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I know this isn't exactly phone specific, but I have been reading a bit about impending data caps for Verizon's network. I have been enjoying my Wifi-Tether a lot lately without worrying about paying an absolute ridiculous amount for it. I have read in the past that a change in service allows you the opportunity to get out of your contract. Does anyone know if this is true or will apply if data caps are implemented?
Engadget Article
engadget.com/2010/07/20/verizon-switching-to-atandt-style-limited-data-plans-later-this-mo/
*Sorry I cant post links as of yet*
grimez said:
I know this isn't exactly phone specific, but I have been reading a bit about impending data caps for Verizon's network. I have been enjoying my Wifi-Tether a lot lately without worrying about paying an absolute ridiculous amount for it. I have read in the past that a change in service allows you the opportunity to get out of your contract. Does anyone know if this is true or will apply if data caps are implemented?
Engadget Article
engadget.com/2010/07/20/verizon-switching-to-atandt-style-limited-data-plans-later-this-mo/
*Sorry I cant post links as of yet*
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Click to collapse
If the data caps/tiers happen, this is what will happen.
1) Current users who have the unlimited plan will keep it. You might lose it if you change phones, but if you don't change your plan, then you can probably keep unlimited, but I think if you make any changes to your plan, like number of minutes, texts, etc, you will lose the unlimited data.
2) New customers will have to get tiered plans.
If they forced current unlimited plan holders to change to tier plans, you would be able to get out of your contract ETF free. So to prevent this they will not do this if you have unlimited now. Many people would go to other networks besides ATT and Verizon where they can get unlimited data or cheaper rates.
Sure but you would most likely be grandfathered in, which means that it wouldn't matter. It also means you wouldn't be able to cancel without an etf.
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App
TNS201 said:
1) Current users who have the unlimited plan will keep it. You might lose it if you change phones, but if you don't change your plan, then you can probably keep unlimited, but I think if you make any changes to your plan, like number of minutes, texts, etc, you will lose the unlimited data.
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I have a family plan right now with 1400 minutes. On my next billing cycle I lowered the plan to 700 minutes (effective August 3rd). So what your saying is if they implement the new data plans before my next billing cycle I will lose unlimited data? Can anyone confirm this?
djkms said:
I have a family plan right now with 1400 minutes. On my next billing cycle I lowered the plan to 700 minutes (effective August 3rd). So what your saying is if they implement the new data plans before my next billing cycle I will lose unlimited data? Can anyone confirm this?
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I don't think you should be worried. This tiered data plan isn't even confirmed by verizon yet. Nobody really has solid information on what could happen.
Correct me if i'm wrong, but because you signed a contract previous to when this happened..you will have available all options that you signed at the time-including minutes, txt, etc. The changed plan does not go into effect until you resign your contract.
This kind of thing happened when they forced everyone to choose either a 9.99 internet plan for dumbphones and 29.99 internet for smartphones regardless of they wanted internet or not. Those who had current contracts at the time were not affected. I guess I will just buy phones at off contract prices when my time is up so I can avoid signing a capped contract.
My guess is, after your current contract expires you will be forced into a tiered data plan, even if you are paying month to month with no changes.
When I switched my family from Sprint to Verizon, no internet fee was required for any of the phones (in fact, I had to ASK for unlimited data or else my Incredible wouldn't have had it). I don't know if I lucked out or not, but this was done by a manager and I certain hope said manager continues to work there and save me money =p.
grimez said:
My guess is, after your current contract expires you will be forced into a tiered data plan, even if you are paying month to month with no changes.
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Click to collapse
Problem is that Verizon's previous actions in cases such as this contradict that assumption. It is far more probable that the tiered data will only come into play when a new contract is signed- such as what transpired with 3G "multimedia" phones.
DeeBG said:
When I switched my family from Sprint to Verizon, no internet fee was required for any of the phones (in fact, I had to ASK for unlimited data or else my Incredible wouldn't have had it). I don't know if I lucked out or not, but this was done by a manager and I certain hope said manager continues to work there and save me money =p.
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That's interesting because all the smartphones now require unlimited data plan. Maybe it was assumed for your contract? That would have been odd for you to get no data plan lol
djkms said:
I have a family plan right now with 1400 minutes. On my next billing cycle I lowered the plan to 700 minutes (effective August 3rd). So what your saying is if they implement the new data plans before my next billing cycle I will lose unlimited data? Can anyone confirm this?
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Click to collapse
No because you already agreed to the contract before hand. When you changed your plan minutes, you agreed to everything that was within that agreement at that time. They cannot change it now.
I don't think minor changes within your plan (even phone upgrades) will constitute losing your unlimited given we are grandfathered in...
For example...my mom had a $14.99/450-minute plan probably...12 years or so ago...she didn't lose it until about 2007 when she upgraded to a family share plan to add my dad and sister. During that time she had upgraded her phone a few times and added a text package without losing her base minute package.
I think we'll be ok....but I have my fingers crossed :-\
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App
Damnnnnnn. I was twelve then...i thought there was only beepers then...haha
Sent from my Incredible using XDA App
qmartman711 said:
Damnnnnnn. I was twelve then...i thought there was only beepers then...haha
Sent from my Incredible using XDA App
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Haha I remember it being some POS AudioVox with tiny little useless calculator-like screen and big antenna
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App
alexdw369 said:
I don't think minor changes within your plan (even phone upgrades) will constitute losing your unlimited given we are grandfathered in...
For example...my mom had a $14.99/450-minute plan probably...12 years or so ago...she didn't lose it until about 2007 when she upgraded to a family share plan to add my dad and sister. During that time she had upgraded her phone a few times and added a text package without losing her base minute package.
I think we'll be ok....but I have my fingers crossed :-\
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA App
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Click to collapse
The only reason you would lose the unlimited plan is if you removed the phone from that line and activated it on another, it's a grandfathered feature that runs independent of the calling plan. Meaning if you change the base rate you can continue on unlimited data. And yes, I work for Verizon
Even the current "unlimited" is truly not unlimited. I do believe there is a 5gb cap but you have to cross it a couple of months in a row before you hear about it.
All carriers are going to tiered models and for the average user it will save them money. I forget which carrier released the information but the average smartphone users only uses like 200mb a month. So for these users their rates may go down if they picked up a 200mb or 500mb plan. The power users will stick with the same thing they have but the cap will be official now.
So in short from what I have read really not much of a change from the current unless you are looking for a cheaper plan because of your usage.
this should clear up some stuff for now.. it looks like we are good..atleast till LTE comes out!
http://www.zdnet.com/blog/btl/verizon-wireless-no-big-rush-to-tiered-data-plans-for-now/37147
kyle1745 said:
Even the current "unlimited" is truly not unlimited. I do believe there is a 5gb cap but you have to cross it a couple of months in a row before you hear about it.
All carriers are going to tiered models and for the average user it will save them money. I forget which carrier released the information but the average smartphone users only uses like 200mb a month. So for these users their rates may go down if they picked up a 200mb or 500mb plan. The power users will stick with the same thing they have but the cap will be official now.
So in short from what I have read really not much of a change from the current unless you are looking for a cheaper plan because of your usage.
