Some AT&T Next iPhone 6s Pre-Orders Showing Full Price Charge Glitch

[avanpelt]

They "claim" you're contract free but if you go to void your contract early, you have to completely pay the phone off (read: early termination fee anyone?).

Of course they're going to send you a bill for the remaining balance on the phone you financed on AT&T Next if you decide to cancel your service with them before the phone is paid off. What else would you expect them to do? Carriers aren't going to simply write off a $650 (minimum) phone just because people decide to make a few payments on the phone and then cancel the service. You pay the phone off, they unlock it, and you can use it on another carrier or sell it and recoup some of the money you paid for the phone. Seems pretty straightforward to me.

 

[err404]

The Next plan is fair. Especially if you just think of it as a 0% interest payment plan for your hardware. You do not pay any extra for it, you can pay it off at any time and they offer to buy it back early. There is little reason not to use it.

 

[MMcCraryNJ]

62 Plus 128GB pre-ordered from Apple on Next 12...

No issues on my end, so it's not happening with everyone's order

 

[tigres]

Don't worry, your charge will be credited within 14 business days. Yet when we take it, it's instant.

 

[auriconis]

Don't worry, your charge will be credited within 14 business days. Yet when we take it, it's instant.

If by 14 days you mean 2 - 3 billing cycles then yes. They tried to pull that one on me once as well. Asked for a supervisor who fixed the bill immediately.

 

[auriconis]

The Next plan is better for people who have mobile share plans. If you're like me, who still has an unlimited data plan, the costs don't even compare. A 2 year plan 6S+ will cost me $400, a Next plan would cost me 640 if I upgrade as soon as I hit 18 months, and then I don't get to keep the device, I have to just give it back.

 

[radiologyman]

Got charged full price with 2 year upgrade that initially showed as fully subsidized.

 

[MMcCraryNJ]

The Next plan is better for people who have mobile share plans. If you're like me, who still has an unlimited data plan, the costs don't even compare. A 2 year plan 6S+ will cost me $400, a Next plan would cost me 640 if I upgrade as soon as I hit 18 months, and then I don't get to keep the device, I have to just give it back.

That's because the phone subsidy is already included in the unlimited data plan. It's always there, whether or not you are on-contract, off-contract, or have a Next agreement. Adding a Next agreement to an unlimited data plan is exactly like paying two device subsidies. Even if you finish your 24-month contract, meaning the device you had subsidized is paid in full, you still get charged the subsidy every month thereafter, essentially paying for a phone you already fully paid.

If you *really* want to hold on to the unlimited data plan, buying on-contract every 24-months on the dot is the most preferable situation to be in. You never want to go off-contract for any length of time on those old plans, because you'd be paying them for a device you already paid for. Taking a Next agreement on top of an unlimited data plan is also foolish as hell, since you're paying them the equivalent of *two* devices. Buying a device in full, off-contract, is the same...the cost of a device subsidy is already built into the plan, so buying a device in full is also a huge waste of money.

I personally find hanging onto unlimited data as not worth it, but YMMV. AT&T will likely not be offering contracts much longer at all.

 

[auriconis]

That's because the phone subsidy is already included in the unlimited data plan. It's always there, whether or not you are on-contract, off-contract, or have a Next agreement. Adding a Next agreement to an unlimited data plan is exactly like paying two device subsidies. Even if you finish your 24-month contract, meaning the device you had subsidized is paid in full, you still get charged the subsidy every month thereafter, essentially paying for a phone you already fully paid.

If you *really* want to hold on to the unlimited data plan, buying on-contract every 24-months on the dot is the most preferable situation to be in. You never want to go off-contract for any length of time on those old plans, because you'd be paying them for a device you already paid for. Taking a Next agreement on top of an unlimited data plan is also foolish as hell, since you're paying them the equivalent of *two* devices. Buying a device in full, off-contract, is the same...the cost of a device subsidy is already built into the plan, so buying a device in full is also a huge waste of money.

I personally find hanging onto unlimited data as not worth it, but YMMV. AT&T will likely not be offering contracts much longer at all.

