FreedomPop quietly launched their free cell phone plan just over two weeks ago.
Quiet as it may have been, shoppers still heard about it.
Tony Miller, Head of Marketing and Communications for FreedomPop, told Consumer Press yesterday that they sold out of phones within two days.
According to Miller, more phones will be available soon. But before they come online, feedback is being gathered from early users to make sure there are no major issues that need to be fixed.
When phones are available again, they will be available in a flash sale.
“We have lot more demand than supply for initial beta,” said Miller. “Over 100,000 people are in line. We will be opening up limited quantities in a flash sale style, 5,000 at a time, on a first come first serve basis, emailing those who have already expressed interest to get first jump on the flash sale.”
FreedomPop’s free cell phone plan includes 200 minutes of talk time, up to 500 text messages, 500MB of free 3G/4G data.
They also offer two low cost calling plans:
– a $7.99/month plan that includes 500 minutes of talk time, unlimited texting, and 500MB of data
– and a $10.99/month plan that includes unlimited talk time, unlimited texts, and 500MB of data.
All three plans include unlimited calling and texts between FreedomPop subscribers.
The only phone compatible with the service at this point is the HTC EVO that’s available directly from FreedomPop. FreedomPop is selling the refurbished HTC EVO’s for $99.
Additional phones are to be added to the compatibility list over time, and eventually users will be able to sign up and use their own compatible devices.
Miller said he uses the FreedomPop phone plan himself and “it works quite well. I’ve kind of forgotten it is a ‘freedom phone’ and just use it, which I guess is the point, ie: I’m using cool Android phone with a free plan.”
FreedomPop’s service runs on Sprint’s nationwide data network. Rather than being a typical ‘voice’ calls, the signal is carried on the data network as a VOIP call.
Those of us who currently use FreedomPop’s free or paid – data – plans will find a minor roadblock when signing up for the free cell phone plan. When seeking information and attempting to order the free cell phone service, they will find they have to set up a separate account for it, which requires a separate email address than was originally used.
Miller told CP that they are aware of the issue. Shoppers who only have one email address can contact the company for a workaround.
Are you using FreedomPop’s new free cell phone plan? I haven’t had a chance to use it myself yet, but if you have please let our readers know what you think about it in the comments section below!
– correction made Oct 18, 2013: article mistakenly said HTC One was compatible. The correct phone is the HTC EVO
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