How exactly does a prepaid phone work? -

My mama told me she thot bout me gettin me one but thn decided not 2. well i m tired of using 3 different people s phones 2 txt my boyfriends so i thot bout jst gettin me mi own prepaid phone if i can start earning money......but how does one work?? Does it have a monthly bill, does it cost alot, what kinds can u get??? Then how does the card that comes with it work?? What do you have to do in order to get 2 work?? THNX 4 UR HELP!|::::|I know how the cell phones work in the Philippines, and the prepaid ones here might work the same. You buy the phone with a SIM card, which gives you the phone number. You buy a card worth, say $20.00. You scratch off the foil to reveal a PIN number. You call that number in to the phone company associated with the card, and you get a certain number of minutes or text message credits. Then you just go ahead and send your text messages and/or phone your friends, and the phone will tell you when the credits are used up. Then you buy another card. No monthly bill, no contract to sign, no expiry date on the card or the credits. I think it s a great system. Just go to a cell phone kiosk or store in a mall, they can tell you how they work, just to be sure.|::::|What you do, is you can put money on the phone. Let s say one week you put $20 on it. That means that you have $20 to spend on texting, calling, etc. Depending on the carrier the rates may be different. You should look on the carrier s website for specific info.