Entouch Wireless is one of the phone companies that give free government cell phones. However, what kind of phone does Entouch Wireless give you in this offer? Is it a device you can be proud of and use for heavy tasks without freezing up or overheating issues?
In this guide, we’ll be talking about the EnTouch Wireless free phone program. However, my focus is on the type of phone the company sends to help you decide if it’s worth it or not.
Verdict: 6 of the Best Free Phone EnTouch Wireless Give You
- Sky Devices Elite H55
- Sky Devices Elite P55
- SOHO Style 5.5 Smartphone
- T-Mobile Revvl Smartphone
- LG K10 (2017) Smartphone
- LG K30 (2019) Smartphone
EnTouch Wireless as a Lifeline Provider
Well, EnTouch Wireless isn’t exactly a popular name in the cell phone business. However, the company has been in the industry as an eligible telecommunication carrier (ETC) for over 14 years.
If you happen to go through the corporate directories, EnTouch Wireless is the trading name of BOOMERANG WIRELESS, LLC. And in early 2022, a notice letter from the FCC reported VianOn had filed to acquire the remaining 51% ownership stake of the ETC from HH Ventures.
As an ETC, anyway, EnTouch Wireless has the license to participate in the lifeline program and receive universal service support. “Universal service support” in this case is the funds the phone provider receives for every consumer it has enrolled in the Lifeline program.
The reimbursements EnTouch Wireless receives for offering Lifeline free phone service vary. If the enrolled consumer is on the non-tribal lands, the reimbursement amount is $9.25/ month. Then the consumers on the federal-registered tribal lands get a phone service discount of $34.25.
Does the Government Pay for the Phone EnTouch Wireless Free Phone Give You?
It would seem not. How so?
First, besides Lifeline, there’s the affordable connectivity program (ACP) that the government created to offer broadband discounts. The program (ACP) offers a $30 service subsidy on non-tribal lands ($75 on tribal lands).
Moreover, ACP has a one-time discount of up to $100 to purchase an internet-enabled device. The internet-enabled device can be either laptop, desktop computer, or tablet.
As with most Lifeline companies, EnTouch Wireless issues a tablet for the one-time device discount on ACP- not a phone.
Back to the Lifeline program, the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) says that the $9.25 (and $34.25) discount is usually “towards phone or internet services for eligible subscribers”. “Services” is the keyword here. It’s the reason ETCs like Qlink Wireless even claim they “do not provide FREE phones because the government does not supply ACP or Lifeline providers with free phones”.
Nonetheless, EnTouch Wireless does give you a free phone even when the government doesn’t supply it with free phones. Whether you’ll get a device, though, depends on your location and the plan you choose.
Service Plans in Which EnTouch Wireless Gives You Phone
Overall, EnTouch Wireless has three different service plans you can apply for the free government phone service. The plans include Lifeline-only, ACP-only, and Lifeline + ACP combo plans.
- The lifeline-only plan features a phone service discount from the standard $9.25 ($34.25 in tribal lands) universal service fund. Different from most ETCs, EnTouch Wireless may give you a free phone on this plan. It’s a big plus, such as when you decide to use the company for the Lifeline program and a different one for ACP.
- The ACP-only plan features a phone service discount of the $30 ($75 in tribal lands) affordable connectivity program fund. Unfortunately, EnTouch Wireless does not give a free phone in this service plan category.
- The Lifeline + ACP combo plan features phone service discount from the combination of the subsidy from the two programs. Like most ETCs, EnTouch Wireless gives a one-time discount on a free phone to most new subscribers of this plan category.
Tip: The EnTouch Wireless Lifeline + ACP combo plan has the best free service deal, including unlimited talk, text, and data. However, deep in the terms and condition, the ETC states that the “Unlimited data” include 23GB in other states (and 25GB in California).
EnTouch Wireless Give You a Phone in Only Select States
As per the rule, EnTouch Wireless can only offer the Lifeline and ACP programs in areas it has the ETC designation. The designation order is part of the 4-stage process for a phone provider to become an eligible telecommunication carrier (ETC).
As of now, EnTouch Wireless only has an ETC designation order of 38 states, including:
| Arizona Arkansas | California Colorado | Florida | Georgia | Hawaii |
| Idaho Indiana Iowa | Kansas Kentucky | Louisiana | Maryland Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri | Nebraska Nevada New York North Dakota |
| Ohio Oklahoma Oregon | Pennsylvania Puerto Rico | Rhode Island | South Carolina South Dakota | Tennessee Texas |
| Utah | Virginia | Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming |
When you go through the EnTouch Wireless phone Lifeline and ACP plans, the service allowances you get vary with your state. California has the best service allotments, including unlimited talk & text + Unlimited data on both Tribal and non-tribal lands.
Also, California is the only state all subscribers of the Lifeline-only or Lifeline + ACP Combo plan will get a free phone. In most of the other states, EnTouch Wireless gives a free phone on the Lifeline + ACP combo plan. If on the Lifeline-only plan, only the customers on tribal lands may be lucky to get the free phone.
In a few states, including Florida and Oregon, EnTouch Wireless supports just the ACP-only plan. And while we’d expect the plan to come with the full-service perks, it doesn’t have the free phone deal.
Even worse, Hawaii has all three EnTouch Wireless free phone service plans- Lifeline-only, ACP-only, and Lifeline + ACP combo. However, neither of these plans will give you a free phone at the moment.
So, again, Californians are kind of luckier than other states. EnTouch Wireless gives a phone on a Lifeline-only plan (something many ETCs don’t do) and the Lifeline + ACP combo plan.
