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No more 2 year contracts at AT&T store?
- Thread starter milcasa
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I'll never understand how Next is cheaper. I've actually done the math on sheet of paper in an AT&T store that proves it is not cheaper and they just shrug it off. My wife's contract has been up for a while and her plan is still $70 / month. AT&T has always claimed that part of the 70 was to subsidize her phone yet her contract is up and they refuse to lower the bill so, I ignore the subsidy crap because her plan will always be $70 with or without a contract.
So here comes Next, which they claim ends these subsidies and you actually pay for you device. At the end of your term you no longer have to pay for the device and your monthly payment is lowered. Here's the problem, they don't lower your plan's cost and remove the old subsidy at the very beginning.
This is what a sales rep told me about my wife's plan. The iPhone 6 16GB would be about $22 / month, no down payment and no activation fee. Great, but that is added to her $70/ month plan which makes the bill total just north of $90 for 24 months. When I asked why the old subsidy on the $70 plan isn't removed first he just looked at me like I was crazy. So here is the math that the AT&T guys say makes Next cheaper.
Next: $70 plan + $22 device x 24 months = $2,208
2 yr contract: $199 device + $35 activation + ($70 x 24 months) = $1,914
I did this math in front of him and asked how is 2,208 cheaper than 1,914? He just looked at me for a minute then said "I don't know but Next will save you money TODAY". That is true, Next is cheaper upfront but, will cost me almost $300 more over 2 years. Next would make much more sense if our current plan was reduce by $15 or $20 to remove the old subsidy first, until then it's just a rip off.
The day AT&T completely stops offering 2 yr contracts is the day we leave AT&T.
So here comes Next, which they claim ends these subsidies and you actually pay for you device. At the end of your term you no longer have to pay for the device and your monthly payment is lowered. Here's the problem, they don't lower your plan's cost and remove the old subsidy at the very beginning.
This is what a sales rep told me about my wife's plan. The iPhone 6 16GB would be about $22 / month, no down payment and no activation fee. Great, but that is added to her $70/ month plan which makes the bill total just north of $90 for 24 months. When I asked why the old subsidy on the $70 plan isn't removed first he just looked at me like I was crazy. So here is the math that the AT&T guys say makes Next cheaper.
Next: $70 plan + $22 device x 24 months = $2,208
2 yr contract: $199 device + $35 activation + ($70 x 24 months) = $1,914
I did this math in front of him and asked how is 2,208 cheaper than 1,914? He just looked at me for a minute then said "I don't know but Next will save you money TODAY". That is true, Next is cheaper upfront but, will cost me almost $300 more over 2 years. Next would make much more sense if our current plan was reduce by $15 or $20 to remove the old subsidy first, until then it's just a rip off.
The day AT&T completely stops offering 2 yr contracts is the day we leave AT&T.
Next can be cheaper for those on current plans and generally with more data to get a larger monthly discount. It's not for those on older plans when compared to contract pricing and not as much for those on current plans with less data and/or only one or two lines.
We have an older 4 line family unlimited data plan. If we don't do 2 year subsidy it's giving like $450 away.
That's basically what I meant about Nexr not working as well on older plans. But carriers want people to move on from older plans and to no longer deal with subsidies and contracts that people have been upset about as far as hiding prices and all that, and basically go with a straightforward pricing model for phones as far as them simply costing what their retail price is.
Agree 100% Same story here. I have Att now for domestic usage and t-mo for international travel. T-mo grows, bit it is too early to port my numbers there. Coverage is improoving every day, but still lot of 2g and they behind. I hope I can upgrade my 3 lines with iphone 6S with att this September. Att is busy with Mexico and DirectTV now( or they looking whom else to pay
) , not with vowifi and volte. Att international roaming is rip off, it is 2 times cheaper for me to have t-mo than to pay Att.I don't have a grandfathered plan, like your wife does. I switched to AT&T about two years ago (because Verizon's LTE speeds in my area took a huge nosedive) and signed up for their 10GB Share plans.
