If you rather keep your contract phone, i suggest paying the $50, as you will pay monthly for your service even if you don't use the contract phone. Or you can get a new pre-paid cellphone starting at under $50 and let your contract expire. There are many pre-paid providers to choose from. Whatever you do, don't get Tracfone or Net-10, which is owned by Tracfone. Their service is louzy, they have the worst customer support ever, the calls frequently drop, and they are very high priced. AT&T go phone is not too bad, but they too are high priced. Their service is great, but their coverage is louzy. Verizon's pre-paid service is even higher priced than tracfone. Virgin Mobile's prices are about the same as verizon's pre-paid service, but i don't know how good their service is, i never tried them before. The best 2 service providers in my opinion are Boost Mobile and T-Mobile's pre-paid service. T-Mobile has the best coverage for it's pre-paid customers and their service is excellant. Their coverage is 97% of what you will get if you sign a contract with them and you get to roam off their network. You also get roaming to canada and mexico, and i think they offer roaming throughout the world, but i am not sure about that. But if you don't travel much, Boost Mobile is your best option. They have the cheapest service prices if you choose their "PAYGO" phone models. Their "UNLTD" phone models have louzy service and higher prices, so don't get them. Stick with the "PAYGO" models. Their service is also excellant, and their coverage is decent, but not as good as t-mobile's. They don't offer off network roaming in the USA, but they do offer roaming to canada and mexico. If you consider getting a pre-paid phone, try Boost Mobile, they have a pay as you go plan for a flat rate of 10 cents per minute and a $50 per month plan that offers unlimited everything. Unlimited talk, text, private walkie-talkie, data, and so on. And there is no need to sign a contract or go through a credit check with any pre-paid provider, you don't even need a credit card either. You pay by buying a pre-paid refill card (Boost mobile calls it a "Reboost Card"). You can even transfer your existing phone number to boost mobile or another provider you choose by calling them after you activate your account. You can find boost mobile and other pre-paid providers in places like Walmart, Radio Shack, Best Buy, a Sprint store, a convenience store, and so on. Give them a try.
