AT&T no longer matching Sprint's 20GB for the price of 10GB promo

noupf said:

so what would happen if right now i logged in and I went and changed to the 15 gb for $100 plus the $15 and $15 ( $130 total for two phones ) and add a line?........and then when my contract is up, go and sign a new 2 year agreement to get the iphone6's for $199?

Would that get me the cheaper plan and the subsidized iphone6's ?

is it me or does it seem like you are penalized for agreeing to stay with att for 2 years??


Thanks to all of those who are helping to clarify this for me btw !!!!!

Click to expand...

If it helps, think of it this way...

Two year contracts are around for those with grandfathered plans...

Next is around for those with the newer data share plans.

Sure you can still sign a contract with the newer plans, but ATT doesn't want to do that. They'd rather you agree to buy the phone and pay it off in monthly installments. There are no loopholes. It you go to the 15gb data share plan you are simply not going to want to sign a two year. I suppose you can call that being penalized.

ATT seems to be in the fast track for getting rid of their unlimited plans as well as their contracts. If you skip out in a bill the creditor comes after you for the remainder of your device value with the Next program. When they sibsidize a device the risk of recouping the cost is on them for those two years.

Here is what I have:

AT&T Mobile Share 30GB $130
iPhone 6 x 3 $120 (2 year contracts for each one)
FAN Account Discount 28%

Total monthly cost: $213.83

I am wondering if I should consider stepping down to the 15GB plan...

It would save me some money if I step down, it would become $192...
I am thinking about maybe waiting another month or so before I consider this.

BTW, the 10Gb plan is not even listed here...How much would I end up saving if they were to give me the 15GB for the 10GB price?

thecore762 said:

Here is what I have:

AT&T Mobile Share 30GB $130
iPhone 6 x 3 $120 (2 year contracts for each one)
FAN Account Discount 28%

Total monthly cost: $213.83

I am wondering if I should consider stepping down to the 15GB plan...

It would save me some money if I step down, it would become $192...
I am thinking about maybe waiting another month or so before I consider this.

BTW, the 10Gb plan is not even listed here...How much would I end up saving if they were to give me the 15GB for the 10GB price?

Click to expand...

15gb plan is $100 per mo now. 10gb isn't on the list anymore for a plan option. When I look up on ATT site, it says until 11/30/14, so I am not sure if you can wait a month or so to change your plan.

pdxmatts said:

15gb plan is $100 per mo now. 10gb isn't on the list anymore for a plan option. When I look up on ATT site, it says until 11/30/14, so I am not sure if you can wait a month or so to change your plan.

Click to expand...

I see, if I move out of the 30GB plan and to got he 15GB, will I still be able to change it back to the 30GB plan for the same price? Which I believe it $130 atm...
I think I will probably end up staying with the 30GB plan unless they offer a 20GB plan at a cheaper rate.

thecore762 said:

I see, if I move out of the 30GB plan and to got he 15GB, will I still be able to change it back to the 30GB plan for the same price? Which I believe it $130 atm...
I think I will probably end up staying with the 30GB plan unless they offer a 20GB plan at a cheaper rate.

Click to expand...

Unless they extend the deal, you would not get the 30gb for 15b plan back after 11/30.

pdxmatts said:

Unless they extend the deal, you would not get the 30gb for 15b plan back after 11/30.

Click to expand...

I see, I'll just stay put, the 30GB can come in handy, last month I hit 17GB...across two lines, I am sure we will go over 20GB with the 3rd line that we added today...

thecore762 said:

I see, I'll just stay put, the 30GB can come in handy, last month I hit 17GB...across two lines, I am sure we will go over 20GB with the 3rd line that we added today...

Click to expand...

Just and FYI. Looks like you can get 40gb for $20 more than you are paying.

pdxmatts said:

Just and FYI. Looks like you can get 40gb for $20 more than you are paying.

Click to expand...

