I CANNOT BELIEVE How Much of a Rip-off Shared Data Plans Are!

[HeyGreggie]

why is everyone clamoring for Unlimited Data when they throttle you after a certain amount of GBs and don't really let you exceed 5GB?

My dad, my mom and I have the 4GB AT&T Shared Data and it's $150 + tax which comes out to about $165 a month.

We were paying $227 before.

Verizon. Havent been throttled.. once.

 

[Leonard1818]

Bottom line is cell companies should be required to have "Rollover Data" It is ridiculous to think you lose data that might not have been used.

What if the electric company tried to say you have to pay for a $300.00 a month electric bill, but if you are under we keep all $300.00, but if you go over we will charge you for overages. Cell companies and their plans operate differently from any industry and I think someone needs to step in and regulate them better!

Interesting analogy. Surely the cell companies can track every KB being used and could easily "charge per KB" (or MB or GB)...

 

[BFizzzle]

I

Exactly. In my 5+ years using the iPhone, the most data I've used is 1.2GB in a month. My mom? not over 70MB. My dad? Not over 300MB.

The 1.2GB was used last December when I got the 4S.

Even if I get 6GB we STILL are saving money. Hell, even 8GB.

yep i love my verizon udp..no throttling..

and even so when i was on att and had unlimited data, yes its throttled but you can still use spotfiy and other services. Netflix will even work, it will buffer for a bit and be LQ video... but i would still get 7 gb a month.. after being throttled at 3gb on 3g

 

[VeryQueasy]

I've used 3.5 GB of data since September 28th. I use iTunes Match and have a library of over 30,000 songs, I like variety. My work wifi blocks the streaming so I either have to just listen what's on my phone (not a huge deal but it's nice to listen to whatever album and change it up all the time).

I've received the text message saying I'm approaching 5 GB and will be throttled but never was I'm curious to see how well the new "streaming" feature of iTunes Match works with throttled data.

I will never give up my unlimited data plan unless there's a plan for at least 6 GB of data within a close range to what I'm paying now... (so basically, never.)

 

[opeepingtomo]

You could care less?

i COULDNT care less.

well maybe i COULD, every time i think i've reached the lowest point to which i could possibly care, i end up caring even less about unlimited minutes when i think about it again

 

[iamthekiller]

I will never switch from my unlimited "5GB" of data on AT&T. My usage was usually close to 2GB/month a month before the iPhone 5 and now its closer to 3.5GB/month. My usage will only increase over time. My total AT&T bill for 450 minutes with (6,000 rollover minutes), unlimited data, and unlimited texts is $74 per month. Can't beat that!

The fact that you're not coming close to the data limit, yet pay more monthly for your "unlimited" plan means that you could be saving $ each month, and only pay an extra $10/GB for those months when you go over.

 

[opeepingtomo]

First, No google voice does not use cell minutes. I have this argument every week on here, I know because I use 0 minutes of my plan every month. So to all of you just repeating false information does not make it true.


Second, anyone who thinks that Telco companies are running out of bandwidth is an id**t, with LTE they have plenty of bandwidth and next is LTE advnaced which is even more, and did you know the cost to the carrier for LTE is way lower than 3g.

You are getting scammed. wake up

in a few years you will see everyone will be offering unlimited again.

You speak the TRUTH my friend, they are NOT running out of bandwidth, they are just looking for ways to fool their customers into thinking they are getting a good deal so that they can make more money. I understand that is their main goal as a company, but loyal customers have expectations. I don't expect for my rates to get higher for the same or less services. I expect to move FORWARD. 4G is great, but providing faster and faster and faster speeds doesn't do me any good if my allotted monthly bandwidth goes from unlimited to starting at 2GB SHARED. If anything it should be staying the same or at least starting at a point that is better than what the capped family plans were at.

It makes no sense.

With 4G these plans should START at 6GB minimum for shared plans.

