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Carrier AT&T 2yr contract or NEXT?

thatappleguytoday

thatappleguytoday

macrumors 601
Original poster
Feb 9, 2006
4,162
9,072
Jacksonville, FL
Still figuring out the best option for the pre-order tonight

I'm currently on a Mobile Share Plan (2 lines and primary account holder). Which route would you go OR are going?

Am I looking at this correctly? Lose the discount and pay the extra $25/month for that one line (only my line would see the increase correct?) OR go the NEXT route with no upgrade fee and only paying tax for device upfront? Being with the company since Cingular and having a FAN discount, I'm sure getting the upgrade fee waived won't be a problem.

I currently own a mint 64gb black/slate 5s that I'm sure will get a nice resell value.

I was leaning towards NEXT because I can use the money from the 5s sale and put it towards the new device and have the 6+ paid off very quickly.

Looking for any helpful input and not "again a thread like this" comments…at least I'm not creating a thread about which color are you getting….
 
Based on what you've said, AT&T Next would be the better option for you.

You are correct that only your line would lose the $25/mo discount. But over the two year contract, that increases your bill by $600. Add that to the $199 you'd pay for the contract-priced phone and you're at $799 minimum (+ taxes/fees). So you end up paying $150 more than the price of the phone AND are limited to one upgrade every 2 years (meaning resale of that phone will be lower, too).

With AT&T Next, you pay the full price of the phone ($649 + taxes) spread out over a year or more, and you have the ability to upgrade/resell every year.
 
I'm surprised you can get contract pricing with a 5S already unless you have another eligible line. I always say sell and get the $199/and up pricing. Next makes you pay the $650 or more for the phone. You will save on the Moblie Share $600 or $360 depending on your data level. But I'm on a grandfathered unlimited, so Next makes no sense as it is far more costly.
 
If you plan on upgrading the phone in 6 months, or even a year, then the NEXT program works well.. If your plan is to keep the phone for 2 years, then I think buying on contract makes sense - at least it does to me. :)
 
map1978 said:
Still figuring out the best option for the pre-order tonight

I'm currently on a Mobile Share Plan (2 lines and primary account holder). Which route would you go OR are going?

Am I looking at this correctly? Lose the discount and pay the extra $25/month for that one line (only my line would see the increase correct?) OR go the NEXT route with no upgrade fee and only paying tax for device upfront? Being with the company since Cingular and having a FAN discount, I'm sure getting the upgrade fee waived won't be a problem.

I currently own a mint 64gb black/slate 5s that I'm sure will get a nice resell value.

I was leaning towards NEXT because I can use the money from the 5s sale and put it towards the new device and have the 6+ paid off very quickly.

Looking for any helpful input and not "again a thread like this" comments…at least I'm not creating a thread about which color are you getting….
Click to expand...

I'm sort of in the same boat. 2 line, mobile share with 6gb plan. My Wife and I are on opposite years. She got the 5s last year and my two years are now up.

She (and me) could really use the larger screen for eyesight purposes, amongst the other upgrades.

We would have to go Next for her to get a 6 plus. Not sure if I should go Next as well. If I decide to go Next, I wonder if I can sign up upon check out tonight?

Subscribed!
 
What should I do?


700 Minute shared plan with 2 lines and unlimited data on main line

Line 1:

Shared 700 minutes with unlimited data

Line 2

Shared 700 minutes with 250 MB data

Only Line 1 will be upgraded.

Will Next be better for me or Contract renewal
 
roland.g said:
I'm surprised you can get contract pricing with a 5S already unless you have another eligible line. I always say sell and get the $199/and up pricing. Next makes you pay the $650 or more for the phone. You will save on the Moblie Share $600 or $360 depending on your data level. But I'm on a grandfathered unlimited, so Next makes no sense as it is far more costly.
Click to expand...
Being on a grandfathered plan makes all the difference.

Since you're on an old, unlimited data plan, your monthly rate isn't affected by using the contract pricing. That makes it a no-brainer to take advantage of the "free" $450 AT&T is offering every 2 years.