Adding a line to this plan using a 2-year contract would cost $199 + ($40x24) = $1,159.
Adding a line with Next would cost ($27x24) <for a $649 phone> + ($15x24) <service> = $1,009
This is where Next is cheaper, IMO.
ATT adds millions of new subscribers every quarter, who can only choose from these new plans where Next is cheaper. This is why I'm guessing their reps are so used to saying "Next is cheaper". I'd be curious to know what percentage of their customer base are on old grandfathered plans like your wife.
Next is not cheaper if you want a decent data and minutes plan. There are times when keeping the Grandfathered account is best! I use 4-5GB of data just for myself not to mention the other 4 phones on my account.
Right. It drops to $15 when the balance of the phone is paid off. There's no pre-payment penalty, so if you pay off the phone balance earlier than the number of months in your Next contract, it'll drop to $15 then.
Update: FWIW, on my monthly bill, here is how a Next line (with a phone balance) is listed:
$15.00 - Monthly Plan Charges
$37.50 - Equipment Charges (that's for a $749 phone on Next 12)
$02.83 - Surcharges & Fees
$01.64 - Government Fees & Taxes
Once the phone on that line is paid for, the Equipment Charges line item drops off. Technically, the monthly plan (service) charge stays at $15 while you're on Next, regardless of if you owe any money on the phone.
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I don't believe this has anything to do with the FCC, as it doesn't concern communications over radio waves.
A couple of weeks ago, I was in my local corporate AT&T store and was told by an assistant manager that if I want to do a two-year phone upgrade, it has to be done online.
I sell these plans at best buy all day long and this dude for the most part is pretty much spot on. As for 2yr contracts going away, at my store...we can no longer do 2yr contracts for AT&T. We can still offer them for Sprint and, to a degree Verizon. Next plan isn't a bad deal, depending on the data plan one has on their account. My rule of thumb has always been: if you have 10GBs of data or more, go with Next. Less than 10GBs? Go with the 2yr contract. Same rules for Verizon's Edge plan. People on those older legacy, grandfathered AT&T and Verizon plans are better off going with a 2yr contract b/c those plans don't get any type of line access fee discount.
Best explanation I've seen yet. Why do people keep trying to confuse the discounts when users are still on the older FamilyTalk / Unlimited plans. I plan on keep using 2 year contract until it's no longer available. Then I will most likely buy outright. For now I'm saving myself $450+ dollars. Even my local AT&T store tells me to keep the plan I have. It's cheaper.
Not everyone knows the old plans.
That, and it's a minority of ATT users that still have them (based on the last quarterly report that mentioned how many were on the new Share plans).
How many millions of users on old 2 year plans are considered "minority"?
Over 15 Million customers, but personally I think the real number is way more than that.
Is that a number to snub?
With my increased data usage, I wish I had just gone contract free last year when I bought the 6. With a 5GB plan, i would have been marginally cheaper out of contract, and I would have had the peace of mind knowing I could leave if I wanted.
Now, for me to leave to TMobile, I need to grab my old iPhone 3G out of storage (unlocked) to use while waiting to unlock my phone. Or, for Verizon, I would have to buy another cheap phone while waiting on ATT to unlock. No contract, I could just port to either at will.
Now, for me to leave to TMobile, I need to grab my old iPhone 3G out of storage (unlocked) to use while waiting to unlock my phone. Or, for Verizon, I would have to buy another cheap phone while waiting on ATT to unlock. No contract, I could just port to either at will.
I'll be signing up for another 2 year contract this Friday. I've been with AT&T since the Cingular days. Since they just raised family talk voice to unlimited at no extra cost and raised unlimited data 22 GB, I see no reason to leave them at the moment. I have two iPhone lines that are staggered every other year for upgrade eligibility so I'm always able to upgrade each year.
I'm not sure if you guys are referring to new 2 year contracts or just renewing a 2 year contract. They are renewing them for sure.
No need to "kill off" the 2 year contract. Price-wise for me,including the FAN discount,it's better than anything else I can find. YMMV of course.