First thing you want to consider is the type of phone you want. This will greatly affect the carrier and data plan you choose. There are basically three categories of phones to choose from; the Traditional – good for calls and text, the Blackberry – good for email and mobile web browsing and the smartphone – good for anything and everything and built like a computer.

Now that you have your phone let’s look at three of the big carriers and what they offer.

AT&T – They offer a talk all you want plan for $69.99 or a unlimited voice and data plan for $99.99. As stated before if you only want to make phone calls then the talk plan is the way to go. AT&T offers some of the better smart phones on the market, including the iPhone, which is in a class by itself. These are two of the most popular plans. You are able to pick and choose the amount of minutes and pricing according to what is best for you. If you want an iPhone Apple also makes you pay for data on top of the AT&T price so it can get expensive.

Verizon – the largest network of all the mobile carriers offers a multitude of plans to fit your budget and needs. With Verizon unlimited talk and text is $89.99, with the basic talk plan starting at $69.99. They are somewhat higher because of the network and fewer dropped calls. From there plans go up depending on if you want to add a data package to your plan.

TMobile – Just like the other two major carriers TMobile offers a number of talk, text and data plans. The TMobile price seems to be the most reasonable with unlimited talk and text plans starting at just $49.99. As with the other carriers you can also get unlimited talk, text, data and web for $99.99. Even though TMobile has the lowest starting prices they tend to have more hidden fees and one time payments then any of the other carriers.

NOTE: Verizon is the largest network with the least amount of dropped calls but AT&T has the best 3G data network. TMobile has an ok 3G network and is borderline with dropped calls.

There are several cheap mobile phone plans to choose from and every company offers good deals, it just depends on personal preference. Be sure you look at what up front fees and “one time ” fees the carrier is going to make you pay. Remember you want to tailor the plan to the type of calls and data you will be using. Don’t get talked into something you will never use. If you are not going to email or surf the web then a smartphone is not for you. Lastly, always look at cancellation fees and all the other fine print. Soon it will be illegal for companies to require you to sign a contract or even charge you for early cancellation. Above all enjoy your purchase!