In a few words, what happens here is that EnTouch combines both California Lifeline and Federal Lifeline discounts. The California Lifeline discount is the extra amount the State government gives ETCs in addition to the regular Universal Service Fund.
You Must Qualify for EnTouch Wireless to Give You a Phone
First, when you apply for the EnTouch Wireless free phone with Lifeline-only or Lifeline + ACP combo, there’s no guarantee you’ll qualify. I’ve seen several people complaining on community forums about the phone provider rejecting their applications. Others even never received feedback from the company.
Although it will be a topic of its own next, the only way to get Entouch Wireless free phone is if you’re from a low-income household. And to prove you’re from a low-income household, you’ll need to either have an income within the set poverty guidelines or participate in a qualified government-funded assistance benefit.
Once you’ve enrolled and provided all necessary details, EnTouch Wireless will exchange the credentials with the National Verifier.
The National Verifier will use your details of IDENTITY to determine who you’re, and proof of ELIGIBILITY to make sure you’re indeed from a “low-income household”. Then the PHYSICAL ADDRESS information is to confirm where you currently reside and that no one else in that household has already enrolled for the program in question.
Once the Nation Verifier approves your application, EnTouch Wireless will start processing your free phone order immediately. And once the order is ready, you’ll get a confirmation message, plus a mail tracking number.
What Kind of Phone Does EnTouch Wireless Give You When You Qualify
Like most eligible telecommunication carriers (ETCs), EnTouch Wireless doesn’t advertise the kind of free phones they give. When preparing this article, the only thing related to this the company mentioned was that you’ll get a “Free Phone” or a “Free 5.5” Phone”.
In a market currently with a sea of different phone brands, a word statement like “free phone” is very vague. The company should be open like AirTalk Free phone where you know to expect Samsung, iPhone, Google Pixel, LG, etc.
Anyhoo, don’t fret, for I’ve got the answer to that question bugging you on what kind of phone does EnTouch Wireless give you. And that answer, if we’re to start broad is Sky Devices, REVVL T-Mobile, SOHO Style, and LG. At least this is what the customer agent “John” said when I initiated a quick Live Chat online.
When we now get specific, the kind of phone EnTouch Wireless gives you on Life and ACP program is Sky Devices Elite H55. If the model H55 isn’t possible, high chances are that you’ll get the Sky Devices Elite P55 or:
- Sky Devices Elite B55 Smartphone
- Sky Devices Elite J55 Smartphone
- Sky Devices Elite F55 Smartphone
- Sky Devices Elite C55 Smartphone
Other brands that EnTouch may give you in the free phone deal with LifeLine and AC Program:
- SOHO Style Smartphone
- SOHO Style 5 Smartphone
- SOHO Style 5.5 Smartphone
- T-Mobile Revvl Smartphone
- LG K10 (2017) Smartphone
- LG K30 (2019) Smartphone
- LG Stylo 2 Plus Smartphone
- LG Stylo 4 Plus Smartphone
- UMX U693CL Smartphone
- Wiko U307 Smartphone
Important Note:
As with other Lifeline and ACP providers, the phone (and even tablet) EnTouch Wireless sends you usually depend on the available stock. In my research, I’ve noticed many enrolled customers have claimed to have received Sky Elite H55 recently.
So, it would seem the first choice of brand EnTounch Wireless use for the free phone deal is Sky Devices. But in the names I’ve listed above, you’ll notice most of them have 8GB internal storage and 1GB RAM.
Some of the other phones will give you 16GB of built-in storage and 1GB or 2GB RAM. It’s still not the best, but will be better than the prior models.
Common Related Questions:
Who owns EnTouch Internet?
Before 2020, HH Ventures, LLC was the sole owner of EnTouch Wireless. VianOn, LLC joined in shortly after, owning a 49% stake while HH Ventures had 51% ownership.
As mentioned in the beginning, though, VianOn LLC is now the company that owns EnTouch Wireless wholly. The company acquired the majority shares of HH Ventures to EnTouch Wireless in early 2022. And this could be the reason there have been changes, such as the carrier network.
How do I activate an EnTouch phone?
The steps on how to activate an EnTouch phone are so easy. Once with the device, you just need to:
- Make sure it’s fully charged
- Next, power on the phone. Then use the on-screen instructions to complete the quick start-up
- The phone come already preprogrammed for EnTouch Wireless service. So, once the device has fully turned on, call the customer service number 866.488.8719 to finish activating
How much does EnTouch Wireless pay?
Technically, EnTouch Wireless doesn’t require you to pay anything for the phone or broadband service. As an eligible telecommunication carrier, it can claim reimbursement of the customers on LiFeline and ACP from USAC.
Nonetheless, you can always pay for a top-up credit for data, calls, or texts if your plan has limited allotments. But that’s optional.
Is the Phone EnThouch Wireless Give You Worth it?
If you were looking to join, that’s everything relevant you should know about the kind of phone EnTouch Wireless give you. The phone you can expect is a 5.5-inch Sky Devices model, specifically from the Elite series.
If Sky Devices is not available, EnTouch Wireless customer rep told me they also send out SOHO Style, Revvl T-Mobile, or LG phones. But as usual, the LG phone you receive is the entry-level model that is a few years old on the market.
As for the question of whether the phone EnTouch Wireless gives you is worth it or not, it all depends on the person. For someone who can’t afford to pay on his/ her own, the phone is worth it. The phone’s not sophisticated, yes. But it can call, text, read, browse the web, visit social media, and stream videos.
However, for someone looking for someone who’s on the phone a lot, running heavy tasks and high-graphic apps, the free phone EnTouch Wireless gives you isn’t worth it. Not only does it have a slow processor, but also the storage and operating memory are lacking.