I held onto my unlimited data plan because the configuration of the family plan I have with my wife ends up costing us less to keep the plan as such than if we were to switch to a shared data plan that would fulfill the amount of data we use. If I were to go to a tiered data plan, I would still not necessarily opt for the Next plan anyway, especially with Apple's introduction of the iPhone Upgrade program, which gives you the same 24 month financing option, (albeit with the price of Applecare lumped in) but allows you to upgrade to a new phone after 12 months instead of 18 like with Next. You would still qualify for Next pricing on your plan because you wouldn't be signing a 2 year contract with AT&T. Either way you look at it, Next is just not the best option available no matter what position you're in.

 

[MMcCraryNJ]

I held onto my unlimited data plan because the configuration of the family plan I have with my wife ends up costing us less to keep the plan as such than if we were to switch to a shared data plan that would fulfill the amount of data we use. If I were to go to a tiered data plan, I would still not necessarily opt for the Next plan anyway, especially with Apple's introduction of the iPhone Upgrade program, which gives you the same 24 month financing option, (albeit with the price of Applecare lumped in) but allows you to upgrade to a new phone after 12 months instead of 18 like with Next. You would still qualify for Next pricing on your plan because you wouldn't be signing a 2 year contract with AT&T. Either way you look at it, Next is just not the best option available no matter what position you're in.

Next and the Apple Upgrade Program cost the exact same, the only difference being the Upgrade Program is $129 more to account for AppleCare+. There are 4 different Next plans, you can upgrade every 12, every 18, or every 24, and there's also a Next with Downpayment plan that's cheaper every month but allows you to upgrade every 12 as well.

Every single option on ATT costs the exact same, the only difference is what your term is for and how early you can upgrade with device trade-in.

With the Apple Upgrade Program, you get an unlocked iPhone, but you're locked into buying another iPhone in 12 months if you wish to utilize the early trade-in and upgrade at 12 months. With AT&T Next, you can get any smartphone they offer, but the iPhone you receive is locked until you finish your payments.

Literally the only difference.

 

[brianrmurray]

The Next plan is fair. Especially if you just think of it as a 0% interest payment plan for your hardware. You do not pay any extra for it, you can pay it off at any time and they offer to buy it back early. There is little reason not to use it.

Thank you! Someone on here finally gets it. All you Next haters must have failed your Business 101 classes. On top of the 0% interest, and the ability to pay it off early and unlock it so you can sell it yourself, you also get a reduced per-line cost at either $25 or $15 per month. There truly is little reason not to do it.

 

[bkaus]

I held onto my unlimited data plan because the configuration of the family plan I have with my wife ends up costing us less to keep the plan as such than if we were to switch to a shared data plan that would fulfill the amount of data we use. If I were to go to a tiered data plan, I would still not necessarily opt for the Next plan anyway, especially with Apple's introduction of the iPhone Upgrade program, which gives you the same 24 month financing option, (albeit with the price of Applecare lumped in) but allows you to upgrade to a new phone after 12 months instead of 18 like with Next. You would still qualify for Next pricing on your plan because you wouldn't be signing a 2 year contract with AT&T. Either way you look at it, Next is just not the best option available no matter what position you're in.

Yes, depending on data usage, the unlimited plan still may be less monthly than the shared family plan. In any case, if one has the unlimited plan, they might as well upgrade every 2 years. Sell the old phone and it covers the upfront costs for the new phone. The plan covers the remainder of the subsidized cost and you get to enjoy a new phone!

In my case, I ended up (reluctantly) getting rid of the unlimited plan due to the small amount of data I used and other plans include tethering for free. So switching from unlimited saved me a significant amount per month. But I now no longer have the enticement to run out every 2 years and get a new phone for every line on the account. ith three phones in the family we buy a new one every two years and waterfall down and sell the oldest. Keeps the phones reasonable performance and overall saves $$ based on our usage.

Others may vary significantly, esp if they use significant data and don't tether.

