STi Mobile

I bought my Sanyo STI Mobile phone in Dec. 2006, just after they switched from "free" network access to 10 cents a day. There were zillions of criticisms of them on that, but when you're giving something away and it turns out not to be a viable business model, you either do something else or go under. I'm GLAD they chose to stay in business and charge 10 cents a day ... $36.50 a year max ... for network access. I "took a chance" that the grousing was all about the daily charge. GLAD I DID! An extremely light airtime user, 30 mins or less per mo., for me NOTHING beats STImobile! In months when I don't use it, I pay less than $3/mo. now with new lower rates. You do have to make one one-minute phone call every 60 days to keep it activated (or receive an incoming call I THINK). That adds about 60 cents to the yearly cost. If you are an infrequent user, you can look at your call history occasionally to check. I've never had a problem with the phone, the service (Sprint network), nor with ... Read more

I’ve been using STI Mobile for over 4 years now. Things are alright if you don't mind a weaker signal than competitors, rarely use your cell phone AND don’t have a problem. If you have a problem of ANY kind YOU will pay for it with ridiculous amounts of YOUR time YOUR money and YOUR frustration. Even though its STI Mobiles fault. Unless you almost never use your phone, a low minute plan from any other company is well worth the couple extra dollars!!!

Have had STI for over 2 years, and it works quite well. You do not have to refill your phone, every 30, 60, or 90 days. Their rates have dropped, it 9 cents every day, and phone calls are 8.9 cents a minute. So you have cell service $2.70 to $2.79 a month.

These con artists proved they couldn't be trusted when they BAITED consumers with "free phone" after rebate offer......and then implemented monthly surcharge.  That supposedly FREE PHONE ended up costing cherished customers $36 per year.I get a stronger signal with my Tmobile/Nokia prepaid phone and there aren't any BS conditions requiring mandatory usage.....or concerns about frequently changing terms of service.Bait and switch scammers get ONE star even though I get my service FREE.  How?  Staples used to carry the phones and the prepaid cards. I stocked up on $10 cards several years ago by purchasing them with coupons received by turning in empty ink cartridges.   Chicago area stores were offering $6 for each empty ink cartridges.  Once I deplete my remaining 30 prepaid cards this phone will go in the trash can where it (and STI) belong.The only benefit of doing business with STI might be  lower  rates for calls to Canada or overseas.

Amazingly affordable and great customer service. Best thing is that you don't have to buy a huge amount of minutes every so often. Time does not expire. Daily fee is only 10 cents and minutes are 8.9 cents. The Sanyo 200 is pretty basic, but it has voice dial, speaker and great standby time (10 days.) Customer service open 'til 1 a.m. and they don't keep you waiting on hold forever. Great deal for someone who doesn't use the phone very much. Definitely going to get it for my teenager when I feel it's necessary. Note to parents: If you get one for your student, punish them harshly if they try to use it in class. Teachers all over will appreciate it.

I have had this service for a year and replaced my long distance service with it. I had a problem with junk text mgs but customer service discontinued it very promptly. I never see a better price/service offer from the complainers. I am writing this because of their unfair statements.

I've had my STI phone for over 2 years now. The sti cell phone program is by far the cheapest system out there FOR LOW USERS at 10c /min (12c peak time)with a $3/month fee. Where else can you get a phone where the minutes DONT RUN OUT (but watch out for limited time promo's), as long as you use it once every 60 days; not extreme! also it doesn't matter how small the card amount you buy is , I always buy $10 cards only(in case I lose the phone!) I use it for my small business too, though I dont give out the # often. The total amount I spent last year on cards was only $160 not bad for $13.33 a month!! If I need to buy a new phone the average price, for new phone (low end models)is $30 even less on EBAY with shipping. I was waiting for 5 years for the real price to drop to 10c/min and STI has It. If you have Ltd income,Stop wasting money with the biggy's!

I have had my sti phone and service for over 2 yrs with very few complaints. *My rebate took 7 mos. to recieve. * I found that no retailers in my area carried the refill cards after Comp USA closed and when the ones bought online charged an extra fee so my $50 refill cost me $55. Very recently I found 7-11 started carrying them and they are discounted on some websites. And finally, I want to upgrade my phone and there are only a couple to choose from. I would like more than 3 choices with one always out of stock.

