• After 15+ years, we've made a big change: Android Forums is now Early Bird Club. Learn more here.

Boost Mobile version works on Ting

Daigoro

Newbie
Dec 5, 2012
37
11
i figured this was worth a thread in case anyone was interested.

i read on their help forums someone posted that he got the BM version working on Ting. i like the idea of splitting up the services since i rarely use up many minutes on my cell, so i figured id try them out.

i ported my number from VM and it took a few hours. (you need to call VM to actually get your proper account number so you can sign up with Ting, but it was easy) but i can confirm that it works. texting, call and voicemail are all working. im getting 4G signals in my area. so far all is good. we'll see how the plan works out for me.

also, thanks to the post below by hungryghost, i got the $100 credit. it says good through Dec 1. so it may still work until 12 Am tomorrow. i guess you should call and make sure just in case, if you;re interested. a human actually picks up after a few rings, and they seem easy to work with. crazy!

I just bought the Sprint Prepaid version of the LG Volt for $39.99 at Radio Shack. I told them it was a gift for my mother, and there was no problem. They sold it to me without activation. I activated it on Ting immediately after I got home and it's working great! Also, I used this $100 Ting credit before activating. That's about 3 or 4 months of free service for me. Black Friday has been good to me this year! :D
 
Wow, nice! Good to hear the Boost version also works on Ting. With this phone, you should also be getting Sprint Spark if that's available in your area. The LG Volt is one of the few phones that can handle Sprint Spark tri-band.

If I'd known about the Boost, I'd probably have gone with that one instead of the Sprint prepaid, just for the color difference (black vs. white). But the phone was for my mom, and I think she actually likes the white color. Anyway, glad it's working out for you! And I agree, Ting is awesome. Nice, friendly customer service reps who actually answer the phone within a couple rings! Crazy, I know.

Oh, and the $100 Ting Credit offer is good until Dec. 1, 11:59 PM EST. So, hurry.
 
Upvote 0
yep so far so good. thanks again for the tip on the Ting credit. the Boost phone (not on sale anymore, curses!) was cheaper than the sprint phone, so thats what i went with.

how can i tell if im getting Spark Triband? (im going to try to look it up in the manual i just found online). i checked the coverage map and it is apparently available in my area. im seeing LTE lit up on the taskbar. all i know is coming from a horribly broken Virgin Mobile Optimus Elite that would drop 3g and wifi constantly, the connection speed on this phone is blowing me away, but im sure even a solid 3G connection wouldve been a huge improvement.

going to check out that manual now.
 
Upvote 0
how can i tell if im getting Spark Triband?

I don't have the phone in front of me (gave it to my mom already), but from what I remember, when it connected to LTE, there was sun-like "flare" animation thing in the status bar area. I assumed this meant Spark (my city is supposedly Spark-enabled), but maybe it's wrong to assume. Now that you mention it, maybe the "flare" animation shows for any LTE connection (normal LTE or Spark tri-band). I'm not sure now. Let me know if you find out, because I didn't find much info from my cursory Google search.

Also, when I activated the phone, I ran an Ookla Speed Test over LTE (WiFi disabled). The phone got around 7 Mbps up/down with around 2 of 5 bars signal. I thought that was decent for Sprint in my poor coverage neighborhood. That's far better than what my mom's previous 3G-only phone got. Apparently, Spark is able to deliver upwards of 50-60 Mbps, and this phone definitely didn't get that, but again, weak-signal area here.
 
Upvote 0
This is the Sprint Spark icon:
EDIT: and LTE icon
sp.png


The Boost Mobile Moto G and Sprint Prepaid Sharp AQUOS Crystal also work on Ting :)
 
Upvote 0
Are you guys actually saving any money with Ting? I've been crunching some numbers and 2.5GB of data, 100 minutes and 100 texts comes up to about $57. Even without texting or calling ($51), you're paying more than Boost without getting more data than what they offer. Also, if you do the math on the data tiers, unless you use 2000MB of data, you're paying more than the $.015/MB they charge for going past the 2000MB mark, and even then, it's only $1 less. Seems to me that you're going to end up close to what you're paying for Boost, unless you just hardly ever use the phone in general.

