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Are you looking for the best-prepaid service on the Verizon network? Visible Wireless is a perfect option to consider. It’s currently on a deal of $25 with Unlimited everything, including high-speed data. But when you check many of the Visible Mobile reviews on community forums, the debate has been on whether the recently-released plans are worth it or not.
In this online debate, you’ll notice a lot of varying opinions. Many believe the new service is good, but some not so much. Part of those not so happy is the new customers that looked forward to taking advantage of the Party-Pay discount, which is now only available as a grandfathered perk.
As for the existing customers on the grandfathered Visible plan, some have also found themselves on the fence. They can’t try the new Visible+, which is on the QCI 8 and have a 5G Ultra-wideband, without losing the Loyalty (Party Pay) discount.
More on that, let’s jump to the full review.
Visible Mobile Reviews: An Overview of the Prepaid Cell Phone
| Feature | Visible Wireless |
| Founded | 2018 |
| Carrier Network | Verizon |
| eSIM support | YES |
| 5G Download Speeds | 460+Mbps |
| LTE Data Speeds | 70+Mbps |
| Lowest Phone Plan | $30 |
| Unlimited Minutes | YES |
| Unlimited data | YES (with no cap) |
| Family Discount | YES (Sorta) |
| Free Mexico/ Canada Call | YES |
| Mobile Hotspot | YES |
| WiFi Calling | YES |
| Phone Unlock Period | After 60 Days |
In my opinion, Visible is a good service if looking to save on your monthly phone bill. It’s both a brand and MVNO of Verizon, which should explain why you get better perks than other carriers using the CDMA network.
For instance, all the phone plans bring you unlimited everything, including high-speed data. You can browse and stream as much as you want without having to worry about getting throttled or overage fees.
In the Red Pocket vs Visible review, we saw the 5G data speeds of the Verizon brand peak at 238Mbps. At the time, the operator only supported up to 5G Nationwide (on low-band spectrum).
But Visible now supports 5G Ultra-Wideband on the plan tier they released last year. And with phones compatible with Visible 5G UW, you can see data speeds of 450+Mbps.
Other pros and cons of Visible Wireless you should know before joining include:
Pros:
- It has decent device discounts
- Offers unlimited mobile hotspot
- Has free calling outside the US
- Supports add-on smartwatch plans
- You now get a roaming function for free
Cons:
- It offers deprioritized data
- Sells only locked cell phones
Visible Mobile Reviews: Features & Perks of the Prepaid Cell Phone
Below are nine things you should know about Visible before you decide to join the service:
· Anyone can Try & Join!
As prepaid, Visible mobile phone service is so easy to join. It performs no credit check, whereby you can qualify with even poor or bad credit. There are also no contracts, which means you not only can join and leave at any time desired. But also you won’t need to pay a deposit, as Verizon and other Postpaid carriers may require when applying with poor credit.
Speaking of applying, Visible doesn’t have physical stores, thereby you can only apply online. The operator sends your SIM card kit the next day in the mail (through FedEx) free of charge.
If you’d want to activate your new service instantly, Visible has had eSIM support longer than most MVNOs. You can actually get Free eSIM service for iPhone with unlimited everything before making the final joining decision.
· Coverage is Great!
As already mentioned, Visible is a mobile virtual network operator (or MVNO) of Verizon. The small carrier is a subsidiary of Verizon, anyways. And like any other Major Carrier, Verizon will not be willing to pay airtime fees to its rivals.
The good thing with Verizon as the underlying network is that Visible brings you coverage in not just the cities. You’ll also have a working phone in rural areas, such as Hines, Frenchglen Oregon, where other carriers struggle.
Nonetheless, you should know Verizon and its MVNOs are still a little behind on 5G coverage, especially on Ultrawideband. Many places across the country have only access to 5G Nationwide and 4G LTE.
· Roaming is Finally Available!
One of the features Visible customers had been demanding for years was the roaming option. And finally, the company has consented, as you can now “roam” when outside the native network for free.
Unfortunately, Visible hasn’t shared about its domestic roaming partners, and I don’t want to make any assumptions. The only thing I’m sure of for now is that the MVNO has access to Verizon’s 21 LTEiRA partners, such as Cross Telephone, Bluegrass Cellular, and Thumb Cellular.
If traveling in Mexico or Canada, Visible has also added free roaming talk minutes, text & data while there. However, your roaming data allowances are only limited to 0.5GB of high speed per day, then unlimited 2G.
Tip: In areas with no native coverage or roaming partners, you can use your Visible cell phone for WiFi calling and texting. The feature is free to access for all customers, and all needed is a supported iPhone or Android device.
· Data Speeds are Decent
Overall, the data speeds you receive with a Visible mobile phone vary. If you have the recently-released service, you can tap into the Ultra-Wideband (on C-Band and mmWave). It’s the reason a recent speed test on an iPhone 13 could record up to 468Mbps downloads and 20Mbps uploads.
Even so, the basic Visible phone plan only has access to the 5G Nationwide (on the low-band spectrum). The speeds here seem like the carrier has still capped them like before, as they only fall in the range of 200Mbps.
I’d also not say the LTE data speeds are the fastest. But they sure surpass the average 5-12 Mbps Visible has stated on their website, as you can record up to 70+ Mbps. I have seen some people even claim to hit 90+Mbps.