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It is a 5gb cap, but they wont pursue bothering you unless they can tell you are tethering. If you legitly use that much on your phone, you have nothing to worry about.
The only thing changing right now is the hotspot and mbb connect plans to the 2 gbfor 20.00 the smartphone plans Stays unlimited . Nothing has been mentioned on going tiered smartphone a la iPhone .
DeeBG said:
When I switched my family from Sprint to Verizon, no internet fee was required for any of the phones (in fact, I had to ASK for unlimited data or else my Incredible wouldn't have had it). I don't know if I lucked out or not, but this was done by a manager and I certain hope said manager continues to work there and save me money =p.
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trust me it would have been on your bill and it wouldn't have been the cheap version... I tried to get my omnia with no data because I could just block internet connection on my motorola Q and not have any charges but they do no allow this anymore with the new smartphones
but eventhough I figured out a way to order it online without having to agree to a data plan the bill showed up with a 52/mo charge for corporate unlimited data... I called them and they said oh our mistake we should have charged you for the 30/mo... they just tried to pull a fast 12 bucks off of me but I actually read my bill
I know it is a sensitive topic, but I'm so frustrated with ATT, and was wondering if I could get any directions from you guys.
I bought for my wife new Aria (full price) so she can collaborate with me without using her brain. Few days after the change I realized att changed her unlimited data plan to tiered one. That move really pissed me off, and I had to switch her back to old nokia to preserve unlimited plan. I used to have an iphone with this plan (unlimited data for $15/month), and it looks like they are enforcing new, more expensive plans not only on new customers, but also on existing ones.
Enough said... I would like to get some hints on changing imei, so I get to keep my old plan...
Thanks
Not 100% sure but just swap the sim and it should work. ATT are assholes for doing away with unlimited data made the mistake of losing my unlimited data plan when the iPhone 4 was released thanks iphone!
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I upgraded to the aria And had the unlimited data plan transfered..if u just call customer service and tell them that u have been a loyal customer for a long time now and u should be able to keep the plan u have had..u should mention being grandfathered in, be polite and tell them if they can't help u then u might be looking at other carriers. U would be amazed at the things I have gotten for free or discounted by just calling and talking to customer service..if they say they can't do it ask to be transfered to to the person who can, u might be on the phone for a minute but u can get it done I promise u
Sent from my Liberty using XDA App
Post this same info on ATT's Facebook.
Same thing happened to me, I went from an iPhone to the Aria, and had the unlimited data removed, put a post on ATT's facebook, and within the day, I was talking to a guy who gave it back, credited my account, and gave me an additonal discount, to make my bill cheaper.
Interesting... if that's what they did to you then I may actually get somewhere. I just pulled the plug on one line to get G2 from tmo, and may threaten to close another line if they refuse to keep my plan...
If it comes to sim swap then it won't work with att branded phones. The only thing that may work (it worked with my old line) is to use unlock phone and ask them to update imei. They will mark your line as unlocked phone and never update your plan again. It worked for iphone...
Thx for your input.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
How much data do you actually use on your plan? I use my phone's data very regularly throughout the month and the most I've ever managed to use in a month was a gigabyte, making the $25 plan a cheaper solution than the $30 PDA Smartphone plan that preceded it.
I work in a retail position in which I handle AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile customers on a daily basis, and I have yet to meet anyone who uses more than 2GB a month, and some of these people use the phone as if they do not have a home internet service!
Thankfully AT&T has a very easy way of checking to see the monthly data usage you use, and even gives you a nice graph of the last six months of data usage, so you can decide for yourself what data plan is right for you.
"Unlimited" 3G data (w/ 5gb limit) for $30 on a smartphone is going the way of direct connect. Verizon will not be far behind with unveiling their new data plans and T-Mobile is talking about doing the same thing. I think once it is all said and done, we won't even see unlimited plans on 4G networks, especially once Sprint gets enough people back onto their service.
Just do the switch yourself. If you bought the phone full price you could have gotten it anywhere besides AT&T, swapped the SIM and been on the same plan. that's what i did coming from my Fuze. I just moved the SIM card to the new phone, and it worked flawlessly. kept my unlimited plan and everything.
as for data usage. When i had my Fuze i used maybe .5gig a month, but as soon as i got the Aria my usage spiked. I use consistently well over 2 gigs a month, breaking 4 gigs in August. I don't use it for tethering, i don't download huge video files, in fact i'm pretty tame with my phone usage. I'll be keeping my unlimited plan when i get a free upgrade in January.
shark0807 said:
How much data do you actually use on your plan? I use my phone's data very regularly throughout the month and the most I've ever managed to use in a month was a gigabyte, making the $25 plan a cheaper solution than the $30 PDA Smartphone plan that preceded it.
I work in a retail position in which I handle AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile customers on a daily basis, and I have yet to meet anyone who uses more than 2GB a month, and some of these people use the phone as if they do not have a home internet service!
Thankfully AT&T has a very easy way of checking to see the monthly data usage you use, and even gives you a nice graph of the last six months of data usage, so you can decide for yourself what data plan is right for you.
"Unlimited" 3G data (w/ 5gb limit) for $30 on a smartphone is going the way of direct connect. Verizon will not be far behind with unveiling their new data plans and T-Mobile is talking about doing the same thing. I think once it is all said and done, we won't even see unlimited plans on 4G networks, especially once Sprint gets enough people back onto their service.
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You sound like att spokesperson addressing all dumbasses that purchased smartphone thinking it will make them look smarter. Your data usage statistics are off, and just because you ask your customers about their data usage, it doesn't mean it makes you right. I have observed the data usage by mobile devices in the enterprise I manage in the past 3 years. It seems people spend more time using internet driven apps when their experience improves. That pretty much means the faster mobile network becomes the more bandwidth is consumed. Another huge impact on data usage comes from pushed advertisement. People love free apps, but in order to support brightminded developers those apps have to display small banners. lets do quick math here... each banner is about 5KB. Popular apps rotate them in intervals of 10s, or display new ad whenever you go to new page. If your phone supports multitasking, for example new iphone, then if you don't close the app (for example weather app) it may actually keep rotating those ads in the background eating up your bandwidth. That's 5KB every 10s throughout billing cycle gives us total of about 1.3GB each month. That's based on single app that probably won't be running 24/7, but you may have few of such apps running at the same time, so this will definitely bring you close to that number.
Now, lets talk about 4G, and your assumption of all carriers going with tiered plans. I've been enjoying my G2 over HSPA+ so much. You tube videos are actually in visible quality now. Those very same videos over att 3g were just a joke, and waste of time. What do you think how much bandwidth those HQ videos consume? How about video calls? How about flash driven apps? Limiting users to tiered plans would mean blocking all those services, and worse it would bring technology development for mobile devices to a halt (at least in US).
