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Is conservatism right or wrong? If you believe in conservatism, Patriot Mobile is one of the few cell phone providers out there willing to fight for our God-given, constitutional rights and freedoms. It brings you service from as low as $25/ month. And while the amount isn’t the cheapest, the Patriot Mobile reviews online suggest many consumers are still happy to pay.
Well, of course, it’s still not every subscriber happy when you check the consumer reviews platforms like Trustpilot or Money Saving Pro. Patriot Mobile, like any other phone provider, has good and not-so-good features. And in this quick guide, I’ll break down both sides of the service to see if a switch will be worth it or not.
Verdict: The 6 Best Things of Patriot Mobile
- Patriot Mobile has access to all Major Carriers
- Patriot Mobile has free domestic Roaming
- Patriot Mobile has a decent multi-line discount
- Patriot has free calling to Canada/ Mexico
- Patriot Mobile has free WiFi Calling & Texting
- Patriot Mobile has a great customer referral program
Patriot Mobile Reviews: A Summary of the Prepaid Phone
| Feature | Patriot Mobile |
| Founded | 2012 |
| Type of Service | Prepaid |
| Carrier Network | Verizon, AT&T, & T-Mobile, |
| ESIM Support | YES |
| Lowest Phone Plan | $25 |
| Unlimited Minutes | YES |
| Unlimited data | YES (with high-speed cap) |
| Mobile Hotspot | YES |
| Family Discount | YES |
| Free Calls to Mexico/ Canada | Free |
| Video Streaming | YES |
| Device Financing Partner | Kinda |
Even before we jumped to the main review, you can see in the chart Patriot Mobile has quite lovable features. Many are features the carrier didn’t have when they went by the name Eos Mobile (before 2016). A perfect example is the eSIM activation, which the company launched just last year.
As a mobile virtual network operator, Patriot Mobile also used to use the Legacy Sprint (CDMA) towers to work. But when Sprint and T-Mobile merged in 2020, the GSM (T-Mobile) operator took over the wheel as the Carrier Network.
Recently, Patriot Mobile made a new network deal with AT&T and Verizon. Thus, you now get to enjoy the phone service and support conservatism through the network that works best in your area- or suits your lifestyle.
A few other pros and cons of Patriot Mobile worth mentioning include:
Pros:
- It has no annual contract
- Has WiFi calling & texting
- Can call Canada/ Mexico for free
- Has personal hotspot on all phone plans
- Supports domestic roaming free of charge
- You can finance phones in small installments
Cons:
- It deprioritizes data on all plans
- Will also throttle data on all plans
- It’s seemingly more expensive than competitors
Patriot Mobile Reviews: 8 Crucial Things to Know about the Phone
In this section, we’ll now look at the features and perks of Patriot Mobile cell phone service in a little more detail. But as usual, I’ll only focus on the most crucial points:
Join Instantly with iPhone/ Android
Patriot Mobile is one of the many MVNOs that bring you phone service under the prepaid category. And like any other prepaid service, this means you won’t need to worry about the many restrictions the Big Carriers impose under the postpaid line.
For instance, Patriot Mobile doesn’t perform credit checks when applying. It’s possible to join with poor credit, a thin credit file, or even bad credit.
As a prepaying Patriot, there are also no deposit or annual contracts to worry about. Then your bill will always be the same, with no overage charges like those on Xfinity Mobile (postpaid MVNO).
One drawback to mention is that Patriot Mobile doesn’t have physical stores to go and shop in person. It operates only online, where you can purchase your service or device, then they ship to your address (in 4-6 days).
If you don’t want to wait for the physical SIM kit, Patriot Mobile now supports eSIM activation on most iPhones and various eSIM-enabled Android devices. ESIM means you can activate your Patriot service instantly after checkout online.
Easy to Activate Service
After your Patriot Mobile order of device or BYOD kit arrives, you’ll need to activate your service before using it. The activation process is pretty easy as you just need to fully charge your device, then:
- Pop the SIM card from its housing plate and insert it into the phone
- Press the power button and wait for the phone to power up
- After the device has fully powered, use the on-screen prompts to do the initial setup
- When you complete the initial configuration, call the customer service number 877-367-7524. You’ll hear a complimentary message, then a voice prompt telling you to “Press 1 to activate your phone”.
