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anyone else porting out of at&t after unlimited data monthly increase?

I guess that unlock got denied still.
Back to calling AT&T customer support. This is gotta be the 40th time I'm calling and explaining my situation over and over again and put on hold and more notations made to my account, we apologize for that and while Im sitting there getting frustrated and ready to pull my hair out. They're now telling me that all unlocks get denied cause the system still shows 3 ETF's on my account still. It can take up to 60 days for their system to correct and and reset those. They told me that one of the reps didn't process the ETF waive correct and thus the reason the device cannot get unlocked yet.
And another case submitted and another request denied.

Unlock request number: 2029624853

Thank you for contacting AT&T about unlocking your mobile device.

Unfortunately, your unlock request was denied because:

You haven’t fulfilled your service contract.

You can submit a new request once you complete your service contract.

Questions? Please call 800.331.0500, or dial 611 from your AT&T wireless phone.


Sincerely,
The AT&T Customer Care Team

DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE
All replies are automatically deleted.



I just filed a complain with the BBB to see if that gets me anywhere but I doubt it.

Thank you for submitting your complaint to us.

The BBB that will process your complaint is:

You will hear from this BBB soon regarding your complaint.

What's next?
Did you know BBB does more than just collect complaints? Use BBB to get news and tips concerning the marketplace. Or to find a great BBB Accredited Business.
[doublepost=1455333236][/doublepost]And another email from AT&T and another "investigation" opened.
This is pure insanity and madness. And to imagine that there's millions of users on unlimited data plans that could be going thru the same nonsense to try to unlock their devices and use them elsewhere as AT&T assured them months ago.



Thank you for using AT&T!

It was my pleasure to help you today. Below is a summary of our discussion:


Thank you for sharing this issue. We will contact you when our investigation is complete. Thank you for choosing AT&T!


If we can help you further, please refer to http://wireless.att.com/ or call us at 1-800-331-0500.


Sincerely,


Calvin M.

AT&T Customer Care

1-800-331-0500
 
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Applejuiced said:
I guess that unlock got denied still.
Back to calling AT&T customer support. This is gotta be the 40th time I'm calling and explaining my situation over and over again and put on hold and more notations made to my account, we apologize for that and while Im sitting there getting frustrated and ready to pull my hair out. They're now telling me that all unlocks get denied cause the system still shows 3 ETF's on my account still. It can take up to 60 days for their system to correct and and reset those. They told me that one of the reps didn't process the ETF waive correct and thus the reason the device cannot get unlocked yet.
And another case submitted and another request denied.

Unlock request number: 2029624853

Thank you for contacting AT&T about unlocking your mobile device.

Unfortunately, your unlock request was denied because:

You haven’t fulfilled your service contract.

You can submit a new request once you complete your service contract.

Questions? Please call 800.331.0500, or dial 611 from your AT&T wireless phone.


Sincerely,
The AT&T Customer Care Team

DO NOT REPLY TO THIS MESSAGE
All replies are automatically deleted.



I just filed a complain with the BBB to see if that gets me anywhere but I doubt it.

Thank you for submitting your complaint to us.

The BBB that will process your complaint is:

You will hear from this BBB soon regarding your complaint.

What's next?
Did you know BBB does more than just collect complaints? Use BBB to get news and tips concerning the marketplace. Or to find a great BBB Accredited Business.
[doublepost=1455333236][/doublepost]And another email from AT&T and another "investigation" opened.
This is pure insanity and madness. And to imagine that there's millions of users on unlimited data plans that could be going thru the same nonsense to try to unlock their devices and use them elsewhere as AT&T assured them months ago.



Thank you for using AT&T!

It was my pleasure to help you today. Below is a summary of our discussion:


Thank you for sharing this issue. We will contact you when our investigation is complete. Thank you for choosing AT&T!


If we can help you further, please refer to http://wireless.att.com/ or call us at 1-800-331-0500.


Sincerely,


Calvin M.

AT&T Customer Care

1-800-331-0500
Click to expand...
Wow they are really giving you so much **** I'm sorry to hear that.

This is one of the things why I just go to one of those online unlocks online and they got it done in like the second day or so, not to mention it's cheap (YMMV).
 
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Hey I just figured I'll give you guys an update.
After I filed the above Better business bureau complain I just got a phone call just now from a lady named Stephanie from AT&T corporate that informed me that the situation is resolved and the unlock went thru.
I stuck the Tmobile sim and finally it worked.
Took about a week to get this device unlocked and countless of calls, chat sessions, emails, contacting their AT&T facebook page manager and finally putting thru a BBB complaint to have a resolution.
If I knew I'd be stuck without a phone for that long and had to go thru all this frustration and put so much effort to unlock this device I would have just paid a 3rd party unlocking service.
End of story finally, see ya AT&T.
 