I've had my STI phone for over a year with no complaints. For prepaid in an area without T-Mobile availability, STI is really the most affordable option. 10 cents a day, plus 10 cents a minute, and the minutes don't expire (I think you have to use the phone once every 60 days). They use the Sprint network, which is fine for me but dos have some regional gaps (check their map). I received a prompt response the one time I needed to contact customer service: when the Plan 1 rate for new activations switched from 12c/daytime, 10c/night to 10c all the time, I emailed requesting the new more advantageous rate and was switched within a day. The customer service guy who helped me set up the phone after I bought it was also fine. I agree that the web site is is not terrific, but for a light-use prepaid, this is at the top of the affordability list.

I think that STI mobile is by far the best choice if you use your mobile phone infrequently. I see a lot of negative comments here but most of them seem to complain about a change in policy where the company first charged $3 per month and later $0.10 per day. That is so similar that I don't see real reason to complain about that. It works well for me, recharging works well. The phone I got through them is really loud, which I think is very good when using it 'in transit' with lots of background noise. It's got no frills that I don't need, which I appreciate but if you like to play games on your phone, maybe not so good. It is not perfect: STI has characteristics of a cheap company, the web site is not so clear about conditions; I needed to search for them before I could decide. And you need to make or receive one call every 60 days, which seems a strange requirement because you pay a daily rate already without using the phone. Still, cheaper than anything else I have found. If you ... Read more

I have been using STi Mobile for a couple years now, and have not had any trouble with them. I have always been able to get service when I need it, and the customer service reps are adequate and have always been able to answer my questions (compare to a company like TracFone to see what I mean). It probably hurt their reputation when they changed rebate terms and airtime rates mid-stream, but it is important for *ANY* consumer to make sure they READ EVERYTHING CAREFULLY before complaining! Many of the negative reviews I have read here come from what I assume are people not reading carefully and then complaining when things didn't go their way. STi Mobile is very affordable for light cell phone usage, and I have never had a problem getting a signal when I needed one. Overall, a decent company. (Just review their website and make sure you understand everything before you buy. It's not "their fault" if *you* do something that invalidates your rebate or deactivates your phone!)

It's really unbelievable this company is still in business. Obviously some of the positive ratings are fake. Like some others, I purchased the phone with a $50 prepaid card before the 90 day expiration limit began. I used it infrequently, less than $10 worth, and today the phone is dead. I was unaware of the new policy, called the company, and was told it was up to me to keep track of the latest changes on their web page! I've been burned before by this company when they instituted their $.10 per day charge after my first purchase. Don't get taken like I did. There are better choices. Zero stars.

All I can say is the people that rated this company higher than a 2 are not aware (but some day they may be, could be tomorrow at STI's whim) how STI changes their terms and doesn't even notify or care about your existing plan or minutes, when you bought, how long you have been a customer, etc. etc. Stay away. This is like having someone sell you something (prepaid) and then come back later and say oh, I know you PREPAID for this, but I'm changing the terms so in effect what you prepaid for only buys you half of what it used to buy. I can understand someone doing this on NEW cards but on EXISTING cards it is borderline illegal if you ask me, I don't care what boilerplate legalese they include in the contract.

Ive had my Account active for 8 months and its the best cellphone plan out there for pre-paid customers! Ive never had a problem with signal strength,no matter where ive been or overall clarity.I would not listen to a bunch of whiners who probably cant even tye there own shoes,Like the ones I just read! Thats why I wrote this,compare for yourself other services.For me,STI,they are simply the best!

i can confirm this compny is from hell. i returned a phone with a defective battery and it will take 4 weeks to replace it. can't get my money back either. customer service is available on 30 minute wait time. i'm contesting the charges with the cc co.

STI Mobile is nothing short of a company from hell. If you happen to read this review before you sign up, thank God you are saved. Sneaky charges, absolutely incompetent customer service and wait times like no other company! It took them 2 weeks to port my old number and now takes them 2 weeks to release it. If there was a 0 (zero) rating, that's what they deserve.

Total rip off with horrible customer service. Very responsive on the sales end and totally non-responsive on the service end. Stay away from this company you have been warned. If I could rate them a minus number I would have.

