Well, I was talking smartphone plans @ $30 - 45/mo, but not necessarily unlimited.
If you just need basic communications for a (non-spoiled) kid, there are pre-pay phones for $20 every Xmas.
That's the cost of the handset. Then you have to buy minutes.
Few years back, I got one on AT&T for $10-20 with a $10-20 rebate, making the handset free.
Right after that, my main RAZR v3i handset went in for warranty replacement, and I put my sim in the freebie for a while.
But smartphone prices are more palatable if you can trust a used one.
I got a couple broken ones and learned how to fix them.
Not a good general solution, but inexpensive and entertaining.
