Carrier Grandfathered AT&T unlimited data or 10 Gb Mobile Share

[dmk1974]

If any of those 5 phones are basic phones, then yes, the old subsidized plans are better particularly if you take advantage of the fact that you can use the upgrade eligibility on the dumbphone lines and do a swap. While you are required to keep the upgraded line for the 2-years on contract ($10/line fee), you don't need to pay for "data" on any phone that isn't a smartphone. I did this before to upgrade to the new iPhone yearly. Alas, with the whole family moving to smartphones and getting iPads the new Mobile Share plans just made more sense.

Yeah, I've looked hard at the overall cost of the shared plan and unless I decide to convert at least two of my additional lines to a smartphone from a basic phone, it's not worth losing the subsidized lifetime plans even with the 2-year contracts. The $15/mo is very attractive, but that means you have to pay full price for the phone or an additional $25/mo per upgraded line (which you'd be an absolute fool to do).

If you are someone who doesn't necessarily need the latest just-released iPhone when it comes out, I can see the family plan being really good since you can buy a used iPhone for 1/2 the full retail cost. But since I'm an upgrade junkie, I think keeping what I have is the best bet for me.

You hit the nail on the head. As I assessed as well, as long as some of the phones on the line are basic "dumb phones", the older plans with contacts work out better. But if moving from a plan already loaded with smart phones or looking to convert some basic lines to smart phones, the new shared plans look to be slightly better.

 

[yanki01]

Take a look at your usage for the last 6 months. If it's under 10, change, if not, don't


Not true. I am not on Next. I'm on a two year contract and the 10 gb value plan is saving me about $55 a month.

same here. had the unlimited since the original iPhone. upgraded my mom's iP4 last week to an iP5s. since I've been on the unlimited plan, I've gotten maybe 5GB max in a month's use. Mom hardly uses internet as she's connected to wifi at home and work. wife is a teacher and has a school issued iPad she uses for internet than her iPhone. We saved about $55 also by switching so it was worth it. Mom's on the next plan, not me. I should be eligible when the new iPhone comes out later this year.

no issues here.

 

[co.ag.2005]

EDIT: after reading to the end of the thread, I see some saying that subsidized phones with a contract begin date before 2/1/14 pay $15/mo, even if still in contract. That's NOT the story I got from att (they told me it won't drop to $15/line until those contracts expire), but of true, it would make the new plans an instant and large savings for us.

as T5BRICK is saying, the AT&T rep didn't give you correct info... my wife and I have contracts that are supposed to run through next January (January 2015) but when I upgraded to this new plan, we were given the $15/line pricing... many people in this forum are reporting the same thing.

 

[Deguello]

EDIT: after reading to the end of the thread, I see some saying that subsidized phones with a contract begin date before 2/1/14 pay $15/mo, even if still in contract. That's NOT the story I got from att (they told me it won't drop to $15/line until those contracts expire), but of true, it would make the new plans an instant and large savings for us.

My daughters' phones aren't even a year old yet and they are both getting the $15 price.

 

[rui no onna]

Just another thing that should be noted, if switching to the new Mobile Share Value plans, just forget about the subsidy model and go with AT&T Next instead (if not paying in full). The monthly cost might be slightly higher during the 20 months (Next 12) you're paying for device amortization but the lack of initial upfront cost and upgrade fees more than make up for that.

With the subsidy model, you're paying an extra $25 for 24 months, $200 upfront cost and $36 upgrade fee for, say, an iPhone 5s 16GB. That's a total of $836 for a $650 phone. With Next, while you are paying $32.50/mo for device amortization, you only need to pay it for 20 months or until the device is paid off. You just pay $650 for a $650 iPhone. No more, no less (well, plus taxes of course).

Just switched yesterday to the new Mobile Share and my bill will drop down from $240 to $160. That's with all 4 phones still on contract (2 iPhone 5 purchased 09/2012 & 2 iPhone 5s purchased 09/2013).

 

[T5BRICK]

With the subsidy model, you're paying an extra $25 for 24 months and $200 upfront cost for, say, an iPhone 5s 16GB. That's a total of $800 for a $650 phone. With Next, while you are paying $32.50/mo for device amortization, you only need to pay it for 20 months or until the device is paid off. You just pay $650 for a $650 iPhone. No more, no less (well, plus taxes of course).

