Datasheet

12
Part I: Getting Started
You and Your Shadow: Understanding
How Your Cellular Carrier Bills You
In the United States, most cellular companies sell phones at a significant
discount when you sign up for a service agreement. And most cellular com-
panies offer discounts on phones when you want to upgrade to something
newer (as long as you also sign up for another couple years of service). So,
it’s not surprising that most people buy their phones directly from cellular
companies.
If your new Windows Phone 7 device is an upgrade from an older phone, you
may have a service plan that was suitable with your last phone but isn’t so
great anymore. If this is your first cellphone (ever, or with this particular
carrier), you may have started on an entry-level plan, thinking you wouldn’t
need that many minutes, only to find that you and your phone are insepa-
rable and you need a better plan. The good news is that most cellular carriers
allow you to change your service plan.
Most cellular service plans have three components:
✓ Voice usage
✓ Text usage
✓ Data usage
I walk you through each of these components — and how Windows Phone 7
affects them — in the following sections.
Voice usage
Voice usage is the most costly and the most complex element of most ser-
vice plans. Cellular providers typically offer plans with a certain number of
anytime minutes and a certain number of night/weekend minutes. Some pro-
viders offer plans with reduced rates (or even free calls) to frequently called
numbers, to other cellphones with the same cellular provider, or to other
cellphones in general. If you talk a lot, you may be able to opt for an unlim-
ited voice plan (for domestic calls only).
At its core, a Windows Phone 7 device is, obviously, a phone. In the early
days of smartphones, manufacturers were stung by the criticism that smart-
phones weren’t as easy to use as traditional cellphones. Indeed, you do have
to bring up the Phone screen to make a call (more on making and receiving
calls in Chapter 2). To avoid this criticism, Microsoft has made sure that the
screen used to make calls is only two clicks away from the Start screen (what
you see after the phone is ready for you to start using it).
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