Took 5 to 6 months for the rebate last November. Change in service blew, it was not daily charge. This was the perfect phone service. Now, you pay 10 cents a day $36.50/year. However, it still is better than virgin mobile and trac phone. Sti cards money does not expire. you buy $25 card, it last 250 days or deduct your 10-12 cent call usage. Still the best emergency phone, like I said $36.50/year. The phone was free after rebate last day after Thanksgiving. Buy your recharge cards online for 3% less.

The phone works well enough. The problem is the company. I bought the phone before 90 day expiration limit of initial minutes which comes with the phone ($100 worth for mine). Today the phone goes dead. They are retroactively enforcing the 90 day expiration. Called customer service and was informed they can change the terms of the service at anytime without notification including whether your minutes expire or not.

I can't be bothered to go to the FCC but this company is ripping me off both with the baitnswitch 10cent fee and they overcharge on time (my phone timer shows 3 minutes but they charge me for five, disappearing money on the phone (I gave up a perfectly good locust tdma for this, now locust wont take me back they're trying to shut down the tdma, no new customers.) stay away from STInk mobile

STi is one of the best choices you can make for prepaid service. Last year, they had free after rebate phones and the vast majority of people received their rebates. Only those who did not follow reasonable instructions or attempted to purchase more phones than allowed were denied. Just read the comments of those who did not receive rebates. All admit some mistake on their part. Now the have color flip phones for $80 with $80 worth of time. Not only other prepaid company comes close to that offer. If you make international calls sti is even sweeter. You can get rid of you home phone service and just use them.

Unfortunately,mariab, your son did not adhere to the rebate reqmt. to keep phone active for 90 days and I would assume invalidated his rebate chances. If you want to take advantage of rebates, you read the rules and stick to them. It's not STI's problem,either, that your son will be in an area without Sprint service. I do not get Sprint (therefore, STI) service at home, but make sure that I get to where I can make a call in order to keep the "one call every 60 days" rule. I think it's only fair for the rest of us who use STI that complaints be legitimate so others can judge the company fairly. As I see it, you seem to think that your son is entitled to special treatment; well, the business world doesn't usually work that way.

I bought the phone for my son at Staples in November - still no rebate. About a month ago, my son informed me that his minutes had run out, but when he tried to add more, it didn't work. Apparently he left the phone with no $$ for 2 wks, and the phone was deactivated ($5 fee to reactivate). Now my son left for Maine for the summer...he's not quite there yet, but already having problems with the service. I called to check on service availability in the city that he'll be in for the next 3 months and was told they do not service that area. So I asked about the 60 days without usage policy - will they waive that since he CAN'T use the phone? NO...will they waive the reactivation fee when he returns? NO As I told the supervisor that I spoke with, Cell companies are fighting for business all over the country...if they don't want a customer enough to waive a reactivation fee after the customer COULDN'T use the phone, then I'll switch to another provider when he gets back. TERRIBLE C... Read more

I still have no check from the $100 phone rebate after 6 months and 6 phone calls. STI representatives were mostly unhelpful and uninterested - "you'll get your check in another 6 to 8 weeks" was the usual reply. The rebate web site is still showing that my 90 day waiting period has not elapsed, after 6 months! This is a company to avoid, no matter how good their product appears.

Same rebate problem: bought Sanyo phone at CompUSA 11/20/05 since advertised as FREE after rebate but no rebate check yet. $10 airtime investment lost with the new $0.10/day charge (instead of the 1 call per 60 days to keep acct and airtime balance intact). GFS rebate service company answers with "STiMobile Rebate Center" and then tells you they are not processing the rebate. Calling the STiMobile people gets no results to date. Would have been a great emergency use phone but rebate handling kills it.

When I joined STI on the internet, they automatically signed me up for web browsing and charged .$19/day without telling me. They also started charging me $.10/day fee just for having the service and also did not inform me of this. They said that their terms and conditions said that they could change the terms anytime without notice. Apparently they could charge me a daily fee of whatever they like without telling me. I didn't realize this until the amount of money on my phones dropped from $10 down to $0 the next time I used the service. Needless to say, I would never sign up for STI again. I would rather add a phone with my verizon company than to be charged all these hidden fees. When I contacted customer service about this they did absolutely nothing to fix things.