- Once you’ve pressed 1, your Patriot Mobile phone will begin the activation. However, you’ll still need to dial ##873283# (on iPhone) or ##72786# (on Android & Flip Phones) to complete the process.
Note: you can also do a Patriot Mobile activation online if with a device connected to the internet. You’ll just need to get your phone number, IMEI, and SIM ICCID. Then visit the Patriot Mobile Self-Activation portal and follow the on-screen prompts until the end.
Service Available Everywhere Now
As mentioned earlier, Patriot Mobile used to run off the Sprint (CDMA) towers. After the Big Merger in 2020, the new owner, T-Mobile, decided to decommission Sprint network technology. And this means Patriot had to transition its existing customers to T-Mobile.
Sadly, not everyone was happy with the new Patriot Mobile service (under T-Mobile). Many of the complaints were about poor coverage, especially in remote/ rural areas. In particular, many areas of Oregon and other Northwestern states usually have poor/ no T-Mobile coverage.
To avoid losing customers to competitors, Patriot Mobile signed another network contract with AT&T and Verizon. So, you’ll now get service on whichever network works best in your area or suits your lifestyle.
Unfortunately, Patriot service can’t switch between the three different Carrier Networks- say, like the networks Google Fi use for native coverage. You can use your phone on either network: T-Mobile-compatible SIM or AT&T-compatible SIM or Verizon-compatible SIM.
Network Roaming is Free
Again, the network towers Patriot Mobile use is from all three Major Carriers, including T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon. But since you can only register through one Carrier Network, there will be areas your phone or cellular tablet won’t have native coverage.
Fortunately, Patriot Mobile supports domestic roaming for all subscribers. Thus, you’ll still be able to call, text, or use data with your device when outside the native coverage areas.
To make it even better, your Patriot phone will roam anywhere in the US free of charge. You’ll just have to make sure you use the feature sparingly. Else, the company claims they will block your access if they notice “excessive roaming” on your phone.
No Free Phone Deals for Now
Sadly, Yes, Patriot Mobile isn’t part of the companies that give free phones when you switch. The last time the carrier had such deals was 2019 Black Friday. Since then, the freebies on Patriot Mobile have been only on service plans. The phone deals offer a partial discount, with $100+ off the high-end smartphones.
Besides Black Friday, though, Patriot Mobile does have phone offers through the Member Loyalty Device Discount (MLDD). “Member Loyalty” means you can only qualify if you’ve been in the service for eighteen (18) months and with good standing.
Phone Plan Structure isn’t the Best
If you’re looking for a prepaid phone service you can save big on the bill, I’m not going to lie Patriot Mobile is the right choice. At $25/ month, which in the Mint Mobile reviews we saw can get you 15GB service is only enough for a 1GB tier here. See the complete phone plan structure below.
| 1GB Plan | 3GB Plan | 10GB Plan | 22GB Plan | Unlimited Plan | ||
| Price per Single Line | $25/ mo. | $35/ mo. | $50/ mo. | $65/ mo. | $75/ mo. | |
| Price for 2 Lines | $22.50/ line | $31.50/ line | $45.00/ line | $58.50/ line | $67.50/ line | |
| Price for 3+ Lines | $21.25/ line | $29.75/ line | $42.50/ line | $55.25/ line | $63.75/ line | |
| Free eSIM Activation | YES | YES | YES | YES | YES | |
| Talk Minutes | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | |
| Text Messages | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | Unlimited | |
| High-Speed Data | 1GB (then 2G) | 3GB (then 2G) | 10GB (then 2G) | 22GB (then 2G) | Unlimited | |
| Premium Data | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 40GB (then 2G) | |
| Mobile Hotspot | No Cap | No Cap | No Cap | No Cap | 22GB | |
| Free Calls to Canada/ Mexico | YES | YES | YES | YES | YES | |
While it warms the heart to help Patriot Mobile support the causes one believes in, the service is almost as expensive as the BIG Carriers. For instance, $35 that has 3GB of high-speed data is enough for 8GB on AT&T prepaid, 12GB on Connect by TMobile (prepaid), or 15GB on Verizon-Prepaid.