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Glad everything got sorted out. My parents and brother just did the porting over the weekend also from AT&T to T-Mobile and right after the port was done they were able to request the unlock for 4 phones and received the ok right within 10 min. Not sure why you had to go through so much trouble.
 
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str8spd2001 said:
Glad everything got sorted out. My parents and brother just did the porting over the weekend also from AT&T to T-Mobile and right after the port was done they were able to request the unlock for 4 phones and received the ok right within 10 min. Not sure why you had to go through so much trouble.
Click to expand...

Damn, that is great.
Figures my life is always gotta be hard:D
 
Can anyone tell me what the process was to port out and get the ETFs waived? Specifically, I'm interested in getting the following questions answered:

1. Is the ETF bill generated as soon as you port out, or do you have to wait until the end of your normal billing cycle?
2. Do the ETFs for unlimited data lines get waived automatically, do you have to call in to get a manual waiver after porting?
3. If you have to call, do you have to call before the final bill is generated, call after the bill is generated, or does it not matter? If you can call after the final bill is generated, I supposed you could conceivably submit that bill to T-Mobile and get it reimbursed anyway.
4. Does anyone know what fees/taxes are added to the ETF (for my lines that don't have unlimited data)? Retention told me it was just the standard sales tax based on your billing address.

Thanks.
 
Plenty of people are porting out. I've even. Priced some particularly die hard ATT fans jumping ship. The reality is it's not just $5. You're losing your phone subsidy as well. Unless you were just letting your subsidy sit (which I imagine most on his forum were not), your actually monthly cost has increased by $23.75 because you're still paying what you did before (plus $5) and no new phone every two years to show for it.

We went with TMO (after testing the network first). Currently in $10gb x4 lines for $120 but may bump to their unlimited everything X 4 lines for $150
 
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lordofthereef said:
Plenty of people are porting out. I've even. Priced some particularly die hard ATT fans jumping ship. The reality is it's not just $5. You're losing your phone subsidy as well. Unless you were just letting your subsidy sit (which I imagine most on his forum were not), your actually monthly cost has increased by $23.75 because you're still paying what you did before (plus $5) and no new phone every two years to show for it.

We went with TMO (after testing the network first). Currently in $10gb x4 lines for $120 but may bump to their unlimited everything X 4 lines for $150
Click to expand...

Well said.
Losing the subsidy was the nail in the coffin for us. $5 extra a month for unlimited is nothing but once you calculate losing 4 device subsidies every 2 years that's $1800.
Not going to happen. See ya later AT&T.
 
lordofthereef said:
Plenty of people are porting out. I've even. Priced some particularly die hard ATT fans jumping ship. The reality is it's not just $5. You're losing your phone subsidy as well. Unless you were just letting your subsidy sit (which I imagine most on his forum were not), your actually monthly cost has increased by $23.75 because you're still paying what you did before (plus $5) and no new phone every two years to show for it.

We went with TMO (after testing the network first). Currently in $10gb x4 lines for $120 but may bump to their unlimited everything X 4 lines for $150
Click to expand...
Agree. T-mo at least polite and try to help. I lost internet in the center of Lynn, MA today. Internet was down. It is very poor neighborhood, that's why people use every loophole to have some less expensive/free stuff. I left my car and measured speed just in front of shelter. I twitted T-mobile and John , got the answer in 1 minute, they are going to investigate. It is impossible with Att. Believe me I know. I go one direction and never come back to Att
 
Applejuiced said:
Hey I just figured I'll give you guys an update.
After I filed the above Better business bureau complain I just got a phone call just now from a lady named Stephanie from AT&T corporate that informed me that the situation is resolved and the unlock went thru.
I stuck the Tmobile sim and finally it worked.
Took about a week to get this device unlocked and countless of calls, chat sessions, emails, contacting their AT&T facebook page manager and finally putting thru a BBB complaint to have a resolution.
If I knew I'd be stuck without a phone for that long and had to go thru all this frustration and put so much effort to unlock this device I would have just paid a 3rd party unlocking service.
End of story finally, see ya AT&T.
Click to expand...
That is ridiculous, I'm glad you got everything sorted out but the level of effort you had to put into it for something that seems so simple is just absurd. This pretty much just confirmed my decision of only buying factory unlocked iPhones directly from Apple even if it means I have to wait a month or two until Apple sells them in the US. I'd rather buy the phone then choose the carrier I want to go with.

