There are several ways to prolong the life of your cell phone battery; Keep your back light off unless you know for sure you'll need it and whilst this might be annoying at first it will save battery life. When the phone is operational, it is constantly searching for a signal which is ok when there is good signal strength but if this is lost, it still tries to find a signal using more power and draining the cell phone battery in the process; the same way that long conversations do. Today's cell phones have many more functions and if you spend a great deal of time surfing the Internet or listening to music, the battery deplete earlier than it should, possibly just when you need to use to speak to someone.

One way that young people get caught out is with the many things they can now download onto their phones which are often chargeable even if this is not made clear at the time of purchase. If you purchase one for your child, find out if you can block these features or find out if there's a way that you as a parent can order features, but your child cannot.

People that use a cell phone regularly, arrange for a monthly plan, this is a contract over 12 or 24 months but if the phone is not going to be used regularly, a pay-per use option is probably preferable. The process for each contract will differ greatly but arranging a pay-per use contract for a regular phone user is probably not the best option to have financially speaking. Consider the features you want, as long-term plans often have more features for less money or even as a bonus, at no charge; so ask if all your features, such as caller ID, will work when roaming.

Pay attention to any hidden charges like penalties for early termination of the contract as some contracts can be costly to get out of. Steer clear of a contract that does not supply the phone with an insurance warranty as you could be liable for any costs if it were stolen or inadvertently damaged.

You also want to make sure that the parts and accessories are easily obtained from any regular cell phone store, even if you purchase the phone from an Internet based company.