Our family is unique today in that we don’t own a cell phone. Even for frugal people, this seems out of the ordinary. Not all of our reasons for not owning a cell phone are frugal, of course. In my old corporate self, I was attached to my cell phone, and I would really rather be attached to my family and friends. But this is the Frugal Blog, so let’s talk about my frugal reasons behind not having a cell phone.
I have nothing against anyone who owns a phone, of course, and I may own one in the future. But for now, here are the reasons I don’t.
1) Not a necessity
Although I admit that having a cell phone would be pretty convenient when we are out, I also have to admit (to myself) that it isn’t a necessity in life. It doesn’t greatly enhance my lifestyle in any way, and it doesn’t add to our income. Since it is a large enough monthly expense, I haven’t been able to rationalize having one just yet.
2) The service plan cost
The lowest service plan cost currently out there is $40 a month for a very basic plan with limited minutes. while that doesn’t seem like a lot, chances are that we would need a more expensive plan, especially if we wanted more than one phone. A more likely cost would be about $80 or more a month. prepaid could cost as low as $7 a month, but then you need to add the minutes.
3) Overage charges
If you don’t stick to you plan and use more minutes or services, or if you are out of your network, you can really rack up a bill with overage charges.
4) Downloads
With a cell phone are all of these extra download costs, such as games, jokes and ringtones. More and more opportunities to easily buy extras are out there every day.
5) Texting costs
The other day, my father called me up (he lives in NYC) and wanted me to text something in to a contest for him. He just assumes that I have the latest technology to do all of that stuff. When I pointed out that we don’t have a cell phone, and if we did that there is a cost associated with the texting, he replied, “It’s only a dollar.” Exactly. It may only be a dollar, but those dollars add up over a week, a month, a year, a lifetime. For $1, I can get my toddler a complete name brand outfit at a garage sale or feed my family breakfast.
6) The cost of the phone
Sometimes the cost of the phone is a small expense. It can even be free. The cell phone companies generally make money when you use the phone and are willing to give you a good deal to get you in a contract. However, high end phones or phones with extras can add up. Remember the debut of the iPhone? It retailed for almost $500. It has since come down in price, but there are still plenty of pricey phones out there that are hard to resist.
Mary Ann Romans writes about everything related to saving money in the Frugal Blog, technology in the Computing Blog, and creating a home in the Home Blog. You can read more of her articles by clicking here.
Related Articles
5 Ways to Save on Your Phone Bill