How do I port out my number and transfer my balances to wife's phone?

[roadtrip]

Both our phones are unlocked 1st generation iPhone SE's BYOP to Tracfone and we're using the CDMA SIMs. I am thinking of going with Verizon prepaid because I want to use my phone as a hotspot at times. I have 9.76 GB data, 10,932 texts and 646 minutes that I'd like to add to my wife's phone but I don't want to lose my phone number. From what I've found from various posts on the forums here, if I merge my balances to my wife's phone mine gets deactivated and I lose my number. I'm thinking that if I port my number out first I'll lose my balances to add to wife's phone. I really don't want to lose my number or my balances but if I HAD to sacrifice one or the other it would be my balances. Anyone have any suggestions about how I can keep my number and give my voice, data and texts away?

Thanks in advance!

[hpham]

I really don't want to lose my number or my balances but if I HAD to sacrifice one or the other it would be my balances. Anyone have any suggestions about how I can keep my number and give my voice, data and texts away?

1. Port your number out. Your phone will be deactivated.
2. Reactivate your phone within 60 days with a minimal time card. (It'll be assigned a new phone number). Your old balances will be restored.
3. Ask TF to combine the remaining minutes/days of your phone to your wife's phone.

[roadtrip]

Thanks hpham! I didn't know that the old balances would be restored. So I just put the old Tracfone SIM back in the phone to reactivate? Verizon says my current SIM from Tracfone isn't valid even though it's on Verizon's network so they'll give me a new one for their network. Can I get away with like a $5 text card to reactivate?

[hpham]

So I just put the old Tracfone SIM back in the phone to reactivate? Can I get away with like a $5 text card to reactivate?

Put whatever SIM that was in the old phone back in it. You'll need to use a time card (which adds some service days). If your phone has TMFL and can use the Basic Cards, a $9.99 card will do. If not, you'll need a $15 card. If the phone is in your TF account, select it from the list of Inactive Devices and click on ACTIVATE. If it's not in your account, ask a rep to do it, you probably will need to provide the IMEI or SIM number.

[ST Dog]

Verizon says my current SIM from Tracfone isn't valid even though it's on Verizon's network so they'll give me a new one for their network.

Verizon won't use TF's SIMs.

You plan to use the same phone on Verizon? That adds a wrinkle. If you try to reactivate the phone/SIM combo they'll see the IMEI is active or maybe deactivate it.

Unless someone else has a better idea, I'd get a cheap TF, transfer your current TF device to that first. Then port your number to Verizon activating the old phone,

Then have TF reactivate the cheap one. And finally transfer the balances.


Cheap TF would be like a $10-20 phone.
Might have to order to it that cheap.

Or maybe you could switch to an AT&T SIM with your phone to free the IMEI.

Or the have an old/spare phone that can be activated, perhaps with a $1 SIM kit.


I try to keep a spare phone around in case one of the main phones has a problem.

[loboheeler]

Unless someone else has a better idea, I'd get a cheap TF, transfer your current TF device to that first. Then port your number to Verizon activating the old phone,

Then have TF reactivate the cheap one. And finally transfer the balances.

That was my thought too, that you could not pull this off using the same phone.

[roadtrip]

Too bad my old LG L39C can't be reactivated (not 4G) or I would use that. Maybe I'll delay the switch to Verizon prepaid until I absolutely have to and in the meantime try to use up as much of my balances as possible. Thanks to you all for the help!

[loboheeler]

Both our phones are unlocked 1st generation iPhone SE's BYOP to Tracfone and we're using the CDMA SIMs. I am thinking of going with Verizon prepaid because I want to use my phone as a hotspot at times.

Do these phones do hotspot now? You can use hotspot on TF/VZW in limited amounts, even though it is officially prohibited.

[roadtrip]

Do these phones do hotspot now? You can use hotspot on TF/VZW in limited amounts, even though it is officially prohibited.

No, they don't loboheeler. Well, mine doesn't. I haven't tried my wife's iPhone to see if her phone will give me a different result. When I click on "Set Up Personal Hotspot" on my iPhone it gives me a pop up with the options "Call", "Go To Website" and Cancel. When I go to the website it takes me to "mysites.taboolanews.com" and the name of the site is "mySite".

[ST Dog]

That's a TF portal.
Weird that you are directed there.

But it seems the phone is checking with a server to see if hotspots is allowed/enabled fot your account.

[taxmantoo]

That was my thought too, that you could not pull this off using the same phone.

Every time I deactivated a VZN phone in the last year or two, it kept its number for at least 20-30 days.

So, there's a risk, but in all likelihood you could:
1. Transfer your airtime to wife's Tracfone.
2. Activate the phone that you deactivated in step 1 with a $9.99 airtime card.
3. Port your number out.

[roadtrip]

That's a TF portal.
Weird that you are directed there.

But it seems the phone is checking with a server to see if hotspots is allowed/enabled fot your account.

It's weird that the phone should check to see if it's allowed. It should either be able to create a hotspot or blocked from creating one by Tracfone. But nothing surprises me anymore about cell phone usage

[roadtrip]

Every time I deactivated a VZN phone in the last year or two, it kept its number for at least 20-30 days.

I have discovered over my years with Tracfone that I do NOT lead a charmed life with them! Took me 3 years to get VoLTE activated on my phone. Thank you for letting me know your experience taxmantoo but if I were to try it I know I would be the one to lose my phone number!

[ST Dog]

It's weird that the phone should check to see if it's allowed.

That's been the norm for a while, at least with carrier branded phones.

I know AT&T and Verizon were doing it in 2014. They replaced the stock app for setting up hotspots with a carrier specific app that verified the account had hotspots enabled. Friends with unlocked phones, overseas with local SIMs couldn't use hotspot because the phone still tried to contact the original carrier.

And more recently phones have been downloading custom apps based on the SIM installed.

That's all Android, so not surprised to see iOS doing similar, even on an "unlocked" device.

And TF has zero control over the apps/OS with BYO devices. How could they block the hotspot in that case? In fact they couldn't with BYO unlocked devices, or ones with custom OSes, they don't check with the carrier.

[roadtrip]

Both of ours were purchased from Apple and were SIM free so we could choose any network. I'm thinking since Tracfone doesn't allow hotspot use they are blocking the BYOP SIM I'm using. Thanks for your help ST Dog!