Chip Chick
TextNow, provider of one of our ten best prepaid phone plans under $30, is getting a little more intriguing. The Sprint MVNO, which relies heavily on Wi-Fi calling to keep prices down for everyone, is making itself more accessible to those with bad or no credit, allowing customers to pay their monthly bill in cash at a number of convenience stores and other physical locations.
Over the next few weeks, TextNow will be working with a number of gas station convenience stores, including Gates Petroleum, Sunoco, NMart and Circle K, to accept cash payments for any of their prepaid monthly wireless plans. It should be handy for anyone with bad or no credit, or anyone who just prefers to not use card for everything — besides, you’re probably going to end up in one of those convenience stores at some point over the course of a month, if for no other reason than to get an Icee or Icee equivalent. Saves you a trip.
TextNow’s new brick and mortar strategy will also cover the devices they sell — important, because TextNow isn’t a BYOD (bring your own device) carrier unless you’re bringing over a Sprint phone. Fry’s Electronics will start carrying TextNow phones soon, including the Galaxy S5 and LG Volt, which are both being added to TextNow’s menu of devices this month. Both phones are compatible with Sprint’s 4G LTE network. The Galaxy S5 will be the premium offering, but $300 for an unlocked, refurbished handset sounds like a pretty sound deal for what is still is an excellent phone (you can also buy new for $400). The LG Volt will be on the other side of the spectrum, available for $14 unlocked.
UPDATE 08/12/15: The Galaxy S5 and LG Volt will only be available on TextNow’s website, not from Fry’s Electronics, as stated in the post. The first generation Moto G will be the first TextNow phone available at Fry’s. Also, the Galaxy S5 prices listed were inaccurate, and have been amended. We regret the errors.
