Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Carrier Do you want AT&T, Verizon and Sprint to adopt T-Mobile uncarrier strategy?

Do you want AT&T, Verizon and Sprint to adopt T-Mobile uncarrier strategy?

  • Yes

    Votes: 203 80.2%

  • No

    Votes: 50 19.8%
  • Total voters
    253
E

EbookReader

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Apr 3, 2012
1,190
1
T-Mobile Uncarrier strategy is simple

1) Pay for the phone upfront or in monthly installments (paying for the HDTV)
2) Pay for the service (paying for the cable/satellite bill)


Here's T-Mobile Service Prices. AT&T, Verizon, Sprint service price will be different if they adopt uncarrier strategy. This just to give you an example of what it would look like:

T-Mobile_Simple_Choice_Plans-630x206.jpg


Line 1: $50 -------------(unlimited talk, unlimited text, 500MB of 4G speed)
Line 2: +$30 --------------(unlimited talk, unlimited text, 500MB of 4G speed)
Line 3: +$10---------------(unlimited talk, unlimited text, 500MB of 4G speed)
Line 4: +$10---------------(unlimited talk, unlimited text, 500MB of 4G speed)
Line 5: + $10--------------(unlimited talk, unlimited text, 500MB of 4G speed)



$10 upgrade for extra 2GB at 4G speed
$20 upgrade for unlimited at 4G speed
 
wordoflife

wordoflife

macrumors 604
Jul 6, 2009
7,564
37
Yes.

I don't think customers should continue paying a subsidy after it has already been payed off.
So basically you over pay them, or get locked into another contract. Win-win for them.
 
Last edited:
lordofthereef

lordofthereef

macrumors G5
Nov 29, 2011
13,161
3,720
Boston, MA
So long as I don't end up paying MORE over two years than I do now, I would be happy with it. If they go "uncarrier", it would also be nice to just get the phone unlocked from the getgo (AT&T).
 
G

GBR

macrumors 6502
Mar 19, 2012
359
18
I voted no, and maybe I just don't understand it all the way but I don't like the idea of paying more for the phone, and a 2 year contract really doesn't bother me. With the current setup with Verizon I can get the new iPhone each year and ebay my old one for close to the price of my new one due to the high price of a non-contract phone. Either way I'm paying each month for service so I just feel the Verizon system works for me. However, like I said maybe I just don't understand this new TMobile plan all the way.
 
lordofthereef

lordofthereef

macrumors G5
Nov 29, 2011
13,161
3,720
Boston, MA
GBR said:
I voted no, and maybe I just don't understand it all the way but I don't like the idea of paying more for the phone, and a 2 year contract really doesn't bother me. With the current setup with Verizon I can get the new iPhone each year and ebay my old one for close to the price of my new one due to the high price of a non-contract phone. Either way I'm paying each month for service so I just feel the Verizon system works for me. However, like I said maybe I just don't understand this new TMobile plan all the way.
Click to expand...

It's basically the same, except if you chose not to get a new phone yearly, your monthly rate goes down. Really what this plan does is give you slightly more freedom in not feeling like you have to upgrade every chance you get in order to get your money's worth.
 
G

GBR

macrumors 6502
Mar 19, 2012
359
18
lordofthereef said:
It's basically the same, except if you chose not to get a new phone yearly, your monthly rate goes down. Really what this plan does is give you slightly more freedom in not feeling like you have to upgrade every chance you get in order to get your money's worth.
Click to expand...

Interesting. Lol, I don't do it because I feel I must to get my moneys worth, I do it because of my disorder of needing new shiny things :):)

It will never happen, but it would be cool if after your two year contract is up and your subsidized phone is paid for your monthly rate goes down. I think US Cellular does something similar to this with their customer loyalty program, but they don't have the iPhone.
 
nburwell

nburwell

macrumors 603
May 6, 2008
5,451
2,365
DE
The obvious answer for me is a resounding yes. If T-Mobile didn't have horrible coverage in my area and I didn't just renew my contract with AT&T, I would probably consider switching. It's pretty disgusting to think about the amount of money we overpay these wireless carriers.
 
M

mattwallace24

macrumors regular
Nov 25, 2010
180
8
Connecticut
GBR said:
Interesting. Lol, I don't do it because I feel I must to get my moneys worth, I do it because of my disorder of needing new shiny things :):)
Click to expand...

My feelings exactly. Using history as an example, I'd have to be holding onto my iPhone 3GS now to be at the point where I'd no longer be paying T-Mobile for the phone (assuming I decided to pay the monthly phone financing fee).

With Apple coming out with new phones every year, I couldn't see myself today thinking my 3GS was such a hot deal when everyone else has shiny new iPhone 5's.

I'm quite the opposite. I'd be willing to pay a slightly higher rate if I could reduce the eligibility period for a new phone (versus paying early termination fees).
 
co.ag.2005

co.ag.2005

macrumors 68020
Jun 17, 2009
2,363
1,809
Fort Worth, TX
nburwell said:
The obvious answer for me is a resounding yes. If T-Mobile didn't have horrible coverage in my area and I didn't just renew my contract with AT&T, I would probably consider switching. It's pretty disgusting to think about the amount of money we overpay these wireless carriers.
Click to expand...

while we may be overpaying, you do somewhat pay for what you get. AT&T and Verizon have a much greater build-out of towers as well as more spatial coverage of faster data speeds. yes, T-Mobile is fantastic in the heart of downtown of a large city, but abysmal outside of it... I'd rather pay more to get faster data everywhere I go.

to the OP, yes, it would be great if AT&T (or Verizon) did this, but I don't think it will happen, at least not at the same price point as T-Mobile (again, you pay for what you get). For me (like the other poster here), I upgrade my phone far too often to really see the benefit plus I get a 25% discount on AT&T through my employer.

