Carriers making us pay full price

[rhaezorblue]

I, like probably many of you have read extensively whether AT&T Next or Verizon Edge etc, are cheaper over 2 years than a 2-year contract. For AT&T they are because of built-in account tricks and losing "discounts" when on a 2-year contract.

I can't be the only person that remembers upgrading to a brand new device for $199 or $299 every two years as a incentive to getting a big discount on the phone price? The carriers were trying to increase their customer numbers, and your bill did not go up just because of signing that 2-year contract.. This is bologne. The fact that all the carriers are doing this now leaves us with no choice but to pay the full price over 2 years regardless.

 

[theapplefanboyj]

You in the US have pretty messed up phone bills. In the UK you can buy a new phone with something like Next or Jump or you can buy the phone out right and that will be cheaper for us.

 

[rhaezorblue]

For example if I bought my iPhone 6+ 64 GB on a regular 2-year contract, I'd pay the $399 plus tax, and also $25 more dollars per month as now theres a penalty for being on a contract (wtf?)

 

[Small White Car]

For example if I bought my iPhone 6+ 64 GB on a regular 2-year contract, I'd pay the $399 plus tax, and also $25 more dollars per month as now theres a penalty for being on a contract (wtf?)

The penalty was always there, but hidden. They're just now being honest enough to both show it and allow you ways to get out of it.

That's a good thing.

 

[KBS756]

For example if I bought my iPhone 6+ 64 GB on a regular 2-year contract, I'd pay the $399 plus tax, and also $25 more dollars per month as now theres a penalty for being on a contract (wtf?)

if you were on ATT ... they supposedly cut you a $25 buck discount for the mobile share family plan per line... which was supposedly their subsidization of the phone built into your bill. So if your phone was paid off no subsidization built in ... get a new phone hello 25 bucks a month for 2 years also known as $600

This I believe actually makes Next cheaper ... at least it did for me ... since the monthly subsidization doesn't go up for next ... instead you pay off your phone at 0% interest over the term ... with 0 upfront.

but thats just my understanding of it.

 

[CardMeHD]

The penalty was always there, but hidden. They're just now being honest enough to both show it and allow you ways to get out of it.

That's a good thing.

I agree, but the amount a lot of carriers are discounting for using Edge/Next/whatever or paying outright is less than a typical subsidy over a 24 month period, meaning that it's still a bit of a ripoff. Also, the Edge/Next/whatever plans usually require you to give your phone back to the carrier when you upgrade and the amount of credit that they give you is far lower than the reasonable resale price.

IMO, T-Mo is the only one that is doing anything really "consumer friendly" with these plans. The others are just using the transparency as another way to add customer confusion by adding so many layers and options that nobody can keep them straight.

 

[CEmajr]

I, like probably many of you have read extensively whether AT&T Next or Verizon Edge etc, are cheaper over 2 years than a 2-year contract. For AT&T they are because of built-in account tricks and losing "discounts" when on a 2-year contract.

I can't be the only person that remembers upgrading to a brand new device for $199 or $299 every two years as a incentive to getting a big discount on the phone price? The carriers were trying to increase their customer numbers, and your bill did not go up just because of signing that 2-year contract.. This is bologne. The fact that all the carriers are doing this now leaves us with no choice but to pay the full price over 2 years regardless.

You were paying full price (probably even more) before too it was just hidden in an overpriced bill rather than shown as a separate charge.

For example: You used to pay $100/mo for service and got an iPhone for $199 in exchange for signing a 2 year contract.

Now your bill is $75 per month and if you want an iPhone then you have to pay $25 per month for it in addition to your bill.

It's actually better because the cheaper the phone you choose, then the lower your bill. It also eliminates the "sitting on upgrades" that a lot of people used to do where they continued paying the same inflated phone bill after their contracts ran out without using their subsidies. Effectively giving the carrier free money.

 

[kazmac]

You pay either way. I was struggling with the carrier charges and such this past weekend, until I saw the $200 trade in for the iPhone 5 at AT&T.

I thought why am I paying to use a phone that is already 2 old years with almost a year left on my contract? Um, no.

With the $200 promotion for the iP5 trade in at AT&T, I jumped into Next. I hope to pay off the iP6 in full next Spring.

 

[Menel]

You in the US have pretty messed up phone bills. In the UK you can buy a new phone with something like Next or Jump or you can buy the phone out right and that will be cheaper for us.