Thanks, but I think 30GB is plenty for my family at this time, I will consider 40GB if we ever hit close to 30GB.
$20 is $20

$213 is my current bill with 28% FAN account discount with my employer. Can't complain too much atm.

thecore762 said:

Thanks, but I think 30GB is plenty for my family at this time, I will consider 40GB if we ever hit close to 30GB.
$20 is $20

$213 is my current bill with 28% FAN account discount with my employer. Can't complain too much atm.

Click to expand...

Good choice! I just ordered an i6 for my husband yesterday for Christmas through Apple and got a free $50 iTunes card and $50 bill credit for using NEXT. We were able to get the 20gb plan when they offered it for the price of 10gb, so I'm not complaining either. We have 4 lines, but we use Wifi when at home.

pdxmatts said:

Good choice! I just ordered an i6 for my husband yesterday for Christmas through Apple and got a free $50 iTunes card and $50 bill credit for using NEXT. We were able to get the 20gb plan when they offered it for the price of 10gb, so I'm not complaining either. We have 4 lines, but we use Wifi when at home.

Click to expand...

Nice, for us the 2 year contract saved us more than the NEXT plan would (monthly basis). I like the fact that I can sell my phones after two years and put that money towards the new iPhones since I never go for the S models.

I look at it like a car, financed vs leased

NEXT is something I will probably look at again in two years...

thecore762 said:

Nice, for us the 2 year contract saved us more than the NEXT plan would (monthly basis).

Click to expand...

That's one way to look at it.

From another of your threads, looks like you bought a 64GB iPhone 6 on a 2-year contract. You paid $299 up-front for the phone, and your monthly charge for that line is $40.00.

To contrast, if you had bought the same phone using Next 18, you'd pay nothing up front, and your monthly charge for that line would be $46.21.

To your point, if you're just looking at monthly charges, a 2-year contract is always a few bucks a month cheaper than a Next plan.

But if you step back and consider that you paid $299 up-front in order to have a lower monthly payment, you really didn't save anything in the end. You actually end up having paid $149 more on a 2-year contract than if you had gone with Next.

I like the fact that I can sell my phones after two years and put that money towards the new iPhones since I never go for the S models.

Click to expand...

FWIW, ownership of the phone on a Next plan isn't any different than ownership of the phone under a 2-year contract.

aristobrat said:

FWIW, ownership of the phone on a Next plan isn't any different than ownership of the phone under a 2-year contract.

Click to expand...

I think the biggest failure of these companies is not explaining this. I have even heard ATT salesman saying Next is like a lease... SMH.

lordofthereef said:

I think the biggest failure of these companies is not explaining this. I have even heard ATT salesman saying Next is like a lease... SMH.

Click to expand...

Techinically it is a lease because the NEXT plan allows you to trade in the phone in 12, 18 or 24 months to upgrade to a new phone. I have no intentions of trading in my phone, but a lot of people will.

aristobrat said:

FWIW, ownership of the phone on a Next plan isn't any different than ownership of the phone under a 2-year contract.

Click to expand...

That is not true.

If you upgrade your phone after 2 years, you get to resell your contract phone, you have to turn in your Next-phone, and then you keep paying the Next-charges on the new phone.

These phones do have a lot of residual value (I recently sold my 5s for $450)

noupf said:

so what would happen if right now i logged in and I went and changed to the 15 gb for $100 plus the $15 and $15 ( $130 total for two phones ) and add a line?........and then when my contract is up, go and sign a new 2 year agreement to get the iphone6's for $199?

Would that get me the cheaper plan and the subsidized iphone6's ?

is it me or does it seem like you are penalized for agreeing to stay with att for 2 years??


Thanks to all of those who are helping to clarify this for me btw !!!!!

Click to expand...

You can get the mobile share still with the subsidy. However the phone payment would be 40 instead of 15.

McDaddio said:

That is not true.

If you upgrade your phone after 2 years, you get to resell your contract phone, you have to turn in your Next-phone, and then you keep paying the Next-charges on the new phone.

These phones do have a lot of residual value (I recently sold my 5s for $450)

Click to expand...

