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Selling my iPhone 3G...but staying with AT&T

B

bluesTank

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 21, 2008
181
0
Hey everyone,

Due to financial reasons, I have realized that I don't need my iphone anymore, and that I could save a lot by selling it and just getting a regular phone. I plan on selling it on ebay.

So I was originally an AT&T customer before I bought the 3G, and I just used my upgrade to buy it. My question is, will AT&T allow me to just drop my data plan, and keep the plan I had BEFORE I bought the iPhone 3g? Will they make me pay any kind of fees, or is it easy? Also, if I get another phone from them, can I just slip my SIM card from my 3G into the new one and be fine?

Thanks all
 
bluesTank said:
Hey everyone,

Due to financial reasons, I have realized that I don't need my iphone anymore, and that I could save a lot by selling it and just getting a regular phone. I plan on selling it on ebay.

So I was originally an AT&T customer before I bought the 3G, and I just used my upgrade to buy it. My question is, will AT&T allow me to just drop my data plan, and keep the plan I had BEFORE I bought the iPhone 3g? Will they make me pay any kind of fees, or is it easy? Also, if I get another phone from them, can I just slip my SIM card from my 3G into the new one and be fine?

Thanks all
Click to expand...

im not sure, but i believe you can't drop the data plan because you signed a contract, and it would be breaking the contract
 
you will most probably have to pay to drop the 3g contract you signed..or keep the 3g contract even if your new phone can't/won't use it
 
I called a few days ago to cancel one of my 3G phones. The lady said I couldn't transfer the iPhone number to another phone and I had to just cancel the iPhone and pay a $165 cancellation fee. I am selling my phone on eBay so the cancelation fee is no big deal. I just want to get a BlackBerry Bold instead.
 
I'm thinking about selling mine, too.

My phone plan is $50 per month, and that extra $50 per month for the data/text plan is starting to look a little crazy when I pay it each month. $600 a year! For another hundred or so bucks I could get discount off-season airfare to Europe!

I really dig my iPhone, but lately I see it as just another thing that distracts me from the things I really want to do, which is mainly NOT surfing the internet on a 3x2 inch screen and NOT checking my email every five damned minutes.

I know, I know, the phone doesn't make me do anything. But I keep asking myself why am I paying $50 extra each month for something that I'm beginning to suspect is not contributing to my happiness or effectiveness.

Anyway, when I bought the iPhone at Best Buy the salesperson told me I could either pay the termination fee or give the phone back to Apple/ATT if I ever want to go back to my simple little Nokia 1100.

Still thinking about it... I keep telling myself that 20 minutes surfing the internet on a 3x2 inch screen with Safari that crashes every five or ten minutes could be 20 minutes spent hiking or meditating or about 10,000 other useful things.
 
hexonxonx said:
I called a few days ago to cancel one of my 3G phones. The lady said I couldn't transfer the iPhone number to another phone and I had to just cancel the iPhone and pay a $165 cancellation fee. I am selling my phone on eBay so the cancelation fee is no big deal. I just want to get a BlackBerry Bold instead.
Click to expand...

I think you need to call back and talk to a different agent.
 
Bad decisions?

I see these kinds of threads more often these days. People that bought the iPhone 3G and within a month or two need to sell it for financial reasons. Be it finding it unnecessary to have an expensive data/text plan or simply can't afford it. Don't you people even think beyond the coolness factor?

You are required to sign a 2 year contract (assuming US customer on ATT). I understand if some unforeseen event happens in your life (ie. loss of job, etc), but the 'smart' person would not buy into such a contract if one cannot afford to honor. Then you have people complaining about termination fees, unable to get their old plan back, or paying full price for a substitute phone....dude, and that shocks you??

If you are month to month with your paycheck and the iPhone's contract strains you, why the heck did you get it in the first place? You will end up in debt just to get out of the contract. This holds true not just for the iPhone...but any luxury type of purchase. Somebody here (on another thread) had a really good observation regarding these type of people: It's the reason the poor stay poor and go into more debt.

Hate to preach, but if you can't afford the game, don't play.
 
This was discussed a few days ago.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/594075/

Sounds like people have had mixed results with trying to delete the data from their plan and go to a simpler phone.

I was successful, I'm back to my old Sony W300i (and an iPhone that serves as an iPod Touch now). The AT&T CSR took care of me in a matter of a couple minutes.

My wife got laid off from her job, and while we can make our monthly expenses easily, I took a "gadget bullet" to reduce her stress level. Once she's working again, the iPhone's back in business.
 
iP2 said:
Hate to preach, but if you can't afford the game, don't play.
Click to expand...

Sounds like you don't hate to preach at all. In fact, After reading your three long paragraphs of preaching, I have to say you rather enjoy it. :p
 
tom5304 said:
Sounds like you don't hate to preach at all. In fact, After reading your three long paragraphs of preaching, I have to say you rather enjoy it. :p
Click to expand...

Maybe it was preaching, but I didn't enjoy it as much as you say I did. :cool:
 
tom5304 said:
I'm thinking about selling mine, too.

My phone plan is $50 per month, and that extra $50 per month for the data/text plan is starting to look a little crazy when I pay it each month. $600 a year! For another hundred or so bucks I could get discount off-season airfare to Europe!

I really dig my iPhone, but lately I see it as just another thing that distracts me from the things I really want to do, which is mainly NOT surfing the internet on a 3x2 inch screen and NOT checking my email every five damned minutes.

I know, I know, the phone doesn't make me do anything. But I keep asking myself why am I paying $50 extra each month for something that I'm beginning to suspect is not contributing to my happiness or effectiveness.

Anyway, when I bought the iPhone at Best Buy the salesperson told me I could either pay the termination fee or give the phone back to Apple/ATT if I ever want to go back to my simple little Nokia 1100.

Still thinking about it... I keep telling myself that 20 minutes surfing the internet on a 3x2 inch screen with Safari that crashes every five or ten minutes could be 20 minutes spent hiking or meditating or about 10,000 other useful things.
Click to expand...

Wouldn't that be 1200 ? Now thats insane. When you look at it like that. My wife and I both have 3g iphones and our bill is 220 a month. thats over 2600 a year. WOW ! Now im Depressed !
 
Opie said:
Wouldn't that be 1200 ? Now thats insane. When you look at it like that. My wife and I both have 3g iphones and our bill is 220 a month. thats over 2600 a year. WOW ! Now im Depressed !
Click to expand...

You can see where my mad math skills got me into this. :D

Try not to think about the annual cost of your iPhone. If you're sane, you'll dump it quick. I haven't reached sanity yet, but I can see it right over there... somewhere. :(
 
whoa whoa whoa.... the 2yr contract that was signed was to stay with at&t, nothing more!! there are no obligations to have the 3G data plan if you are no longer using a 3G iphone! as soon as u get a new phone, call at&t or go into a store and let them put the new IMEI onto the account and it will automatically wipe out the iphone data plan. any previous rate plans that you had most likely didnt change in the first place, they just added the data plan onto it, so u can keep your plan and rollover.
 
cWeems said:
whoa whoa whoa.... the 2yr contract that was signed was to stay with at&t, nothing more!! there are no obligations to have the 3G data plan if you are no longer using a 3G iphone! as soon as u get a new phone, call at&t or go into a store and let them put the new IMEI onto the account and it will automatically wipe out the iphone data plan. any previous rate plans that you had most likely didnt change in the first place, they just added the data plan onto it, so u can keep your plan and rollover.
Click to expand...

Exactly! Well said.
 
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