Straight Talk

Straight Talk may be the cheapest way to get unlimited wireless service, but critics say you can get better phones -- and customer service -- elsewhere. Straight Talk's Unlimited plan (*Est. $30 for 30 days and up) includes unlimited talk, messaging, mobile web and 411 calls for 30 days. That's a few dollars cheaper than unlimited plans from Boost Mobile, T-Mobile and Virgin Mobile, but it's important to note that Straight Talk's mobile web is more limited than these -- you can't access all web pages or stream audio. Straight Talk also adds additional taxes and fees, so it may wind up costing just as much as the others.

If you don't need unlimited service, Straight Talk offers the All You Need plan (*Est. $30 for 30 days and up), with 1,000 minutes of talk time, 1,000 text or picture messages, 30 MB of mobile web and unlimited 411 calls. Those minutes and services expire every 30 days; unused portions don't roll over to the next month. Despite the attractive pricing and generous minute allotments, reviews find some major drawbacks to Straight Talk. It doesn't work outside the United States, and it offers only flip and slider phones, unlike the touch-screen phones and BlackBerry smartphones you can get with other prepaid plans such as Virgin Mobile Beyond Talk (*Est. $35 per month and up). Straight Talk benefits from the extensive network and high call quality of its parent company, TracFone, but customers gripe about poor customer service from Straight Talk.

Nearly 5,500 users have reviewed Straight Talk at PrepaidReviews.com, and editors there also evaluate Straight Talk and rank it against other prepaid wireless plans. A smaller number of users review Straight Talk at Viewpoints.com, and one user goes in-depth at PublicKnowledge.org. The New York Times dedicates an article to Straight Talk, pointing out its pros and cons. ConsumerReports.org discusses this new plan briefly within its latest prepaid wireless ratings.