What you are describing is for people who want to upgrade every 12 months. Yes, they make 12 monthly payments and then trade in their phone for a new one. But you don't have to do that. You can keep it and just pay it off over the 18 or 24 months, or sooner in my case, and you own it.

ssl0408 said:

Techinically it is a lease because the NEXT plan allows you to trade in the phone in 12, 18 or 24 months to upgrade to a new phone. I have no intentions of trading in my phone, but a lot of people will.

Click to expand...

I disagree. All the next plan done is waive the rest of your payments should you want to sell back the phone to the lender. No lease really works that way. When leasing something you don;t agree at the time of a lease to pay for the entirity of the item/property.

Further evidence that you are buying the entirity of the product is that tax laws require taxes to be paid on the full MSRP up front. This wouldn't be the case if it were considered a legal lease.

lordofthereef said:

I disagree. All the next plan done is waive the rest of your payments should you want to sell back the phone to the lender. No lease really works that way. When leasing something you don;t agree at the time of a lease to pay for the entirity of the item/property.

Further evidence that you are buying the entirity of the product is that tax laws require taxes to be paid on the full MSRP up front. This wouldn't be the case if it were considered a legal lease.

Click to expand...

I call it a lease because you are giving the phone back to the carrier. Word for word, no it's not like a car lease.

ssl0408 said:

I call it a lease because you are giving the phone back to the carrier. Word for word, no it's not like a car lease.

Click to expand...

McDaddio said:

That is not true.

If you upgrade your phone after 2 years, you get to resell your contract phone, you have to turn in your Next-phone, and then you keep paying the Next-charges on the new phone.

These phones do have a lot of residual value (I recently sold my 5s for $450)

Click to expand...

You can pay off your Next phone at anytime and own it and upgrade whenever you like. You can't do that on a 2 yr contract until 2 yrs is up. You do not have to trade it in and you still get to stay on $15 per line vs $40 on contract line that never changes even when your contract is up.

ssl0408 said:

I call it a lease because you are giving the phone back to the carrier. Word for word, no it's not like a car lease.

Click to expand...

I am not talking about a car lease. I am talking about the very definition of the word lease. This is not that. You aren;t renting the device. You are buying it with a 0% APR loan with the agreement that they will buy it back from you after a set amount of time should you choose that option. That is not how a lease works.

lordofthereef said:

I am not talking about a car lease. I am talking about the very definition of the word lease. This is not that. You aren;t renting the device. You are buying it with a 0% APR loan with the agreement that they will buy it back from you after a set amount of time should you choose that option. That is not how a lease works.

Click to expand...

Ok, you are right. I am not interested in a back and forth discussion about it, though. I know exactly what I signed up for with NEXT. Good day.

ssl0408 said:

Ok, you are right. I am not interested in a back and forth discussion about it, though. I know exactly what I signed up for with NEXT. Good day.

Click to expand...

Yes, I trust you are. I was merely explaining the fallacy when a saleperson calls Next a lease plan. Good day to you as well!

EDIT: It's actually in the FAQ as well.

Do I own the smartphone? Or is this a leasing offer?

The smartphone is yours, and you’re responsible for 30, 24, or 20 monthly installment payments. You’re also responsible for any loss, theft, or damage to the smartphone – both during the installment agreement period and afterward. We recommend you purchase the optional Mobile Insurance to protect your investment.

Click to expand...

https://m.att.com/shopmobile/wireless/modals/next-faqs.html

There is only a few hours left to change to double data unless they extend it again. Make sure you are happy with your choice and it works for you

McDaddio said:

That is not true.

If you upgrade your phone after 2 years, you get to resell your contract phone, you have to turn in your Next-phone, and then you keep paying the Next-charges on the new phone.

These phones do have a lot of residual value (I recently sold my 5s for $450)

Click to expand...

AT&T will buy back a Next phone (after you've made a certain number of months) if you want to upgrade before your Next contract is over (this requires having to turn in your Next phone), but this is 100% optional.

After you've fulfilled your Next contract, you absolutely do not have to turn in your previous phone in order to be able to buy your next phone. You own your phone in the same way that you own your phone after you've fulfilled a 2-year contract. You can sell it, gift it, keep it, whatever... It's yours!

ssl0408 said:

I call it a lease because you are giving the phone back to the carrier. Word for word, no it's not like a car lease.

