Credit the Pink Pony Club. Until early October, I was happy with my prepaid phone service. I moved my cell service to budget prepaid plans nearly a decade ago, and have gone through a half-dozen services since, including Mint and Boost.
Then I took my 10-year-old daughter to see a Chappelle Roan concert. My phone was on Visible Wireless at the time, and my traffic was fully deprioritized at an event where seemingly 30,000 people were simultaneously posting stories and snaps ahead of me. I ended up standing in a field for four hours without a drop of internet.
T-Mobile recently announced a new service that lets you switch to the carrier in just 15 minutes, along with same-day delivery of your new smartphone. That was very appealing, as was the idea of not being tossed to the back of the line the next time I wanted to use my phone at a crowded event. I expected better coverage and was hopeful about an easy switch, so I gave it a whirl.
Photograph: Martin Cizmar
Switch in 15-ish Minutes
As someone who goes through multiple cheap prepaid carriers every few years, I’m used to battling my cell service provider. I’ve spent hours and hours trying to port my lines or get a device I paid cash for unlocked so I could use it overseas (there’s a reason why we only recommend you buy unlocked smartphones). I have been pushed past the brink of Karendom and even resorted to filing an FCC complaint over one carrier’s practices. I have consistently been frustrated with the difficulty of switching carriers and have come to believe it’s painful by design.
T-Mobile’s new 15-minute switching feature only works if you use the carrier’s app, and I wanted to discuss my options, so I called. The switching process took a little longer over the phone (27 minutes), but it was painless. The T-Mobile sales rep wasn’t pushy with the upsells and was able to use a screen-mirroring function on the app to point me to where to click or read. I found it helpful, and it’s the only way I would advise an older person like my mom to interact with a cell carrier.
I opted for the mid-tier Experience More plan, which, for $85 per month, offers unlimited data and calling, plus 60 gigs of high-speed mobile hotspot data, and some free data in Canada, Mexico, and several other countries. Also, I can text and use the internet on a plane. It comes with free Netflix, too.
Next Day Pickup
My iPhone 15 Pro Max had a cracked screen for almost a year after I dropped it at an NFL playoff game (it was in a case at the time, and I hate cases), so I was ready for a new device. That bright orange iPhone 17 Pro has been calling my name. I was ineligible for a trade-in given the condition of my old phone, so I looked at what promotions the carrier was offering.
T-Mobile is currently offering the regular iPhone 17 for free with a 2-year contract. I didn’t want the regular model, but was happy to learn that the carrier can take that same $35 per month and apply it to the Pro Max, meaning I got the device I wanted for $15 per month over the 2-year contract. I was facing a $32 increase in switching from Visible, but got $35 in monthly device credits with no interest, meaning I’m actually getting back $3 per month. The next time I’m at a concert, I’ll be able to scroll through Threads between sets like a normal person and maybe even post a few selfies.
T-Mobile’s other big boast is same-day delivery on your device. Unfortunately, while I could have gotten this with the standard iPhone 17 or the regular iPhone 17 Pro, same-day delivery wasn’t available for the Pro Max in orange in my area (especially considering I finished my order around 6 pm). Instead, I arranged for next-day pickup from a local T-Mobile store. By the time I checked my email the next morning, the phone was ready for pickup. I drove 1.2 miles to the T-Mobile store, showed them my driver’s license, and was home within 15 minutes. Then I had to set up my new phone and port my number. All told, I had less than an hour of my time sunk into the switch.
While the particulars of my situation made it so the whole process wasn’t purely 15 minutes with same-day delivery, I’m happy to report the switchover process was one of the most pain-free experiences I’ve had with a carrier. Also, apparently, I can now get a free Slurpee from 7/11 every month as part of the promotion.