We have Next and Jump.
And we can buy outright, and get significant discount.
It's not much different. People here in the US are stupid, and don't research their options.

 

[rhaezorblue]

I see what you're saying, that makes sense. Hard to argue with that, I think it's more a mental thing than hard numbers

Many of us probably thought we were just getting the phone for $199 or $299 and that was it.. the devils in the details I suppose.

 

[tgi]

I agree, but the amount a lot of carriers are discounting for using Edge/Next/whatever or paying outright is less than a typical subsidy over a 24 month period, meaning that it's still a bit of a ripoff. Also, the Edge/Next/whatever plans usually require you to give your phone back to the carrier when you upgrade and the amount of credit that they give you is far lower than the reasonable resale price.

IMO, T-Mo is the only one that is doing anything really "consumer friendly" with these plans. The others are just using the transparency as another way to add customer confusion by adding so many layers and options that nobody can keep them straight.

Next doesn't require you to give the phone back. Once you pay it off, it's yours to keep. To can resell if for whatever amount you want. You can run it over with you car if you'd like. Then you can enroll in the Next program again.

Please educate yourself before you pass off information as fact.

 

[GrecoISU]

The way I understand it is this:

If you are on the Mobile Share Plan you have two options:

1) BYOD. Bring Your Own Device. Then, the line cost is $15.

2) Purchase a new iPhone for $199 (iPhone 6). Then, your line costs moves from $15 to $15 + something like $26.99 per month.

Essentially you are financing your phone. They have pushed the full cost of the device to you. We were lied to about the entire process after being told we could save $60+ per month by switching. I even gave up my unlimited data plan for it... After a lot of fighting with AT&T we have reverted back AND they have given back the unlimited data package (which I thought was cast into the abyss). If they hadn't I was moving carriers.

 

[rui no onna]

I can't be the only person that remembers upgrading to a brand new device for $199 or $299 every two years as a incentive to getting a big discount on the phone price? The carriers were trying to increase their customer numbers, and your bill did not go up just because of signing that 2-year contract.. This is bologne. The fact that all the carriers are doing this now leaves us with no choice but to pay the full price over 2 years regardless.

You may not have noticed it but the bill did go up for every smartphone you got. The increase was likely done just a little bit at a time.

For mine, it was as follows:

4x dumbphone
700 minutes 4 lines: $90
4x 200 messaging plan: $20
TOTAL: $110 (2 years: $2,640)

iPhone (original) + 3x dumbphone
700 minutes 4 lines: $90
3x 200 messages: $15
1x iPhone plan (unlimited data + 1000 messages): $20
TOTAL: $125 (2 years: $3,000)

iPhone 3GS + 3x dumbphone
700 minutes 4 lines: $90
4x 200 messages: $20
1x unlimited data: $30
TOTAL: $140 (2 years: $3,360)

iPhone 4 + iPhone 3GS + 2x dumbphone
700 minutes 4 lines: $90
4x 200 messages: $20
1x unlimited data: $30
1x 2GB: $25
TOTAL: $165 (2 years: $3,960)

2x iPhone 5 + iPhone 4S + iPhone 4
700 minutes 4 lines: $90
unlimited messages: $30
1x 4GB w/tether: $45
1x 2GB: $25
1x 3GB: $30
1x 300MB: $20
TOTAL: $240 (2 years: $5,760)

 

[nikhsub1]

We have Next and Jump.
And we can buy outright, and get significant discount.
It's not much different. People here in the US are stupid, and don't research their options.

Unfortunately this is the truth. I have seen so many people that are so confused and refuse to read, listen and learn about it. All they do is say "Next sucks"! Or, "(Insert carrier here) screwed me"! If people would slow down, do some research and check your bill history, you would see the whole picture.

 

[roland.g]

I am on a grandfathered unlimited data plan. There is no penalty other than the now $40 activation fee that I was able to get partially waived. Otherwise I pay for a new phone at subsidized pricing. My monthly plan cost is the same, no discount, no up charge as it was before, and the same would be true if I chose to pay full price through Next installments. Except that the Next installments would be full price and my plan isn't.

 

[rambo47]

I ordered my 6+ on Verizon Edge. I get both a 1GB data bonus per month and a $10 discount on my monthly rate. And there is no interest on the cost of the phone, broken down over 24 monthly payments. Where's the penalty?

