Adithya007
macrumors regular
Waiting for the "AT&T? No thanks" comments....
AT&T to Stop Offering Two-Year Phone Contracts Starting January 8
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Applejuiced
macrumors Westmere
My old plan is all that matters to me and millions of others on old plans and 2 year contracts. It's very relevant obviously in this discussion. They discontinuing the terms we mutually agreed on and on my end I will just discontinue my wireless relationship with AT&T.
Simple enough
In the end it will be a big shift and it might work out well for AT&T or it might not.
Time will only tell.
SkydiveGuy
macrumors regular
Rip offs for people that feel the need to upgrade their phone every time a new one come out. I paid for mine outright at $299 (64GB) with unlimited data and only pay $65 a month. How am I getting ripped off????
I have no desire nor inclination to defend the phone company (any of them). But I'll stick by my main point:
Separating device costs from service costs - like the rest of the entire world - is a good thing for consumers. Period. Maybe not for every individual in their current circumstances at this particular moment, but in the end it allows for transparency and comparison shopping that didn't exist before. If you feel like you're getting screwed by ATT and want to jump ship, having device and service costs separate, with no service commitment, makes it that much easier.
The main problem I see is that this move is also changing the economics for people on old plans that no longer make sense in the current market, and that makes them mad. While that may be terribly troubling for those people, it's irrelevant, and they'll benefit from the change in the long run when they make good on the protest and jump carriers.
radiologyman
macrumors 6502a
Time to start looking for another provider
ToroidalZeus
macrumors 68020
Paragraph 1: You are defending them.
Paragraph 2: "Increased transparency" is a moot point when the costs are flat out higher for a large number of people. (Lot's of whom will not even realize this fact.) With the 2 yr contacts gone there is absolutely nothing I can get that is as cheap as I had this year.
Paragraph 3: AT&T is spending its lowest amount in years in terms of infrastructure growth. So they are NOT increasing prices for the sake of providing better service to the consumer. It's an optimize profit for Wall-Street money grab plain and simple.
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SkydiveGuy
macrumors regular
Why is this simple math so hard for people to understand?
There are a group of people (me included) that sign up for a 2-year contract once available and get a phone for $199, $299, or $399 (depending on capacity of the device).
They then pay a monthly fee for use ($65 in my case) of the service. In two years, if I decide to get a new phone, I will. If not (why upgrade to a new device if my existing one is workmen fine?) I just keep paying my $65!
How am I getting ripped off? How is it cheaper to keep paying a monthly fee of ~$20 for a device that I can just pay $200 for up front and be done with?
The problem (I think) is that people just keep assuming that everyone wants a new phone every year. I went 3 years with my iPhone 4 because I didn't feel I needed to upgrade immediately just for Siri features.
There are a group of people (me included) that sign up for a 2-year contract once available and get a phone for $199, $299, or $399 (depending on capacity of the device).
They then pay a monthly fee for use ($65 in my case) of the service. In two years, if I decide to get a new phone, I will. If not (why upgrade to a new device if my existing one is workmen fine?) I just keep paying my $65!
How am I getting ripped off? How is it cheaper to keep paying a monthly fee of ~$20 for a device that I can just pay $200 for up front and be done with?
The problem (I think) is that people just keep assuming that everyone wants a new phone every year. I went 3 years with my iPhone 4 because I didn't feel I needed to upgrade immediately just for Siri features.
My old plan is all that matters to me and millions of others on old plans and 2 year contracts. It's very relevant obviously in this discussion. They discontinuing the terms we mutually agreed on and on my end I will just discontinue my wireless relationship with AT&T.
Simple enough
And now you've hit the nail on the head. "All that matters" is how it affects you. The real issue here is that ATT is changing the terms on you, not any discussion on whether or not those new terms are a good thing for everyone in the big picture.
While I'm sympathetic, it's just not relevant. Times change. So do terms. The fact that I once rented an apartment a hundred yards from the beach for $800/mo does not entitle me to that today. The market (and therefore terms) have changed.
DthomasX
macrumors newbie
I think us UDP users have been lucky to have had these plans as long as we've had. I'm surprised AT&T didn't kill them off when Verizon did.
Most people will like the transparency. I personally never cared about it. I liked my plan and the price point. Didn't mind the contract. But they are dying and that's that. I'll stick with it as long as they offer it. I just wish T-Mobile was an option in my abecause Verizon is pretty horrible in their pricing and service. So AT&T it is.
Uh, ok.
So like the other guy, you're mad that costs have gone up and ATT is no longer interested in offering you a deal from 5 years ago. That's... Great, but still not relevant.
Sounds like you should switch carriers, as is your right! Uhh, unless you're under contract of course.
ToroidalZeus
macrumors 68020
There are always going to be people that will defend getting ripped off.
