Noob with OCD / this seems too good?

[feetsdr]

Long time business verizon customer with 3 phones on the account.  In a 10GB  shared / month plan.

We call and they give us 5 - 10GB extra per month and that had been good, but recently are getting real close to 20GB for the month and we are going on a road trip / need data.  Was looking at prepay plans for just the trip.  

This trial is neat (didn't know my phone had eSIM).  What's the catch?

1) I saw each of the 3 phones needs to be on it's own account (not a big deal? we can set up autopay to credit card on all of them / bill every month?

2) I saw something about getting the monthly charge to $25 with a party?  didn't see anything more than that.  Anyone know?

3) We've been on verizon for years / we like the cell service.  So this is good vs. some other prepays / unknown service behind them

4) Calling canada and mexico included?!  I would have to pay on my current plan.

5) On my current plan, we have the international travel $5 / day thing.  Does Visible have something for when you are out of country?

6) how does it work when you call international on visible?  they add it to the bill next month?

7) I don't know prepay.  Is that just pay in advance the fixed $30 vs. pay at the end of the month?

Any pros / cons I am missing about porting to visible?  We are paying about 150 a month now for 3 phones and only getting 10 - 20GB / month shared.

😎 there's no phone support here, right?  But that's OK - I wind up getting frustrated with verizon business support over the phone.

9) for the other 2 phones, I can refer them and get $20 one time each? That's the only savings?  And the $50 after 3? months?  are we eligible if we did the trial?

again, this seems 'too good'?!  That there has to be a catch?

[TheCellTower]

I will answer you soon I don't have time right now, be in touch 

[TheCellTower]

Visible offers two type of plans,

The first plan is the $30 plan which includes unlimited talk/text and unlimited data, the data speed is not the best but it's usable, sometimes it can go slow but usually you'll be fine, don't expect the speed that you get with Verizon. This plan includes international calling to Canada and Mexico, other countries you cannot call, this plan does not include any roaming even in Canada and Mexico if you travel outside the US your phone will not work. Please note that since visible is prepaid company even though you try to make an international call or you try to use your phone outside the US it will not work, because prepaid companies allows you to use only what you pay in advance and visible does not offer to pay in advance for roaming or international calling, so if you're on the $30 plan you will not be able to make international calls, only to Canada and Mexico will work, and the same with roaming even you are ready to pay there's no option to add it to your plan.

The second plan visible offers is the $45 plan which includes unlimited to talk/text and data, this plan the first 50 gig you will get better data speed (not as good as Verizon) but better than the $30 plan one's you reach 50 gig it will slow down to the $30 plan. This plan includes 500 minutes international calls to 30 countries here's a list

Australia

Austria

Belgium

Bermuda

Brazil

China

Colombia

Costa Rica

Denmark

France

Germany

Greece

Hong Kong

Iceland

India

Ireland

Israel

Italy

Japan

Malaysia

Netherlands

New Zealand

Norway

Peru

Singapore

South Korea

Spain

Sweden

Thailand

United Kingdom.

This plan includes roaming in Canada and Mexico meaning to say if you travel to Canada Mexico your phone will continue working to call to the US and in Canada and Mexico.

Both plans includes unlimited hotspot at 5 Mbps that's not really recommended for regular internet use, but it's good for whenever you need it.

You can enroll in all three accounts in Auto refill (auto pay)

You can refer your self for the last 2 lines and get 20 dollar discount on both accounts.

The service is on the Verizon network but it's not the same quality as Verizon direct.

Please accept as a solution (if it is)

[Anonymous]

---

@feetsdr wrote:

1) I saw each of the 3 phones needs to be on it's own account (not a big deal? we can set up autopay to credit card on all of them / bill every month?

Yes, each account needs it's own email address but can be billed to same card.

2) I saw something about getting the monthly charge to $25 with a party?  didn't see anything more than that.  Anyone know?

Party pay has effectively ended unless you're on the old plan that these new plans replace. Party pay isn't applicable to the 2 new plans being offered.

3) We've been on verizon for years / we like the cell service.  So this is good vs. some other prepays / unknown service behind them

Yes and no, see comments below regarding pros and cons.

4) Calling canada and mexico included?!  I would have to pay on my current plan.

Unlimited calling and messaging to Canada and Mexico when you are in the US on either plan.

On the $45 plan:

Talk, text and use unlimited data when traveling in Mexico and Canada, plus the US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. Data speeds are reduced to 2G after 0.5 GB/day. Roaming capabilities are not yet enabled on certain devices, see the Visible Help Center for the latest information

International calling included from the US to 30+ countries. Call up to 500 minutes per month at no additional cost.

Unlimited texting included from the US to 200+ countries & territories worldwide.

5) On my current plan, we have the international travel $5 / day thing.  Does Visible have something for when you are out of country?

Nothing available for calling from.

6) how does it work when you call international on visible?  they add it to the bill next month?

There's no postpaid billing - you're limited by the number of minutes specific to each plan.

7) I don't know prepay.  Is that just pay in advance the fixed $30 vs. pay at the end of the month?

Prepay is paying in advance for the next month.

Any pros / cons I am missing about porting to visible?  We are paying about 150 a month now for 3 phones and only getting 10 - 20GB / month shared.

See below.

😎there's no phone support here, right?  But that's OK - I wind up getting frustrated with verizon business support over the phone.

Correct, no phone support unless you're lucky enough to get a callback after chatting. Be prepared for even more frustration with Visible's chat via web or app. It's a first tier of support with mostly scripted answers to common questions. Anything major get's referred to a specialist who may get back to you in days, weeks.... in my case I've been waiting days and weeks for 2 separate incidents.

9) for the other 2 phones, I can refer them and get $20 one time each? That's the only savings?  And the $50 after 3? months?  are we eligible if we did the trial?

Correct, referrals bring you and the person referred $20 - not familiar with the $50 mentioned.

again, this seems 'too good'?!  That there has to be a catch?

If it sounds too good to be true, it usually is...

---

Although owned by and operated on Verizon's network, it's not the same - separate business entities. The catch is that the marketing term "unlimited" really only applies to the data used. There are always limits. The biggest one on Visible are that: your data is always deprioritized versus others on the Verizon network (including other MVNOs); the $45 plan however does give you premium data of 50GB once you go over that it's deprioritized; hotspot is limited to use by one device at 5 mbps -  some phones will actually not allow a second hotspot connection while it's already in use, regardless 5 mbps is something you don't want to be sharing across multiple devices at the same time anyway. Detected video streaming and even some downloads from well-known video content providers are throttled to a speed that will typically only support 480p resolution. Don't overestimate the support via chat - it's can be brutal and unproductive. Contacting @VisibleCares on Facebook, Twitter, etc. using direct messaging can be less taxing sometimes and is akin to using email exchanges. Appears to be the same support channel as chat. You can get peer-peer support here (as well as Reddit) but there are some issues that cannot be solved by peer-peer support.

Before switching give the free trial a go - set aside enough time (15 days isn't that long) to properly and fully evaluate how well it meets your needs. Everyone's mileage varies according to needs and location.

Read the fine print at: https://www.visible.com/legal/legal-disclosures