Phones get faster and allotted data goes down??? I understand if they limit them at all that they have to go down as anything other than unlimited would be going down, but seriously, starting at 2GB at the end of 2012 while promoting your LTE services? Just plain dumb.

 

[Leonard1818]

I will never switch from my unlimited "5GB" of data on AT&T. My usage was usually close to 2GB/month a month before the iPhone 5 and now its closer to 3.5GB/month. My usage will only increase over time. My total AT&T bill for 450 minutes with (6,000 rollover minutes), unlimited data, and unlimited texts is $74 per month. Can't beat that!

LoL... Your data use will increase over time and they will eventually force you onto a tiered data plan. They CAN do that you know...

Not to mention you really ought to consider dropping to a plan that covers your current use stats and saves you some money. That's what I did. I'm saving $204/year ($17/month) and I don't have to change a single thing about how I use my phone.

 

[qckslvrsiete]

Bottom line is cell companies should be required to have "Rollover Data" It is ridiculous to think you lose data that might not have been used.

What if the electric company tried to say you have to pay for a $300.00 a month electric bill, but if you are under we keep all $300.00, but if you go over we will charge you for overages. Cell companies and their plans operate differently from any industry and I think someone needs to step in and regulate them better!

Rollover data would be a fair system, but when a company offers a service it's not their prerogative to offer it at a fair price. There are some cases where yes, it makes sense to regulate an industry -- mobile data usage is not one of them, especially when Sprint and TMobile both haven't moved to the shared data model. Mobile broadband is a luxury and I don't really get why people feel so entitled to it to the point of thinking prices should be regulated. I know tons of people, many very successful, who have clamshell dumbphones without internet access and their quality of life is just the same as mine. If I couldn't afford mobile broadband at the price at which its being offered, I simply wouldn't try to buy it.

 

[chakraj]

Sorry chief...

I think thats old info. Google bought Gizmo5 a few years ago (its a VOIP company) and since then its been built into GV.

I know for a fact I dont use any minutes and I still talk to people on my phone.

http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2051554/Google-Acquires-VoIP-Company-Gizmo5

Google pointed out that it was not a VoIP service. Of course, that all changes with this acquisition. Google seems to be trying to downplay the change though, by vaguely labeling Gizmo5 an "Internet-based calling software" provider. This is in line with their defense of Google Voice as a web-based call management system. But careful wording isn't going to fool anybody.

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Verizon. Havent been throttled.. once.

yep I hit 20 gigs on verizon last month, never throttled.

 

[PBz]

I paid the same price before and had 1400 minutes and 4.5 GBs total over 3 phones. Now I have unlimited minutes and 6GBs over 3 phones shared. Not bad

Yeah. I'm saving $...even if I go up a level. Happy here.

 

[chrizg]

Bottom line is cell companies should be required to have "Rollover Data" It is ridiculous to think you lose data that might not have been used.

I couldn't agree more!

 

[pure3d2]

Not sure where to put this thread, but since it was iPhone related I just threw it up here. I really have been wanting to upgrade my phone without throwing out $600 plus all at once to pay retail (so I do not lose my unlimited data plan).

I started debating just finally sucking it up and getting on the share everything plan, and after looking at the prices it is such a rip off. It is really unbelievable.

I mean seriously $150 a month for 4GB shared data on Verizon (2 smartphones). I'm sure this doesn't even include the extra monthly fees and for sure doesn't include phone insurance if you want that. After that you would be paying probably 180 a month for two smartphones with 4GB data shared, and 170 if you decided to step down to 2GB shared data.

I pay less than this now total for two smartphones with unlimited data. If they were really going to do this, they should have at least made the lower ended tiers of the shared data cheaper then what unlimited was before the switch. This would have actually given me an incentive to want to move to the share everything plan even though I would lose my unlimited.

Charge me $95 a month for 2GB shared data or $105 for 4GB, unlimited minutes and unlimited texts and I may have done it. But 140 freaking dollars before fees taxes and insurance is a freaking ripoff. If you want people to use less data then you shouldn't charge MORE for them to do so.