For OP, he would pay the $199 phone price and an extra $25/mo for his service for 2 years, which is far worse than just paying full price for the phone.

I wonder if it's possible to buy the phone at the contract price ($199) and immediately pay the ETF ($325) to keep your monthly bill from changing... That would be $524 (+ taxes/fees). There must be some fine print somewhere that prevents people from doing that.
 
hasanahmad said:
What should I do?


700 Minute shared plan with 2 lines and unlimited data on main line

Line 1:

Shared 700 minutes with unlimited data

Line 2

Shared 700 minutes with 250 MB data

Only Line 1 will be upgraded.

Will Next be better for me or Contract renewal
Click to expand...

If you are not interested in switching to a Mobile Share Value plan and want to keep your current plan, the contract renewal would be cheaper. This is because you will pay the same price monthly whether you are under contract or not.
 
maflynn said:
If you plan on upgrading the phone in 6 months, or even a year, then the NEXT program works well.. If your plan is to keep the phone for 2 years, then I think buying on contract makes sense - at least it does to me. :)
Click to expand...

For my 2 phones 10gb family share and yes I intent to hang on to them both for 2 years ... NEXT is still the way to go.
 
potaco said:
If you are not interested in switching to a Mobile Share Value plan and want to keep your current plan, the contract renewal would be cheaper. This is because you will pay the same price monthly whether you are under contract or not.
Click to expand...

Thanks, are you referring to the 18 month option or 12 month option
 
roland.g said:
I'm surprised you can get contract pricing with a 5S already unless you have another eligible line.
Click to expand...

The 5 was from my last contract. I sold that and paid the difference and bought a 5s off contract.

Great input so far everyone, thanks

Leaning towards NEXT right now, since I can have the phone paid off within a few months. BUT contract looks good too…I think? Life threatening decisions I know :rolleyes:
 
hasanahmad said:
Thanks, are you referring to the 18 month option or 12 month option
Click to expand...

Neither :)

The Mobile Share Value plans are just different arrangements of your voice/data plans.

The 12 or 18 month options refer to AT&T Next, which corresponds to how often you can upgrade your device (though you would pay full price for it with either option).

----------
map1978 said:
The 5 was from my last contract. I sold that and paid the difference and bought a 5s off contract.

Great input so far everyone, thanks

Leaning towards NEXT right now, since I can have the phone paid off within a few months. BUT contract looks good too…I think? Life threatening decisions I know :rolleyes:
Click to expand...

Out of curiosity, what makes the contract seem attractive in your situation? You'd pay more up front ($200 vs. $0) and more overall.
 
From what I'm seeing, it ends up being about the same. It just depends on how much you want to pay up front, vs how much you want to pay per month.

lets assume a 10GB plan. whatever that is plus a phone $650 -

contract - $40 per phone + $200 up front (divided by 24 months = a little over $8 a month would equal about $48+ a month for 24 months).

Next - $15 a month phone + $32 and change per month $0 down = roughly $47+ a month for 24 months.

look at it as basically stretching that initial $200 up front into 24 monthly payments of about $8. that's the difference in monthly payment. And you are not in contract...technically... but you still owe the $649.

Oh and with Next, taxes are due up front. so its not completely $0 up front.
 
Last edited:
potaco said:
Being on a grandfathered plan makes all the difference.

Since you're on an old, unlimited data plan, your monthly rate isn't affected by using the contract pricing. That makes it a no-brainer to take advantage of the "free" $450 AT&T is offering every 2 years.

For OP, he would pay the $199 phone price and an extra $25/mo for his service for 2 years, which is far worse than just paying full price for the phone.

I wonder if it's possible to buy the phone at the contract price ($199) and immediately pay the ETF ($325) to keep your monthly bill from changing... That would be $524 (+ taxes/fees). There must be some fine print somewhere that prevents people from doing that.
Click to expand...

It boils down to this.

