hmmmm, have you been to cingular.com?

You can go without a contract completely though you will be ineligible
for any promotions.  You will still be responsible for the activation
fee.
- -
         

Yes.  I walked into a Cingular store last week and put two phones on a 1
year family plan.  No problem.

Alex Song Wrote:

If you use the web to sign up or if you call cingular to order, the
will tell you that you must sign up for two years.  If you go to
Cingular store or a Cingular affiliate, you can sign up for one year.
It's called marketing and it's really scummy, in my view.   You can ge
the identical plans on a one year basis or two year basis.  The onl
difference is that they will give you an additional $50 off the pric
of a phone for the two year service.  The prices on the web include th
$50 discount

--
ghstudio

If you have a compatible phone, Cingular will allow you to choose a plan (last
I knew it was the same as any current plan, less the mobile-to-mobile) WITHOUT
a contract.  However, just because a phone has the "Cingular" name on it, that
doesn't mean it can be activated.  Cingular is "migrating" from TDMA to GSM.
Because there are many TDMA handsets with the Cingular name on them, it can be
misleading.  The same is true if you have a Verizon branded phone that does
not have 1900 mHz band, they will not activate it.

What model phone do you have?

TH