Introduction

• When cell phones were first introduced to the public, they came with strict contracts. These contracts affected how long you had to keep your cell phone service, how much you had to pay each month, and the fees and charges associated with changing or canceling the contract. However, the introduction of the prepaid cell phone changed the cell phone contract forever. Cell phone companies across the globe are now introducing prepaid plans to keep up with this new trend.
  
  

No Contract

• Prepaid cell phone work by offering cell phone service with no contract. This means that the cell phone user does not receive a monthly charge for a pre-specified amount of minutes. Instead, the user pays upfront for the exact amount of minutes they want each month. This allows the user to freely change the amount of minutes they would like to buy each month, as well as reserves them the right to move to another cell phone company without paying a hefty service cancellation fee.
  
  

Minutes

• The minutes on a prepaid cellphone vary depending on which service provider you choose. Some companies may charge anywhere from 5 cents per minute to 20 cents per minute. Usually the more minutes you buy, the less they cost. Prepaid cellphones minutes are obtained by buying cards at your local store, or going online to the cellphones website and using your credit/debit card to buy additional minutes. Once those minute have been used up you will need to buy a new card to reload your phone and keep talking.
  
  

Benefits

• The obvious benefit of a prepaid cell phone it not having a contract. You can buy as many minutes as you want, when you want. You are not tied to the company, and you can change your plan at any time free of charge. This is a great benefit for those that only use their cell phone for emergencies, and do not want to be required to pay for a plan that they will be unable to use all the minutes on.
  
  

Disadvantages

• There are also a few disadvantages to a prepaid cell phone. One of these can be daily connection fees. Not all prepaid cell phone use connection fees, but they can cost as much as $1 per day, regardless of whether you use your phone or not. There is also less of a phone selection for prepaid plans. This also is changing as more mainstream cellphone companies are providing prepaid cell phone plans that work with all of the phones in their lineup.
  
  

Extras

• As technology increases, more and more features are becoming available for use on cell phones. Internet and texting are both features that are now available on prepaid plans for an additional monthly or per use price. Bluetooth, MP3 capability, and photo cameras, and video cameras are also becoming more available on prepaid cell phone plans. Ringtones, Ring-Back tones, games, wallpapers, and backgrounds can also be downloaded to a prepaid cell phone for an additional price.