AT&T Wireless Plans Price Reduction

[DawnM]

Looks like you would have had to do that by the end of January to have qualified.

As it is, you have to pay full price, or pay the subsidized plan.

if we upgrade first and do the two year contract and get new phones then, switch over to this new plan. We pay about $160 now for 4 phones and no data, just txting . If we got data the cheapest we could have gotten was around $250. But we also need new phones. I'll have to ask at Costco tomorrow.

 

[descovy]

Folks, if you currently have phones on att (before Feb 2014) whether in a contract or not, they will only charge $15/mo.

If you are looking at adding a line, or new service you have to bring your own phone or try the next plan to get the $15.

They are offering deals to new customers (like a $100 bill credit for adding a new line)

But what makes this a sweet deal for existing att customers is that we only pay $15/mo for the phones we currently have (used to pay $40). Even if you are still in a 2yr agreement.

 

[Mickeyluver37]

If you buy your phone outright, you keep the $15/mo. This saves you $25/mo over the span of a 2yr contract. That equates to $600.

So... You can spend $600 upfront on the cost of a phone and not be in a contract and continue to pay $15/mo for the service...

Or you can spend that $600/mo over the course of 2 years... Paying the same amount we used to pay.

Contract or not... Buy the phone at full price or a penny... That subsidy you were used to paying is worth $600.

Hmmm....I'm trying to play around with this on the website, because when I switched, I wasn't aware I was giving up my upgrade. None of our phones are actually eligible at the moment, but my phone is still showing elgible for an upgrade on 04/08/14, or early upgrade now of $449 for an iPhone 5s, or $25/month for 18 months. DS, who just got an iPhone 5s for Christmas, is showing no upgrade available, or buy the same phone I tried on my line, at $649. Either way, this seems like a much better deal for us, but I might have held out for 2 months if it meant paying less for my new phone.

 

[DisMN]

And of course this is nothing they've advertised at all.

A new plan will cost us $20.00 less per month but in teensy writing at the bottom of the page just prior to finalizing is written:

Your next bill may include:

A charge for the month in advance for your new plan.
(Which I take to mean I will get a double bill on our NEXT months bill which no way in heck am I gonna agree to right now. LOL)

Charges for usage under your previous plan.

Your new usage allowance.


And nowhere does it list whether we still get our unlimited messaging and texts after signing on with a new plan.
I know it seems so easy to most but I'm still a confused old lady. LOL

 

[descovy]

And of course this is nothing they've advertised at all.

A new plan will cost us $20.00 less per month but in teensy writing at the bottom of the page just prior to finalizing is written:

Your next bill may include:

A charge for the month in advance for your new plan.
(Which I take to mean I will get a double bill on our NEXT months bill which no way in heck am I gonna agree to right now. LOL)

Charges for usage under your previous plan.

Your new usage allowance.


And nowhere does it list whether we still get our unlimited messaging and texts after signing on with a new plan.
I know it seems so easy to most but I'm still a confused old lady. LOL

Easy way to solve your first set of issues... Make the change on the first day of your bill cycle. No worries then about pro-rating... Etc...

And the fact that it is unlimited talk and text is pretty much plastered on the front page of the att mobile share value plan... In both graphics and plain text.

http://m.att.com/shopmobile/wireless/data-plans.html?referrer=

 

[msdaisy]

I am so confused on this. I called att on Monday to have them switch our 6 phones to this new plan. I had no idea it had any impact on upgrading our phones. I had them make the change effective 2/17 which is the start of our new cycle. So after seeing this I called to have them cancel it. The representative told me that I would not have to pay full price or monthly installments for the phones. I was likes it's right here on your website. She even sent me a text as proof that I wouldn't lose upgrade eligibility. If you renew the two year contract do you still get cheaper phones on this plan?? Maybe will call them back in the morning and get a more knowledgeable rep.

 

[msdaisy]

Also, does it go from $15 to $25 or from $15 to $40 for each phone when getting new phones?

 

[DisMomme]

Thank you! Thank You! Thank You! for posting this. We only had 1 phone we would upgrade and it isn't eligible for another year. I will save $75 / month so that will more than cover the cost of a new phone. (Besides, DS may be responsible for his own plan before he upgrades). It made good sense for us to switch.

 

[DawnM]

Please report back.

I am a bit confused too. I can't find anything BUT the "Next" plan even being offered anymore.

Where can I find both plans on the website?

