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© Phil Roeder

Pre paid smartphones are gaining in popularity among bargain hunters, and there are many new plans which now offer cool new smartphones as part of a pre paid offer.

For example, Version Wireless should be introducing a new pricing scheme in July which will do away with its unlimited data plan, as AT&T did a year ago. There are signs at all the major carriers that pricing will be increasing for data plans, which should lead even more people to consider pre paid wireless options. Pre paid plans from carriers like Virgin Mobile and Cricket offer plans that cost up to 50% less than similar plans from the big carriers, and although pre paid subscribers pay full price for their handsets that often isn't much more than those who sign up for 2 year contracts are paying.

© warrenski

It's estimated that there are many unregistered pre paid SIM cards in South Africa. These are at risk of being cut off next week on June 30. Service providers have been doing everything possible to spread the word about the cutoff, letting all their users know that they must register their SIM cards.

However, many people are still ignoring the message and refuse to register their cards. All of the SIM cards on the new 8ta Telkom network are pre-registered, since this network was launched after the Rica legislation requiring registration was passed in 2009. However, there are many Cell C and Virgin Mobile unregistered SIM cards around the country that will simply cease to function on July 1. These users will be able to unblock their numbers by following Rica registration process.

© Todd Kravos

Prepaid phone owners now have something to rejoice about. AT&T the largest cellular giant in the country has announced recently its intentions of offering a new unlimited scheme for all its pre paid card holders. The $50 plan covers unlimited calling, texting & even web browsing. The best part of this offer is that it is not only valid to our neighboring countries Canada & Mexico, but also to 100 other countries worldwide making it the best offer till date. It covers the same features in prepaid phones worldwide. However these prepaid phone offers will not be valid for smart phones who will have a choice of other offers at their service. It is expected to be made available from June 24, 2011.