Next at the higher mobile share plan saves you $25 per month. That's $600 over 2 years. If you get an iPhone 6 64GB on contract it is $299 + $40 Activation fee for a total of $339. If you get the same model on Next it is $37.50 per month for 12 months or $450. You can then trade it in for a new iPhone 6S next year. You will pay another $450 to "rent" that for the Next 12 months. After 2 years you will pay $900 in next charges but save $600 on your billing, meaning that the 2 phones cost you $300, but you have to Next again after 2 years or pay the remaining 8 months of payments on the 2nd phone, which is another $300. You get 2 phones, and you get the new model each year. If you go contract, you pay the $339 which includes the activation fee. If you do not trade in after 12 months, you can still upgrade but pay the remaining price on the phone and then keep it or sell it. However, if you pay the entire 20 payments, you pay $750 for the phone, the retail price of the 64GB iPhone 6. The only benefit for Mobile Share users is that doing so saves them the $25 a month in plan charges.
 
potaco said:
Out of curiosity, what makes the contract seem attractive in your situation? You'd pay more up front ($200 vs. $0) and more overall.
Click to expand...

After reading through your helpful posts, it actually doesn't sound at all attractive. Especially knowing I can have the device paid off in just a few months.

I appreciate your inout, it helped clear the clouds in my head
 
appleii.c said:
From what I'm seeing, it ends up being about the same. It just depends on how much you want to pay up front, vs how much you want to pay per month.

lets assume a 10GB plan. whatever that is plus a phone $650 -

contract - $40 per phone + $200 up front (divided by 24 months = a little over $8 a month would equal about $48+ a month for 24 months).

Next - $15 a month phone + $32 and change per month $0 down = roughly $47+ a month for 24 months.

look at it as basically stretching that initial $200 up front into 24 monthly payments of about $8. that's the difference in monthly payment. And you are not in contract...technically... but you still owe the $649.

Oh and with Next, taxes are due up front. so its not completely $0 up front.
Click to expand...

Contract also charges you $40 activation fee.

And Next allows you to upgrade every year. It also gives them back a handset to sell.

I'm in favor of contract but Next does have some advantages, depending on your plan and cost. Make sure with Next you are on the 15GB plan to get the $25 per month savings. 10GB plans only save $15 per month and that definitely makes a difference over 2 years.
 
I'm in the same situation. I'm up for a contract renewal but I will go with next for the first time. After doing the math, getting the next iPhone with next and getting mobile share, I end up getting a lot more for my money with the next.

If I was to get the iPhone 6+ 64gb with the 2 year contract, I would pay $433 with tax. If I got it with next I would only pay the sales tax on it which is $70 and would save $25 per line. If I did the contract I would pay $40 per extra line instead of $25. Actually, in this case, AT&T next is better.
 
appleii.c said:
From what I'm seeing, it ends up being about the same. It just depends on how much you want to pay up front, vs how much you want to pay per month.

lets assume a 10GB plan. whatever that is plus a phone $650 -

contract - $40 per phone + $200 up front (divided by 24 months = a little over $8 a month would equal about $48+ a month for 24 months).

Next - $15 a month phone + $32 and change per month $0 down = roughly $47+ a month for 24 months.

look at it as basically stretching that initial $200 up front into 24 monthly payments of about $8. that's the difference in monthly payment. And you are not in contract...technically... but you still owe the $649.

Oh and with Next, taxes are due up front. so its not completely $0 up front.
Click to expand...

Not sure about other states but in RI you pay sales tax on the $649 .... Contract or no contract
 
roland.g said:
I'm in favor of contract but Next does have some advantages, depending on your plan and cost. Make sure with Next you are on the 15GB plan to get the $25 per month savings. 10GB plans only save $15 per month and that definitely makes a difference over 2 years.
Click to expand...
Actually, 10+GB a month gives you $25/line saving. It's only 6GB and below that gives you the $15/line saving. I pay $160 for service with Mobile Share ($100 10GB + $15*4 lines).
 
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