A month ago, I decided I would save us $20/month by getting rid of my phone’s data plan. I am either at home or on a field trip with the boys at nearly all times, so is there really any need for me to have a data plan? No, of course not. It is a luxury, not a necessity. So, we got rid of it. That in itself wouldn’t be so bad – not having the internet on my phone. But the problem was you can’t have an iPhone and not have a data plan, so I had to downgrade back to my old flip phone.
It has only been two years since I’ve had a smart phone. I was the last person under the age of 50 to convert to it, I swear. People at my work used to make fun of my phone, laughing at what a throwback it was. At first, I didn’t see the need for the smart phone and didn’t really like it. But then, I got used to it. And now I can’t adjust back to a flip phone.
Having a flip phone means no saved text message conversations. Each text message comes in one at a time, so you have to scroll through old ones to see what you were talking about. And the phone only stores 100 messages which have to be manually deleted. I deleted a text about child care and found myself struggling to come up with a replacement in a pinch. I don’t receive group text messages, which are quite a few of my texts.
And have you tried texting on a number pad instead of a keyboard? It’s ridiculous. No auto correct?! How did we live? The pictures people send me are tiny with no way to zoom in or email them to myself. I don’t have maps to get me places. I can’t use my Crane Coffee app or Retail Me Not for coupons unless I have the foresight to take a picture of them before and use the picture on my old iPhone. And have I mentioned no emojis? No emojis!!! Basically, it blows.
It’s only been two years since I got my iPhone, but it feels like I just took a decade’s step back by returning to my flip phone. I can’t do it. I told Steve to reactivate my data plan. $20/month is a small price to pay for feeling like a normal part of society. Get ready for a shit ton of texts from me full of emojis, because that’s how much I’ve missed them. 🙂 See? It’s just not the same.
holly pelesky 
virgin mobile. i'm telling you. i pay 37 dollars a month (including taxes and fees) for unlimited text/voice/data. you have to pay full price for the phone, but the savings more than make up for the cost difference. (and probaby would still save you more than 20$ a month.