According to new studies, more than ½ of Americans now own cell phone. I have a cell phone and so does everyone I know. Modern life would be very inconvenient without cell phones- how could you ever find anyone (or a better question, how did we find anyone before cell phones)? I have used all the major phone service providers over the years and I've basically settled on one (different service providers work differently in different areas). However, lets take a look at how to find a cell phone deal no matter where you live.

1) Comparison shopping. Both online and offline. Brick and morter stores and online stores often have different prices for the same phones or phone plans. This is where comparison shopping comes in to play. Find a service provider and visit their store or mall booth. Then check their website. You might be surprised to learn that the prices are not identical. It only makes sense. There is no overhead involved in an online store and if the customer does everything himself, prices should only be lower.

2) Go for the free phone. Some cell phone service providers will give you a free phone if you sign up with their service. Some won't. We've found that getting a free phone can be really cool due to the fact that sometimes the service provider will give you a state of the art phone for no upfront charge just to get you to become their lifetime customer.

3) Use Ebay. Some people sell their slightly used phones for great bargains online if you are willing to spend the time and wait for a good deal to popup. I've been in love with a Nokia phone for about 6 months now and am waiting for a real discounted phone to be put up for auction on Ebay. A lot of the service providers will activate your phone if you bring it in to their store (regardless of where you bought it).

There are ton of cool tricks to getting a cell phone deal. These are just 3 basic common sense ones, learn 'em all today and get a killer cell phone deal.