Don't get me wrong, the concept of paying for what you actually use is great, it just doesn't seem that there are any actual savings here in the long run.
 
Upvote 0
Are you guys actually saving any money with Ting?
...Don't get me wrong, the concept of paying for what you actually use is great, it just doesn't seem that there are any actual savings here in the long run.

It really depends on your usage, if you're using 2GB or more of mobile data a month Ting probably wont be the cheapest for you.

I'm able to save money with them because I use WiFi for most of my data, which doesn't count towards your usage. In two years I've never had a bill over $30 so I'm saving money, plus once in awhile I'll get a referral (see my signature below) which pays about a month of service for me. :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: bg4m3r
Upvote 0
For light usage, Ting is a money saver. If you only use Wi-Fi or very little data, while wanting a good smartphone, then it can be a good way to save some cash. I won't recommend Ting for people who use a lot of data, minutes, want a cheap subsidized smartphone or have lousy Sprint service in the area. For the people wanting to get the $100 through Ting as two previous posters mentioned, the promotion ends today (12/1/14), and if you are waiting for that Black Friday special to arrive, create an account and use any old Sprint phone they can take. Once they assign you a number, you will be given the credit and can swap phones once the one you ordered arrives. I posted my referral link on the Ting carrier page, so you can claim it today.
 
  • Like
Reactions: bg4m3r
Upvote 0
This is the Sprint Spark icon:
View attachment 78022

The Boost Mobile Moto G and Sprint Prepaid Sharp AQUOS Crystal also work on Ting :)

isnt that just the 4G LTE icon?

Are you guys actually saving any money with Ting? I've been crunching some numbers and 2.5GB of data, 100 minutes and 100 texts comes up to about $57.

possibly not! i just signed up to try it out and because i really liked the idea of having all of the services separated. (that and the $100 credit deal). i rarely use many minutes at all from month to month. i usually just use text and data.

so i've been checking my data usage for the past day or two and im thinking its what might make Ting not work for me in the long run. i like to browse the web and stream audio when away from wifi occasionally, so i think thats going to push me over the limit of what i would have otherwise saved from never using any minutes.

as a test i switched off data when i left my house and turned it on at midnight tonight while i was away. ive used about 3 MB in 3 hrs just buy having it on. ive received 2 email alerts (didnt check them) and have done nothing else to initiate an data usage. so assuming i used 25 MB a day buy just leaving it on and not using it, thats $15 a month for data alone.

with the credit ive got possibly 2 months before i start paying, but we'll see how this goes after that. at this point, im not optimistic that its going to work for someone like me who actually uses data pretty regularly not matter how few minutes i actually use.
 
  • Like
Reactions: bg4m3r
Upvote 0
After some searching that icon was originally released for Sprint Spark devices, here's an article about it, but it looks like they're using it for regular LTE as well.
Interesting...that would explain why I only get around 20Mb around home, but close to 40Mb in Chicago. I thought the Spark service around my area was just lower quality, but maybe I'm not even getting Spark here.
 
Upvote 0
@bg4m3r It can depend on several factors, like distance from the tower and how many people are using it. If you live near Chicago, according to Sprints map the entire north east corner of Illinois has Spark (of course those maps aren't always 100% realistic).
Yeah, I know, I live in Northwestern Indiana...my job takes me through Chicago regularly, so I've had opportunity to run Speedtest here and there. Is there a way to see if you are on Spark vs LTE?
 
Upvote 0

BEST TECH IN 2023

We've been tracking upcoming products and ranking the best tech since 2007. Thanks for trusting our opinion: we get rewarded through affiliate links that earn us a commission and we invite you to learn more about us.

Smartphones