 

[aham23]

people think the cost of the phone is the $199 or $299 or whatever subsidized price they are paying. they dont realize the reoccurring fees on their monthly bill are not for service, but for the phone.

carriers are not in the business of losing money. trust me.

 

[rui no onna]

Essentially you are financing your phone. They have pushed the full cost of the device to you.

You have always paid for the full cost of the device even before the Mobile Share plans and Next. Most people just didn't realize it.

 

[mantan]

people think the cost of the phone is the $199 or $299 or whatever subsidized price they are paying. they dont realize the reoccurring fees on their monthly bill are not for service, but for the phone.

carriers are not in the business of losing money. trust me.

Exactly. People like the OP truly believed they were getting a 'discount' on the phone. It wasn't a discount, you signed a 24 month agreement to pay a service rate that included the money they were 'subsidizing' for the cost of the phone. Even worse, you continued to pay that same rate when the subsidy had been paid off.

The only thing NEXT/Edge has done is bring transparency to the process. Now you pay for the phone as a line item, not hidden in another fee. And when the phone is paid off, you get a discounted service rate. The phone is yours and you can sell it if you want.

Even better, they even set up the program so you can opt out early before you phone is paid for...and trade it in on another device.

No down payments. No interest costs. I can't think of a more flexible/fair way to let people buy $650-$850 phones.

If Apple provided cell service and came up with this exact same program, this board would have gone bonkers with how innovative and incredible it was.

 

[cornerexit]

I have unlimited data, 1000 TXT msgs, and 450 minutes of voice (free at night and on weekends). My bill is $73 a month (I get a corporate discount due to my employer) and my employer pays $39 of that. So I pay $34 a month under contract. Back in the day I paid that or more for a home phone line, callerID/callwaiting, etc, BEFORE long distance. I'll continue to stay on contract, indefinitely.

 

[rui no onna]

Exactly. People like the OP truly believed they were getting a 'discount' on the phone. It wasn't a discount, you signed a 24 month agreement to pay a service rate that included the money they were 'subsidizing' for the cost of the phone. Even worse, you continued to pay that same rate when the subsidy had been paid off.

The only thing NEXT/Edge has done is bring transparency to the process. Now you pay for the phone as a line item, not hidden in another fee.

I think it was a classic frog in hot water scenario. For most folks in family plans, they probably didn't switch all lines to iPhones (or smartphones) all at once. More likely than not, it was just one or two phones at a time (or maybe handing down old phones to the kids) so cost was just an extra $25-50/mo every year never realizing that with everyone now all on iPhones/smartphones, their bill is now $100+ more than when they started.

I was always pretty aware of the subsidy so I'm really glad they introduced the Mobile Share Value plans. Sure, it's $50 more than I was paying before I got my first iPhone but I think that's not a bad rate for 10GB data.

 

[WolfSnap]

I have an old grandfathered plan.. I wonder if they'll give me $25/line discount on my old plan because I paid full price for the phone. Doubt it.

 

[rambo47]

I have an old grandfathered plan.. I wonder if they'll give me $25/line discount on my old plan because I paid full price for the phone. Doubt it.

What would be their incentive to make such an offer?

 

[Damolee]

Exactly. People like the OP truly believed they were getting a 'discount' on the phone. It wasn't a discount, you signed a 24 month agreement to pay a service rate that included the money they were 'subsidizing' for the cost of the phone. Even worse, you continued to pay that same rate when the subsidy had been paid off.

The only thing NEXT/Edge has done is bring transparency to the process. Now you pay for the phone as a line item, not hidden in another fee. And when the phone is paid off, you get a discounted service rate. The phone is yours and you can sell it if you want.

Even better, they even set up the program so you can opt out early before you phone is paid for...and trade it in on another device.

No down payments. No interest costs. I can't think of a more flexible/fair way to let people buy $650-$850 phones.

If Apple provided cell service and came up with this exact same program, this board would have gone bonkers with how innovative and incredible it was.

O2 do their Refresh plan here. Sounds like the same thing. It's brilliant.

You can change phone every year with almost no penalty.

 

[DelMac]

Isn't the monthly discount something you have to request when you're eligible? The reason I ask is because my father has been out of contract since 08 with ATT and he pays the same monthly $35 as my sister and I who are under contract. He never received an automatic discount. I just upgraded to the iP6+ with his 2 yr contract eligibility so I assume he'll just keep paying the same $35 monthly, right?