My new phone

My phone quit working. I took it to Radio Shack to have the battery checked. When the cover was removed it had a lot of dust. That didn't surprise me. After a couple checks it was determined the phone was no good. For 9.88 plus tax I now have a new phone. My remaining time was transferred to my new phone. It is a simple Trac Phone. It has more things I probably will never use. It even takes pictures. How can they make a product like this and still make money? Stan

Apparently they can't; heard on morning "news" that they are filing chapter 11 bankruptcy. Used to be a good electronic components place for the home experimenter-then they forgot their core business and are now paying the price.

I thought they had re invented themselves after 1977 called and wanted their store back? lol

Tracfone makes money selling minutes, not phones. At least that is my understanding. I have one too, it is handy except that it does not work unless I go outside which is fine except for winter and when it's raining. I use it mainly when I am off the premises, it works better most other places than here.
Zach

I think these Go Phones & Trac Phones are on their way out. Smart Phones are the money makers.

I agree to some degree. But todays gadgets are simply too complicated for all but the most advanced hobbyists. When computers were new and very very expensive then someone could buy a kit and build one from scratch. Etch your own boards solder on components etc. What would you want to build from the components they had/have available. How about a blueray player or a camera or even a radio. You can now buy a completed and refined product cheaper than you can buy the components to build your own. Not including the nice case to put it in.
I built my fair share of gadgets and things from parts from various places and loved to do that in my youth. Unfortunately there is not much call for those components and certainly not enough to keep a brick and mortar store open. So they had to diversify and try to change. They just weren't very good at it. Sears is another example of a store that didn't see the writing on the wall and capitalize on their infrastructure and catalog power. If they had they could have been bigger than Wal-Mart. Remember you used to be able to buy a kit house from sears and have the parts delivered to your lot.
Times change and so do the people, I don't think many people want to tinker as much as in the past. Today is just a throw away world for the most part for the consumer as the parts are so expensive on their own. Sorry for running on.

I use a Trac phone. It does a great job for me. I don't think I have made a call on it in over a month but it is in my pocket when I want it. Costs me 7 bucks a month. Did I say, I don't like using telephone unless necessary. I do like gadgets but the prices are out of reach for me now days. Some times it looks like this computer and maybe the television will have to go.
Some one mentioned making up gadgets from kits or parts bought from places like Radio Shack. Back in '47 I purchased a radio kit. Cost me $13. My brother, fresh out of Navy electronics schooling put it together for me . Used to lay there at night listening to the Mpls Lakers. George Miken, Vern Mickelson, Jim Pollard, Slater Martin, Bud Grant, Whitey Skoog and a few others. Still have the radio, but it hasn't worked for last 50 or so years. It outlasted the Mpls Lakers though as they of course had to go West.

Yeah I remember the correspondence course I took in "8 track " repair

I've had a straight talk (Wal-Mart/ tracphone joint venture) for 3 1/2 years. Be a cold day before I go back to a major carrier.

Oh yeah, and they do have smart phones. But if you want the latest greatest you will pay full price, which negates any monthly savings.

Having had some experience working in the manufacturing industry (ball bearings), I know the difference between the cost of any specific ball bearing "out the door" of the manufacturer, compared to the retail price of that same bearing at a retail outlet. Huge difference. Based on this knolwedge, I will guess that even the most elaborate smart phone would cost less than $10 to build. Even the newest I phone 6 should not retail for much more than about $50.

We are all being ripped off, and very few of us ever complain about it.

I was with Tracfone for over 10 years, no issues except when switching phones they'd try to short me minutes as I had so many. I gave up on doing that over phone support, email works better. I switched to Pageplus (which Tracfone also bought out), because I rarely talk and it was cheaper, still Verizon towers. $10 for 4 months of service. So I have a Motorola Barrage for a "beater" tough phone on the ranch, and I take a smartphone to town so I can look stuff up as needed. Both phones combined total $60 per year for more than I talk. Pageplus lets you activate 3G smartphones without the data plan if you want (they have data plans too). 4G phones only activate with data ($30/month cheapest). So it's either pay per data use, or connect at a McDonalds or other hotspot. If I needed a little data with a smartphone I'd get Tracfone again, they had a fairly nice LG Ultimate 2 with a year of service and 1200 minutes for $130 over the holidays, cheap smartphone considering it included the year of service and minutes/text/data.

I'm surprised no one mentioned Heath Kits! Or was that before your time? I built a colored TV from Heath, and several instruments that I have and still use. As for phones, I spend lots of $$$ for two phones, rarely use mine! Might be time to look into other options.

Sure miss the Heath Kit stores!

Gunny, in Iowa

I got the LG optimus fuel, think it was about 60.
They had it on sale for 30 at Christmas but none on
the shelf. Wanted to pick up a spare.