Dawn

I am so confused on this. I called att on Monday to have them switch our 6 phones to this new plan. I had no idea it had any impact on upgrading our phones. I had them make the change effective 2/17 which is the start of our new cycle. So after seeing this I called to have them cancel it. The representative told me that I would not have to pay full price or monthly installments for the phones. I was likes it's right here on your website. She even sent me a text as proof that I wouldn't lose upgrade eligibility. If you renew the two year contract do you still get cheaper phones on this plan?? Maybe will call them back in the morning and get a more knowledgeable rep.

 

[DisMN]

Easy way to solve your first set of issues... Make the change on the first day of your bill cycle. No worries then about pro-rating... Etc...

And the fact that it is unlimited talk and text is pretty much plastered on the front page of the att mobile share value plan... In both graphics and plain text.

http://m.att.com/shopmobile/wireless/data-plans.html?referrer=

So glad you can understand all the gobbledygook but frankly I don't think much is all that clear when going back and forth on the pages of the ATT website. The fact that various plans have names is in itself confusing when 6 months down the line the name changes or they add or remove something from the plan. Sheesh!
I'm no spring chicken but sure think less is more when it comes to cell plans and how confusing it is to choose one. Lol
Thankyou for your thoughts on a change date...I think that's what my brain was leading to as well. Lol

 

[qv09vvp]

Thank you all for posting this.

I'm still confused but phone charges always confuse me.

Please help.

I pay about 235 a month currently (WAY TOO much)

phone 1: iPhone 4s - not eligible for upgrade - currently 3gig
phone 2: iPhone 4s - eligible of upgrade - currently 3 gig
phone 3: iPhone 5s - eligible for upgrade - currently 3 gig
phone 4: basic phone (for grandma) doesn't even know how to text - eligible for upgrade

lowest phone plan at 70 dollars, 30 dollars for all phones to have unlimited texting

*************

so if I'm reading here correctly, I can switch to 10 gig shared for all phones with unlimited talk & texting (100 +15+15+15) ...

and I won't lose my upgrades right?

is that right??? I'm feeling woozy if it is...extra bucks for Disney!!!

 

[jrw118]

Thank you all for posting this.

I'm still confused but phone charges always confuse me.

Please help.

I pay about 235 a month currently (WAY TOO much)

phone 1: iPhone 4s - not eligible for upgrade - currently 3gig
phone 2: iPhone 4s - eligible of upgrade - currently 3 gig
phone 3: iPhone 5s - eligible for upgrade - currently 3 gig
phone 4: basic phone (for grandma) doesn't even know how to text - eligible for upgrade

lowest phone plan at 70 dollars, 30 dollars for all phones to have unlimited texting

*************

so if I'm reading here correctly, I can switch to 10 gig shared for all phones with unlimited talk & texting (100 +15+15+15) ...

and I won't lose my upgrades right?

is that right??? I'm feeling woozy if it is...extra bucks for Disney!!!

You are close. It would be $100 + $15x4 ($15 for each phone). $160.00 total. Call them to confirm.

 

[Neelloc]

Thanks OP! I called and the rep went over my past few bills and figured my average usage.

Our bill dropped $40 a month!!!! I got put on the 10 GB plan since they are running a special promotion on it. I don't need to worry about upgrades yet since we just got new phones over the summer.

If anyone is confused about the pricing, just call. They can run over all your options.

 

[DisneyFans222]

Thanks OP! I called and the rep went over my past few bills and figured my average usage. Our bill dropped $40 a month!!!! I got put on the 10 GB plan since they are running a special promotion on it. I don't need to worry about upgrades yet since we just got new phones over the summer. If anyone is confused about the pricing, just call. They can run over all your options.

I am thrilled that you and so many others are getting dramatic decreases in your monthly cell phone bills!! That was my hope when I started this thread. It is about time for wireless consumers to reap the benefits of fierce carrier competition for our business!

 

[qv09vvp]

You are close. It would be $100 + $15x4 ($15 for each phone). $160.00 total. Call them to confirm.

Ok...I called this morning.

everything is correct.

kept my eligible upgrades, changed to a shared 10 gig instead of individual 3 gig. no new contract ... cost 160.

THE ONLY kicker to this plan is if you want to upgrade your phone, you should do this before you change. after you upgrade a phone on the new plan, the charge per phone jumps from 15 to 25 or 40 ..

that didn't bother me as I have a 5s and both kids have 4s phones....

the rep kept calling it a "discount" plan meant to discourage you from upgrading...


