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After finding out about this I went to the Apple store last night and purchased an iPad Air for t-mobile in full. I took it home and tried adding it to my existing tmobile plan and it wouldn't let me. So I chose the option in the settings to create a new t-mobile account specifically for this iPad.

Sounds like a great way to inflate the number of TMO accounts in the system. Combined with the growth in tablets in general, this could be a game changer.


I guess my only concern with the TM promotion is....1) is 200MB enough? and 2) are they gonna stop this promotion in a few months like AT&T did with their unlimited data plan?

Once all the confusion dies down, this seems to be the $1M question. How often will people hit the limit, how will they react when they do, and will result provide enough cash to continue the program.

The problem before is people had to choose between regular use and no use. And given the $130 antenna fee, many did without. Now there is this middle option that is causing a lot of wifi -> TMO upgrades, so much so that stores are running out of TMO versions.

I think this will either work out for just TMO users, or the big 2 will realize too that there is a gold mine in the middle ground and jump in. If we all don't drown first, in the uncertainty of the plan details.


Hi all. So just to confirm. I bought iPad air verizon but I can just go to tmobile to buy nano SIM card and plug in to 200mb free. Tia

This has been confirmed many times by MR readers in other threads. And makes the TMO sell outs even more remarkable.
 
The free 200MB TM data plan for the ipad is tempting, but I already am grandfathered in the AT&T data plan on my ipad mini. It comes in handy when not at home.

I guess my only concern with the TM promotion is....1) is 200MB enough? and 2) are they gonna stop this promotion in a few months like AT&T did with their unlimited data plan?

Other than that, I think its great that TM is doing this. More competition is always a good thing.
It's free for life. Other carriers will follow suit. The whole concept is once a customer buys a iPad they should be able to use it right away. 200 mb is nothing on a carriers network
 
It's free for life. Other carriers will follow suit. The whole concept is once a customer buys a iPad they should be able to use it right away. 200 mb is nothing on a carriers network

I would imagine this is right though not so sure if others will follow suit :p this is a great offer. 200mb of web and email is decent. No streaming obviously or it'll be history..
 
The problem is that if you try to do this on the website, you get charged $10/mo on top of the $26.25 for the device payment plan. This is waived if you are a current T-Mobile customer or purchase a qualifying plan.
The $10 per mo./fee written about today is incorrect. We had an executional mistake that we will make right. - @JohnLegere
It seems to me that the website $10 per mo./fee is the "executional mistake".

Yes. Everyone gets the 200MB of free data. No exceptions. No strings attached. - @JohnLegere
I don't see how this could be any bit unclear. The CEO is saying "No exceptions." "No strings attached." So delay your purchase, I dunno, maybe a week? Let everyone get on the same page as the CEO.

I give you carte blanche to fry T-Mobile and Legere if we find out the week after next that there are exceptions and strings attached.
 
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Anyone, I am with AT&T for everything but wanted to try TMobile. I went to the store, bought the SIM for $10, gave them my name, phone number and date of birth, they activated the SIM and I have 200MB Free on my AT&T iPad 3.

You can buy the SIMs online for $0.99 with free shipping if you want to save even more.

Coverage in my area is good so it's a no-brainer to swap over.

Are you able to purchase an additional T-Mobile data plan on the iPad itself and do you now get options for T-Mobile instead of AT&T?

Also is your iPad 3 running on T-mobile's LTE?
 
Bought mine in the T-Mobile store, as Apple isn't honoring the installment plan. I called Apple to confirm this- it is a Carrier promotion only, not an Apple promotion.

Here's what the T-Mobile sales reps told me (multiple, not just one guy): If you buy the iPad outright, there's no monthly fees. 200MB/mo. is yours, no strings attached.

However, if you choose the installment plan, you will need to have at least the $20 500MB/mo. plan. This is in addition to the ~$27 installment plan. You get the 200MB free on top of this, though (so $20/mo. for 700MB data). Once the device is paid off you are free to drop any extra data allowances and go down to only the free 200MB.

