Mint SIM is a sub MVNO of Ultra Mobile. The companies business model is aimed at getting subscribers to pay in advance for several months of service. Subscribers can choose to pay in advance for either 3 months, 6 months or 12 months.
A BestMVNO.com site reader tipped me off to Mint SIM's latest promotion which is for new subscribers who are willing to pay in advance for 3 months of service. Those that do, will find themselves with a pretty sweet deal.
All of Mint SIM's plans include unlimited talk, text and data with varying amounts of high speed data. With that in mind, here is a list of the promotional offerings from Mint SIM.
Pay 3 Months In Advance Promotional Offerings
- Small Plan - 2 GB 4G LTE data per month, $11.67/month or $35 total. Regular price is $23/month or $69 total.
- Medium Plan - 5 GB 4G LTE data per month, $16.67/month or $50 total. Regular price is $33/month or $50 total.
- Large Plan - 10 GB 4G LTE data per month, $20/month or $60 total. Regular price is $39.67/month or $119 total.
There are no activation fees with Mint SIM and taxes are minimal except in the state of California where users will have to pay an MTS tax which could reach as high as double digits. Wi-Fi calling and texting are included with all plans as long as your phone supports the service and you have a specific SIM card from Mint that also supports the feature.
Analysis
This promotion is almost a no lose situation for those looking for a new provider that offers service on the T-Mobile network. In some cases the upfront costs for 3 months of service are almost identical to what you would pay for one month of service from another carrier. For instance, Walmart Family Mobile is charging $50 for unlimited talk, text and data with the first 10 GB at high speeds, and that's just for 1 month of service. With Mint SIM you could pay just $10 more and get 3 months of service.
The only real risk I could potentially see here, is that since Mint SIM is a sub MVNO of Ultra Mobile, I'm not sure what network prioritization will be like. MVNO's themselves are always prioritized below postpaid subscribers on the parent network, although for a majority this does not present any real world issues in terms of network performance and speed. As a sub MVNO, where would Mint SIM fall on the prioritization totem pole? Any Mint SIM users out there to comment on this? I should have a full review of Mint SIM coming in the next several months, at which time I should be able to answer this question with first hand experience.