Click to expand...

I guess you could say the optional early upgrade aspect of Next is lease-like, but for the folks who are using Next as 0% APR financing and have no intentions of ever giving the phone back to the carrier, "lease" really doesn't make for an accurate description.

I think that's where some people take exception to using the word "lease" to describe Next. If it were truly a lease, everyone would have to give the phone back at the end of the contract.

aristobrat said:

That's one way to look at it.

From another of your threads, looks like you bought a 64GB iPhone 6 on a 2-year contract. You paid $299 up-front for the phone, and your monthly charge for that line is $40.00.

To contrast, if you had bought the same phone using Next 18, you'd pay nothing up front, and your monthly charge for that line would be $46.21.

To your point, if you're just looking at monthly charges, a 2-year contract is always a few bucks a month cheaper than a Next plan.

But if you step back and consider that you paid $299 up-front in order to have a lower monthly payment, you really didn't save anything in the end. You actually end up having paid $149 more on a 2-year contract than if you had gone with Next.


FWIW, ownership of the phone on a Next plan isn't any different than ownership of the phone under a 2-year contract.

Click to expand...

Here is what I paid:

$224.82 iPhone 6 128GB
$322.10 iPhone 6 64GB
$73.99 iPhone 6 64GB
$620.91 upfront cost for 3 phones, I think this is a pretty good deal if you ask me.

I will factor in that I have 2/3 activation fees waived - $80 saved

So here is what my monthly bill be looking like: $213.83
Now over the course of 2 years I will be paying $5131.92 + 620.91 = $5752.83
If I were to go with the next here is what I would be paying: $216.94 a month and the 30 months rate would end up being: $6689.74
Now to be fair, if I were to upgrade every 24 months then the price would be 5388.10 with NEXT, but again I am not getting anything for the phones if I don't wait another 6 months...


In this case I feel that I am going to pay less with AT&T 2 year contract vs the next plan, of course the trade in offers/discounts is what helped me save money over the NEXT option.
In this situation everything is going to work out for me in my favor.

BTW I called retention last month and they gave me a month free too...
In this particular case its working everything my way...I don't expect this to happen every single time...but this time specifically it worked out for me. I was also lucky that Best Buy offered me $100 for the iPhone 3G 8GB when I went yesterday to pick up the third iPhone 6...

I like to be able to upgrade my phone right at the two year mark.
With the next option I can technically upgrade at the two year mark but they will just take back the phone and give me a new one unless I plan to complete the 30 months term (AT&T NEXT 24)...

BTW why are people getting touchy about the word lease?
If you are upgrading before you fulfill all of your payments that means you aren't getting a dime for the phone that you have been paying for the last two years.

Now with everything said, the NEXT option is definitely a good option for those who can't afford to pay the subsidized price or for the people that want a brand new phone every single year. For me the two year option always worked out.

----------

aristobrat said:

AT&T will buy back a Next phone (after you've made a certain number of months) if you want to upgrade before your Next contract is over (this requires having to turn in your Next phone), but this is 100% optional.

After you've fulfilled your Next contract, you absolutely do not have to turn in your previous phone in order to be able to buy your next phone. You own your phone in the same way that you own your phone after you've fulfilled a 2-year contract. You can sell it, gift it, keep it, whatever... It's yours!


I guess you could say the optional early upgrade aspect of Next is lease-like, but for the folks who are using Next as 0% APR financing and have no intentions of ever giving the phone back to the carrier, "lease" really doesn't make for an accurate description.

I think that's where some people take exception to using the word "lease" to describe Next. If it were truly a lease, everyone would have to give the phone back at the end of the contract.

Click to expand...

But honestly how many people will really wait to fulfill their whole term before upgrading? Example the new iPhone will come out sometimes around September/October, do you expect people waiting another 6 months to complete their terms before they consider upgrading?

I give AT&T kudos for coming up with such plan, it will be definitely a money maker for them when people do not finish up their full term in order to retain the phones and just upgrade to the next phone.