So stupid.

<end of rant>

You're looking at $649+tax.

 

[tito2020]

Depends what u want your plan for.

 

[Myiphone7]

Not sure where to put this thread, but since it was iPhone related I just threw it up here. I really have been wanting to upgrade my phone without throwing out $600 plus all at once to pay retail (so I do not lose my unlimited data plan).

I started debating just finally sucking it up and getting on the share everything plan, and after looking at the prices it is such a rip off. It is really unbelievable.

I mean seriously $150 a month for 4GB shared data on Verizon (2 smartphones). I'm sure this doesn't even include the extra monthly fees and for sure doesn't include phone insurance if you want that. After that you would be paying probably 180 a month for two smartphones with 4GB data shared, and 170 if you decided to step down to 2GB shared data.

I pay less than this now total for two smartphones with unlimited data. If they were really going to do this, they should have at least made the lower ended tiers of the shared data cheaper then what unlimited was before the switch. This would have actually given me an incentive to want to move to the share everything plan even though I would lose my unlimited.

Charge me $95 a month for 2GB shared data or $105 for 4GB, unlimited minutes and unlimited texts and I may have done it. But 140 freaking dollars before fees taxes and insurance is a freaking ripoff. If you want people to use less data then you shouldn't charge MORE for them to do so.

So stupid.

<end of rant>

Dude I pay $30 a month for "unlimited data" (5GB LTE)

 

[pure3d2]

why is everyone clamoring for Unlimited Data when they throttle you after a certain amount of GBs and don't really let you exceed 5GB?

My dad, my mom and I have the 4GB AT&T Shared Data and it's $150 + tax which comes out to about $165 a month.

We were paying $227 before.

Actually, there's no throttling on Verizon's LTE (700MHz C-block spectrum) as per purchase terms it had with the FCC. The C-block spectrum stipulates that the operator must keep it open.

Verizon was recently fined $1.25 million violating those terms.

 

[drew0020]

LoL... Your data use will increase over time and they will eventually force you onto a tiered data plan. They CAN do that you know...

Not to mention you really ought to consider dropping to a plan that covers your current use stats and saves you some money. That's what I did. I'm saving $204/year ($17/month) and I don't have to change a single thing about how I use my phone.

It would cost me $110 per month going to a 4GB shared plan. I'd lose 1GB/month and pay $40 more. Doesn't make sense to me!

 

[aneftp]

Carriers know the following facts in terms of revenue generated.

1. Zero revenue growth in cellular voice minutes. In fact people are using les voice minutes than ever.

2. Zero revenue growth in revenue for texting. In fact with BBM, iMessage, google voice texts etc. Many carriers were starting to see a decrease in revenue with texting plans which used to be the most profitable.

That gets us to data. It's currently the only real source of real growth in the cellular industry.

This pretty much sums up why tiered data with mobile sharing is here to stay. 60% of users are on family plans.

Verizon has states they won't report per line revenue anymore.

 

[Mbman81]

Any of you who find the shared data plans are a better value must be plan-shopping wrong or really use a lot of minutes.

Im surprised by the number of people who think it is a good value.

 

[apierrec]

Any of you who find the shared data plans are a better value must be plan-shopping wrong or really use a lot of minutes.

Im surprised by the number of people who think it is a good value.

The "unlimited talk minutes & texts" are clouding their better judgement.

I have 450 minutes with AT&T, rolled over over 5000 minutes, and I felt like I talked too much. Voice and text. There's free private messaging in FB, skype, kik, iMessage blah blah ... Who needs unlimited talk & text from the carriers?

 

[Mliii]

Carriers know the following facts in terms of revenue generated.
...data. It's currently the only real source of real growth in the cellular industry.
This pretty much sums up why tiered data with mobile sharing is here to stay...

