CHAPTER 1: Getting Started
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TIP: Controlling Costs With Reminders
You can set a DROID Calendar Reminder to help you remember to turn off temporary service
plan features.
For example, Verizon (like most phone companies) bills in advance for additional add-on services
such as Mobile Hotspot or Visual Voicemail. Our recommendation is that you put the service
on a recurring monthly reminder on your DROID calendar. This reminder should be set to a day or
two before your monthly billing cycle ends. When the reminder comes up, you should check
whether there are any features that you want to turn off. For example, if you are going on a
summer trip and need the Mobile Hotspot feature for just a month, the reminder would help you
save $20 or more by making sure you turn off the service when you are done with it.
Enhanced Voicemail Plans
Verizon also sells Visual Voice Mail or Premium Voice Mail services on an ad-hoc
basis. This means you can turn the features on or off at will, with no penalties. The
Visual Voice Mail service gives you the ability to see a list of all your messages on your
DROID and tap to listen to them in any order. It’s a nice feature. The Premium Voice
Mail service gives you twice the storage for your voice mail messages. At the time of
publishing, the Premium plan lets you store 40 messages instead of the standard 20. If
you are careful about cleaning out your inbox, then the standard 20 messages included
for free should be adequate.
TIP: If you use the free Google Voice service, you can get free Visual Voice Mail service. You
can learn more about Google Voice in Chapter 7: “Making Phone Calls.”
International Plans
If you travel to Canada or Mexico, Verizon offers special plans that allow you to fully use
your DROID for voice and data while traveling. Again, these plans can be turned on or
off at will. So, if you are only going to be in Mexico a week or so, just remember to turn
off the plan when you return home. We cover international travel in more detail in
Chapter 5: “Wi-Fi and 3G Connectivity.”
Also, if you call from the US to other countries, be sure to inquire about international
access plans that give you reduced calling rates to overseas phone numbers.
If you travel to other countries, check with Verizon and get the company to enable your
phone for international travel. You should also have someone explain all the various
plans, as well as any limitations to your coverage when you travel.
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