tutorial
LG L82VL tutorial 

Update - The LG Stylo 2 is available on HSN.com with minutes bundle for $199.

That concludes our look at some of the phones that Tracfone will be releasing in the near future. Please leave a comment with which phone is most interesting to you, and if you have any questions or thoughts.

We will be also sharing more about several new ZTE phones in a future post.

For the latest news and updates, follow us on Facebook with more than 1800 other followers.

Check out our recent list of the Best Sales, Discounts and Deals for April 2016.

Thanks for visiting!

Why Do You Use Tracfone? - Survey Results

Results from our Survey about Tracfone and our Readers

A few weeks back we created survey for our readers to take to help us get a better idea of who our readers were, what they are interested in, and ways we can improve the blog. We received over 260 responses in about a week, and a lot of helpful information.

We want to share some of the more pertinent pieces of information from the survey with our readers as we found it very interesting and thought you might as well. You can go back and see the original post about the survey here, but it is no longer possible to take the survey.

We will start by just looking at the first five questions from the survey, as they are more generalized.

Question 1 - How Long have you been Using Tracfone?

In the first question of our survey we wanted to get a better idea of how long people have been using Tracfone. We were quite surprised that the majority of respondents to the survey (55%) had been using Tracfone for six years or more. Another 30% have used Tracfone for three to five years.

How Long Have You Been Using Tracfone?

Just 3% of respondents have been using Tracfone for less than a year, which leads us to two possible conclusions:

• Most readers on this blog are 'savvy' consumers and long-term Tracfone customers
• Tracfone Isn't attracting many new customers

We believe both statements may be partially true. Apparently America Movil, Tracfone's parent company, did lose almost half a million subscribers in the US during the first quarter of 2016 according to an article on FierceWireless. Tracfone and Safelink were where most of these subscriber  losses occurred, but America Movil also owns Straight talk and several other prepaid cell phone companies. Overall, America Movil has over 26 million users in the US across all their MVNO brands.

So, while Tracfone hasn't had the best year so far, we expect they are doing fine, and will be working hard to attract more new customers (hopefully with new and improved smartphones).

Question 2 - Why Do you use Tracfone?

To help understand what is important to our readers, we asked, 'Why do you use Tracfone?'. The answers were fairly consistent with what we expected, with the most popular answer being the low cost.

Take a look at the graph below for the full breakdown.

Why do you Use Tracfone?

Some of the 'Other' responses included those who use Tracfone for multiple reasons, like low cost and low use.

With the majority of people choosing Tracfone because of the low cost, we have to wonder why Tracfone released the expensive Samsung Galaxy S5 and Samsung Galaxy S6. But perhaps they are just trying to appeal to the small segment of consumers who are willing to spend on a high-end device, but still want to use prepaid service.

It does look like Tracfone will be releasing several new mid-level Android LG phones which should appeal to more customers.

Question 3 - What is your Biggest Complaint about Tracfone?

Tracfone is a low cost cell phone carrier, and as such, they seem to skimp when it comes to certain things like customer service and quality. We see a fair number of comments on the blog with various issues and so we wanted to get a better idea about what the most common complaints about Tracfone were.

Lack of Smartphone options was actually the biggest complaint, with poor customer service coming in second. You can see the top four in the chart below.

Biggest Tracfone Complaint

We were pleasantly surprised by the number of 'Other' answers which mostly consisted of people responding that they didn't have any complaints about Tracfone.

The remaining 11% of our survey respondents choose Problems with Phone, Roaming Issues, Airtime Lost/Stolen or BYOP Problems as their biggest complaint.

Question 4 - Is your Tracfone Device your Primary Cell Phone?

Primary vs Backup Phone from Tracfone

We often see consumers who use Tracfone just as their backup or emergency phone, and not for everyday use. So we were curious about how many people use their Tracfone device as a primary phone versus a secondary or backup.

As it turns out, the majority of respondents use Tracfone as their primary phone. About 23% reported that they use it as a backup.

As Tracfone continues to offer newer phones we suspect more will switch to using Tracfone as their primary device. However, for those who need to make frequent calls or texts (or use data), using some kind of unlimited cell phone plan makes better economical sense.

Question 5 - What Type of Phone do you Currently Use?

Most Popular Type of Phone from Tracfone

We asked this question about what type of phone customers currently use not only because we were curious, but also to help us do a better job tailoring the content towers our readers.

We were somewhat surprised to see that 65% of our survey respondents use a smartphone from Tracfone. This does make a lot of sense, as Android phones from Tracfone offer lots of neat features (like Android OS) and there are a lot of great deals for buying phones and minutes bundled.

An almost equal number of respondents use either a non-smartphone from Tracfone or the Tracfone BYOP program.

This concludes our breakdown of the survey results. We may may create another post with analysis of some of the other questions in the future. We want to thank everyone who participated in our survey and helped provide the responses.