I have to admit I'm impressed by what t-mobile is doing to the wireless industry in the US. Well done t-mobile. I'm definitely looking at switching in the near future. I wish I had jumped on the 2 lines at $100 for unlimited everything offer they had awhile back. I have 4 people on my family plan, 2 of which who will not leave Verizon so the current t-mobile offer doesn't work for me.
 
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imlynxy said:
Agree. T-mo at least polite and try to help. I lost internet in the center of Lynn, MA today. Internet was down. It is very poor neighborhood, that's why people use every loophole to have some less expensive/free stuff. I left my car and measured speed just in front of shelter. I twitted T-mobile and John , got the answer in 1 minute, they are going to investigate. It is impossible with Att. Believe me I know. I go one direction and never come back to Att
Click to expand...
I think the network is havbing issues. I had trouble making a call tonight (just about an hour ago). Got a voice prompt that said "all circuits are busy". I find that odd being that it's not new years, or some huge event day/time. Call went through after a few tries.

I had a similar message once on ATT but it was on new years many years ago.
 
Update on Tmobile data usage.
Another great addition to this Tmobile deal is the 14GB's of tethering data included with this unlimited data plan.
Before with AT&T I could not tether officially and even though I was always JB I only dared to use it a few times for a little while cause I was scared AT&T would detect unofficial tethering on an unlimited data line and then switch me to a tiered data plan.
This weekend I was driving on the highway and 2 ipads were connected to my personal hotspot while I was using my iphone for turn by turn navigation.
Nice feature to have with plenty of hotspot data available per month and without having to fear about getting caught by AT&T any longer.
 
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Applejuiced said:
Update on Tmobile data usage.
Another great addition to this Tmobile deal is the 14GB's of tethering data included with this unlimited data plan.
Before with AT&T I could not tether officially and even though I was always JB I only dared to use it a few times for a little while cause I was scared AT&T would detect unofficial tethering on an unlimited data line and then switch me to a tiered data plan.
This weekend I was driving on the highway and 2 ipads were connected to my personal hotspot while I was using my iphone for turn by turn navigation.
Nice feature to have with plenty of hotspot data available per month and without having to fear about getting caught by AT&T any longer.
Click to expand...

I want you honest opinion: Do you like T-mo?

I found it a little bit worse than Att. But I have only around 50 percent of base stations converted to LTE12 in my area. My family members have same ir even better coverage in there work places. They like T-mo. My speed at home is usually faster than Att.

I like that T-mo applied to FCC today to transfer LTE12 from Continuum and Cavalier today.
https://www.reddit.com/r/tmobile/comments/4755hi/breaking_cavalier_and_continuum_700_mhz_ablock/

He is the updated map of their LTE12

http://ae2.spectrumgateway.com/t-mobile-700-mhz-spectrum.html

Att is too busy with their business solutions and smart cities now and I have a very strong feeling that the coverage I have now is the coverage for the next 3-5 years.

What I don't like with t-mo that it reregister from one site to another with a drop of my calls when I drive. I can live with it.
 
Last edited:
If you have band 12 it really helps. I tried iPhone 6 and 6s side by side - huge difference. The only question when they going to upgrade all the sites.
 
At home we have band 12 but reception isn't any better than it was with our 6. We get 1 bar in most rooms and no service in one of the bathrooms. It's good enough for an emergency call but not a whole lot else.

I point this out because band 12 isn't necessarily the savior that a lot of people think it might be. Everywhere else has been fine though, so I'm pretty happy overall.

ATT I saw LTE virtually everywhere and just about the only place I didn't see reception was in the back of Walmart in Salem, NH. Unfortunately with TMO we still drop down to 4g, although relatively rarely (I can't say I've seen 4g on iPhone since we were LTE capable).

ATT is the better network, but as I like to mention, it's not $80 a month better (difference in our bills, and that's with a FAN on ATT). I have nothing against ATT and will gladly move back if the difference in our bill is $20 or less. For $80 I'm willing to drop down to 4g once in a while.
 
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Sticking wit AT&T even with the increase its only $97 dollars for me and my parents. Cheapest I could find on T-mobile that would work for me was $120. With rollover minutes an iMessage it's basically like they are unlimited for me. Now if my parents used anything but a basic phone with no text or data then I probably would jump ship.
 
