Yeah, man, that sux. I was in a similar situation with my provider, the one I used for about 15 years. But then I ackquired my first N9 and needed a micro-SIM card. Where do I get one? I cannot use my regular SIM just to try in the N9 because I would need to cut it and then it would not go back in my N900. This is when I remembered that my first N900, bought second-hand on eBay, came with an unused pre-paid SIM. Still in its credit-card-style frame, glued to the box lid. So I popped it out, cut to micro size, popped it in the N9 and, to my great surprise, it worked! To my even bigger amazement, it turned out to be an unbelievably good deal. The coverage it quite good too. I only get 3G in the suburbia where I live, but 4G in quite a lot of places nearby.

Since then I moved it to my Jolla, which I currently use as a tablet. The "phone" is just the right size for a tablet IMO. I topped up the credit only once, in March 2014, with £10. I started using it quite extensively in September when I acquired my Jolla. I just checked my remaining balance and it was £7.14. It was over £8 last week but I drove around a lot with modRana running and downlaoding maps as I went.

And the best part? The SIM is totally anonymous. The previous owner of the N900 it came with has never registered it and of course neither have I. In the worst case, I can always chuck it in the bin and get a new one from a pound shop. They are all over the place.

That's merely personal preference, then. Nothing wrong with that, of course, but you can't trash something just because it doesn't fit YOUR preferences.

Stick to your telco, others will stick to public WiFi. Live and let live.

Hahahaha! I spent 3 GBP in nine*) months!

*) Well, OK, just three months of extensive use.

So, for a pay-as-you-go SIM, you don't have to register? Just pop it in a phone and you're good to go?

Yup. 10 chars.

._.

Then why the hell do I bother with AT&T?! I'm salty!

I have absolutely no interest in 3G/4G. I have wifi tethering on my Note 3 and have had no problem using internet with my Galaxy Tab Pro 8.4 (or even jphone when I tried it). As I always have my phone with me I would always have internet access on my tablet.

It may be different in the Land of the Free

I have never had any other than PAYG plans. I have never seen the point. (Well, OK, there is the danger of running out of credit at the most inconvenient moment. That could be somehow alleviated by registering a credit card for auto-top-up, but then you lose the anonymity. Decisions, decisions...)

So, do you have like a nifty setup where your tablet is a proxy for your phone? Like, you have a Privoxy/Squid proxy and iptables running with your phone connected?

In the Land of the Free, corporations are free to shove ads into one's eye sockets. I make no excuses for my lack of knowledge though. I never even thought to look into PAYG plans; I've only ever dealt with carriers before.

The more you f-ing know...