Still waiting for rebate after almost 5 months...all the required waiting periods were over weeks ago. I have contacted COMPUSA and the Illinois States Attorney. Also, the phone died a month ago. I sent it in, they signed for the delivery, and now they claim they can't find the phone! So - no rebate, and no phone! Would suggest you go just about anywhere else - avoid these scam artists. Amazing that COMPUSA and AMAZON even deal with these yokels.

I was amazed that STI's connectivity is so great. I've gone thru so~~ many carriers & this was my last hope.

Overall, STI has a great concept and product. If it were marketed more professionally and less deceptively, I would have given it a five star review. I received the rebate as advertised, but it took a full 4 months to get. I had to write an e-mail threatening to report their "tail-dragging" to the appropriate governmental agencies coupled with a few phone calls to get their collective butts moving on the subject. In all fairness, I finally did receive the rebate, but not without putting up a fight to get it. Another funny thing happened that focused my attention to another issue. I noted that the balance of monies available on my recharge card was rapidly diminishing despite minimal usage of phone minutes. Upon calling STI to request and view the statement of charges, I was told by the "customer service" rep that I would need to get a "court ordered subpoena" in order to view my statement. I couldn't believe what I was hearing !!! However he did offer a verbal explanation of these char... Read more

I am not suprised that STI is charging you extra minutes. I bought an STI mobile phone and it has been an absolute horror from the start! There is not enough time and space to relay the aggravation I have had with this company. I tend to think a lot of it is the inability for the people who answer the phones to understand the problems and fix them. My story: I Wanted a phone to use only for incoming business calls and on the road business incoming calls! I Bought phone from STI MOBILE website. $99.00, which included a $50 phone card. NO PHONE card! Phone card credit of $50 was supposed to be activated when I "activated" the phone. After much aggravation and phone calls from STI PEOPLE who just made up several stories and just plain said, "Sorry, you are stuck because the STI person who helped you "activate" your phone did it wrong!" I finally got to a supervisor and after arguing with her that it is was their fault, I got my $50 credit. STI People unable to understand probl... Read more

I bought STi Mobile prepaid phone and service. This is the worst ever service I ever received. The customer service folks are deaf or dump but you have to repeat same sentence several times. There is always noise. Be careful about hidden charges: 1) By default they enable "Web browser" service which costs you 19c/day. You don't even know until your phone is dead. They start deducting 19c/day until the balance reaches 0. Once it reaches 0 for 14 days, they deactivate your phone. Once deactivate you will loose your number and you have to pay activation again. When I called then about this they said, Customer has to explicitly deny web browser. But how does the customer know if he/she doesn't know about the fact that web browser is added by default. 2) They policies are very stupid. They change their policies without any notice. For example, they added daily fee of 10c without any notice. And start deducting. Again if you are a occasioanal user of this phone you will end up in same... Read more

Buyer Beware !!! STi Mobile won't honor their rebates... Total fraud !!!

I was very disappointed that STi mobile changed their rates within three months of activation. I feel it was very deceptive to go to a 10 cent per day charge (which may seem cheap but my old plan (Alltel) had no monthly fee and only a one call per month (25 cent min.)requirement . I would not recommend this plan unless you can not find a cheaper one. Customer servie is poor.

I just ordered my stimoibile phone via sharkphone.com I wonder how much they will charge me? I wonder how I can surf the web and how much that might charge? Seems like whatever is on their website doesn't really matter cause they do whatever they want.

I've had sti for about a year now. Rates are the cheapest (if u can find cheaper, please post). Only had to call customer service once, no problems getting customer service (the problem was on my end). Calls are clear and coverage better than most carriers in my area. Rebates came in on time with no problems. My dog just ate my phone so now I will order a new one. Even tho they have added .10 a day charge, which sucks, it is still much cheaper than most prepaid.

Bought 2 STi Mobile phones in September, 2005. Phones work fine, service is fine, rates are fine BUT have not received the rebate for the second phone. After far too many phone calls and resubmitting copies of my rebate documents I have gotten nowhere. STi Mobile reps and supervisors agree they owe me the money, promise me that the check is in/will be in the mail, but still no money. I believe that there is something fishy going on with at least a few of the customer service agents. (I think one of them cashed my rebate check.) I would never do business with any company whose representatives (no matter how pleasant on the phone) lie repeatedly to me.