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lordofthereef said:
At home we have band 12 but reception isn't any better than it was with our 6. We get 1 bar in most rooms and no service in one of the bathrooms. It's good enough for an emergency call but not a whole lot else.

I point this out because band 12 isn't necessarily the savior that a lot of people think it might be. Everywhere else has been fine though, so I'm pretty happy overall.

ATT I saw LTE virtually everywhere and just about the only place I didn't see reception was in the back of Walmart in Salem, NH. Unfortunately with TMO we still drop down to 4g, although relatively rarely (I can't say I've seen 4g on iPhone since we were LTE capable).

ATT is the better network, but as I like to mention, it's not $80 a month better (difference in our bills, and that's with a FAN on ATT). I have nothing against ATT and will gladly move back if the difference in our bill is $20 or less. For $80 I'm willing to drop down to 4g once in a while.
Click to expand...

I cannot agree with you more. With my FAN discount Att is 30 dollars more compare with T-mobile. But if take roaming, international SMS into consideration it is in average 90-100 per month. with our present life you pay here, you pay there and you have an empty pocket.

LTE12 kicks in in my place only after LTE4 is disabled -110-115 dB (basement). On LTE12 I have stable 25-31 down, LTE 4 40-50 down. With Att I have from 10-11 day time to 55-60 night time. I think somebody tethers to much on Att UDP in my area.
I have couple inside places with LTE12 only - speed is from 3-30 down. Really helps.
[doublepost=1456260266][/doublepost]
ohio.emt said:
Sticking wit AT&T even with the increase its only $97 dollars for me and my parents. Cheapest I could find on T-mobile that would work for me was $120. With rollover minutes an iMessage it's basically like they are unlimited for me. Now if my parents used anything but a basic phone with no text or data then I probably would jump ship.
Click to expand...

I agree with you. If you don't travel abroad a lot and you need basic phone lines then Att is better, you cannot get 10 dollars per line anywhere now + you have better coverage.
 
Applejuiced said:
Well said.
Losing the subsidy was the nail in the coffin for us. $5 extra a month for unlimited is nothing but once you calculate losing 4 device subsidies every 2 years that's $1800.
Not going to happen. See ya later AT&T.
Click to expand...

Do you get a FAN discount?

T-Mobile doesn't offer discount anymore unless you are a government employee?

88% of ATT customers are on some type of family plan plus FAN discount

I don't see much savings with T-Mobile (for me). Since I have a 24% fan discount.

T-Mobile 2 lines $120 (unlimited data)
4 lines ($150) unlimited day

Add 15-20% cell phone taxes depending on location.

Me. Even with the $5 per line increase and no subsidy. I am looking at $69.99 unlimited minutes (was family talk 700) for 2 lines plus $20 family text unlimited plus $35 (was $30) for unlimited data X 2 lines.

$70 plus $20 plus $70. Equals $160 BEFORE FAN discount. My bill current with taxes is $130. So paying an extra $5 per line after fan discount since I get data discount means my bill with 2 lines will be roughly $137-138 total.


T-Mobile with 2 lines is $120 plus taxes and zero discount. 10-20%. I live in Florida. So taxes are around 17-18% I believe. So my T-Mobile bill after taxes would be $140.

So I get zero savings going with T-Mobile even after losing the subsidy and even with the $5 increase.

Same thing with 4 lines/$180 (I have direct tv) so can opt for 4 lines with att. I would
Get 24% off the $60. Plus $40 per line (4th line free). Adjusting for fan discount I probably will be $163 for 4 lines plus taxes

Vs T-Mobile $150/4 lines plus taxes.

So with 4 lines T-Mobile would be about $13/month cheaper.
 
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Applejuiced said:
Well said.
Losing the subsidy was the nail in the coffin for us. $5 extra a month for unlimited is nothing but once you calculate losing 4 device subsidies every 2 years that's $1800.
Not going to happen. See ya later AT&T.
Click to expand...

You don't get a subsidy at t-mo either >_>
 
Everyone's situation is different. I was perfectly fine on my FamilyTalk plan with 4 lines as long as it was still possible to get subsidized phones. With the unlimited data increase, I'm paying $160 after FAN before taxes. However, up until last month, that included $75 ($18.75 x 4 lines) in subsidies, which ends up being about $85 for cellular service.

My family barely uses any data at all (I use the most at about 2GB), so none of the MobileShare plans make sense for us. I can get us 4 lines on T-Mobile with 2GB each for $100, and my wife works for a state university and counts as a state employee, so it will come to $85 per month.

Even T-Mobile's current promo of $120 for 4 lines with 10GB is tempting, since it would be $102 for us.

