Random household issues -- questions asked and answered here

Hmm, I wonder if "Thanks" only appears for posts in a thread that *you* started.  Or maybe for replies to your posts.

EDIT: Nope, not replies to your posts.  Must be threads you started.
EDIT2: Still don't know what makes it active/inactive.

Moving is stressful

Ev wrote:Moving is stressful

I've done my share. Plus working as a mover.

Ev wrote:Moving is stressful

Tell me about it. I stopped counting at 15. And the ones since then have been with 4 kids and all the crap that goes with that. Hire a mover if you can.

My aunt has a trailer so we are just using that. Luckily i only have a few big things to move. The new neighbourhood (Hintonburg) is pretty dope.

Ev wrote:My aunt has a trailer so we are just using that. Luckily i only have a few big things to move. The new neighbourhood (Hintonburg) is pretty dope.

That's, what, about a 25-minute walk from the new Sens arena?

Ev wrote:My aunt has a trailer so we are just using that. Luckily i only have a few big things to move. The new neighbourhood (Hintonburg) is pretty dope.

I lived there for awhile. Enjoy.

wprager wrote:

tim1_2 wrote:My wife just switched to Virgin from WIND.  The coverage was way too spotty with WIND, and times when she should've been at least roaming she had no service at all.  Apparently this is a pretty common problem.

Price is hard to beat, though

Yeah, she's switched to Virgin (Bell's network, the best coverage across the country), and is now paying $50 + tax for 2 GB data, unlimited text, etc.

Ev wrote:Moving is stressful

Moving when you're young and single is a cake walk compared to moving a family. Luckily, I've only had to help other families move...my kids have been born and raised in our Stittsville Shack.

Really, like you said, you shouldn't have had much to move.

Good luck though, I know what you're saying....just know that this will be the easiest move you'll ever have!

tim1_2 wrote:

Ev wrote:Moving is stressful

Moving when you're young and single is a cake walk compared to moving a family.  Luckily, I've only had to help other families move...my kids have been born and raised in our Stittsville Shack.  

Really, like you said, you shouldn't have had much to move.  

Good luck though, I know what you're saying....just know that this will be the easiest move you'll ever have!

Haha. Good point.

tim1_2 wrote:

wprager wrote:

tim1_2 wrote:My wife just switched to Virgin from WIND.  The coverage was way too spotty with WIND, and times when she should've been at least roaming she had no service at all.  Apparently this is a pretty common problem.

Price is hard to beat, though

Yeah, she's switched to Virgin (Bell's network, the best coverage across the country), and is now paying $50 + tax for 2 GB data, unlimited text, etc.  

Is that the BYOB plan (500 minutes plus 2GB)? It says that's a limited time offer.

I was contemplating moving everyone to PC Tel because for $15 you get unlimited texting and unlimited calls between PC phones. Figured I could give that to the kids. But the guy at the Superstore location said the calls between PC phones are only for pre-paid to pre-paid, so if I got a post-paid plan for myself the kids couldn't call me (and vice versa), at least not for free. Apparently their pre-paid and post-paid are on different networks (Bell and Telus).

He also doesn't think that you can use the WiFi calling on the pre-paid phones (although Bell, Telus and Rogers all offer it). That's not a huge problem because there are many ways to call using WiFi. If you sign up for a google voice account you'll actually have a phone number assigned to you (you can still dial out without google voice and it generates some number, and if you use Hangouts you can even receive calls -- from other Hangouts friends) but I don't think you could actually use your cell number as the calling number in those cases. Not ideal but doable.

But I'm not sure if a pre-paid is what I'd want. I don't think I'd be making a lot of calls (and since I already have google voice I'd use WiFi as much as possible) but I really hate counting minutes.

By the way, anyone else like me -- never heard a Tragically Hip song?

Hey, Ev, looks like @SensChirp is your new neighbour

Big thank you to @JLeiper for organizing this Tragically Hip screening in Parkdale Park. Hintonburg at its finest! pic.twitter.com/fkrCZoq8Hr

— SensChirp (@SensChirp) August 21, 2016

Lol yup I'm literally a block away from that

wprager wrote:By the way, anyone else like me -- never heard a Tragically Hip song?

 What's the matter with you?

Looking at the PC Mobile (gotta stop calling it PC Telecom) monthly and prepaid plans.  Still not sure what the difference is since they each have a fixed monthly component and the monthly plans now offer "flexible" data (they charge you in tiers for what you use as opposed to charging you for overages by the MB -- small distinction, to be sure).

Anyhow:

$44/month ($38 if you BYOD) gives you unlimited nationwide calling and of course unlimited texting.  Data (the flex part) is $5 for up-to 500MB, $10 for 1G, $20 for 2G and so on).

That appears to be it for their monthly plans.  Wow, that was easy.  Now, the pre-paid side of things is a bit more complicated:

$15 gets you unlimited texting and calls to other pre-paid number in the same calling area (I take it that means that if a family of pre-paid phones travel from, say, Ottawa to Montreal they will still be able to call each other -- but if one member stays in Ottawa then that one is left out).  I still need to make sure if WiFi calling is available on pre-paid or not but, if it is not, then you simply go with one of the apps (just means you will be using a different calling number).  Oh, and if you absolutely positively need to make a non-wifi call then it's $0.20/minute (local -- long distance charges extra).

$25/month is the same as above but adds unlimited evenings (7PM to 7AM) and weekends.  

For another $5 (so $30/month) they add 250 anytime nationwide minutes and evenings are 5PM-7AM.   I think I'd pay $5 just for the 2 extra hours (evenings starting at 5PM versus 7).  This may just be the sweet-spot plan.  But I'll keep looking.

$40 (an extra $10) adds unlimited incoming calls and 250 MB data.  Not sure what the point is of giving you 250 MB data.  First, that's just $2.50 based on their $5 for 500 and $10 for 1G pricing; second, who needs 250?  You can't even receive e-mail for 250 unless  your inbox is always empty.  Is $7.50 extra worth it for unlimited incoming?  I guess it depends on how/why you use your phone.  A contractor/tradesperson for example may get a lot of calls but likely doing that much calling himself.  I don't think it's something I would find useful (I've got a desk phone at work and I'm there past the 5PM free evening calls).  

$50 drops the 250 MB data (good idea) and changes the 250 anytime nationwide minutes to unlimited.  With pre-paid you buy your phone separately or bring your own, so this plan would be the same as the $38 monthly plan.  So you're $12 ahead going monthly (not sure if they lock you in for 2 years if you BYOB -- I did not see the word "contract" used in the small-print).

So $38 (BYOB) monthly gives me unlimited nation-wide calling, but $30 gives me 250 minutes plus free evenings (5PM) and weekends plus unlimited to other pre-paid PC numbers (i.e. rest of my family).

Of course the landscape changes dramatically if you want/need data. For pre-paid it's $2/day up to 20 mb, $5/month for 100 mb, $20 for 500 mb and $30 for 1G (recall with monthly it's $5 for 500 and $10 for 1G, so either 4x or 3x more for pre-paid).

My wife enjoys being able to check her e-mail or look something up now, but I'm sure she could adjust (once you've set up your profiles for Tim's, McDonald's, Library, gym, arenas, Starbucks, etc. then you're almost always in a wifi zone anyway; it's really only useful when you're in a car or bus -- wonder if OC Transpo will offer wifi anytime soon).

Walter, I admire your quest to save dollars; however, I have a hangover and can't bring myself to read more about cell phone plans.