We have pay-as-you-go in the US, but not in the same way as it is in Europe and Asia.  Here, convenience stores don't sell loose SIM cards that you can simply pop into your own phone and add whatever value you'd like.<p>The US carriers seem to market PAYG plans toward low-income customers who (in the carriers' eyes) would not be able to pay for monthly post-paid service plans.  Thus they bundle the plans with cheap feature-low phones.<p>The carriers also don't allow smartphones to be activated on PAYG plans, instead requiring you to buy into an expensive (and profitable, for the carrier) data package.