I'll say this about your housing example. Someone that actually bought that house could sell it later and get their money's worth. While AT&T's price increases there is no upside. They aren't focused on improving coverage or speeds as their infrastructure spending has down. So it's just getting ripped off plain and simple.
Again, AT&T is not trying to be more competitive in a changing market. They are simply trying to squeeze more money out of their customers. It's a simple concept really... if you don't like getting hustled.
EDIT: JUST FYI, according to Capitalism the cost of goods and services should go down over time as they become cheaper and more affordable. Yet here they are going up up up. I don't understand how much more proof you need that this isn't simply a more profit for wall street stock scenario.
SkydiveGuy
macrumors regular
People are looking at the "subsidy" wrong. Its not a loan towards the price of the phone.... its subsidized because they are locking you into their subscription service for 24 months.
Its the same as getting a discount on your cable service for signing up for a "triple play package" for 24 months. Once the deal is over, you either sign a new deal (and continue to get the low subsidized price) or pay the full price and not deal with being locked into a contract.
Its the same as getting a discount on your cable service for signing up for a "triple play package" for 24 months. Once the deal is over, you either sign a new deal (and continue to get the low subsidized price) or pay the full price and not deal with being locked into a contract.
Applejuiced
macrumors Westmere
You're trying to compare apples to oranges now.
Prices for wireless service have been steadily decreasing over years since we had cellphones that weighted 5 pounds and were 2 feet long
Real estate and rent in general have and will continue to go higher in value and increase in resale price.
But in the end we do agree on some very valid points. The industry is changing and evolving quick in general. And becoming more clear and separating the strictly service part from the device part of your bill.
In the end those that will provide better options, more choices, flexibility and more customer satisfaction and approval are the ones that will survive in this industry.
The way Verizon and AT&T is going I think they're both headed in the wrong direction and have been for many years now.
You can only nickel and dime so much and restrict and provide less options, raise prices and only care about increasing profits till you push most people away.
Thanks, I see that now! I just called them to see if they know how long it will be around and they stated that it would be around until January 15th. I also asked them if they know how much the monthly total would be with taxes and fees and they stated it would be around $200 and change a month if I brought my own devices.
I also called AT&T and asked them how much I would owe in early termination fees if I cancelled and it was $360 right now...$350 after the 1st of the month.
I am seriously considering switching to T-mobile...I am going to ask my co workers how their coverage is at work so I can compare to what I currently have with AT&T.
Once again, thank you, thank you, for posting this! I never thought I could get unlimited LTE data if I switched away from what I currently have.
JayLenochiniMac
macrumors G5
On unlimited on the old family plan. I guess I'm safe for the time being as we have FAN through my wife's former employer, meaning we can still upgrade at the subsidized pricing with a two-year commitment.
SkydiveGuy
macrumors regular
perfect example of the problem.... you used the word RENTED. I dont want to RENT my phone. I want to own it outright.
I own a house because I understand that in the long term its more cost effective to own than rent.
... Which is priced in a way to recoup the cost of the device over those 24 months, of course.
Of course it's a loan.
You didn't buy it outright. You bought it with an AT&T subsidy. They gave you a 450 credit that they recoup through your plan price. Buying outright is paying retail.
You own the phone outright in either circumstance being discussed here (once you've paid for it in full of course).
You rent capacity on the carrier's network, and they can change the terms according to the market, costs, usage, etc.
ToroidalZeus
macrumors 68020
I called too and they said they didn't know. The T-Mobile rep that told me about the package also couldn't confirm when it would end.
SkydiveGuy
macrumors regular
You conveniently cherry picked my comment and left out the part about how cable tv providers offer discounts to ensure your continued service.
I'll gladly sign up for a "next" style plan when i can come and go as I please... trade in devices as I want, etc.
When will you all see that NEXT is a contact plan? Its just not cut and dry like the traditional 2-year plans were. You are locking into a plan and they are conveniently selling you on a low monthly price for something that used to be cheaper to own if you bought up front.
Just like they used to actually sell cars... now all the ads only say "Lease for $XXX per month".
Stop thinking of everything in life in terms of "I can just pay a few bucks more a month and afford it".
Where is the $180 a month for 4 unlimited lines?
SkydiveGuy
macrumors regular
Do you realize how ridiculous that comment is? "You own it outright, once you own it outright"
I'm merely responding to your assertion that a 2 year contract allows you to own a device outright while a Next plan does not (when in reality they are exactly the same thing).
ToroidalZeus
macrumors 68020
http://www.t-mobile.com/offer/family-data-plans.html
$45 * 4 lines = 180
I would like to add that T-Mobile will also pay off your ETF fee if you trade in a device. But it's more convenient to just have AT&T waive it.