Mobile carriers are facing very hard times. There is more bandwidth demand than they estimated. ATT for example chose greed, and decided to oversubscribe their infrastructure hoping iphone will save them. Verizon however, invested in their network to ensure they can handle the growth. They all should be thankful to Apple for stealing the name "smartphone", and introducing it to masses in the form of a dumbphone. That move changed the industry, and right now we're all paying for it through higher cost, development by spending more time rooting devices than coding new apps, and reliability. I love my mac, but I hate Jobs for the iphone so much...
cegna09 said:
Just do the switch yourself. If you bought the phone full price you could have gotten it anywhere besides AT&T, swapped the SIM and been on the same plan. that's what i did coming from my Fuze. I just moved the SIM card to the new phone, and it worked flawlessly. kept my unlimited plan and everything.
as for data usage. When i had my Fuze i used maybe .5gig a month, but as soon as i got the Aria my usage spiked. I use consistently well over 2 gigs a month, breaking 4 gigs in August. I don't use it for tethering, i don't download huge video files, in fact i'm pretty tame with my phone usage. I'll be keeping my unlimited plan when i get a free upgrade in January.
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Click to collapse
Aria is the only woman friendly (small) android phone that supports att 3G. I paid for it $300 (new). Legacy, which seems to be pretty much same phone is $200 more, and doesn't support att 3g frequencies. It looks like att is getting better in cat/mouse game. I may just have to threaten to leave, to get something done...
BTW
any android phone is concidered by att as smartphone, and they require smartphone plan with it. My wife previously had unlocked nokia, so they did not know what kind of phone it was, and allowed regular $15/month unlimited data plan. Once you put your sim into device that they have in their database they enforce on you smartphone plan that's currently available. If her previous plan was unlimited data for smartphone ($25/month), then I agree, she would be able to keep it.
chopperpl said:
BTW
any android phone is concidered by att as smartphone, and they require smartphone plan with it. My wife previously had unlocked nokia, so they did not know what kind of phone it was, and allowed regular $15/month unlimited data plan. Once you put your sim into device that they have in their database they enforce on you smartphone plan that's currently available. If her previous plan was unlimited data for smartphone ($25/month), then I agree, she would be able to keep it.
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didn't realize you came from a non-smartphone. I came from a Fuze (touch pro), so i was already on the $30 unlimited smartphone plan. I made the phone switch right after they announced the end of unlimited plans, and just swapped the phone on my own. Their system caught it, changed my profile on AT&T's site, but did nothing to the plan. I still have the unlimited plan, and will be keeping it as i foresee my usage staying hight.
Do what i did.
Change the sim into a dumb phone and turn it on, wait about an hour, then log into your account online. The options for the medianet packages will reappear. Remove the smartphone data plans then enable the medianet plan for unlimited data. After switch the sim back to the smart phone, if you get a text or email saying they detected your smartphone just call them up and tell them you do not have a smartphone and give them the IMEI number of the dumb phone and have them remove the data and restore the medianet.
I know its a bit much to lie to them but it is robery that pay as you go data is $2 per 1MB, $15 for 200MB and $25 for 2GB when the service sucks inside any building in lower Manhattan.
joshua54 said:
I upgraded to the aria And had the unlimited data plan transfered..if u just call customer service and tell them that u have been a loyal customer for a long time now and u should be able to keep the plan u have had..u should mention being grandfathered in, be polite and tell them if they can't help u then u might be looking at other carriers. U would be amazed at the things I have gotten for free or discounted by just calling and talking to customer service..if they say they can't do it ask to be transfered to to the person who can, u might be on the phone for a minute but u can get it done I promise u
Sent from my Liberty using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this is what i did.
I called cancellation dept, and they still refused to roll my old plan back
Going back to my initial request... Any hints on changing imei?
Thanks
Is it doable at all?
I don't want to waste anymore time on it. Can some of the bright ones just tell me, if imei on this phone is "burned-in" or is it changeable via software?
Thanks
So... I've done more research, and seems people are saying it is illegal to change imei... Illegal???? I think, if changing/spoofing for criminal activities then it is illegal. Carriers clearly abuse that id to rip more money from people. Where is the government to protect us? I wouldn’t mind, if there was an alternative, but there is none. How come I pay full price for the smartphone, and can’t deny data plan? I want to roam through local hot spots offered for free by my cable provider to sync phone instead of X fuc…ing G!!!! I think it is time for people to start filing complaints with FCC...
chopperpl said:
I don't want to waste anymore time on it. Can some of the bright ones just tell me, if imei on this phone is "burned-in" or is it changeable via software?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First off AT&T can see immediately when you switch, and to what phone you are using, as well as the kind of traffic, to categorize your phone... so spoofing an IMEI won't get you anywhere - the bandwidth usage from a regular phone vs a smartphone is miles apart.
Second and more importantly Unlimited data for smartphones ($30) vs unlimited data for a regular phone ($15) are two completely different plans. Your old nokia was clearly not a smartphone if you were paying $15 for unlimited data.
I had a blackberry 9700 and went to an Aria, smartphone to smartphone. They let me keep my same smartphone unlimited data plan.
Bottom line you can't switch from a regular phone unlimited data to a smartphone unlimited data plan and keep the same plan.
You're SOL.
Your best bet is to talk to a manager in a retail store - as they are the only people who can work miracles. AT&T grants them special privileges, like allowing you to "early upgrade" (essentially re-start your contract) for a fee + regular advertised phone prices (way cheaper then a new phone at full retail price), and then allowing you to spend that "fee" as a credit on retail store accessories.
dexmix said:
First off AT&T can see immediately when you switch, and to what phone you are using, as well as the kind of traffic, to categorize your phone... so spoofing an IMEI won't get you anywhere - the bandwidth usage from a regular phone vs a smartphone is miles apart.
Second and more importantly Unlimited data for smartphones ($30) vs unlimited data for a regular phone ($15) are two completely different plans. Your old nokia was clearly not a smartphone if you were paying $15 for unlimited data.
I had a blackberry 9700 and went to an Aria, smartphone to smartphone. They let me keep my same smartphone unlimited data plan.
Bottom line you can't switch from a regular phone unlimited data to a smartphone unlimited data plan and keep the same plan.
You're SOL.
Your best bet is to talk to a manager in a retail store - as they are the only people who can work miracles. AT&T grants them special privileges, like allowing you to "early upgrade" (essentially re-start your contract) for a fee + regular advertised phone prices (way cheaper then a new phone at full retail price), and then allowing you to spend that "fee" as a credit on retail store accessories.
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Click to collapse
I'm afraid you're wrong, and this is why. I've had iphone 3gs on unlimited data plan ($15/month) for over a year. Before that I had Nokia N95 (which is still much smarter than iphone 4) on the same plan also for about a year.
You're saying they monitor bandwidth usage... How come they never picked up on my international SIP calls, and radio streaming? and yes, spoofing will get me somewhere. ATT holds only imeis from att branded/approved phones. If my imei is not found they assume it is simple multimedia phone. How do I know that? I talked to cancellation dept manager two days ago, and was ensured I will get my plan back once my imei doesn't match any of those from att smartphone lineup.
dexmix said:
Bottom line you can't switch from a regular phone unlimited data to a smartphone unlimited data plan and keep the same plan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So what you are telling me is that basically, you want people on here to help you do something which is admittedly illegal in many counties, so your new smart phone appears as a multimedia phone and you can pay less and keep your unlimited data plan.