I bought 2 phones in 11/05 and received two rebates 2 days ago. The phone (LG vi5225) was great, sign-up quick, call quality good. I was very happy till I learned that STI began to charge 10 cents per day. It was not a lot of money ($36 per year), but it was deceptive. I have not decided whether to drop STI since better alternative is hard to find. I already have a Virgin Mobile phone which costs ~ $60 per year.

This company changes the calling card terms. Adds fee and deactivates the phone and refuses rebate. Please stay away. Not worth the trouble.

Please note your balance and the exact time before and after you make a call, you will find the tricks. I called less than two minutes yesterday (Sunday), My balance was decrease from $17.81 to $16.71. The rate was ACTUALLY $0.55 per minute!!!!!!! --- It should be Night & Weekend rate!!!

I bought a Samsung (Staples) $100 rebate. Will I ever see the rebate? 'Bout the time hell freezes over. It is so restrictive for a purpose. There in the business of selling phones for $100 ea. It took me 2 weeks to activate it and my minutes evaporated. I got taken for $110, I should have read this site first. I'll keep the phone, it makes an expensive clock and who knows the Government may make them cough up some of their ill gotten gains. I would like to know who got their promised rebait (sic). Cash in hand. They got me "stupid is as stupid does", but not for any more. That's my opinion.

This is an illegal bate and switch con game and it stinks. I bought a 10.00 card and have not made a call yet but my $10 is gone. My family bought 9 phones on this rebate program and now we are going to the govt. to let them know about the bate and switch. Sears paid millions for trying the same con. game and so will STi.

It took days to get service activated, first via web (didn't work) then via the customer service people. The customer service reps were not helpful. I spent hours on the phone waiting for them. It was wasted time because they were unknowledgeable and disinterested. Got the phone at Staples and was supposed to get a rebate. Now the rebate center says it's invalid because there was no serial number (and there darn sure was). I would never use STi Mobile again. I'm highly dissatisfied.

At first it seemed the company was respectable BUT!!!! then they decide they will change the terms/conditions to include a 10 cents per day service fee. Even though with this change to plan #one you now get free international calls (to countries listed in the pamphlet on display in Staples) being I never make international calls said change is totally bogus. I feel they scammed people into committing themselves by purchasing said phones, paying the activation fee, and purchasing time cards, and then change the terms figuring at a minimum that until people get their rebates they will keep the phone active for the 90 days to qulify for said rebate. That means that even though people might not have signed up for the STI service if they knew there was a 10 cents per day ($3.00/month) service charge those already committed will have to pay said 10 cents/day for at the very least until they get their rebate at which time they can make calls using up any card balance in their account. This w... Read more

You're much too high per minute as compared to others.

I was just screwed by STI. I placed a $25 recharge card on my son's phone and it was gone in about three days. He hardly used the phone in that period. Same problem with customer service-long waits on hold, nobody speaks english well, and no one is helpful or has the authority to do anything. If you have a problem you'll never get past skippy the supervisor. They said that my son recieved 467 text messages in tat three day period which is ludicrous. Problem is your not entitled to see your own phone log. You must provide a subpoena to get it!!! Well, this is not over!I'm going after these morons. What ever you do, DON'T buy from them. DON'tDON'tDON'tDON'tDON'tDON'tDON'tDON'tDON'tDON'tD ON'tDON't

wchan3... Looks like you have understood the scam of these people. Some people will take time to realise it but eventually they will... Only thing is its too late. Here are some useful links for the people who can realise how they were taken for a ride. You can file compalint against STI here: nyc consumer complaint: http://www.nyc.gov/html/dca/html/contact/contact_fo rm.shtml ftc complaint: https://rn.ftc.gov/pls/dod/wsolcq$.startup fcc complaint: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/complaints.html consumer complaint form: http://www.oag.state.ny.us/complaints/html/comp_con sumer.html email eliot splizter for help: http://www.oag.state.ny.us/online_forms/email_ag.js p For some people who are giving great star ratings for this company and are not going to realise for maybe next 3-4 months after which it will be too late , here are the shady practices of this company: -> They sold phones saying its free after rebate. Then changed their terms and conditions. People don't realise it comes to $50... Read more