Related:
· Phone Plans Pricing is Good
Visible is a great option when looking for a budget cell phone service with “truly” unlimited data. It used to have only a single service plan to choose from for both individuals and families. But recently the carrier has reconstructed the entire structure to accommodate the two new service tiers. See below:
| Features | (Basic) Visible Plan | (New) Visible+ Plan |
| 1 Line Price | $30/ mo. | $45/ mo. |
| Priority Level | QCI 9 (lower priority) | QCI 8 (higher priority) |
| 5G Technology | 5G Nationwide | 5G Nationwide & Ultra-Wideband |
| Talk Minutes | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Text Messages | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| High-Speed Data | Unlimited | Unlimited |
| Premium Data | N/A | 50GB (on QCI 8) |
| Hotspot Data | Unlimited (at 5Mbps) | Unlimited (at 5Mbps) |
| Calls & Text to Canada/ Mexico | YES | YES |
| Free Roaming in Canada/ Mexico | N/A | YES |
| Free International Calling | Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, Guam, & Saipan | YES (to 30+ countries) |
| Free International Texting | Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, Guam, & Saipan | YES (to 200+ destinations) |
| Video Streaming | SD Quality (480p) | SD Quality (480p) |
The latest Visible cell phone plans now allow you to choose between the basic (Visible) plan and Visible+. What the company did is that they took the old single ($40) plan, then split it into a lower-tier and higher-tier service.
The Basic Visible plan is on the lower tier as it only brings you the basics at a regular monthly fee of $30. If interested, the operator has an ongoing offer for new customers where you can get the service pack at $25.
$25/ line used to be the price for the Visible customers on the PartyPay/ multi-line subscription of 4+ lines. However, the company has discontinued the Party pay program with the new services.
Early this year, though, Visible introduced a Loyalty Discount program for old customers who were Party Payers. The new discount program (visible on the user’s online account) offers a $5 on the new Basic plan, dropping the price from $30 to $25.
Yes, the service discount only seems limited to the old Party Payers. And what happens is that you will need to switch all your lines from the legacy $40 visible plan to the current Basic ($30) subscriptions. There’s a catch, though.
Related:
· You S-Move, You Lose!
Sadly, the Loyalty Discount for Party Payers isn’t available to the Visible+ service at $45.
If an old Party Payer is on the Basic Visible and upgrades to Visible+, your account also loses the $5 Loyalty discount. So, when you decide to come back to the Basic Visible plan, you’ll have to pay the regular cost at $30.
Note: The price you see on Visible mobile phone plans also includes Taxes and other federal fees. It’s also the same cost, whether you’ve enabled autopay or not.
· Data Throttling & Deprioritization
Just like before, Visible doesn’t throttle your data on either of the two current service tiers. Both the basic Visible and Visible+ bring you “Truly” unlimited data. You can browse, stream, game, and do other online activities as long as you want.
Even better, the Visible phone plans also include unlimited personal hotspots to share your data with other internet-enabled devices. The MVNO claims to cap the hotspot data speed to 5Mbps. But when connected to the 5G Ultra-Wideband, you may notice hotspot speeds at 20+Mbps.
Meanwhile, you should know Visible deprioritizes data of all the phone plans. The difference is that the Visible+ plan starts on QCI 8 for the first 50GB of premium data before dropping to the QCI 9 standard. Thus, your data speeds at the time will be faster than for the customers on the basic Visible plan during congestion.
Note: Your online activity on 5G Ultrawideband usually doesn’t count towards the monthly pot. So, you can stream and download movies on high-priority speeds on Visible+ as much as desired without touching your premium data.
· Free Phone Deals Aren’t the Best
Visible is one of the few MVNOs you can get a free phone when you switch to prepaid service. It actually doesn’t even require you to port a number, as in the case of Cricket and Metro. But there’s still a catch- a weird one if I may say.
To qualify for the Visible free phone deals, you’ll need to trade in your old phone. The old phone you trade must be fully unlocked (either factory-unlocked or carrier-unlocked), but not compatible with Visible.
In other words, you’re eligible for Visible Swap deals only if the carrier online device checker identifies your phone’s IMEI as incompatible. If the IMEI is compatible with the service, you can’t trade it.
The second reason these free phone deals from Visible aren’t the best is from the devices you get after the swap. For instance, the rewards at the time of writing are a Visible Midnight 32GB and TCL 30 LE, none of which even qualifies as a midrange brand.
Nevertheless, Visible has other phone deals that bring you instant partial discounts of up to $240+ on flagship brands.
Key Takeaway: Get the Flagship at Less
If it’s tricky to shop upfront, Visible has a buy now pay later option through Affirm company. You can finance your desired device over 12 – 36 months (about 3 years), depending on its total value.
In case interested, Visible also does offer an early upgrade program before completing your payments with Affirm. All needed is to make sure you’ve paid at least 50% of the current device. Then purchase another device through Affirm again, and send the old phone (with an owed payment) to Visible.
Customer Support Could Be Better
If I’m to gauge Visible service on the five-star satisfactory meter, I’ll place it at the “Good” level. The carrier has great pricing, yet the comes with many features and perks. It has unlimited data with no cap, unlimited personal hotspot, free calling to at least six countries, plus Verizon’s extended coverage and roaming advantage.
Even so, the Visible Mobile reviews on Trustpilot online forum are some of the lowest- has a rank of 1.3 out of 5 from 822 customers. And one of the points many people have complained about is poor customer support. The users have pointed out that there’s a long wait time on calls to the support or that the agents are not helpful.
If Visible could improve in this area, it definitely would be not just good, but Great service.