In my case, switching to T-Mobile will save us $58-75 per month, probably more after taxes.
 
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Oridus said:
You don't get a subsidy at t-mo either >_>
Click to expand...

Correct.
But I get a better price monthly and more options, more data, unlimited talk, tethering of 14 gb per line, calling free to other countries, unlimited data and texts to over 120 nations and way more for less money.
Not the other way around. If I stayed with AT&T I'd be receiving less for more money. Get it?
When a company does that to a longtime customer it's also about the principle to me not to sit there and agree to their new terms and to take my business elsewhere.

[doublepost=1456280006][/doublepost]
aneftp said:
Do you get a FAN discount?

T-Mobile doesn't offer discount anymore unless you are a government employee?

88% of ATT customers are on some type of family plan plus FAN discount

I don't see much savings with T-Mobile (for me). Since I have a 24% fan discount.

T-Mobile 2 lines $120 (unlimited data)
4 lines ($150) unlimited day

Add 15-20% cell phone taxes depending on location.

Me. Even with the $5 per line increase and no subsidy. I am looking at $69.99 unlimited minutes (was family talk 700) for 2 lines plus $20 family text unlimited plus $35 (was $30) for unlimited data X 2 lines.

$70 plus $20 plus $70. Equals $160 BEFORE FAN discount. My bill current with taxes is $130. So paying an extra $5 per line after fan discount since I get data discount means my bill with 2 lines will be roughly $137-138 total.


T-Mobile with 2 lines is $120 plus taxes and zero discount. 10-20%. I live in Florida. So taxes are around 17-18% I believe. So my T-Mobile bill after taxes would be $140.

So I get zero savings going with T-Mobile even after losing the subsidy and even with the $5 increase.

Same thing with 4 lines/$180 (I have direct tv) so can opt for 4 lines with att. I would
Get 24% off the $60. Plus $40 per line (4th line free). Adjusting for fan discount I probably will be $163 for 4 lines plus taxes

Vs T-Mobile $150/4 lines plus taxes.

So with 4 lines T-Mobile would be about $13/month cheaper.
Click to expand...

I hear you.
It's not one size fits all.
In my situation it made sense. I just ported over my inlaws 2 lines too Saturday and they left AT&T etf free cause of the unlimited data increase. Their 2 lines used to cost them $140 and now with the $5 Data increase would be $150. They both got added to my plan for $30 more per line after the 4th line. So they're going from $150 a month to $60.
Now we got 6 lines unlimited everything and 14gb of tethering for $210.
 
Last edited:
Applejuiced said:
Correct.
But I get a better price monthly and more options, more data, unlimited talk, tethering of 14 gb per line, calling free to other countries, unlimited data and texts to over 120 nations and way more for less money.
Not the other way around. If I stayed with AT&T I'd be receiving less for more money. Get it?
When a company does that to a longtime customer it's also about the principle to me not to sit there and agree to their new terms and to take my business elsewhere.

[doublepost=1456280006][/doublepost]

I hear you.
It's not one size fits all.
In my situation it made sense. I just ported over my inlaws 2 lines too Saturday and they left AT&T etf free cause of the unlimited data increase. Their 2 lines used to cost them $140 and now with the $5 Data increase would be $150. They both got added to my plan for $30 more per line after the 4th line. So they're going from $150 a month to $60.
Now we got 6 lines unlimited everything and 14gb of tethering for $210.
Click to expand...


I understand. Just a quick question though. Does your grocery store that you've been shopping at for the last 10 years give you extra benefits that it wouldn't give someone who just started buying there two months ago?
 
Oridus said:
I understand. Just a quick question though. Does your grocery store that you've been shopping at for the last 10 years give you extra benefits that it wouldn't give someone who just started buying there two months ago?
Click to expand...

Lol:D
Apples to oranges much?
Yes my grocery store lets me build points and I get rewarded for my continued loyalty and spending money there every week.
If that grocery store raises their prices and another store offers comparable items for a better value I will shop to the store that lets me fill my shopping cart and refrigerator for less money.
Simple economics.
 
Applejuiced said:
Lol:D
Apples to oranges much?
Yes my grocery store lets me build points and I get rewarded for my continued loyalty and spending money there every week.
If that grocery store raises their prices and another store offers comparable items for a better value I will shop to the store that lets me fill my shopping cart and refrigerator for less money.
Simple economics.
Click to expand...

My question was, does that store give you extra benefits for being a customer for longer, that they wouldn't give someone new?
 
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