Just switched yesterday to the new Mobile Share and my bill will drop down from $240 to $160. That's with all 4 phones still on contract (2 iPhone 5 purchased 09/2012 & 2 iPhone 5s purchased 09/2013).

I'm not sure why anyone would pay $800 for a $650 phone.

Alternatively, the Next 18 plan will end up costing you $650 as well, it's just spread out over 26 months.

 

[milk242]

I use about 10gb on data on Pandora alone so switching to one of those shared plans would not be advisable for me. Check your usage by app and see if those usages are normal for you and then decide.

 

[Vesian]

I have an iPhone 5 still grandfathered with unlimited data.

Also have a line with $30/month for 5gb LTE, and a cellular ipad with $30 per month for 3gb data.

It still is cheaper with all that then transferring it all to a mobile share plan.

*shrug*

 

[deeddawg]

It still is cheaper with all that then transferring it all to a mobile share plan. *shrug*

This is exactly why each person ought to evaluate their OWN usage and plans to see if it makes sense for their circumstances. It isn't a good deal for everyone.

 

[QCassidy352]

3 of the 5 phones on my account are still in the middle of their contracts and my monthly bill shows $15 per line. This of course will change when I upgrade one of those lines, but for now, it's saving me a lot of money. The person you spoke with at AT&T was mistaken or confused.

Thanks to you and all others who have responded similarly! I will explore this with att immediately. This will save us a lot of money.

 

[zorinlynx]

Once you're on the Mobile Share plan, when you want to upgrade your phone and pay full price, can you just BUY the new phone, move the SIM card to the new phone and go, without having to pay a $36 activation fee?

Just wondering if AT&T goes "You have a new phone! $36 please!" or if they only do that when you go subsidized.

 

[rui no onna]

I'm not sure why anyone would pay $800 for a $650 phone.

And yet there are plenty of posts in this thread suggesting going back up to the $40/line subsidy model when the new iPhone is released. I know the subsidy model on these new plans cost more in the long run but not everyone looks at the total cost of ownership.

Alternatively, the Next 18 plan will end up costing you $650 as well, it's just spread out over 26 months.

Yeah, for someone with a lot of lines and upgrades every 2 years, the Next 18 is a good option for lower monthly payments. Just pay off the extra 2 months at the end of the 2 year period.

Once you're on the Mobile Share plan, when you want to upgrade your phone and pay full price, can you just BUY the new phone, move the SIM card to the new phone and go, without having to pay a $36 activation fee?

Just wondering if AT&T goes "You have a new phone! $36 please!" or if they only do that when you go subsidized.

There's no $36 activation/upgrade fee if you bring your own device or avail of the upgrade via the AT&T Next program.

 

[blaksmooth]

Unlimted to Newer Plan…SHOULD I JUMP?

Been w/AT&T since 2005 on Unlimited plan. Have a iPhone 5S with $70 for unlimited minutes, $30 for unltd data, $20 for untld Text, and $3.99 for automobile assistance. I do around 4 GB data per month (only eclipsed 5GB once in a year). Only one phone (me) on plan but I like to upgrade to new iPhone EVERY year (I sell the old phone on my own every year). AT&T said I can go to $25 Unltd Talk & text (incl. $15 credit for as long as I have my own equipment, and $80 for 6GB plan). I don't understand how AT&TNext works, but I will be at $115 (incl. tax ) on this new plan VS. $123.97 on the unlimited plan. Tethering for my iPad would be nice (don't get it now on unltd of course), but I am just not informed enough to know how this will impact me and should I jump over to new plan. Especially knowing that once I leave Unlimited, thats it!!

Given that info of how I use it and how I upgrade every year, what should I do? HELP!! I'm stuck!!!

