Hop-On to Reintroduce Disposable Cell Phones

Following Verizon’s announcement that they are going to allow third-party developers take advantage of their CDMA network, Hop-on has announced that they will be providing CDMA-compliant cell phones that work with Verizon’s network.

According to their press release, the Hop-on is a “stylish disposable phone” which is “ideal for kids, teens, seniors, tourists, vacationers, business travelers, and people with credit challenges.” the Graffiti will be sold for under $50 through their subsidiary Graffiti Wireless.

Basically, it’s a short-term use phone for people who don’t really need to use a cell phone. I can’t really imagine business travelers needing to use a Hop-on (especially with the gimmicky image of a Kangaroo as the Hop-on mascot), but I can see the need for this type of service for people with credit problems, especially as more and more cell phone providers perform credit checks before signing people up for service.

“Using the nation’s largest communications network, Hop-on’s disposable phone makes it an excellent choice as a back-up phone to store away in case of emergencies. The phone also features an internal tracking device, which makes it a great tool to monitor kids and teens. The lack of contracts make Hop-on’s disposable phone an affordable option for the credit challenged and the environmentally conscious will be happy to know that the disposable phone is easily recycled for a rebate reward from Hop-on.

You can read the rest of the press release here