We are excited to continue to work at delivering information to our readers and the survey results have already helped.

Leave a comment below with any thoughts or questions you might have and if you're new to this blog take a look around as we have a wide variety of Tracfone related information.

We also have a Facebook page with over 1800 followers that make up a helpful community.

Thanks for visiting!

Results from our Survey about Tracfone and our Readers

A few weeks back we created survey for our readers to take to help us get a better idea of who our readers were, what they are interested in, and ways we can improve the blog. We received over 260 responses in about a week, and a lot of helpful information.

We want to share some of the more pertinent pieces of information from the survey with our readers as we found it very interesting and thought you might as well. You can go back and see the original post about the survey here, but it is no longer possible to take the survey.

We will start by just looking at the first five questions from the survey, as they are more generalized.

Question 1 - How Long have you been Using Tracfone?

In the first question of our survey we wanted to get a better idea of how long people have been using Tracfone. We were quite surprised that the majority of respondents to the survey (55%) had been using Tracfone for six years or more. Another 30% have used Tracfone for three to five years.

How Long Have You Been Using Tracfone?

Just 3% of respondents have been using Tracfone for less than a year, which leads us to two possible conclusions:

• Most readers on this blog are 'savvy' consumers and long-term Tracfone customers
• Tracfone Isn't attracting many new customers

We believe both statements may be partially true. Apparently America Movil, Tracfone's parent company, did lose almost half a million subscribers in the US during the first quarter of 2016 according to an article on FierceWireless. Tracfone and Safelink were where most of these subscriber  losses occurred, but America Movil also owns Straight talk and several other prepaid cell phone companies. Overall, America Movil has over 26 million users in the US across all their MVNO brands.

So, while Tracfone hasn't had the best year so far, we expect they are doing fine, and will be working hard to attract more new customers (hopefully with new and improved smartphones).

Question 2 - Why Do you use Tracfone?

To help understand what is important to our readers, we asked, 'Why do you use Tracfone?'. The answers were fairly consistent with what we expected, with the most popular answer being the low cost.

Take a look at the graph below for the full breakdown.

Why do you Use Tracfone?

Some of the 'Other' responses included those who use Tracfone for multiple reasons, like low cost and low use.

With the majority of people choosing Tracfone because of the low cost, we have to wonder why Tracfone released the expensive Samsung Galaxy S5 and Samsung Galaxy S6. But perhaps they are just trying to appeal to the small segment of consumers who are willing to spend on a high-end device, but still want to use prepaid service.

It does look like Tracfone will be releasing several new mid-level Android LG phones which should appeal to more customers.

Question 3 - What is your Biggest Complaint about Tracfone?

Tracfone is a low cost cell phone carrier, and as such, they seem to skimp when it comes to certain things like customer service and quality. We see a fair number of comments on the blog with various issues and so we wanted to get a better idea about what the most common complaints about Tracfone were.

Lack of Smartphone options was actually the biggest complaint, with poor customer service coming in second. You can see the top four in the chart below.

Biggest Tracfone Complaint

We were pleasantly surprised by the number of 'Other' answers which mostly consisted of people responding that they didn't have any complaints about Tracfone.

The remaining 11% of our survey respondents choose Problems with Phone, Roaming Issues, Airtime Lost/Stolen or BYOP Problems as their biggest complaint.

Question 4 - Is your Tracfone Device your Primary Cell Phone?

Primary vs Backup Phone from Tracfone

We often see consumers who use Tracfone just as their backup or emergency phone, and not for everyday use. So we were curious about how many people use their Tracfone device as a primary phone versus a secondary or backup.

As it turns out, the majority of respondents use Tracfone as their primary phone. About 23% reported that they use it as a backup.

As Tracfone continues to offer newer phones we suspect more will switch to using Tracfone as their primary device. However, for those who need to make frequent calls or texts (or use data), using some kind of unlimited cell phone plan makes better economical sense.

Question 5 - What Type of Phone do you Currently Use?

Most Popular Type of Phone from Tracfone

We asked this question about what type of phone customers currently use not only because we were curious, but also to help us do a better job tailoring the content towers our readers.

We were somewhat surprised to see that 65% of our survey respondents use a smartphone from Tracfone. This does make a lot of sense, as Android phones from Tracfone offer lots of neat features (like Android OS) and there are a lot of great deals for buying phones and minutes bundled.

An almost equal number of respondents use either a non-smartphone from Tracfone or the Tracfone BYOP program.

This concludes our breakdown of the survey results. We may may create another post with analysis of some of the other questions in the future. We want to thank everyone who participated in our survey and helped provide the responses.

We are excited to continue to work at delivering information to our readers and the survey results have already helped.

Leave a comment below with any thoughts or questions you might have and if you're new to this blog take a look around as we have a wide variety of Tracfone related information.

We also have a Facebook page with over 1800 followers that make up a helpful community.

Thanks for visiting!