I think the real benefit is to those people who only upgrade their phones once every 2-3 years (or longer) and live/work/play/only stay in large cities.
 
D

drewyboy

macrumors 65816
Jan 27, 2005
1,385
1,467
Wow, there seems to be some huge misunderstanding. EVERYONE should be saying yes to this question.

For those of you say no, I'm respectfully telling you that you don't fully understand it. Here is why

AT&T: I sign up for 2 year contract get new shiny iPhone for $200. I pay $Z a month for 2 years, no questions asked. When 2 years is up, I'm told I should probably resign for a new shiny iPhone for another 2 years.

T-Mobile: I sign up for a plan for $X, NO contract. I tell them I want shiny new iPhone with that no contract plan, they say no prob. They tell me I pay $100 up front for iPhone and that on top of $X, I also be paying $Y for the phone (which you can pay off at anytime). So right now I see how much my plan is costing me, and how much my phone is. After 2 years, I've paid for the phone. Rinse repeat.

The Difference: With AT&T I don't know how much is going to the iPhone a month, therefore I don't know how much my plan ACTUALLY costs me. When 2 years are up, if I decide to NOT upgrade, I'm still charged the same amount even while I was supposedly paying off the phone w/ AT&T. WHY? Lets keep going. Not only are T-Mobiles plans cheaper with an attached phone payment, the iPhone itself is cheaper... $75 cheaper than you even get from the Apple Store. Did I mention, NO CONTRACT. Also, numerous calculations show you will at least be saving $600 over 2 years. Unless you wipe your butt with dollar bills, $600 is a bit of cash. Let's not get into "but they're only in 7 cities with LTE"... the other carriers use much different standards for what city coverage means with LTE. T-Mobile says ENTIRE city.

So with all this in mind, you have to take into consideration coverage. Places will have different coverage so you might not even have real options. But if you do the math, you'll always come out better with T-Mobile. Heck, even if I don't stay with T-Mobile in the future, I know I'll sure as heck go to their stores to buy an iPhone (which gets unlocked right there when purchased in full) since it'll be $75 cheaper than an Apple store.
 
A

aristobrat

macrumors G5
Oct 14, 2005
12,292
1,403
drewyboy said:
The Difference: With AT&T I don't know how much is going to the iPhone a month, therefore I don't know how much my plan ACTUALLY costs me.
Click to expand...
Would this be an educated guess as to how much of your plan goes towards the iPhone?

iPhone 5, 16GB
$649 = retail price
$199 = AT&T subsidized price (when signing a two-year contract)

$450 spread over a 24-month contract is $18.75/month
 
B

barkomatic

macrumors 601
Aug 8, 2008
4,521
2,826
Manhattan
The AT&T and Verizon approach to this model would be to first raise all rates by 30%, then eliminate the subsidy, reduce the monthly cost of your plan by 20% if you pay for your smartphone outright and then offer a monthly payment plan (with interest) for those who can't pay up front the phone. :p
 
osofast240sx

osofast240sx

macrumors 68030
Mar 25, 2011
2,539
16
Just to cut the confusion unlimited talk and text should be a industry standard. Then one should have the choice to be on a contract or not. Tmobile's no contract was a extreme bold move. if this works out then you will see sprint, verzion and AT&T follow.
 
lordofthereef

lordofthereef

macrumors G5
Nov 29, 2011
13,161
3,720
Boston, MA
co.ag.2005 said:
while we may be overpaying, you do somewhat pay for what you get. AT&T and Verizon have a much greater build-out of towers as well as more spatial coverage of faster data speeds. yes, T-Mobile is fantastic in the heart of downtown of a large city, but abysmal outside of it... I'd rather pay more to get faster data everywhere I go.
Click to expand...

SOmeone was saying that TMO has unlimited AT&T roaming for seven years, on another thread, due to their failed acquisition deal. I am not sure if that is accurate. I do notice that TMO advertises "unlimited data while on TMO network", so that may mean texts and calls roaming on AT&T are free but data is throttled or unusable. Not sure. Depending on the validity of the statement, and depending what that means for data, it COULD be good.
 
co.ag.2005

co.ag.2005

macrumors 68020
Jun 17, 2009
2,363
1,809
Fort Worth, TX
lordofthereef said:
SOmeone was saying that TMO has unlimited AT&T roaming for seven years, on another thread, due to their failed acquisition deal. I am not sure if that is accurate. I do notice that TMO advertises "unlimited data while on TMO network", so that may mean texts and calls roaming on AT&T are free but data is throttled or unusable. Not sure. Depending on the validity of the statement, and depending what that means for data, it COULD be good.
Click to expand...

EDIT I linked an old article. I saw 4/4/2013 on there but that must have been something else... facepalm
 
Jessica Lares

Jessica Lares

macrumors G3
Oct 31, 2009
9,612
1,056
Near Dallas, Texas, USA
I voted no too.

I do not like the idea of spending $600 on a phone out right. And it's not because I don't have the money, it's just because I could have easily paid for five AT&T payments with that $400. I could also be buying my groceries, a few pieces of clothes, or many other things with that money.

For $20 less, you get 500MB of 4G which then turns into EDGE speeds. How is that attractive exactly - Especially when we're in a world that likes to stream heavily on the go? My $60/mo hotspot from them at least turned to 3G after 2GB.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom