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

Skika

macrumors 68030
Mar 11, 2009
2,999
1,246
Oh. And here I am, thinking we were just stating facts instead of what if - on a rumors site. :rolleyes:

You were stating a sketchy rumour as fact. Just because this is a rumour site doesn't change that this is misleading.
 

maflynn

macrumors Haswell
May 3, 2009
73,484
43,408
Subsidized phones are not US exclusive :) .

There's plenty of subsidized phones here in Europe. 16 GB unlocked iPhone 5s is priced at 699€. However, you can buy it subsidized for as low as 1€. (by signing a 2 year contract...with a 60€+ monthly bill :D)

Really, I thought it was regional to the US.
 

co.ag.2005

macrumors 68020
Jun 17, 2009
2,363
1,809
Fort Worth, TX
If ATT is still offering the subsidy plan, I can't find it on there website. All I see is "get a new phone every year" by trading in your old phone.

I just want to make sure this is clear for all that read this thread. NEXT does not require you to trade in your old phone. When it comes time for you to upgrade, you can 1). trade in your old phone to cover the rest of the NEXT payments you're required to pay OR 2). pay the rest of the NEXT payments off and keep the phone (and then sell on craigslist, etc. or keep as a hand-me-down phone)

NEXT is the same thing as paying in full, except you just make monthly payments instead of the full $650 (or whatever the phone costs) up front.

if you still try to subsidize, you are going to have to pay an additional $25/line/month (in addition to the $199 up front and $36 activation fee) on the mobile share plans in order to have the phone and you'll have the 2-year contract.

from this point moving forward (especially if you are on a mobile share plan), it's better to buy a new phone for full price up front or do the NEXT plan. Subsidizing here on out will cost much more $$ (again, on mobile share plans)
 
Last edited by a moderator:

StarShot

macrumors 65816
Original poster
Mar 31, 2014
1,151
397
I understand about the past policy of ATT and buying an IP in regards to subsidizing the total price. What I don't understand this their 2nd or additional phone pricing.

My wife also have an IP. Actually she's on her 2nd (4S and now 4S). I'm only paying $9.99 monthly for her phone plus $15 for her 200mb data + taxes. On her first phone, after 18 months, she got the so-called free upgrade ($36) for her now IP 5S. And of course, we paid the initial $199 for each of these phones.

So, how is ATT doing this deal? On top of this, we sold her IP 4S for about $275.

Just don't understand the math on additional phones.
 

rui no onna

Contributor
Oct 25, 2013
14,420
12,431
I understand about the past policy of ATT and buying an IP in regards to subsidizing the total price. What I don't understand this their 2nd or additional phone pricing.

My wife also have an IP. Actually she's on her 2nd (4S and now 4S). I'm only paying $9.99 monthly for her phone plus $15 for her 200mb data + taxes. On her first phone, after 18 months, she got the so-called free upgrade ($36) for her now IP 5S. And of course, we paid the initial $199 for each of these phones.

So, how is ATT doing this deal? On top of this, we sold her IP 4S for about $275.

Just don't understand the math on additional phones.
Basically, now you treat the shared data buckets similar to the shared minute tiers in the old plans. The price for the data buckets is your base rate. Then it's a fixed fee of $25/smartphone on plans lower than 10GB and $15/smartphone for plans 10GB and above with Next or BYOD. If you get a 2-year contract with device subsidy, the fee becomes $40/smartphone regardless of base plan.

Stick to your old plan as long as practical. Even without factoring subsidies, I reckon they're still cheaper than current Mobile Share Value plans.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

sandmanfvr

macrumors member
Nov 19, 2010
93
4
I think people would just pay the extra $25 a month.

It'll be interesting to see how this plays out. Especially with Apple trying to charge an extra $100 for the iPhone 6, yet customers don't want to pay outright for a phone.

I know for me, only 1 person at a time will be able to upgrade as my family of 3 users would add $75-90 to my monthly bill, which I don't want. And since you most likely upgrade every 2 years anyway, we'd be stuck paying that extra forever.

No, many want if they have a budget for $x for monthly bill and $x for the phone. Sure they can get the phone cheaper and put the amount for the phone toward the extra monthly stuff, but over time the will be paying more per month and some people are anal retentive on their budget, so I see many saying no. ;)
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.