Wireless Upstart Ting Has Just 25,000 Subscribers → Ting Was Not A Good Idea From The Start.

Ting was never a good idea for a business from the start. It has 3 major problems going against it. First they are riding on Sprint which is a total loser. The coverage area is poor in most areas and their data doesn't even work in the Phoenix area. You can't really do much web browsing at 27kb. Second is their high priced specialty phones. While they claim you can bring your own phone they don't take smart phones like iPhones or even Blackberries and don't offer a SIM so you can use your own Android phone either. You can bring over a few Sprint phones but mostly older feature phones like the candy bar type. Third their data rate is 3 times higher than T-Mobile so the only way you can save money is if you never use it but then why even get a phone if you aren't going to use it?

While it is true you can't bring over iPhone or Blackberry, you can bring over any of the Android phones that are Sprint branded including Wimax and LTE ones. Also you can bring over just about any Sprint branded feature phone if that is what you need.

iphones are coming, Sprint/Ting uses CDMA (no SIM), and Tings data rates are sky high. It's not meant for the $50 data crowd but for your person using under 250 Mb, texting lots, and low voice. They are targeting most of America, but I feel 250Mb is not good for me. I typically use 4-5Gb a month on my phone and the same on the iPad. Ting would KILL me.

Phones - Thats what phones actually cost. They don't sugar coat it with a postpaid plan. And you can buy used ones from Sprint (ebay, etc) which typically go for short change because they are locked to Sprint and they used fixed LTE SIMs.

Ting relies on Sprint coverage, so that is the choice you get. And I agree Sprints network is BY FAR the worst. It's dialup in WNY to the point of being unusable. Sprint's only hope is to shitcan their EvDO network and pray LTE works out. Actually I would like to see EvDO speeds

Blackberries. OK. Dead.

BBs are far from dead. The same as a Windows Phone.

I use most data on wifi so I end up spending $16.21 a month. With T-Mobile using just a feature phone cost me a little over $50 a month. Seems like a damn good idea to me.

I'm in AZ, live in Glendale and work in Downtown Phx, I have this magic thing called wifi at home and work, use 15 Gbs on my phone monthly through wifi and use under 100 mbs of data. Use skype for heavy calling and Whatsapp for texting. Pay under 20 bucks a month and I love Ting, wish Sprint had LTE in AZ but I'll live. Ting allows me to be a low user but with the option to use more minutes, text and data if I ever need to be without worry of being cut off like prepaid or penalized like post-paid. Includes free voice and SMS roaming and bunch of other stuff. When Ting brings on iPhone and LTE I'll get family to switch over, they'd save 50-100 bucks a month since they never get close to the data Verizon puts on them.
Why you make it sound like having carrier specific phones is this mind blowing concept, in less you pay full price for unlocked phone every career wants you to buy their version of a phone. Who uses Blackberries anymore? The phones they accept are mostly HTC and Samsung, the most popular Android phones. And they don't substitise the cost because it's no contract and not ETF. If you like using a lot of data on your phone then stay and pay Verizon 70 bucks, I prefer to have some self control when I'm walking or driving (only times I don't have free wifi around me) and save money every single month. PS I have Samsung epic touch 4g, iPhone 4S looks child sized compared to it and Ting sold it to me refurbished for $178. It can't give me a back rub or talk to me about my 401k fund like iPhone and S4 but that's ok.
Ting is not for heavy data users but it has amazing customer service based in Canada, awesome interactive usage information and easy to understand billing. For a 1.5 year old company it's leaps and bounds over the competition and has the leading Android phones.

Matter, T-Mobile with unlimited/5Gb data is $30/mo. but Ting would cost me about $36/mo for just 2Gb. Not a good deal.

Moesislak, if you are able to use wi-fi everywhere then you don't even need a phone company. If I were you I'd just use Magic Jack Talk Free Google Voice and Skype everywhere. I can't do that cause I only have wi-fi at home and need a phone service that actually works when I leave home but Sprint don't work here and it's a lot more expensive than T-Mobile.