[Nexus 4 General] mercado79:
The original HOT deal has ended. See below for the latest 25% discount. I've been meaning to post this for a couple months now and kept putting it off thinking that a) the promo was about to expire and b) most people might find this too much of a hassle. I however think this is a steal and I'm willing to move to Ptel while it's this price and switch elsewhere if the deal ends. The joys of using Google Voice means I don't really care if the phone number associated with my SIM changes. If you fall in to the same camp, read on.

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Plans

Ptel offers two "unlimited" plans:

$40 unlimited talk and text. First 250MB at 4G speeds then throttled.

$50 unlimited talk and text. First 2GB at 4G speeds then throttled.

Both plans include unlimited international text, MMS, and 411. Also, unlike all other prepaid companies I've tried, Ptel includes conditional call forwarding so Google Voicemail is not a problem.

Promo Codes

PTELG25 = 25% off ($4.99 SIM Card & Free shipping) = upfront cost of $41.24 for the unlimited 2GB plan -OR- $33.74 for the unlimited 250MB plan

This code requires you to buy a sim/top-up card combo each time, unfortunately. I don't see any way to use the coupon code when simply topping up.

Expired Codes

PTELSLICK20 = $20 off (Free SIM Card & shipping) = $30.00 upfront cost

-OR-

PTEL25BRAD = $25 off (Free shipping) = $29.99 Final upfront cost

-OR-

PTELSTUD25 = 25% off your order and free shipping (not really useful IMHO unless you're buying a phone)

Additional Savings (Cashback)

Befrugal changed their policies effective July 2013. No more cashback from them when buying minutes. If you find another site that will do so, please share! In addition to getting their unlimited deal for $30 $41.24, you can get 20% cashback via BeFrugal making the final cost $24 $32.99! BeFrugal will only allow you to cash out after your account reaches $25. For those of you that are new to cashback sites, just know that in order to qualify, you must click through on the cashback site before you go to the carrier's website. I will often open up a different browser, just to make sure I don't mess anything up. For other cashback options, see here:

http://cashbackwatch.com/store.php?store=PlatinumTel

Buying Multiple Months

The deal has been going on since December at least. So, while it's not "guaranteed" $30 service, it has effectively been that for a few months now. Another option to consider is buying several months worth of SIMs if that makes sense for you. Some might consider this to be counter to the premise of buying an unlocked Nexus. My brother is one of those people that thinks buying a years worth of service up front is a bad idea. "I guess it comes down to principle. Buying 13 months is like having a 13 month contract, more or less. I'm not cool with that."

Either way, it's your call. I bought enough for 3 months and as long as the promo continues, each month I buy one more SIM.

Here are more details which I found out from a Ptel customer service rep:

So, the max number of cards you can buy at once would be 13, I think. Feel free to correct me if my math is off.

Odds & Ends

Other things to keep in mind:

They send you a standard size SIM card. It's too big for the Nexus 4 so you'll need a SIM card cutter. Or you can always ask someone at a Tmobile store to cut it for you (if they have a cutter one available). I bought mine on eBay for a couple bucks. EDIT: As of April 2013, Ptel now sells Micro SIMs too (labeled as Combi Card 2FF/3FF).

Ptel has been around since 2001, but only just switched to GSM (SIM-based) service in December. It seems this promotion is their way of drumming up business on their new plans/network.

I've been on Ptel since January 2013 and have had great luck so far. Good customer service. Fast HSPA+ service in Boston. 16mb down. Zero complaints. If you have any questions, just ask.