 

[brianrmurray]

The Next plan is better for people who have mobile share plans. If you're like me, who still has an unlimited data plan, the costs don't even compare. A 2 year plan 6S+ will cost me $400, a Next plan would cost me 640 if I upgrade as soon as I hit 18 months, and then I don't get to keep the device, I have to just give it back.

Don't give it back. Pay off the remaining balance, unlock it, and sell it online. I recently paid mine off which costs me $360 and sold it for $600. Dolla dolla bills y'all.

 

[bradl]

Next and the Apple Upgrade Program cost the exact same, the only difference being the Upgrade Program is $129 more to account for AppleCare+. There are 4 different Next plans, you can upgrade every 12, every 18, or every 24, and there's also a Next with Downpayment plan that's cheaper every month but allows you to upgrade every 12 as well.

Every single option on ATT costs the exact same, the only difference is what your term is for and how early you can upgrade with device trade-in.

With the Apple Upgrade Program, you get an unlocked iPhone, but you're locked into buying another iPhone in 12 months if you wish to utilize the early trade-in and upgrade at 12 months. With AT&T Next, you can get any smartphone they offer, but the iPhone you receive is locked until you finish your payments.

Literally the only difference.

The extra difference is how much money you would have paid out by the 12 month mark. You would have paid less for the Apple Upgrade Program than you would with Next. And to compare that, it would have to be against Next 12 (using the 6s at 128GB for the example):

Next 12: $42.45/month * 12 = $509.4 + $129 = $638.40
Apple: $40.75/month * 12 = $489

The extra $129 being paid for AppleCare+ in full is the difference there. You'd be paying roughly $150 more over the course of the first 12 months with Next 12 than you would with the Apple Upgrade Program. That's an additional 3 months worth of payments, with some left over.

After the 12 month mark, it starts to even out, so the decision on whether to upgrade after a year becomes very important.

BL.

 

[MMcCraryNJ]

The extra difference is how much money you would have paid out by the 12 month mark. You would have paid less for the Apple Upgrade Program than you would with Next. And to compare that, it would have to be against Next 12 (using the 6s at 128GB for the example):

Next 12: $42.45/month * 12 = $509.4 + $129 = $638.40
Apple: $40.75/month * 12 = $489

The extra $129 being paid for AppleCare+ in full is the difference there. You'd be paying roughly $150 more over the course of the first 12 months with Next 12 than you would with the Apple Upgrade Program. That's an additional 3 months worth of payments, with some left over.

After the 12 month mark, it starts to even out, so the decision on whether to upgrade after a year becomes very important.

BL.

Not really a fair comparison, because AppleCare+ is a two-year agreement, and if you're on Next 12 and trading up after your 12th payment, you would call up AppleCare+, cancel the remainder of the plan, and get a refund.

You're also missing the fact that Next 12 is a 20-month term, and the Apple Upgrade Program is a 24-month term. So at the end of 12-months, if you wish to pay the rest of the device cost so you own it, or sell your device privately to get a bit more value, you would have a lot less to pay off.

Either way you slice it, both programs are 0% interest financing, except the Apple Upgrade Program runs $129 more due to AppleCare+.

 

[Smitty71]

By switching to ATT Next, I'm told that I will lose my grandfathered unlimited data plan. Does anyone know if the same is true for the Apple Upgrade program?

 

[bkaus]

Not really a fair comparison, because AppleCare+ is a two-year agreement, and if you're on Next 12 and trading up after your 12th payment, you would call up AppleCare+, cancel the remainder of the plan, and get a refund.

You're also missing the fact that Next 12 is a 20-month term, and the Apple Upgrade Program is a 24-month term. So at the end of 12-months, if you wish to pay the rest of the device cost so you own it, or sell your device privately to get a bit more value, you would have a lot less to pay off.

Either way you slice it, both programs are 0% interest financing, except the Apple Upgrade Program runs $129 more due to AppleCare+.

Interesting, didn't know apple care could be cancelled. I will be curious to see the full terms and canceling the apple care is allowed, or if it has to be traded in with the apple care in place. I'm also waiting to see if the phone gets locked to a carrier. I was expecting to see a fully unlocked iPhone on the web page w/ the apple financing deal.

