Bring Your Smartphone to Tracfone
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| Tracfone 'Bring Your Own Phone' Program |
A year or so back Tracfone somewhat quietly launched their BYOP program, allowing access for consumers to a wide variety of new phones beyond the Tracfone branded devices.
A long standing complaint with Tracfone for many users was their typically outdated and limited phone options. Tracfone released five Android powered smartphones in 2013, but these phones didn't meet everyone's needs. The LG Optimus Dynamic II was the most popular, but still has certain drawbacks, and retails for close to $100.
But now with Tracfone BYOP, the game has changed. You can choose from a wide variety of Android and Apple smartphones and bring them to use with Tracfone service.
There are certain requirements for the BYOP program:
- Phone must use Verizon CDMA 3G network or 4G LTE (Tracfone recently added 4G LTE)
- Phone must be out of contract or unlocked
See the complete list of BYOP requirements to learn more.
What this does is make it possible to use phones like the Motorola Droid 3 and iPhone 4S with Tracfone 3G prepaid service and phones like the iPhone 6, Samsung Galaxy S5, and LG G2 with Tracfone 4G LTE service.
Visit our BYOP Phone List for the full updated phone list.
Many of the phones that will work with the Tracfone BYOP program can be found on Amazon or eBay for around $100 new, or below $50 used (except the higher end 4G devices). Some people have already found really great deals on smartphones and successfully activated them with Tracfone.
It is important to note that the BYOP program might not be for everyone. It does require you to find and buy your own phone, and there is no guarantee that once you have a phone Tracfone will accept it. BYOP phones will have Triple Minutes, but they won't accept Tracfone Promo Codes.
You can test the serial number or MEID with Tracfone to check compatibility by visiting their BYOP page.
The system is still new, and some people report having a hard time activating their smartphone. Some have even had their minutes or phone number lost. So know that it might take a bit of patience to activate your smartphone.
We have a full blog post sharing more details about using a 4G LTE device with Tracfone BYOP, so go take a look.
We would appreciate any feedback from those who have successfully activated phones with BYOP. Let us know in the comments what phone you chose, and how the process went.
Visit our Tracfone BYOP page for the central resource on information, requirements, and phones that work with BYOP.
Thanks for visiting, and leave a comment if you have questions or thoughts.
