X-Ray Mobile is dedicated to dissecting everything you may need to know about cell phones, or at least the most pertinent information we feel is current.  Just like a medical X-Ray gives you an under the surface screenshot, X-Ray Mobile provides you with an in depth source to help guide you in whatever you may be looking for.  We review the most popular questions and online resources regarding cell phones so you don't have to spend hours searching for what should be a quick answer.  Cell phones are changing at a rapid pace so come back and visit us soon to see what else we have found. 

The bells and whistles are many, but the chassis remains fairly stable.  There is the physical look and feel of a cell phone regarding color, style, shape, button feel, touch screen, etc.  And then there is the behind the scenes aspect of cell phones such as your service provider, contract terms, data and voice package, warranty, photo options, internet service.  The great thing in today's age is that more and more service providers and manufacturers are popping up which in turn yields competitive pricing.  So take the time to do some research as it may save you money.  If you don't take the time and you stay with one provider for 20 years, you may end up paying 5 times as much for the same thing others are charging for.

Please take a moment to review some of the more popular questions we get asked.

What different types of cell phone plans are there?
There are many service plan add-ons, which one is right for me?
What do I need to know before deciding on a plan?
Who offers the best values?
How do you break your contract and avoid the huge cancellation fee?:

What different types of cell phone plans are there?

This can be broken down into three categories: family, prepaid, and individual.  Individual is just like it sounds, it’s for a sole person.  These are typically for a landline replacement or people wanting to have the convenience of being accessible.  For semi-frequent talkers, 300 minutes a month is average, but most will find this amount of monthly usage too low.

A family plan is used for a group of people that pool their minutes and will be on the same bill.  This is a great way to reduce cost.  Instead of 4 individual plans, a family plan will have a total number of minutes shared by all 4 persons.  The downside is that if one person uses a lot of minutes, it will lower the minutes of the others on the plan.

Prepaid plans are great for people that don’t plan to use a cell phone that much but want to have a mobile phone at their fingertips for emergency use or as a backup.  These can be a pay as you go type of deal with no contracts.  Often if you terminate a contract with a provider you will be subject to a lofty cancellation fee.  Prepaid plans will not make you sign a contract.

There are many service plan add-ons, which one is right for me?

Not all cell phones will have the capabilities of add-on services.  A general rule of thumb is that more add-ons are available for the more expensive and up to date phone.  We have provided a list of the most popular add-ons and what they mean below:

Text messaging

You may also hear this referred to as SMS (Short Message Service).  This option will allow you to create short text messages and send them to any other cell phone user.  EMS (Enhanced Messaging Service) is a small upgrade that includes sound, color, and font options.  Some carriers still charge per text sent and/or received, so do your homework.  Texting has become very popular that most carriers allow a certain # of texts prior to charging you or they will offer unlimited texts in their plan.  This is often reflected in your increased bill.

Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS)

Keeping SMS in mind, MMS is similar in the process, but it will allow for sending images, audio, and photos.  Camera phones were the driving force behind this.  Most carriers will include SMS and MMS with your plan.  If you do not think you may use it that much, a pay by the message may be the way to go (if you average 5-10 messages per month).

 Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) 

This is a term used to describe the service which is the highway information travels on to transmit to your phone.  Some more popular examples you may already receive is weather updates, movie times, sports updates, etc.  What you receive and how fast will depend on the storage space on your phone, which you may have heard described as 3G or 4G.  Ask your provider about your speed and if you are paying for this service.  If you are paying for this service ask them to tell you what this allows you to do on your particular phone.

Data Plan

You will need this if you want internet access no matter where you are at.  Of course, your phone needs to have this capability.  As this is a major convenience, the biggest downside is the viewing ability regarding size and the speed of surfing.  If you use a laptop quite a bit, a PC card that doubles as a wireless modem is something to think about.  This will allow you to receive/transmit data on your phone through this modem.

Other

Roadside assistance, gps, equipment protection, insurance, games, etc.

In summary, do your homework and ask for a breakdown of what is included with your basic plan, what the extra charge is for the available options for your phone, and a description of how this will benefit you.  They will be more than happy to provide this.

What do I need to know before deciding on a plan?

Once you have narrowed your search there are still a few questions you need to ask yourself. 

• Will you be calling locally mostly or all over the country?  Perhaps a landline and pay as you go phone is right for you.
• Where you live.  If you live in a remote part of country, you will need to review the provider's coverage area. 
• The all important question, how many minutes will you need?  Be realistic with yourself.  Start at a conservative number and analyze your usage in 3 month and 6 month increments.  Analyze your patterns.  This will help in determining what plan is right for you.
• Ask around your neighborhood.  Ask your friends what provider they have and how happy they are.
• What features matter to you?  Will you surf the web, text a lot, who will you be calling the most (perhaps a carrier that offers free mobile to mobile is right for you). 

Who offers the best values?

Reports and studies are done very often, however Verizon and T-Mobile top the list more often than any other carrier.  They rate high in call quality and fewest dropped calls.

Infrequent phone user?:

T-Mobile's Basic Plus plan offers 300 anytime minutes (300 is not that much) and unlimited weekend minutes for $29.99.  Others offer 450 at a slightly higher cost.

Receive a ton of calls but rarely make them?:

Sprint's Free Incoming plan will allow you to be charged for outgoing calls only.  These plans are hard to find.

 Are you a messenger?:

For an extra $20 a month, Verizon offers unlimited text, video, instant messaging, and picture messaging. 

Got a few close friends?:

T-Mobile offers a myFaves plan where you can select 5 people, regardless of their carrier for unlimited calls and messaging.  The downside is you have less available minutes for others outside the 5.  It does not offer free mobile-to-mobile minutes.

Big talker are you?:

Sprint offers a power pack unlimited at $199.00 for unlimited minutes.

How do you break your contract and avoid the huge cancellation fee?:

One thing to note, this is not entirely easy.  A contract binds you to fulfill your side of the terms, which in terms of a cell phone contract the big kicker is the time frame and fee associated.  Luckily some entrepreneurs have adopted a new concept where a lot of times you may be able to find someone that is willing to take over your contract terms.  Celltradeusa.com and Cellswapper.com are the most popular services.  For a very small fee of either $20 or $15 respecitively, they will match your plan to another individual.  The individual saves on activation fees as well.

Once a match is determined, arrangements will be made by the cell phone company.  The risk that you undertake is that a buyer may not want to take over you plan.  Cellswapper will not charge you until a match is made, a genious service.  One important side note, if you want to keep you phone #, make sure you communicate this up front prior to signing on another dotted line that somehow seems there are no spaces between the dots.

Quick Tip: to bypass a lot of the 800# automated voices, take the time to visit www.gethuman.com/us/.  This site has a database filled with secret codes allowing you to actually find a human.