 

[co.ag.2005]

Been w/AT&T since 2005 on Unlimited plan. Have a iPhone 5S with $70 for unlimited minutes, $30 for unltd data, $20 for untld Text, and $3.99 for automobile assistance. I do around 4 GB data per month (only eclipsed 5GB once in a year). Only one phone (me) on plan but I like to upgrade to new iPhone EVERY year (I sell the old phone on my own every year). AT&T said I can go to $25 Unltd Talk & text (incl. $15 credit for as long as I have my own equipment, and $80 for 6GB plan). I don't understand how AT&TNext works, but I will be at $115 (incl. tax ) on this new plan VS. $123.97 on the unlimited plan. Tethering for my iPad would be nice (don't get it now on unltd of course), but I am just not informed enough to know how this will impact me and should I jump over to new plan. Especially knowing that once I leave Unlimited, thats it!!

Given that info of how I use it and how I upgrade every year, what should I do? HELP!! I'm stuck!!!

so, if you move to the new plan, it is $105 as AT&T said (and advertises), but then the phone will be a seperate cost as well... so $105 / month for service and then $32.50/ month for the NEXT phone cost (assuming NEXT 12 and $650 smart phone) = $137.50 (before taxes and discounts you may have). When you're ready to upgrade in 12 months, you can simply trade in your current phone for a new one OR keep the current one (and pay off the remaining balance (likely around ~$260)) and upgrade to the new one.

you'll have to evaluate if the cost is worth it vs the old plan of $124/month with no tethering and having to deal with buying/selling phones in the midst of a contract when you want to upgrade.

for me, I switched to mobile share plan way back when it was offered because the included tethering was worth it for me. I always found ways around the "no tethering" clause of the old, unlimited plan, but got tired of playing that game.

 

[scott99]

this is the best advise. 10gb of data is unlimited for most people. Anything over 2gb for me personally is basically unlimited since I hover around 1.5gb.

Agreed 100%. I had unlimited since 2007, and the most I EVER used in one month was 2.7gb. I have 3 lines on my contract, and since we went to 10gb, we never get near 10gb.

We have used 2664.25 of 10240, and there is still 7 days left in our billing cycle, and then the 10gb starts all over again. Now granted, all 3 people have wifi at their homes, so most of our data use is when we are on wifi. BUT, we've used GPS on the road, looked up youtube videos, we just all act like we have unlimited, yet never come close to that 10gb.

And if you think you'll go over, adding more, say to 15gb, is only another $5-$10, bucks a month. Going on the new shared plan has saved me almost $100 a month.

 

[flatfoot99]

Ok... so if I switched from unlimited to a shared data plan, I will have to buy the phone outright or use their "next" program, correct? It also appears to be no benefit to the next program as it seems to be some kind of payment program?

 

[co.ag.2005]

Ok... so if I switched from unlimited to a shared data plan, I will have to buy the phone outright or use their "next" program, correct? It also appears to be no benefit to the next program as it seems to be some kind of payment program?

if you change to the mobile share plan, you can keep whatever phone you are currently using (I'm assuming you have a smartphone?). They don't force you to upgrade your device.

But, if you want to upgrade your phone now or down the road, you have 3 options:

1. keep doing the subsidized purchase, i.e. $199 down and 2-year contract (NOTE: going this route while on the new share plans will end up costing you over $800 for a $650 phone fyi) -> not the way to go IMO

2. upgrade and buy the phone outright, i.e. a). brand new phone for $650 or b). buy a gently used phone from swappa.com or craigslist and save $$

3. upgrade and buy the phone using the NEXT program which is just like option 2a, but splitting the phone's $650 cost into 20 or 26 monthly payments.

if you go with the new share plan and upgrade phones with option 2 or 3 above, you end up saving money on the device and on the plan OVER going the traditional subsidized route (option 1)

 

[bmac4]

if you change to the mobile share plan, you can keep whatever phone you are currently using (I'm assuming you have a smartphone?). They don't force you to upgrade your device.



But, if you want to upgrade your phone now or down the road, you have 3 options:



1. keep doing the subsidized purchase, i.e. $199 down and 2-year contract (NOTE: going this route while on the new share plans will end up costing you over $800 for a $650 phone fyi) -> not the way to go IMO



2. upgrade and buy the phone outright, i.e. a). brand new phone for $650 or b). buy a gently used phone from swappa.com or craigslist and save $$



3. upgrade and buy the phone using the NEXT program which is just like option 2a, but splitting the phone's $650 cost into 20 or 26 monthly payments.



if you go with the new share plan and upgrade phones with option 2 or 3 above, you end up saving money on the device and on the plan OVER going the traditional subsidized route (option 1)

Haven't they always charged about $800+ for a smartphone on a subsidized plan with the old service plan? They have been saying for years that your service covers the price of the phone.

