Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Cassied219

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 25, 2011
17
4
Melbourne, Florida
Is there something that I am missing? When I go to preorder, Apple only gives me 2 options: 1) to purchase phone outright or 2) to choose the Next program. I do not want to do the next program. My 2 yr contract is up and would like to purchase the 6s 128 GB for $399 and renew my contract for another two years. Is anybody else having this problem? Is there a way around this?
 
At least AT&T will let you renew them with a subsidy. IIRC, Verizon only lets their longtime customers that supported them over the years keep their unlimited data plans if they pay full-price for their phone upgrades.

True.
The 2 big carriers always pull shady moves like that on their customers and copy each others ideas on how to charge more and give less.
 
Is there something that I am missing? When I go to preorder, Apple only gives me 2 options: 1) to purchase phone outright or 2) to choose the Next program. I do not want to do the next program. My 2 yr contract is up and would like to purchase the 6s 128 GB for $399 and renew my contract for another two years. Is anybody else having this problem? Is there a way around this?
why do you want to renew a 2 year contract? if you sign up for a mobile share plan on Next or BYOP the line fee is significantly lower than on a 2 year contract. AT&T will get their money from you in line fees despite the subsidized initial purchase price. I recommend Next or purchase outright.
 
why do you want to renew a 2 year contract? if you sign up for a mobile share plan on Next or BYOP the line fee is significantly lower than on a 2 year contract. AT&T will get their money from you in line fees despite the subsidized initial purchase price. I recommend Next or purchase outright.


Because for many people the subsidy and old plans are cheaper.
And they don't have to make monthly payments on their phones.
 
Because for many people the subsidy and old plans are cheaper.
And they don't have to make monthly payments on their phones.

Exactly, you took the words right out of my mouth. I would rather pay $399 upfront. Instead of being on my husband's plan, I am on my parents phone plan (because we have a grandfathered unlimited data plan) so I do not want to add the expense to their plan.
 
why do you want to renew a 2 year contract? if you sign up for a mobile share plan on Next or BYOP the line fee is significantly lower than on a 2 year contract. AT&T will get their money from you in line fees despite the subsidized initial purchase price. I recommend Next or purchase outright.

Some people are still on the grandfathered unlimited plan. Purchasing outright doesn't lower the monthly payment if you're on grandfathered unlimited.
 
Last edited:
Yeah, I've had to order through AT&T for the first time ever. Hope they don't mess it up because I've heard too many horror stories regarding preordering through the carriers.

Good luck with that. It was my first time ever ordering through AT&T. Horror Story is putting it mildly.
If their goal is to get us off of the 2 year contract . . . that might be working.
 
I wrote this on the AT&T forums:

I have 2 phones with unlimited on a family share (for voice)...
$120. The main account pays more, secondary account pays less.

Average is $60, after taxes. I can reduce my rate by $5 if I eliminate text, which is possible, but then I pay 10 cents per text.

The subsidy is about $450 / 24 = $18.75 per line per month. (EDIT: I later had the idea, the value is not a subsidy, it's an allowance or escrow. I think this better fits the definition than subsidy. Why? Because you don't pay back subsidy, but you do escrows, since this amount is rolled up into our base pay)

This is the business model. Prior to the iPhone, the subsidy could be a different amount, depending on the phone. I recall buying a Sony w810i (walkman phone - which I was very happy with) When I wanted to insure it, I was not allowed, because it was listed at over $500, MSRP. I can't belive this to be true, but that was what I was told.

What I am saying is that I have had my account prior to unlimited data, for a very long time, and the subsidy was always there. Not $450, but depending on the phone it was something.

If you take into account that for new subscribers which pay a rate without subsidy that is on par or higher than mine, or when they request a subsidy phone their rate goes up to cover that. I am going to maintain the perspective that. Either AT&T should have been rasing rates alll along $1 or $2 here and there to maintain profitablity, or treat us long time customers as "charter" customers and keep our rates and subsidy. (which would strike true, thus far.)

This is like saying, AT&T values us keeping with them through thick and thin. We pay our bills on time, we don't hastle, we promote new customers. etc.

I don't mind changing things up, but getting rid of the subsidy while still maintaining the price, somthing we have come accustomed to over decades, is a huge change.

I have to buy a phone every year. I buy one phone, and it lasts 4 years. Then the old phone is recycled and the process starts over again. To cover the loss of an old phone, I get another one.

At any given time, I am utilizing two subsidies at the same time. ($37.50/mo) Take that away, and force me into Next12/24 or Apple's plan, I loose two phones, one via forced trade-in and one when my old one is retired.

Averaged out, this is 31.25% increse in expenses, only considering one phone.

With 2 phones, it's $900. For $900 I can walk at any time.

I don't want to walk. I am not a churning customer, I am stedy income. AT&T doesn't have to come looking for me, they don't have to take me in form Verizon or T-Mobile. I am the reason they purchased Cingular.

Anyway I am a proud customer and I do hope they see that and act accordingly, not as a liablity but a benefit. Why not offer a split down the middle or a gradual change. Reduce my line by $10/mo as I come off contract, and then say there are no more contracts or tack on $15/mo to renew for another 2 years... After a few years of doing this, they will have made up the difference gradually. But I get to choose to continue or not.
 
My "line fee" receives a 22% corporate discount, effectively reducing both my costs of service and equipment.

17% for me.

Just found this: Free AT&T FAN account (YMMV)

I don't know how they got this list of FAN, corporate discounts. But I am pretty sure if you are breathing you qualify for one of them. My discount used to be 15% and didn't include nation wide Unlimited Data. But now it's 17% and does include Unlimited Data.

If you are a AAA or Costco Member, there's something available for you. This also goes for T-Mobile.
 
Last edited:
I keep my old grandfathered plan because factoring in the subsidy I can't find another plan that saves me any money. So until AT&T eliminates subsidies completely, here I am.
 
W00t for you. I get that and $25 per line discount for not having a contract.

The $25 off the $40 subsidized line fee is a 62.5% discount, for those playing the numbers game at home.

A few more numbers of note:
The unsubsidized line discount of $25 totals $600 over 2 years, while the difference between the subsidized iPhone and the unsubsidized iPhone is only $450, so if you subsidize without a corporate discount, you're paying an extra $250 for your phone.
A 22% discount makes the line fee $35.20 per month. The unsubsidized line fee at 22% off is $13.20. The difference ($22) over two years comes to $528, which means even if you have a corporate discount, if you're subsidized you're still paying $178 more than you should for your phone.
 
This debate between 2 yr contracts and Next is getting old. For those on grandfathered plans, the 2 yr contract can still make sense. For those on the newer Mobile Share Value plans of at least 10GB (now 15GB for the promo going on), it's cheaper to either buy at full retail or use Next as an interest free payment plan.

There, that wasn't so hard, was it?
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.