I just want to give a BIG THANK YOU for posting this....

 

[LilSweetPeaPhoto]

I saw this on FB and was eager to change plans. DH and I sit at $120 for our phones and data, but I loved that this was going to give us more data and unlimited texting (we're both on the 200 text plan). Sometimes I go over on both.

I upgrade my iPhone on numbers, not letters. So I have an iPhone 5. I also go big and have the 64gb. DH has an iphone 5 16gb. When we moved from the 4's to the 5's, I sold the 4's online and basically paid for our upgrades in full doing so.

Looking at this plan, it would kill the way I've been handling our upgrades. I'm guessing the 6 will be hitting stores this fall. I checked the prices for "renting" the 5s 64GB and over the course of the 26 mos you pay for it, I'd be paying $853 for the phone! Huge difference in getting a new phone by selling the old phone! And with these plans, you have to turn your phone back into AT&T to upgrade. No more selling at ALL to offset the cost of the phone.

The new plan seems to be the move away from contracts that give you the subsidized phone pricing. For some it may work out. But crunch the numbers, because that isn't true for all.

I'd be basically keeping my plan the same cost to gain unlimited texting and more data. But REALLY shooting myself come fall when I wanted a new phone. I really hope they still offer subsidized plans!

 

[4HppyCamprs]

We went ahead and switched plans. It will save us 60.00 a month. Hoping it won't bite us in the long run. I am always leery about "catches."

 

[wenrob]

I saw this on FB and was eager to change plans. DH and I sit at $120 for our phones and data, but I loved that this was going to give us more data and unlimited texting (we're both on the 200 text plan). Sometimes I go over on both.

I upgrade my iPhone on numbers, not letters. So I have an iPhone 5. I also go big and have the 64gb. DH has an iphone 5 16gb. When we moved from the 4's to the 5's, I sold the 4's online and basically paid for our upgrades in full doing so.

Looking at this plan, it would kill the way I've been handling our upgrades. I'm guessing the 6 will be hitting stores this fall. I checked the prices for "renting" the 5s 64GB and over the course of the 26 mos you pay for it, I'd be paying $853 for the phone! Huge difference in getting a new phone by selling the old phone! And with these plans, you have to turn your phone back into AT&T to upgrade. No more selling at ALL to offset the cost of the phone.

The new plan seems to be the move away from contracts that give you the subsidized phone pricing. For some it may work out. But crunch the numbers, because that isn't true for all.

I'd be basically keeping my plan the same cost to gain unlimited texting and more data. But REALLY shooting myself come fall when I wanted a new phone. I really hope they still offer subsidized plans!

If I'm reading it right it that $15 per phone would jump to $40 per phone with a two year contract. Which would end up costing me more in the long run if we wanted to upgrade our phones w/contract. Once out of contract our current phones would have a trade in value and/or could be sold. I'd never go with the Next Plan for that reason. Like you it would be better for us to stick with the plan we have.

 

[daughtersrus]

We switched to AT&T this past June when US Cellular left the Chicago market so I wasn't sure if we could switch plans so soon.

I called. We currently had a family plan with 5 phones. 3 smart phones each had a 3G data plan and 2 non-smart phones. We had 700 min of calls and unlimted texting. Our plan was about $240.

The plan I just switched to is unlimited talk and text (not that we were ever close to our 700 mins) and 10G to be shared. The new price is $100 +$15 for each phone so it will be $175 before the discount from DD's employer.

They didn't say anything about a contract or rates going up soon so I hope that there isn't a catch that we'll find out about later.

 

[qv09vvp]

We switched to AT&T this past June when US Cellular left the Chicago market so I wasn't sure if we could switch plans so soon.

I called. We currently had a family plan with 5 phones. 3 smart phones each had a 3G data plan and 2 non-smart phones. We had 700 min of calls and unlimted texting. Our plan was about $240.

The plan I just switched to is unlimited talk and text (not that we were ever close to our 700 mins) and 10G to be shared. The new price is $100 +$15 for each phone so it will be $175 before the discount from DD's employer.

They didn't say anything about a contract or rates going up soon so I hope that there isn't a catch that we'll find out about later.

same scenario as me except 1 less non-smart phone. seemed like a no brainer to switch it over. when I need to upgrade to a new phone, I just pay 25 instead of the 15. I'm confused on what all the talk is about on paying full price or over time for the next phone...