cell phone question

[disneymom15]

My father wants to get rid of his land line and replace it with a cell phone. Is it possible for him to keep his home number and apply that number to the new cell phone. He's thinking about the jitterbug phone. Anyone ever use this company. He's elderly and wants something simple (no frills).

[Katzateer]

Would it be cheaper for him to just have you add a line to your phone? My brother did that with my mom and it has worked out great.

We have let our 23 year old stay on our phone plan since it only cost $20 a month with unlimited text.

I think the landline numbers can not be used for cell phone numbers. I tried that a few years back and was told no, unless it has has changed in the last 5 years.

[Katzateer]

The basic flip phones look pretty much the same as the jitterbug except the numbers are larger on the jitterbug. You can get the flip tops " free" with a 2 year contract. My husband likes that since he just has his phone for calls and texts. He doesn't want anything fancy or confusing.

[Disney Doll]

It depends on what company has the land line and what mobile carrier you are wanting to use. I would say your best bet would be to go somewhere like Radio Shack or Best Buy Mobile where they have multiple carriers in one location and then you can compare to see which might be able to do that. If your land line is ATT and you want to switch to an ATT mobile you probably stand a better chance of making that work.

[DizneyRox]

We swapped our AT&T provided land line umber to a Verizon Home Connect phone line about two years go. The Verizon Home Connect is basically a cellular phone.

I don't see why not. Aren't there some fees carriers charge now because they have to provide that functionality.

[Ian]

From what I understand, I believe you can take your phone number ... any phone number ... anywhere you want from carrier to carrier, regardless of if it's mobile or not.

[Janmac]

We have ATT cell service out here in the boonies - the only one with any sort of coverage. We have various extended family members on five lines. Seems as tho practically everyone I know does this. Our neighbors to the east have their kids and grandkids on their cell service and our neighbors to the west are on their son's plan.

As for cell phones, my DH (75 yrs old) had a simple flip phone that was menu driven that he never really got the hang of. He kept wanting to touch the screen.

So I ordered him a refurbished Pantech Ease, which is touch screen with a slide open (sideways) QWERTY keyboard. It has two phone modes: one is easy, with only one screen while the other is advanced and has 3 screens of menus. I don't think other Pantech phones have the two phone mode system.

DH keeps it in easy (or is it simple?) mode and loves the touch screen. He even texts people now, because the wide full keyboard is easy for him to understand. The phone's display is larger than the display on his flip phone, which is easier for him, too.

He still forgets how to do a few things occasionally but uses this phone more than the previous simple flip phone. It seemed counterintuitive to go more tech but it's worked for him.

Jan