*scratches head*
edit: you would have been better off just getting an Aria for free with a 2yr contract and then paying for a 2G plan.
dexmix said:
So what you are telling me is that basically, you want people on here to help you do something which is admittedly illegal in many counties, so your new smart phone appears as a multimedia phone and you can pay less and keep your unlimited data plan.
*scratches head*
edit: you would have been better off just getting an Aria for free with a 2yr contract and then paying for a 2G plan.
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Click to collapse
Well, not exactly. I've had that plan since gen 1 iphone, which was running on Edge, and three months later I switched to n95 3g. Basically I'm trying to retain my old data plan, and that's because I have not received any special treatment, or services in order to pay more... If they rolled out LTE, and use that for justification then I would agree.
dexmix said:
edit: you would have been better off just getting an Aria for free with a 2yr contract and then paying for a 2G plan.
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Click to collapse
Better off????? 2 year contract means locked in with old technology. Those contracts don't do any good to people. By signing, you let att screw you any way they want. You can't walk away, or negotiate. If I wasn't tied up with the contract when att announced new plans, then I would switch to verizon long time ago... If you are real smartphone user then you better off buying unlocked phone, and use it the way it was designed to use without extra fees (tethering $60 ), but if you are one of those guys thinking "smartphone will make me look smarter", then your best bet is to buy discounted phone with the contract.
http://www.bgr.com/2012/07/18/att-shared-data-plans-pricing-launch-date/
AT&T on Wednesday announced the upcoming availability of new shared data plans. Following Verizon’s lead, AT&T’s new plans will allow subscribers to share data between family members and also between devices. Dubbed “AT&T Mobile Share” plans, the new offerings start at $40 per month plus $45 per smartphone for unlimited voice minutes and messaging and 1GB of data, and top out at $200 plus $30 per smartphone for unlimited voice and texts plus 20GB of data. Additional data costs $15 per gigabyte. Feature phones can be added to the new plans for $30 per device, connected laptops cost $20 each, and tablets can be added for $10 per device. The new plans do not replace AT&T’s existing data plans, which will remain available following the launch of the new AT&T Mobile Share plans. AT&T’s press release follows below.
AT&T GIVES CUSTOMERS MORE CHOICE WITH NEW
SHARED WIRELESS DATA PLANS
New Mobile Share Plans Allow Customers to Easily Share Data Across
Smartphones, Tablets and Other Devices
New and Current Customers Not Required To Choose or Switch to Shared Plans
DALLAS, JULY 18, 2012 — AT&T* customers will soon have more options in choosing the plan that’s right for them and their mobile devices. With new AT&T Mobile Share plans, available in late August, new and existing customers can share a single bucket of data across smartphones, tablets, and other compatible devices, plus get unlimited talk and text. AT&T Mobile Share plans make it easy for customers to manage their data, voice minutes and texting, without needing to keep track of multiple plans.
Customers can select one of the new shared data plans or choose one of AT&T’s existing individual or family plans. Current customers are not required to switch to the new plans, but can choose to do so without a contract extension. There are no changes to AT&T’s device upgrade policy, which means customers eligible to upgrade to AT&T’s best device price are not required to switch plans. The new plans will also be available for business customers.
With AT&T Mobile Share plans, customers start by choosing how much data they want each month, then choose up to 10 devices to attach to their shared plan, one of which must be a smartphone. Each plan includes tethering and unlimited domestic calls and texts for smartphones and basic or quick messaging phones. The larger the data bucket you choose, the less you pay per gigabyte and the less you pay for each smartphone added to the shared plan.
AT&T Mobile Share allows customers to essentially build a plan to fit their devices and usage. Customers who are more data-centric can choose a larger data bucket. Customers who typically use more voice than data can add multiple smartphones and basic phones and opt for a smaller data bucket.
“We offer customers a broad choice and the best lineup of plans, now enhanced by Mobile Share,” said David Christopher, chief marketing officer, AT&T Mobility. “With these new plans, the more you share, the more you save. They’ll be a good fit for a variety of new and existing customers. But if customers want to stay on their current plan or choose from our existing plans, they can do that, too. It’s their choice.
“Today we think of people’s smartphones and tablets sharing a bucket of data. But in the future we’ll see health care monitors, connected cars, security systems and other devices in the home all connected to the mobile Internet,” said Christopher. “Our Mobile Share plans are simple, easy and a great value for individuals or families with multiple mobile Internet devices.”
Mobile Share plans give customers more control over how, where and on what device they use data — which has become more important as people use more data devices. You can choose to use more of your data bucket on your tablet, for example, or tap into your data bucket only when needed for devices you use occassionally. And by consolidating data plans, you can take advantage of any data you currently have unused each month by efficiently sharing it across devices.
“The ‘more you share, the more you save’ concept is one that will resonate well with customers because of the value provided through the Mobile Share data plans themselves and in smartphone connection fees,” said Roger Entner, Founder and Lead Analyst of Recon Analytics. “AT&T also is providing its customers with flexibility and choice by keeping its existing data plans and not requiring customers to move to Mobile Share unless they want to. It’s a win-win for both AT&T and its customers.”
To help customers track their data usage, AT&T keeps users informed with courtesy alerts as they near their data allowance for the month. Also, customers can check their usage at anytime online, through the myAT&T mobile app, or by calling *DATA# from their mobile phone.
Each data plan also includes access to more than 30,000 AT&T Wi-Fi Hot Spots — the nation’s largest Wi-Fi network** among wireless carriers — at no additional charge. Wi-Fi usage at public hotspots, home or office does not count toward the monthly wireless data plan usage.
Customers can learn more about the new plans and determine which plan is best for them at www.att.com/mobileshare.
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Hold on, let me put on some lipstick. I don't wanna look bad before AT&T ****s me in the ass.
Really? REALLY? For two smartphones with 4GB between the both of them, that would be $150/mo + tax. That's ****ing crazy.
davewuvswaffles said:
Hold on, let me put on some lipstick. I don't wanna look bad before AT&T ****s me in the ass.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This couldn't be any more perfect.
Bottom line, the carriers aren't gonna do anything that doesn't make them money.
catzilla said:
Really? REALLY? For two smartphones with 4GB between the both of them, that would be $150/mo + tax. That's ****ing crazy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
But what are you comparing this to? I currently have two smartphones with 700 shared minutes and unlimited texting, one phone has 2gb of data and the other has 200mb. I pay $140+tax. With unlimited calling/texting and a much larger slice of data that what I currently have it would seem to me that the new plan is a better deal.
Pseud0logik said:
But what are you comparing this to? I currently have two smartphones with 700 shared minutes and unlimited texting, one phone has 2gb of data and the other has 200mb. I pay $140+tax. With unlimited calling/texting and a much larger slice of data that what I currently have it would seem to me that the new plan is a better deal.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right now my family has Unlimited Messaging and Unlimited Messaging with me having 2GB of Data. We pay around $130+Tax for that. If my aging father wanted a smart-phone, he'd want around 2GB or so of data as well. With this plan it's:
4GB of Shared Data : $70
Smartphone: $40
Smartphone: $40
That's $150+Tax. But then each additional smartphone we add will be $40 and take up our shared data. After two smartphones, it's useless since we're just wasting $10 extra.
