Carrier Is AT&T not offering traditional (grandfathered) upgrades anymore?

[benguild]

I just went onto the website and it says:
Congratulations! This line is upgrade eligible for a new smartphone with $0 down on AT&T Next; a new way to upgrade each year and get our new lower rate plans. Reminder: Taxes are due at the time of purchase.

I laughed when I read "Congratulations"... Normally I get early upgrades every September, but now it doesn't even list a "maybe" date like before.

Question #1: My current rate plan is awesome (450min w/ rollover ... 1000 SMS ... unlimited LTE data ... $76/mo total after taxes+fees), but what made it really awesome was getting upgrades every 1 year for $200 off. If I'm paying full retail for the phone, I almost want to switch carriers. — Is there anything comparable?

Question #2: Is anyone eligible for upgrades anymore? Or did they get rid of that? Are they also getting rid of unlimited data? If so, I feel like T-Mobile is the only stress-free GSM option.

 

[solarguy17]

I had a similar issue. I would get that message with the text alert feature.
So i went to the website to find out for sure, naturally thinking the website would tell me.

I couldn't find anywhere on the website that it gave a date. It said the NEXT eligibility and then also said "or upgrade with a subsidized upgrade". But I know for a fact I shouldn't be eligible since i got a subsidized 5S last year.
The customer service rep told me basically that if it say i can upgrade I should be able to but I can't figure out why I'm eligible and she couldn't find anything definitive either.

So long story short....you probably are or will be but maybe they can't tell you until you go to buy a phone.

 

[Mlrollin91]

I had a similar issue. I would get that message with the text alert feature.
So i went to the website to find out for sure, naturally thinking the website would tell me.

I couldn't find anywhere on the website that it gave a date. It said the NEXT eligibility and then also said "or upgrade with a subsidized upgrade". But I know for a fact I shouldn't be eligible since i got a subsidized 5S last year.
The customer service rep told me basically that if it say i can upgrade I should be able to but I can't figure out why I'm eligible and she couldn't find anything definitive either.

So long story short....you probably are or will be but maybe they can't tell you until you go to buy a phone.

If you go to Apple and pick an iPhone on the right side there is a tab to check upgrade eligibility. Select carrier and enter info it will tell you when you are eligible for a full subsidy.

 

[benguild]

If you go to Apple and pick an iPhone on the right side there is a tab to check upgrade eligibility. Select carrier and enter info it will tell you when you are eligible for a full subsidy.

Thanks