This is SPOT on! And it's exactly why consumers are being 'sweetened' into going to tiered plans. Sure, they could impose them, but the Carriers don't want consumers to scream to politicians who scream at regulators and add pressure to re-regulate the industry...
In my opinion, EVENTUALLY, carriers will eliminate unlimited data because data will constitute too rich a pool of $$ to avoid maximizing their margins.

 

[Joesmith13245]

I have 6 phones. Saved over $100 per month by going to shared data plan. More devices=more savings.

 

[ET iPhone Home]

I know many people here think Sprint sucks, but I pay (with company discount), Single Plan - $66 incld. all taxes on a 450min., free mobile to "ANY" mobile anytime of day, unlimited texts and data and unlimited mins. starting at 7pm.

But then again, I'm not a die-hard used of data. So it works for me.

 

[einmusiker]

Not sure where to put this thread, but since it was iPhone related I just threw it up here. I really have been wanting to upgrade my phone without throwing out $600 plus all at once to pay retail (so I do not lose my unlimited data plan).

I started debating just finally sucking it up and getting on the share everything plan, and after looking at the prices it is such a rip off. It is really unbelievable.

I mean seriously $150 a month for 4GB shared data on Verizon (2 smartphones). I'm sure this doesn't even include the extra monthly fees and for sure doesn't include phone insurance if you want that. After that you would be paying probably 180 a month for two smartphones with 4GB data shared, and 170 if you decided to step down to 2GB shared data.

I pay less than this now total for two smartphones with unlimited data. If they were really going to do this, they should have at least made the lower ended tiers of the shared data cheaper then what unlimited was before the switch. This would have actually given me an incentive to want to move to the share everything plan even though I would lose my unlimited.

Charge me $95 a month for 2GB shared data or $105 for 4GB, unlimited minutes and unlimited texts and I may have done it. But 140 freaking dollars before fees taxes and insurance is a freaking ripoff. If you want people to use less data then you shouldn't charge MORE for them to do so.

So stupid.

<end of rant>

I completely agree!! And more and more people are going to learn the hard truth when they find out that they use a LOT more data on LTE. "oh but a 4 mg file is still mg on LTE blah blah blah" I can't wait until they realize how wrong they were. Especially the high and mighty nose-in-the-air types that actually defend the cell carrier's absurdity

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False. Shared plans are a better deal in terms of voice, texts, and data if you're doing a plan of 2 or more people.

People need to stop trying to hold onto their precious "unlimited" plans. Throttling on an unlimited plan means you're not getting unlimited.

BS. unlimited voice and texts means nothing with apps like google voice these days. Data is EVERYTHING and with LTE the data plans as they stand are complete ripoffs because people are going over their limits much much much more now

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This is SPOT on! And it's exactly why consumers are being 'sweetened' into going to tiered plans. Sure, they could impose them, but the Carriers don't want consumers to scream to politicians who scream at regulators and add pressure to re-regulate the industry...
In my opinion, EVENTUALLY, carriers will eliminate unlimited data because data will constitute too rich a pool of $$ to avoid maximizing their margins.

sweetened=screwed

eventually the bottom will fall out. when millions of people start paying huge overages every month you better believe people are gonna start to bark... and the media will eat it up. cellcos will have to submit... eventually

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why is everyone clamoring for Unlimited Data when they throttle you after a certain amount of GBs and don't really let you exceed 5GB?

My dad, my mom and I have the 4GB AT&T Shared Data and it's $150 + tax which comes out to about $165 a month.

We were paying $227 before.

Verizon doesn't throttle LTE. They can't because of their agreement when they purchased the spectrum

 

[foxnews1]

I agree with OP. it is a riff off those who don't talk/text alot. I signed for verizon and it costs $125 with just 1GB of data (corp discount).

I canceled and closed verizon acct today and came back to AT&T which costs only $105 (unlimited data on one phone and 300MB on the second). though verizon signal is better and more stable than AT&T in charlotte, nc.


Verizon would have costed more for 4GB to make it comparable to unlimited 5GB.