Unless you have a bunch of tablets that you only use occasionally, a shared plan seems like a more expensive way to have data.
Sent from my SGH-I777 using Tapatalk 2
ROFLOL! Thanks for the info... But I'll stick to my current plan... $25 for 2GB... X2 (if I want to) is $50. Why do I want to pay $40+$45 to share on 1GB? That's just like AT&T to force us into a lower plan for more $$$... If you remembered the Unlimited plan for $30, and they forced us to go with $25 for 2GB..
I will have to add ot up for my instance but this NEW plan seems higher for me. I have 4 phones on my plan, mine with the GRANDFATHERED UNLIMITED DATA for $30 or $25 (I cannot remember right now) on my SGS2, TWO phones with 2Gbs of data each for the $25, and one dumb phone with no data plan, and ALL share the unlimited mms/sms with 1400 minutes of talk. My bill comes out to about $220 a month after all the taxes and all. I use my UNLIMITED DATA plan to at least the 3Gbs a month before being throttled each month and have kept from being throttled in the last few months as I try to use wifi when downloading anything 100Mbs or more at a time unless I am in teal need of getting something downloaded right now.
Sent from My SGH-I777 Running Red Reaper Rom
RockRatt said:
I will have to add ot up for my instance but this NEW plan seems higher for me. I have 4 phones on my plan, mine with the GRANDFATHERED UNLIMITED DATA for $30 or $25 (I cannot remember right now) on my SGS2, TWO phones with 2Gbs of data each for the $25, and one dumb phone with no data plan, and ALL share the unlimited mms/sms with 1400 minutes of talk. My bill comes out to about $220 a month after all the taxes and all. I use my UNLIMITED DATA plan to at least the 3Gbs a month before being throttled each month and have kept from being throttled in the last few months as I try to use wifi when downloading anything 100Mbs or more at a time unless I am in teal need of getting something downloaded right now.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I remembered it right, it's $30 for GRANDFATHERED UNLIMITED DATA.
And I am pretty sure they probably will throttle you for the 20GB plan too. Once you get to a certain GB in the shared plan.
The reality for myself is that I hardly make any calls and basically use this as a portable computer with phone attached if I need it. I use Wifi mostly and as such have used at most 500 megs a month. Usually more like 50. The shared plan would definitely not be helping my wife and I who got 2 gigs for 25$ and the cheapest bucket of family minutes available with no texting. I'd go for a data only plan and pay per minute on calls if I could.
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda app-developers app
This is the biggest pile of horse manure from AT&T yet. My wife and I are on a family plan with 550 mins and 2 GB says plan each. I ported both our previous numbers to Google voice, so we basically have unlimited messaging. Unlimited calling since we never go over and have a ton of rollover. So basically for the same 4 GB of combined data and essentially unlimited everything else, we pay 95 after taxes and FAM discount. I really think once our contracts are up, I am going to get the latest gnex and bolt to straight talk or something else.
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda premium
karth500 said:
. . . I really think once our contracts are up, I am going to get the latest gnex and bolt to straight talk or something else.
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm. That sounds like a good idea.
I can vouch for Straight Talk. I'd much rather pay $500-$650 up front for the phone and pay $45 per month than pay $200 up front for the phone and $100 per month for the next 2 years. Also, you can't get slammed with overages because it's prepaid. If you use around 2GB per month, Straight Talk is a no brainer.
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S II
Just did some quick math...
Straight Talk
$45 per month x 24 months + $650 for phone = $1730 over 2 years
Postpaid AT&T
$100 per month x 24 months + $200 for phone = $2600 over 2 years
Speeds on Straight Talk aren't throttled either, same HSPA+ you get on postpaid. Of course Straight Talk also gives you unlimited voice minutes and texting.
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S II
Hasn't it been proven that Straight Talk will close your account for using too much data?
raduque said:
Hasn't it been proven that Straight Talk will close your account for using too much data?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yep.
raduque said:
Hasn't it been proven that Straight Talk will close your account for using too much data?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How much is too much? If it's 2 gb that's terrible, if it's 10 gb, then that's reasonable. Also how do they stop you from just going in and buying another SIM?
karth500 said:
How much is too much? If it's 2 gb that's terrible, if it's 10 gb, then that's reasonable. Also how do they stop you from just going in and buying another SIM?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
2 GB for $45 a month isn't terrible. If you can keep your usage to <2GB per month and <100MB per day, then it's a no brainer. I've had 200MB days and not gotten flagged or throttled at all. If you're really worried about them closing your account, port your number to google voice first so you don't lose it and activate some random number on your straight talk account.
They block credit card billing info from ordering twice I believe.
nice plan
sweet new plans if you have a large family account and lots of devices!
Currently pay $272 for 4 phones + mifi (add on more for all our ipad's monthly charges here and there) for total of 17gigs worth of data.
Avg usage over last 6months in data is 6.7gigs only too lol
New plan will cost only $237 for 15gigs +unlimited talk and tethering.
seems horrific if you don't have a large family plan. at least you aren't forced onto new plan like Verizon
After 7+ years as a loyal Verizon customer, and 2+ years as a fanatical Incredible user, I'm leaning strongly towards leaving it all behind. The straw was the recent change to mandatory Shared Data plans. I just can't justify spending $30+ more per month when I upgrade for essentially the same service I am getting now. I understand why Verizon needed to make a change...but it's just too much for me.
I've been eyeing the GNex for a while, and with the continued disappointing turnout of HTC on Verizon (Inc 4G...really? Small screen, no ImageSense), I am planning to get the $350 unlocked, GNex direct from Google and then sign up with a month-to-month plan with a GSM provider.
Sad to see it all go, but also excited with the new possibilities.
If anyone else is mulling this conundrum, I found this thread to be very helpful...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1455014
I'm not happy with that either but to my understanding the shared data is an option not a requirement. I believe the tiered plan will still be an option.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
tiny4579 said:
I'm not happy with that either but to my understanding the shared data is an option not a requirement. I believe the tiered plan will still be an option.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im up for my upgrade so i went on the vzw site logged in, went to upgrade device, picked a phone and went to the plan portion and there is only the one, 40 per phone 50 for 1gb shared data. No option to keep my current plan unless i buy the phone for retail with no contract. I am just going to save up my cash and when the inc dies, buy a phone retail or off amazon or ebay or something. That way i keep my 60 dollar a month bill with the unlimited data plan forever. I dont do a lot of talking or texting so the whole unlimited deal dosent really seem like a deal to me. And 50 for 1gb, thats just outrageous.
I know losing unlimited sucks, but I voluntarily gave it up. The shared plan gives me unlimited talk time, and 4gb a month between my girlfriend and I. We only averaged around 1.5-1.75gb per month each anyways and now that I figured out my employers network password I'm on their wifi at work lol. Saving $40 a month and gaining unlimited talk time was well worth it for me.
