BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Before we begin, we're exactly one week away from kicking off the most comprehensive and deal-oriented Black Friday coverage in the country.
We have information no one else has and I can't wait to share that with you beginning Monday, November 21. In the meantime, I'll be sending out deals every morning on Twitter. CLICK HERE
It's an incredible deal at a first glance: $19 per month and you get unlimited minutes, data and text, no contracts or early termination fees and no overages.
That's all from Republic Wireless, a new company headquartered in North Carolina ready to attack the national smartphone market.
So what' the catch?
This creative company was born with the mindset that customers have access to enough free WiFi at your home, work and wherever else you go to handle the majority of your phone traffic.
So this provider uses WiFi for most of your calls and texts. When that WiFi is not available, Republic wireless piggybacks off the Sprint cell phone network.
It's a solid concept for cities like Toronto, New York, or San Francisco, but I can't say we have enough WiFi hotspots in our region to make this a successful alternative for everyone.
What do I love?
The cost, the concept, the freedom and the chance for such a plan/company to challenge the rest of the wireless world.
What do I dislike?
You're restricted to one phone. Yes, you need to buy the $199 LG Optimus (running Android version 2.3), which happens to be a great phone, but for the folks tied to iPhones and BlackBerrys, this is too limiting.
I love the no overages commitment, but Republic Wireless reserves the right to boot any customer that exceeds its Cellular Usage Index. That means if you're using the cellular network too much and not enough on WiFi and you can't find a way to lower it, they can say "no" to you as a customer. They do claim they will help move you to a more traditional provider that meets your needs in that case.
It's certainly not for everyone, but most definitely worth a look if you can work within the confines of their $19/month membership. CLICK HERE
On a completely unrelated and much less complex note, I've received tons of request for handbag deals.
Since you won't see any widespread designer hand bag deals on Black Friday, this is a safe topic and one of the best coupon/price-drop roundups this morning comes from one of my favorite bloggers. CLICK HERE
We receive absolutely no financial compensation for mentioning any company, product, or deal. The purpose of this segment is to find great deals -- that's it.
WGRZ