A prepaid mobile phone is an alternative to post paid or contract type phone plan. With pre paid your call credits are paid in advance
as apposed to recieving a bill at the end of the month. This can be advantagous in that you are in control of how much you're spending on calls
and services. Call credits can usually be purchased via a recharge card (usually found at service stations, news agents, convienience stores etc.) or
via credit card. More effecient pre paid phone providers even offer online management of your service and call credits online via the web.
Pre Paid Handsets
If you have your own phone it is simple enough to just get a sim only option or if you require a phone there are attractive offers on bundled handsets which include
the sim card. Most makes of handsets are offered with pre paid bundles including Nokia, Sony Ericsson, LG, Samsung and Motorola. Just like the call credits the phone is paid for up front.
The mobile phone in a pre pay bundle is generally offered at a discounted price compared to an outright phone purchase.
Where do you get PrePaid phones and sims?
There are a lot of providers like Telstra pre paid, Optus pre paid, Vodafone pre paid and Virgin Mobile Pre paid. Virgin Mobile offer online purchase and activation along with speedy delivery.
Keeping your mobile phone number - Pre Paid
If you already have a mobile phone number you can keep it with a prepaid sim plan. This is often referred to as porting your mobile number and is simply a matter of making the provider aware of this
during activation or the new prepaid sim or phone package. Also it usually pays to check with your old provider as to whether there is any outstanding amounts if you were on a plan.
If you don't want to keep your old number or need a new one the sim comes with a number allocated.