I can see apple as able to provide better terms. They could even brick the phone if it wasn't paid off.

 

[bkaus]

By switching to ATT Next, I'm told that I will lose my grandfathered unlimited data plan. Does anyone know if the same is true for the Apple Upgrade program?

Oops.. reread your question. Not sure about that. It seams like you shouldn't as your paying full price for the phone.

But, if your not using the subsidy portion of the grandfathered plan, you might want to consider the other plans. They *may* end up cheaper.

 

[bradl]

Not really a fair comparison, because AppleCare+ is a two-year agreement, and if you're on Next 12 and trading up after your 12th payment, you would call up AppleCare+, cancel the remainder of the plan, and get a refund.

However, for it to be a true comparison, AppleCare+ has to be included, as it isn't an optional purchase with the Apple upgrade Program, as it is and would have to be paid in full with Next.

You're also missing the fact that Next 12 is a 20-month term, and the Apple Upgrade Program is a 24-month term. So at the end of 12-months, if you wish to pay the rest of the device cost so you own it, or sell your device privately to get a bit more value, you would have a lot less to pay off.

I'm fully aware that Next 12 is a 20-month term. In fact, that is the reason why this plan was the one to be used for comparison - it is the only plan that allows you to upgrade in 12 months.

Either way you slice it, both programs are 0% interest financing, except the Apple Upgrade Program runs $129 more due to AppleCare+.

At the end of the term, you're correct. However, like I said, you'd have to account for all that is included into both plans to get a true apples-to-apples (no pun intended) comparison.

BL.

 

[sonicdissent]

Has anyone seen resolution to this? Mine still shows incorrectly.

 

[CBSubliminal]

Has anyone seen resolution to this? Mine still shows incorrectly.

I havent seen any changes yet. Still waiting to hear from the supervisor in apple who is handling my issue. He did mention i should see a change today but i havent seen any adjustments yet.

 

[Amazing Iceman]

That's the AT&T effect. Always leaving the sour taste of almost getting ripped off in some way.

 

[iObama]

Mine started showing correctly in the last two hours or so.

 

[WyldJitt]

As pre-orders began over the weekend for the iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, there was the usual amount of panic and excitement as shipping windows for the device were largely on the September 25 launch day for most users, with a few exceptions. Now, however, a handful of AT&T Next customers are facing an odd glitch on their Apple online store order page, which showcases an impending full-price charge on the smartphone while simultaneously listing their AT&T Next plan option.

The issue appears to be specifically hitting a group of customers who pre-ordered and chose the AT&T Next installment plan option at checkout. The affected users were shown the expected $0 down, $15 upgrade fee price (including tax) when initially checking out on pre-order night, but their order status page has begun reflecting the full-price cost of their chosen iPhone 6s or iPhone 6s Plus. Some users began noticing the anomaly on Saturday, a few hours after their order initially read the correct charge, with a group of MacRumors readers heading to the forums to post about the issue.

A few users have contacted Apple support, and the company has acknowledged the issue and reassures customers who are being affected that a fix for the problem is currently being worked on. Still, as of writing, there has been no word from anyone suffering from the false price charge that they've seen a change back to the correct price of their order.

An Apple support representative voiced promise that all customers affected by the problem would begin to see it resolved over the next few days, and if they chatted with a support employee themselves, they could give the company their email address or phone number to be informed as soon as the problem has been taken care of. Since most customers will likely begin to be charged for their iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus pre-orders in the days ahead of the September 25 launch, it's still a scary hiccup for a handful of users to have to go through.

Article Link: Some AT&T Next iPhone 6s Pre-Orders Showing Full Price Charge Glitch

 

[WyldJitt]

You people do realize they were ordering on the Apple site right? This issue had nothing to do with at&t, this was entirely with Apple. And for those who constantly complain about having "only" one or two bars on their devices, you should understand that "bars" mean absolutely nothing, especially if you have an LTE connection. Too much misplaced hate going on in this world. Educate yourselves people.