Now here is where I think they are tricking people. Option 3 doing the Next program. I still have yet to get a clear answer for how much they discount your service plan each month, but unless they do it by your monthly payment of the phone. You will still be paying more for a smartphone than the $650 it would be outright. I say this because they still are charging you almost the same amount for your service, but also getting a monthly payment for the phone too. Let me know if I am wrong, but from everything I have seen the reason they are doing the Next program is because they are still making a lot of money on each device. Possible more than subsidizing it.

In my opinion the best way to go is buy the phone outright if you can afford it. Or do the subsidy option because your bill does not change, and you have been paying over $650 for your phones in the past. It was a not a big deal to anyone then, and AT&T is trying to make it a deal now because they can make more money off the Next Program.

 

[co.ag.2005]

Haven't they always charged about $800+ for a smartphone on a subsidized plan with the old service plan? They have been saying for years that your service covers the price of the phone.

Now here is where I think they are tricking people. Option 3 doing the Next program. I still have yet to get a clear answer for how much they discount your service plan each month, but unless they do it by your monthly payment of the phone. You will still be paying more for a smartphone than the $650 it would be outright. I say this because they still are charging you almost the same amount for your service, but also getting a monthly payment for the phone too. Let me know if I am wrong, but from everything I have seen the reason they are doing the Next program is because they are still making a lot of money on each device. Possible more than subsidizing it.

In my opinion the best way to go is buy the phone outright if you can afford it. Or do the subsidy option because your bill does not change, and you have been paying over $650 for your phones in the past. It was a not a big deal to anyone then, and AT&T is trying to make it a deal now because they can make more money off the Next Program.

They charge you the same price for service for NEXT vs buying the phone outright... in my case, it is $15/line to use my 10GB data bucket. But if I go the subsidized route, it's $40/line to use the same data (and of course, the unlim calls and texts). That's $25/line per month more going the subsidized route (for service).

NEXT vs. paying outright looks to be the exact same to me... you end up paying $650 regardless, access to my 10GB data is still $15/line no matter which of these 2 options you have.

 

[C DM]

Haven't they always charged about $800+ for a smartphone on a subsidized plan with the old service plan? They have been saying for years that your service covers the price of the phone.

Now here is where I think they are tricking people. Option 3 doing the Next program. I still have yet to get a clear answer for how much they discount your service plan each month, but unless they do it by your monthly payment of the phone. You will still be paying more for a smartphone than the $650 it would be outright. I say this because they still are charging you almost the same amount for your service, but also getting a monthly payment for the phone too. Let me know if I am wrong, but from everything I have seen the reason they are doing the Next program is because they are still making a lot of money on each device. Possible more than subsidizing it.

In my opinion the best way to go is buy the phone outright if you can afford it. Or do the subsidy option because your bill does not change, and you have been paying over $650 for your phones in the past. It was a not a big deal to anyone then, and AT&T is trying to make it a deal now because they can make more money off the Next Program.

You get a discount on your monthly service charge--it can be higher or smaller depending on your plan and amount of data essentially.

 

[bmac4]

You get a discount on your monthly service charge--it can be higher or smaller depending on your plan and amount of data essentially.

Ok I guess what I am seeing is that if you go with there new Data Shared plans it's going to be cheaper service, but for someone like me that has unlimited data it would do no good to go with the Next Program. I don't think the monthly service would be discounted enough.

 

[co.ag.2005]

Ok I guess what I am seeing is that if you go with there new Data Shared plans it's going to be cheaper service, but for someone like me that has unlimited data it would do no good to go with the Next Program. I don't think the monthly service would be discounted enough.

you just have to evaluate what works best for you/family... it's advantageous for many to stay on their "unlimited" plans. Can you upgrade with NEXT on the unlimited plans? I'm curious how that works (doubt it does).

for me, I switched because of the tethering that was included in the new share plans (wasn't included when I had my unlimited plan). And now that they are separating device costs from service, it's also another win for me (I probably buy 2-4 devices a year).

