Tracfone to Offer Safelink Free Prepaid Cell Phones in New Hampshire

Tracfone will be offering the SafeLink program to over 100,000 more homes in New Hampshire.

The SafeLink program is designed to provide free cell phones and 80 minutes of talk time to low-income individuals who otherwise would not be able to afford the costs associated with cell phone ownership.

SafeLink is not a permanent fix, but rather a program that will hopefully help individuals who are having a difficult time get back on their feet. The aim is not to provide free cell phone usage for a lifetime, but rather to toss out a lifeline to those who need one.

There are obvious safety issues with not having access to a phone in this connected society in which we live. See my other hub about how Tracfone offers free cell phones to low income families.

An added benefit of giving free prepaid phones to low-income individuals and households is that rural networks are being built, which is a good thing for the wireless industry as a whole. There is added tax expense to the public, which some see as less than a positive thing.

Tracfone is one of the better known prepaid wireless providers, and has built its reputation on providing affordable prepaid phones and service to subscribers. There is growing competition in the prepaid cell phone market from companies like Cricket, T-Mobile, Virgin Mobile, and Boost Mobile. 

Tracfone is also offering free cell phones to low-income families in Connecticut, in addition to the 17 other states in which the Tracfone SafeLink program is offered.

Here is a breakdown of the number of citizens being offered the phones.

The number of low-income residents eligible for a free cellular TracFone in Connecticut, by county:

Hartford, 73,495

New Haven, 72,113

Fairfield, 50,699

New London, 19,729

Litchfield, 14,009

Middlesex, 10,832

Windham, 10,742

Tolland, 8,091

Source: TracFone Wireless Inc.

Read more about the wireless safelink program specific to Connecticut.  With the plan, users will get:

A free cell phone, 64 free monthly minutes, no contract and no bill for emergency use for a year.

The real benefit of this program is that it will help disadvantaged people become more "connected" in that they will be able to use the phone to follow up on job interviews or to call authorities in case of emergency.

When the SafeLink minutes run out, there is no commitment to continue on. Or course, Tracfone hopes that users continue on with their services when their economic well-being improves. This doesn't take anything away from what the company is doing, but just shows they are savvy marketers with a heart.  It also makes perfect sense that lower-income individuals would be interested in Tracfone, which is well known for its bare bones, highly affordable call plans.

The truth is that Tracfone offers very good service and is seen as being one of the best prepaid cell phone service providers. Tracfone has somewhere around 10 million subscribers who use the company's services. Tracfone plans are prepaid, which means there are no contracts to sign and no credit checks.

A current Tracfone deal is rather aggressive and can lead to quite a bit of savings for someone looking for an affordable prepaid phone option. The offer is for a refurbished Motorola w370 cell phone for $19.99.

With the purchase of the phone, you get 60 free minutes of talk time, and another really great money-saving bonus: Free Double Minutes for Life. This means that for every minute of talk time you purachse, you are given one minute free.

Tracfone just can't seem to stay out of the news.  But I guess that's a good thing.  A really good thing for a company.  Tracfone recently released the Straight Talk Unlimited Prepaid cell phone plans, which have made considerable waves for the prepaid wireless provider.

The Straight Talk unlimited plan goes for $45 and comes with unlimited talk time and text messaging.  This undercuts the Boost Mobile unlimited monthly plan by five bucks and establishes Tracfone as the most aggressive prepaid wireless company out there now.  If you're looking for a way to save money on your cell phone bill, these guys might be able to help you out.