That said, I'm still considering leaving Verizon. Their service has been exceptionally poor in my area lately. My friend at work is on sprint and using speedtest his 3g speeds are consistently much greater than mine. But I don't know if I want to keep my Inc until January 2013.
Sent from my ADR6300 using xda app-developers app
Well I'll be with big red until they actually take away my unlimited, and willing to buy phones retail value if need be. I can't give up my free wifi via phone through internal modem. I use my phone (gnex) as a hotspot for everything and would be lost without it....lol. Monthly is 72.67 every month. If that changes I change. Tc
Sent from my cm_tenderloin using xda app-developers app
I know them feels bro.
Sent from my ADR6300 using xda app-developers app
I plan on doing the same thing when the new iPhone (yes, sorry) comes out in Sept/Oct. I've been a Verizon Wireless customer since I was 16, and would end up paying about $20 more a month on their new plan as well. Verizon has good coverage where I am, so I'll either buy it unsubsidized and keep my unlimited data, or switch to a GSM month to month provider.
tmoney468 said:
I plan on doing the same thing when the new iPhone (yes, sorry) comes out in Sept/Oct. I've been a Verizon Wireless customer since I was 16, and would end up paying about $20 more a month on their new plan as well. Verizon has good coverage where I am, so I'll either buy it unsubsidized and keep my unlimited data, or switch to a GSM month to month provider.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
blasphemy i tell you, BLASPHEMY
The Shared Data plans work great if you have someone to share it with. Engadget, Android Central, et al have done the analysis and these are good deals for groups of 3 or 4 people who use less than 4GB together...for individuals like me it's a really bad deal. I would basically pay $30-40 more for a capped data plan.
I've thought about getting a retail price phone...you can get an Inc 2 on ebay now for $250-350. But then I wonder, why settle for an old phone, when, for the same price, I can get a brand new, unlocked GNex and be free of all this. Coverage is a concern. Support is a concern. Verizon has been fantastic for me on both. But I live in DC and friends with AT&T and T-Mobile are happy with their coverage.
Still haven't decided...but I appreciate everyone's thoughts and feedback. The Incredible dev community has been just that....another reason I'm looking at the GNex...gotta follow the devs.
Yeah dude I'm considering a nexus for my daily driver. I'm already on tmobile and pay $15-30 a month. They have a $30/month prepaid plan, 100 voice minutes, unlimited texts, and unlimited data (first 4 or 5gbs at hpsa+ speeds). Beats any Verizon plan for a single user. Only thing is you have to have T-Mobile coverage in your area. I get better coverage on T-Mobile than Verizon in some places where I live
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2
Big Red's BS is the reason I left and went PP years ago.
It has worked out very well.
http://www.pagepluscellular.com/
I was not lucky enough to upgrade before 6/28 and now im stuck on this angry little boat. I swear to god I'll be the last mofo on 3g. I'm the only one on my plan. Data tiers are complete bull****. A complete rip off the consumer.
sent from my ADR6300 Droid Incredible
My wife just left sprint because of crappy service and support, and went to straight talk. $43 a month with tax, unlimited talk text and data, and here service is excelent. It even comes in at the beach where vzw has no service. But straight talks best android phone is still junk. If i could get my inc or another newer better android phone flashed to straight talk, i would leave big red in a heartbeat.
Woh im only use Rp 45.000 or 5$ per month for my Dinc for unlimited data plan. it's cheap and enough for social media and download apps..
cmlusco said:
My wife just left sprint because of crappy service and support, and went to straight talk. $43 a month with tax, unlimited talk text and data, and here service is excelent. It even comes in at the beach where vzw has no service. But straight talks best android phone is still junk. If i could get my inc or another newer better android phone flashed to straight talk, i would leave big red in a heartbeat.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried straight talk and was not happy you could not bring your own device and that the data was throttled back,
With page plus its the same network , you can bring your own device and the data is throttled back.
I have had good coverage when I travel.
Just ran the numbers for all the lines on our plan and it is better for us to stay with what we have now. If we do upgrade we will go retail or upgrade and opt for the 2GB non-shared data at 29.99 It will keep our price the exact same and the lines that have unlimited can keep it. It also makes it 10 dollars cheaper for us to do 3 lines with 2GB data than shared 6GB data. I totally get the new plans and such, but it suck to only be one phone on the plan.
If we didn't live in the middle of nowhere we might change, but VZW offers the best service for us.
SFxBA said:
Just ran the numbers for all the lines on our plan and it is better for us to stay with what we have now. If we do upgrade we will go retail or upgrade and opt for the 2GB non-shared data at 29.99 It will keep our price the exact same and the lines that have unlimited can keep it. It also makes it 10 dollars cheaper for us to do 3 lines with 2GB data than shared 6GB data. I totally get the new plans and such, but it suck to only be one phone on the plan.
If we didn't live in the middle of nowhere we might change, but VZW offers the best service for us.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So you can get a non shared data plan? When i went on the vzw site to do an upgrade, it only gave me the shared data option starting at $50 for a gb.
cmlusco said:
So you can get a non shared data plan? When i went on the vzw site to do an upgrade, it only gave me the shared data option starting at $50 for a gb.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you tried calling VZW customer service? I went into my local store last week and asked the gal at the counter what I needed to do for my stbxw will be getting off my account and getting her own account. She said in my case that she made a note in the computer allowing her to take her phone/phone number off my account. But once she did that, then I needed to call customer service for them to change my family share plan to something else, because they no longer sell a unlimited data plan so customer service would have to make my account a single tiered account so I don't get cornered into a share everything plan and lose my unlimited.
cmlusco said:
So you can get a non shared data plan? When i went on the vzw site to do an upgrade, it only gave me the shared data option starting at $50 for a gb.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is my understanding from the rep I spoke with on the phone on Thursday. I was told the 2GB plan would still be around for any line I would want to put it on. I think it would for sure be something you would need to call in about b/c I don't see it listed under online options.
i had the incredible, went through a bunch of phones, lost some money, but ended up on a nexus with unlimited data. now that i only have ~9 months left on contract, im thinking of going to tmobiles $70 a month unlimited everything. its more then i get now, for a lot less. if you guys are in the market for used phones, try swappa.com. really good site. ive used them several times. nexuses can be had for $360
I'm currently on a family line with 2 phones having a 2GB data plan and 2 other phones having unlimited data. I currently have unlimited data on my line with an upgrade and I'm planning on purchasing this phone at a subsidized price.
My plan was to transfer my upgrade to a 2 GB line. Activating it on that line and then simply swapping it over to my line and inserting the SIM card into it. Now it appears that I cannot simply insert the SIM as it takes a nano SIM card and not the micro SIM that my galaxy s4 currently uses. How would I be able to switch over the line and keep my unlimited data?
Can I just grab another nano SIM from Verizon or is that not possible? I'm getting a little worried I'll lose my unlimited data if I swap lines. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using XDA Free mobile app
graymonkey44 said:
I'm currently on a family line with 2 phones having a 2GB data plan and 2 other phones having unlimited data. I currently have unlimited data on my line with an upgrade and I'm planning on purchasing this phone at a subsidized price.