In any case, Patriot Mobile operates more of a….how should I put it… corporate philanthropy. The company website shows it supports at least twenty different causes, including the brand’s newly-launched Patriot Mobile Action (PMA).
If you also wish to take part and support these organizations fighting for our God-given values and freedoms, either of the five Patriot Mobile plans is still okay. You can even bring your family over, and you’ll save $3 – $12 on the Patriot Mobile cell phone plans with multiple lines on your account.
Important Notes:
The phone plans on my chart above are as they appear on the Patriot Mobile front page. When you check the carrier’s page, there’s a “Plus Tax” word under the price of each service plan. But contrary to what I thought, the company calculates the “Applicable Taxes” at checkout.
The taxes Patriot charge on every phone varies with both your location and the selected phone plan.
However, I’ve noticed the tax fees are always between $0.88 to $3.00 in most states. Say, California is $0.88 for 1GB, $1.23 for 3GB, and $2.63 if on the Unlimited plan. In New York, the same plans accrue $0.88, $1.22, and $2.62 in the applicable taxes respectively.
It’s also worth noting Patriot Mobile has one of the best referral programs. You’ll get $10 service credits/ month for the whole year (12 months) per new subscriber referred. Then you can get up to $50 credits (with 5 or more referrals), which is enough to cover the 10GB service plan.
Data Throttling & Deprioritization
Unfortunately, even with the high cost, Patriot Mobile service is still lacking crucial perks. One of these perks is a “truly” unlimited plan, as all the options currently available throttle your data (reduce data speed based on usage). The Unlimited plan also throttles your data after hitting the 40GB high-speed cap.
Furthermore, Patriot Mobile is on the lower QCI priority of its Carrier Networks. If the cell towers are too busy, your mobile data get deprioritized- i.e. data speed drops than the customers on the high QCI priority of the same Carrier Network.
Tip: I’d recommend having a 5G-capable cell phone. You’ll not only have lightning data speeds that download music, videos, apps, or huge files within seconds. The phone will also be usable (on data features) during deprioritization.
Key Takeaway: APN settings for Patriot Mobile
In case you have a problem with your Patriot Mobile phone accessing data services, the network in most cases is usually the problem. And most common causes of network issues on phones are related to coverage, lack of correct band frequencies, or the device having incorrect APN configuration.
As of the last point, the APN settings of Patriot Mobile on Android phones are currently as follows:
Name: Patriot Phone (or whichever name you prefer)
APN: wholesale
Username: (leave it blank)
Password: (leave it blank)
Proxy: (none or not set)
Port: (none or not set)
Server: (none or not set)
MMSC: http://wholesale.mmsmvno.com/mms/wapenc
MMS Proxy: (none or not set)
MMS Port: 80
MCC: 470 (or leave as default)
MNC: 02 (orleave as default)
Authentication type: (none or not set)
APN type: default,mms,supl
APN protocol: IPv4/IPv6
APN protocol: IPv4
Bearer: Unspecified
As a Patriot owner on iPhone, you necessarily don’t need to update the APN settings of your device manually. Whenever you insert a SIM card- at least in my case, the device will push a pop-up prompt to update the Carrier settings bundle. Then all needed is to click on the “Update” button and the phone will auto-fill the latest APN values.
Patriot Mobile Reviews: Is It worth it?
What’s your take on Patriot Mobile at this point? Do you think it’s worth it or not? Are you still ready to accept the carrier as your next cellular phone?
Despite the high price, Patriot Mobile, in my opinion, is a nice idea to support American conservatism. YES, I’m still not very happy the high-speed data allowance on all the plans has a cap. But it’s still worth it at the end of the day if you also believe what they’re fighting for is right.