Now if this is in line with what the CEO has worked to setup, then fine. If it's a case of mistaken reps, then this will more than likely get sorted out. (You KNOW I'll make sure my acct. is fixed if that's the case! haha)
 
200mb Free

Picked up a 64gb Space Grey iPad with T-Mobile at the Apple Store yesterday, and I can confirm that the 200mb of cellular data is in fact free. You create a T-Mobile account after turning on cellular data and no credit card info is needed. Simply select the lowest tiered plan available, the free plan. You don't need to be an existing T-Mobile customer either. Also, the best part is that there is free wifi hotspot capability!
 
Bought mine in the T-Mobile store, as Apple isn't honoring the installment plan. I called Apple to confirm this- it is a Carrier promotion only, not an Apple promotion.

Here's what the T-Mobile sales reps told me (multiple, not just one guy): If you buy the iPad outright, there's no monthly fees. 200MB/mo. is yours, no strings attached.

However, if you choose the installment plan, you will need to have at least the $20 500MB/mo. plan. This is in addition to the ~$27 installment plan. You get the 200MB free on top of this, though (so $20/mo. for 700MB data). Once the device is paid off you are free to drop any extra data allowances and go down to only the free 200MB.

Now if this is in line with what the CEO has worked to setup, then fine. If it's a case of mistaken reps, then this will more than likely get sorted out. (You KNOW I'll make sure my acct. is fixed if that's the case! haha)

See, that's the problem here.. There's just so much confusion, I assume that the initial plan was to charge the $10 a month for on demand according to the online deal or in your case $20 for the 500MB a month plan. But since T-Mobile left out the other details as in you have to pay it outright or that you have to be an existing customer in order to get the deal, they confused the public. And, if they laid out all the FAQ on their website... It wouldn't be such a big deal. It's the misleading problem that has occurred. And now, that T-Mobile is aware they screwed up. They are trying to make right.

I'd rather go for the Retina iPad Mini and since it's not out yet... I can wait it out and let the CEO procedure trickle down to the entire T-Mobile company. If not, I'll just go with the WIFI model. Only reason I'll go with the cellular version is cause of the awesome deal.

----------

Picked up a 64gb Space Grey iPad with T-Mobile at the Apple Store yesterday, and I can confirm that the 200mb of cellular data is in fact free. You create a T-Mobile account after turning on cellular data and no credit card info is needed. Simply select the lowest tiered plan available, the free plan. You don't need to be an existing T-Mobile customer either. Also, the best part is that there is free wifi hotspot capability!

It works if pay it outright. But the public was under the impression that we could walk into the store.. Pay 10 bucks and taxes for the SIM card, and walk out with a iPad Air. Of course, it's 26 and change for the monthly bill. But the confusion is that T-Mobile is charging an additional $10 for an on demand plan. When the public thought there wouldn't be an additional charge.
 
People have already verified that what you think is the situation is not true. The 200MB/month is $0/month without needing to spending anything more or being required to be in a paid data plan.

you people aren't paying attention to their fine print. I don't care about their data plan or how much you get free. if you want an iPad in installments and your not already a VOICE customer, you get charged $10 per month! This is a gimmick to try to get you to add a voice plan, such as changing your prepaid phone from another company to them.

yes you get the god damn 200 mb free, but you get charged or "taxed" $10 per month since you don't have voice service with them


they are saying "yea we'll give you a sweet deal on an iPad and throw in 200mb data for free, but since you don't have a voice service with us we're going to penalize you $10 per month"
 
Their official FAQ has updated with the following:
http://www.t-mobile.com/landing/f...ID=4485850
--------------------------------

You say customers get 200MB of free data so why do customers have to pay $10 a month?
Anyone who brings an eligible tablet to T-Mobile or purchases a new tablet outright is entitled to 200 MB of free 4G LTE data every month, regardless if they’re a current customer or not. Well-qualified customers with an existing T-Mobile line of service are also entitled to $0 down interest free financing in addition to the free data. Customers who don’t currently have a line of service with T-Mobile and want $0 down interest free financing on the purchase of a new tablet will be required to pay $10 a month in order to reduce the risk of fraud. This $10 a month charge is not connected to the free data, rather it is a part of the financing package.


you people aren't paying attention to their fine print. I don't care about their data plan or how much you get free. if you want an iPad in installments and your not already a VOICE customer, you get charged $10 per month! This is a gimmick to try to get you to add a voice plan, such as changing your prepaid phone from another company to them.

yes you get the god damn 200 mb free, but you get charged or "taxed" $10 per month since you don't have voice service with them


they are saying "yea we'll give you a sweet deal on an iPad and throw in 200mb data for free, but since you don't have a voice service with us we're going to penalize you $10 per month"

if you aren't a customer at all you can get free 200mb by using your own tablet, but if you become a customer by using financing, you have to pay $10 a month interest or 37%. LOL. They are also charging $10 for anyone paying upfront for a tablet.
 
