I was driving home from the Sacramento airport on Monday and decided to cancel my OnStar subscription. I hit the blue button on my rear-view mirror and had my subscription cancelled in under a minute. To OnStar’s credit, they did not give me the 5 minute spiel about what a terrible mistake I was making and how I was going to bleed to death in my truck in some back country ravine in the next month!
The only reason I was tempted to keep OnStar was because I don’t have a cell phone. I know, call me a mountain man, but I always liked not being able to be reached when I was out of my home. But after traveling out of state over the weekend I sure could have used a cell phone on several occasions. My OnStar phone was not doing me a whole lot of good sitting in the Economy Parking Lot at the airport! OnStar was costing me about $16 a month plus minutes which I had to buy separately. So I think I will look into getting a cell phone added to my wife’s Verizon account. She seems to think we can get another cell phone added for around $25 a month. I only want a basic cell phone, don’t need the phone with a camera and internet access that will also wash my car for me.
I consider this a frugal lifestyle move not because I have eliminated the OnStar expense, but because I have taken a closer look at what benefit I am getting from money spent. For me, part of being frugal means getting the most usefulness out of each dollar you spend every month. I rarely used OnStar but felt like it was a good idea in case of emergency. But a cell phone would provide the same benefit plus I can take it everywhere. Then when I don’t want to be reached I can just reach for the power button and turn the dang thing off!
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Tags: Frugal Living5 Comments
5 responses so far ↓
That makes sense to me. OnStar does seem pretty cool, but I think a cell phone has more practical applications.
You can get a cheap cell phone that shares minutes with your wife’s plan. I only use my phone for emergencies so I got the free base-model phone that came with adding a shared line on my husband’s account. It costs us less than $20 a month right now with Sprint. It was the cheapest option for us short of going with a pre-paid minutes plan.
I’m the same way. I didn’t even give out the number to my friends so I wouldn’t be called on the cell to chat. I only turn it on when I’m out and about by myself. It’s mainly for peace of mind.
My cell phone costs an extra $10 a month as an add-on to my husband’s plan. I like the convenience of being able to call home if I’m out running errands and running late.
And I never get calls on my cell phone. The only people who have the number are my husband and my children’s schools.
Even an old cell phone with no subscription will dial 911 if its charged up. Next time one of your friends replaces his or her cell, see if they will give the old one to you. Keep it charged & in the car. If you do end up in a ravine and happen to have cell service, you can still get help.
Great tips, all of you! Yeah I am definetely going to add a cell phone to my wifes account.
Melissa, good tip, I was worried I would have to have my own plan and minutes which could get expensive, good to know I can share minutes with my wife’s plan.
Lynnae, wow $10 seems like a great deal. And I am going to do what you do and only give out number to family and schools. I am not a big phone chatter!! It was amazing at the airport last weekend, seemed like 75% off people had cell phones glued to their ears, not for me!
Jennifer, I had no idea you could do that with an old cell phone. My wife has an old cell phone I may charge up and carry until I get set up.