My plan was to transfer my upgrade to a 2 GB line. Activating it on that line and then simply swapping it over to my line and inserting the SIM card into it. Now it appears that I cannot simply insert the SIM as it takes a nano SIM card and not the micro SIM that my galaxy s4 currently uses. How would I be able to switch over the line and keep my unlimited data?
Can I just grab another nano SIM from Verizon or is that not possible? I'm getting a little worried I'll lose my unlimited data if I swap lines. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think we're the same person. I'm in an identical situation and I'd like to know the answer to this as well. I have upgraded other lines to keep my unlimited in the past but I haven't had to have a new sim to do it until now.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using XDA Free mobile app
They give Sim cards away at Verizon for no charge. Just ask.
liquidthc said:
I think we're the same person. I'm in an identical situation and I'd like to know the answer to this as well. I have upgraded other lines to keep my unlimited in the past but I haven't had to have a new sim to do it until now.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just tell Verizon your buying a phone from a friend. Like perhaps a iPhone or a moot x. They all use a nano SIM
Verizon gives out some cards for free.
Here is the latest update to keeping unlimited I have seen. Transferring upgrade may no longer work. See Method 5.
http://www.droid-life.com/2014/09/25/upgrade-verizon-keep-unlimited-data/
prdog1 said:
Here is the latest update to keeping unlimited I have seen. Transferring upgrade may no longer work. See Method 5.
http://www.droid-life.com/2014/09/25/upgrade-verizon-keep-unlimited-data/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've upgraded on a non smartphone line before since the other 2 have unlimited data, but it looks like you cannot remove the data anymore so your stuck paying the data fees for 2yrs.... Sucks
I believe they make SIM cutters. Might want to look into those.
Or just ask Verizon to send you a new SIM card.
an21281 said:
I've upgraded on a non smartphone line before since the other 2 have unlimited data, but it looks like you cannot remove the data anymore so your stuck paying the data fees for 2yrs.... Sucks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did it two years ago and I was able to remove it. Went into Verizon today to ask since I saw your comment, and they still said it's okay, but you have to wait maybe 12 or so hours to reactivate it on your line. I guess I'll ask somewhere else to confirm it tomorrow.
Please let me know. Can't wait to get this phone. Thank you
Sent from my SCH-I545 using XDA Free mobile app
graymonkey44 said:
Please let me know. Can't wait to get this phone. Thank you
Sent from my SCH-I545 using XDA Free mobile app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Talked to two different reps today. One store wouldn't give me any information since it's against policy I guess. The other rep at my usual store (this makes 4 people from this store saying it, one person has done it for me) confirmed it again. He said that transferring upgrades is okay but it may come back on the employee. Not really sure about that part, but it may be why they're hesitant to do it or admit it. But activating the phone and transferring it to your line is okay. Again I was told you may have 12 hours of down time to avoid suspicion or something like that. Again, not sure about that since 2 years ago they activated it on my line within 5 minutes and had me out. You can remove data lines from basic phones too by calling Verizon and having the CSR remove it from the system, which I did last time.
As far as SIM cards go, this should not be an issue. I forgot to ask the reps today, but yesterday I was told that it doesn't matter. They'll activate the phone on your non unlimited line, toss the SIM, and put in a new one for your line. I'm not sure which line gets the 12 hours of downtime here though, since I was in a bit of a hurry and forgot that too. I'm a little worried about that since I don't want my mother to go phoneless for a day since she has work and all. But as far as upgrades go, you'll be set and keeping your unlimited data with it. I'll be buying my phone next Thursday on the 30th, so if you want, I can let you know how it goes. I just hope I don't run into a rep that won't help me with this, since I guess technically they're not allowed to. If anybody has any conflicting information, please let me know. I'll try to clear it up with my store since they don't seem to have an issue with this method and are surprisingly honest about it.
After keeping my HTC Thunderbolt since its release (warranty claim recently upgraded me to a Droid DNA!), I finally have succumbed to relinquishing my unlimited data plan. I fully understand why you would want to keep it and admit that it felt like tearing my heart out when I switched to the more everything plan but I will say a few things:
1. Earlier last month I read that Verizon wanted to start throttling unlimited plans after 5gb of use. Recently I saw that they decided not to, so yay for you! I do however think that they are going to make it harder and harder to keep your plan as time passes. As it is, you are probably paying significantly more per month to keep the plan.
2. If you downgrade to a more everything plan there is a "month to month" promo that gives you the same Edge plan perk of $15/smartphone per month line access fee (as opposed to the $40 one). Again this is a promo for out of contract people and I know it is active because it was just applied to my account. (Note, you must select at least the 10gb plan and of course be out of contract)
3. By switching out of the unlimited data plan I now have unlimited minutes per month, 10GB of monthly data (family's average was 5gb-7gb anyway), and am paying ~$65 less per month on my bill now.
I'm not trying to convince anyone to switch, but $65 less a month is a lot of money saved when I wasn't even using 10gb per month.
I hope this helps someone like me who kept unlimited out of principal but didn't actually utilize it.
Xelios029 said:
Talked to two different reps today. One store wouldn't give me any information since it's against policy I guess. The other rep at my usual store (this makes 4 people from this store saying it, one person has done it for me) confirmed it again. He said that transferring upgrades is okay but it may come back on the employee. Not really sure about that part, but it may be why they're hesitant to do it or admit it. But activating the phone and transferring it to your line is okay. Again I was told you may have 12 hours of down time to avoid suspicion or something like that. Again, not sure about that since 2 years ago they activated it on my line within 5 minutes and had me out. You can remove data lines from basic phones too by calling Verizon and having the CSR remove it from the system, which I did last time.
As far as SIM cards go, this should not be an issue. I forgot to ask the reps today, but yesterday I was told that it doesn't matter. They'll activate the phone on your non unlimited line, toss the SIM, and put in a new one for your line. I'm not sure which line gets the 12 hours of downtime here though, since I was in a bit of a hurry and forgot that too. I'm a little worried about that since I don't want my mother to go phoneless for a day since she has work and all. But as far as upgrades go, you'll be set and keeping your unlimited data with it. I'll be buying my phone next Thursday on the 30th, so if you want, I can let you know how it goes. I just hope I don't run into a rep that won't help me with this, since I guess technically they're not allowed to. If anybody has any conflicting information, please let me know. I'll try to clear it up with my store since they don't seem to have an issue with this method and are surprisingly honest about it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I for one would love a follow-up. Thank you for the information.
Sent from my SCH-I545 using XDA Free mobile app
TagCdog said:
2. If you downgrade to a more everything plan there is a "month to month" promo that gives you the same Edge plan perk of $15/smartphone per month line access fee (as opposed to the $40 one). Again this is a promo for out of contract people and I know it is active because it was just applied to my account. (Note, you must select at least the 10gb plan and of course be out of contract)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I assume this did not include getting a new phone. If you want to keep that offer when upgrading, I assume you will have to use Verizon edge, right?
dschisler3 said:
I assume this did not include getting a new phone. If you want to keep that offer when upgrading, I assume you will have to use Verizon edge, right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
At the moment we still have all our old phones, yes. I was told that the promo would last until we decide to upgrade. At that point, if we use "Edge", the line access fee is still $15/smartphone per month plus the monthly cost of the phone (this is a permanent price feature for all edge plans 10gb and over AFIK). I asked what happens after the phone is payed off and was told that the line access fee jumps to $40/smartphone per month unless we "re-Edge" another phone or jump onto the "month to month" promotion again which may or may not be available. Note: I have been told many things about what happens after an edge plan phone is paid off. I am not 100% sure if the line access fee changes or not. I know that while paying off phones on the edge plan, plans 10gb or over have a $15/smartphone per month line access fee and all other non-edge plan devices have a $40/smartphone per month line access fee. Tablets are $10 per month on or off of edge which is cool.
