When I was a teenager I remember having to buy these straight talk phone cards for our phones.

These are the ones I used to buy^^

Okay so a friend of mine was paying for my phone contract through at&t for a while and now I want to start paying my own phone bills, but I don't want to be on a contract (I'm worried I won't be able to pay monthly fees on time)

So I thought about using straight talk again since I'm familiar with it I guess?

And it all seemed so easy in my head, like I could just go buy that card and use it on my phone..

(Side note, I had A LOT of phones as a teenager, for various reasons, and I still have a few of my old ones 🤣)

But all my old phones were through random different company's like Motorola, Verizon, at&t, Sprint..

The only phones I couldn't use straight talk for then was a Galaxy phone through Sprint because they couldn't unlock it? And an iPhone.

So I bought that card, the one above. And I tried to use it on my at&t phone. Apparently it needs to be unlocked and I have to buy something that's like $50 to activate it.

I didn't think it was so difficult..

I tried using the card I bought on one of my old phones that I used straight talk on before instead of my current phone, and it says it's not thru them now? Does that mean I have to activate it too?

I'm so confused help I'm sorry

UPDATE

my old phone I was talking about still has a text from straight talk when I was using them in 2015 so why doesn't it work anymore???

ALSO--

Since the phone has been off for so long the number has probably been used for someone else by now right? Cause I tried refilling that phone number before I realized that and maybe that's why it didn't work? But how would I know the phone number now if it doesn't work and the company had to like change it??

I'm sorry I never got to prepare for normal life