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T-Mobile lost alot of sales on the first day!

Free to $10 is not free! But glad they got the big cheese to do the correction.
 
Ignore my ignorance as i am not from the US but why are there 4 different iPad Cellular models offered if they all work the same way? why does it even say "your iPad will only work with the carrier you choose"?

why not simply sell one as "iPad Air with Cellular" like they do in Germany
They all come with different SIM cards peri stalled so its important to get the right version. Because most carries would charge 20-30 for the sim alone. That is unless you get that nice rep that waves that fee.
 
we hope...according to my post above, the $10 is a finance charge not data charge.

It shouldn't be a finance charge.. It should no interest. That's what the CEO is trying to clear up. Yet it's no telling how long will this take for it be echoed among all T-Mobile representatives...
 
I have an iPad 2 on Verizon. Can I get this plan for it if I get a t-mobile sim?

Wondering this too for my Verizon 3rd Gen Retina iPad 3 (A1403 | MC756LL/A). I've never been entirely clear on the 4G/LTE band coverage between these models and the networks.
 
picked my 32GB Space Grey iPad Air yesterday from Tmobile, inquired about the free data and rep signed me up for 6.5GB plan since it's free for the first two months until 1/4/14 and told me to switch to free data plan by 1/3/14 for no monthly fee. for 26.25/mth and 2 months of 6.5GB free LTE data, couldn't be happier!
 
picked my 32GB Space Grey iPad Air yesterday from Tmobile, inquired about the free data and rep signed me up for 6.5GB plan since it's free for the first two months until 1/4/14 and told me to switch to free data plan by 1/3/14 for no monthly fee. for 26.25/mth and 2 months of 6.5GB free LTE data, couldn't be happier!

Brand new customer or do you have an account with them already?
 
I am on the pessimistic side regarding this.
My understanding is as following:

1) 200Mb free is "free" for their customers who is on a data plan or a voice plan. In that sense, the customer will be paying the plan. The 200Mb data will be free "for life", as long as one remains a customer with a plan.

2) however, if you look at their data plans (I did not study their voice plan), there is no "free" plan. The cheapest one is the "on demand" or pay-as-you-go plan. That plan is precisely $10 dollars a month.

3) To reiterate from point one and two, one can be a on-demand customer and get "free" 200Mb data every month. It is called "free" as opposed in the other scenario that you have to pay for both the plan fee and the actual on-demand data usage fee for that 200Mb data.

4) if I am wrong, and customer really indeed can get the 200Mb "no strings attached" data, then this "exceptional error" of T-mobile launch is a monumental screw up.

5) If I am right, this will just go down as another company now playing the rhetoric game and trying NOT to be forthcoming with their hidden charges.

just my 2 cents...
 
Yesterday was the first day for the free offer. There's bound to be some confusion and people who can't believe it.
 
I am on the pessimistic side regarding this.
My understanding is as following:

1) 200Mb free is "free" for their customers who is on a data plan or a voice plan. In that sense, the customer will be paying the plan. The 200Mb data will be free "for life", as long as one remains a customer with a plan.

2) however, if you look at their data plans (I did not study their voice plan), there is no "free" plan. The cheapest one is the "on demand" or pay-as-you-go plan. That plan is precisely $10 dollars a month.

3) To reiterate from point one and two, one can be a on-demand customer and get "free" 200Mb data every month. It is called "free" as opposed in the other scenario that you have to pay for both the plan fee and the actual on-demand data usage fee for that 200Mb data.

4) if I am wrong, and customer really indeed can get the 200Mb "no strings attached" data, then this "exceptional error" of T-mobile launch is a monumental screw up.

5) If I am right, this will just go down as another company now playing the rhetoric game and trying NOT to be forthcoming with their hidden charges.

just my 2 cents...
#4 your wrong. Monumental screw up? A bit harsh!
 
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