Also, because I would have to pay full price for a phone on my old unlimited plan anyways, I did not incorporate the additional cost(s) of the phone(s) into my monthly savings mentioned above. I figure that with unlimited data or edge you have to pay the full price of the phone anyway so technically if we got new phones at full price and swapped them out, we would still have the promo active. Then again, not everybody (me included) can fork out $600+ per line on their account all at once. Lastly, so many great new phones are coming out every quarter that I kind of like edge because after 60% of the phone is paid off I can jump to a new one and continue payments as normal. It allows me to stay current with technology instead of holding on to a crappy thunderbolt just because it had unlimited data
TagCdog said:
After keeping my HTC Thunderbolt since its release (warranty claim recently upgraded me to a Droid DNA!), I finally have succumbed to relinquishing my unlimited data plan. I fully understand why you would want to keep it and admit that it felt like tearing my heart out when I switched to the more everything plan but I will say a few things:
1. Earlier last month I read that Verizon wanted to start throttling unlimited plans after 5gb of use. Recently I saw that they decided not to, so yay for you! I do however think that they are going to make it harder and harder to keep your plan as time passes. As it is, you are probably paying significantly more per month to keep the plan.
2. If you downgrade to a more everything plan there is a "month to month" promo that gives you the same Edge plan perk of $15/smartphone per month line access fee (as opposed to the $40 one). Again this is a promo for out of contract people and I know it is active because it was just applied to my account. (Note, you must select at least the 10gb plan and of course be out of contract)
3. By switching out of the unlimited data plan I now have unlimited minutes per month, 10GB of monthly data (family's average was 5gb-7gb anyway), and am paying ~$65 less per month on my bill now.
I'm not trying to convince anyone to switch, but $65 less a month is a lot of money saved when I wasn't even using 10gb per month.
I hope this helps someone like me who kept unlimited out of principal but didn't actually utilize it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
For some of us, like me, I am trying to stay on my unlimited data plan because it is cheaper (or pretty much the same price) for me than anything else Verizon currently offers. I have a plan with Unlimited Data, 450 minutes, 400 texts and I pay about $65 a month total. The only comparable plan would be the new single line plan which is Unlimited Talk/Text and 2Gb data for $60. Thing is, I don't need any more talk or text because I never use what I currently have. I do use a lot of data. If I were to switch to a More Everything plan I would be paying heaps more every month for less data than I get now.
Verizon just simply doesn't have plans anymore that cater to people like me who want limited minutes/texts and lots of data.
Erasmus354 said:
For some of us, like me, I am trying to stay on my unlimited data plan because it is cheaper (or pretty much the same price) for me than anything else Verizon currently offers. I have a plan with Unlimited Data, 450 minutes, 400 texts and I pay about $65 a month total. The only comparable plan would be the new single line plan which is Unlimited Talk/Text and 2Gb data for $60. Thing is, I don't need any more talk or text because I never use what I currently have. I do use a lot of data. If I were to switch to a More Everything plan I would be paying heaps more every month for less data than I get now.
Verizon just simply doesn't have plans anymore that cater to people like me who want limited minutes/texts and lots of data.
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Yeah, I would stay on your current plan too It is harder to manage with a family plan and everyone wanting new phones though... Good luck!
Can someone confirm if this would work....
I have a 5 line family plan. 3 smartphones and 2 dumbphones. 2 of the smartphones are UDP and one is 2GB. I have an upgrade available on a dumbphone line. I would like to move that upgrade from the dumbphone line to the 2GB tier smartphone line and get a new smartphone. Once the new smartphone is activated on the 2GB line, could I then swap the sim from the new phone and give my existing phone to the 2GB line and then put my UDP sim in the new phone without changing my UDP? I was hoping this could work as the upgrade is not from my UDP line which would cause me to lose my unlimited as I have read on the net. So would this scenario allow me to preserve my UDP? Thanks for any help!
kph3 said:
Can someone confirm if this would work....
I have a 5 line family plan. 3 smartphones and 2 dumbphones. 2 of the smartphones are UDP and one is 2GB. I have an upgrade available on a dumbphone line. I would like to move that upgrade from the dumbphone line to the 2GB tier smartphone line and get a new smartphone. Once the new smartphone is activated on the 2GB line, could I then swap the sim from the new phone and give my existing phone to the 2GB line and then put my UDP sim in the new phone without changing my UDP? I was hoping this could work as the upgrade is not from my UDP line which would cause me to lose my unlimited as I have read on the net. So would this scenario allow me to preserve my UDP? Thanks for any help!
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Yes, i did a variation of this two years ago, it works. And according to the reps i spoke to, it still does. Although there is no need to transfer the upgrade. Activate the phone on your dumbphone line, then reactivate the dumbphone on that line. It will drop the data plan from the line and then you can activate the new phone onto your udp line. This is called an alternate upgrade. The reps i spoke to know what it is, and they probably will help you with it.
Xelios029 said:
Yes, i did a variation of this two years ago, it works. And according to the reps i spoke to, it still does. Although there is no need to transfer the upgrade. Activate the phone on your dumbphone line, then reactivate the dumbphone on that line. It will drop the data plan from the line and then you can activate the new phone onto your udp line. This is called an alternate upgrade. The reps i spoke to know what it is, and they probably will help you with it.
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Unfortunately this is no longer true. If you update one of the dumb lines and get a smart phone, the dump line will be locked in to a tiered data plan for 2 years. The carriers closed this loophole a few months ago.
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---------- Post added at 12:11 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:06 PM ----------
kph3 said:
Can someone confirm if this would work....
I have a 5 line family plan. 3 smartphones and 2 dumbphones. 2 of the smartphones are UDP and one is 2GB. I have an upgrade available on a dumbphone line. I would like to move that upgrade from the dumbphone line to the 2GB tier smartphone line and get a new smartphone. Once the new smartphone is activated on the 2GB line, could I then swap the sim from the new phone and give my existing phone to the 2GB line and then put my UDP sim in the new phone without changing my UDP? I was hoping this could work as the upgrade is not from my UDP line which would cause me to lose my unlimited as I have read on the net. So would this scenario allow me to preserve my UDP? Thanks for any help!
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Great idea, but I'd double and triple check the new contract when you sign them though. Since the carries are doing it to the UDPs, they may apply the same restriction to all lines. IE., since the update comes from the dumb line, they may force you to sign up for a tiered data plan for 2 years on the dumb line.
... Just make sure you read the contact closely when you update
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