You love your big box phone carrier, right? They benevolently offer you everything that makes your phone worth using: expensive data, contracts that never let you go, and customer service you have to go out of your way to talk to. To celebrate everything endearing about the Big Carriers, we’ve compiled a list of reasons why you need them in your life (and more importantly, why you don’t).

From now through Sunday, August 29, you can save $5 a month for the next five months — plus an additional $25 exclusively for Android Police readers — on most Ting Mobile plans. Read our full article for complete details.


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Got money? Why not spend it!?

There’s nothing worse than having your friends think you enjoy a great deal or that you like to save money 🤢. To make sure they never mistake you for a frugal spender, you prefer for your Big Carrier to charge a premium on your monthly data plan, whether you use it or not. Because nothing screams “wealth” like paying too much for things you don’t need, right?

Alternatively, if you can bear the shame of being known as “the guy who wants to save money 🤢,” then you could probably check out a service provider like Ting Mobile. They offer all kinds of affordable options, ranging from ultra-cheap Flex plans that start at $10 a month plus $5 for every gig of data you use, to a Set 12 plan that gets you unlimited talk, text, and 12GB of data for $35, to the all-encompassing Unlimited plans that offer 22-35GB of data for $45-$55 (depending on the plan you choose). But these only make sense if saving money 🤢 is your “thing.” We won’t judge.

Don’t buy that phone. Buy this one.

Something else only Big Carriers can offer: brick and mortar stores. Who doesn’t love stores? Driving over there, getting out of the car, marching across the parking lot, and watching the reps swoon as the scent of dollar bills waft through the doorway. The best part, though, is having a rep follow you around so they can tell you why that phone you researched on the internet isn’t as good as the more expensive one they want you to buy. No really, it’s the better phone for you; they’re certain of it.

But, if you prefer to be lonely and skip out on having sales reps pine for your heart with the fervor of Romeo tossing pebbles at Juliet’s window, you could take the totally online approach. Ting Mobile’s online store lets you browse, research, and purchase all of the latest Android phones from the comfort of your home. In other words, you never have to talk to a human if you don’t want to. Like ever. Not even when you partake in the grueling task of transferring your contacts and other data from your old device to your new one. You’re completely alone.

Enjoy some free tunes while you wait

You’re a fan of music, right? Big Carriers know that sometimes you just need a minute (or 5 hours) to sit down and listen to some tunes while waiting for customer service to pick up. That's why they'll keep you on hold for hours on end, blasting Katy Perry with the audio clarity of a walkie talkie (remember those?) just to get a simple account issue sorted out. You love it. They love it. It’s a whole thing.

Or you could trade the droning music and egregious wait times for fast and friendly support. Ting Mobile’s customer care team is operated by real humans who are knowledgeable about the service and that actually enjoy helping people like you. There’s also a “Chat” instant messaging option if you’d rather talk to a rep through your keyboard instead of over the phone.

Bail on your Big Carrier and save with Ting Mobile

As you can see, Big Carriers are pretty great. You get to spend a lot of money, be told what to buy, and you can even wait for them to acknowledge your existence when they get around to it. How could the smartphone shopping, activation, and service experience get any better?

By throwing Big Carriers out the window.

Ting Mobile offers a variety of plans designed for all kinds of users — from money savers, to data sippers, to data enthusiasts, and everyone in between. Even better, all of these plans undercut what the Big Carriers charge without sacrificing on service coverage or reliability because they use the exact same network infrastructure.

Ready to drop your Big Carrier? Check to see if your phone is compatible with Ting Mobile here, and then sign up for the best plan that fits you over on Ting Mobile’s plans page. You’ll be happy you did.