mobile share for 10GB of data (and unlimited text and calls) is $100 (data) + $15/line (service only) as long as you are bringing/buying your own phones or using NEXT.

mobile share for 6GB of data is $80 (data) + $25/line

 

[bmac4]

you just have to evaluate what works best for you/family... it's advantageous for many to stay on their "unlimited" plans. Can you upgrade with NEXT on the unlimited plans? I'm curious how that works (doubt it does).



for me, I switched because of the tethering that was included in the new share plans (wasn't included when I had my unlimited plan). And now that they are separating device costs from service, it's also another win for me (I probably buy 2-4 devices a year).



mobile share for 10GB of data (and unlimited text and calls) is $100 (data) + $15/line (service only) as long as you are bringing/buying your own phones or using NEXT.



mobile share for 6GB of data is $80 (data) + $25/line

Well right now we have 5 lines of service. 2 are dumb phones, and the other 3 are smartphones. My line has the $30 unlimited data plan, and the other two have the $20 250mb data plans. I am not sure the data saving with the data shared? Would I have any?

Oh and yes I can do the Next Program with unlimited. I check a couple of weeks ago. Have not gone in to ask questions yet. I just can't talk myself into losing the unlimited data.

 

[co.ag.2005]

Well right now we have 5 lines of service. 2 are dumb phones, and the other 3 are smartphones. My line has the $30 unlimited data plan, and the other two have the $20 250mb data plans. I am not sure the data saving with the data shared? Would I have any?

Oh and yes I can do the Next Program with unlimited. I check a couple of weeks ago. Have not gone in to ask questions yet. I just can't talk myself into losing the unlimited data.

I'm sure you've seen this:
http://www.att.com/shop/wireless/data-plans.html#fbid=SasaRsSRwpn

How much data do you use per month between all lines?

With 5 lines, if you share the 10GB (which would likely only be sharing between 3 lines since 2 are dumb phones), it's $100 for data, then $15/line... so $100 + $75 = $175/month (not including taxes or any discounts you may have) (NOTE: tethering is included)

You just have to remember that phone upgrades aren't included in that price at all, so anytime any of the 5 lines need to be upgraded/replaced, you are left with buying the phone outright or going NEXT (or the traditional subsidized route which isn't even worth considering IMO.)

at the end of the day, I'm not trying to sell this service to you, just hoping you understand the differences so you can make an informed decision that is best for your family and your wallet. You may need to hang on to the unlimited data, but aren't you throttled after 5GB to EDGE-like speeds (I hear some are and some aren't)? does that happen a lot or never for you? is unlimited really worth keeping or not? (honest question. for some, it is!)

 

[bmac4]

I'm sure you've seen this:
http://www.att.com/shop/wireless/data-plans.html#fbid=SasaRsSRwpn

How much data do you use per month between all lines?

With 5 lines, if you share the 10GB (which would likely only be sharing between 3 lines since 2 are dumb phones), it's $100 for data, then $15/line... so $100 + $75 = $175/month (not included taxes or any discounts you may have) (NOTE: tethering is included)

You just have to remember that phone upgrades aren't included in that price at all, so anytime any of the 5 lines need to be upgraded/replaced, you are left with buying the phone outright or going NEXT (or the traditional subsidized route which isn't even worth considering IMO.)

at the end of the day, I'm not trying to sell this service to you, just hoping you understand the differences so you can make an informed decision that is best for your family and your wallet. You may need to hang on to the unlimited data, but aren't you throttled after 5GB to EDGE-like speeds (I hear some are and some aren't)? does that happen a lot or never for you? is unlimited really worth keeping or not? (honest question, for some, it is!)

Yeah I totally understand, and I know you are not trying to sell me. I am asking cause I really don't know what the data shared plans offered until now. I always looked the other way because I feel like AT&T is doing everything in their for me to give up my unlimited.

I am not sure still if it would work for us or not. My mom and sister are the ones on the 250mb plan. My sister wishes she has more data, but my mom never uses all of hers. I just would not want to be the one that used almost all the data, and left them with nothing. I do normally come close to the 5gb, but have only gone over twice, and yes they slow it down to EDGE speeds. I do wish I has tethering too. Again it's something to think about, but still just unsure. Thanks again for helping me out.