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Carrier Switching to ATT next after singing 2 year contract?

B

bammargera3176

macrumors regular
Original poster
Oct 16, 2015
107
8
First question - is it cheaper to do ATT next with a 16 GB iPhone 6s plus (roughly 32/month) or just sign a new 2 year contract (which I believe is $40 a month)? Is this ATT next thing actually cheaper than just doing a two year contract?

Also, after signing a new 2 year contract (I signed one for when the 6S came out), can I switch to ATT next in the middle of that contract? I would only do that if you guys say that ATT next is indeed cheaper so i will be able to upgrade every year.

BTW - I am on a family plan. We have unlimited text/call, and we share 15GB of data each month with roll over.
 
Ok, but my question is since I just got the 2 year contract, can i switch to ATT next still?
 
bammargera3176 said:
First question - is it cheaper to do ATT next with a 16 GB iPhone 6s plus (roughly 32/month) or just sign a new 2 year contract (which I believe is $40 a month)? Is this ATT next thing actually cheaper than just doing a two year contract?

Also, after signing a new 2 year contract (I signed one for when the 6S came out), can I switch to ATT next in the middle of that contract? I would only do that if you guys say that ATT next is indeed cheaper so i will be able to upgrade every year.

BTW - I am on a family plan. We have unlimited text/call, and we share 15GB of data each month with roll over.
Click to expand...
Did you just get your phone? If you did. You can return it and have them reset your upgrade eligibility. Then you can purchase again via the NEXT plan.
 
nah, i got it the day it came out. well this sucks, i guess the early termination fee is the only option. my mom just got a new contract. can i make her return hers and get ATT next and then i can take her upgrade after 12 months? or is that not a thing anymore
 
bammargera3176 said:
nah, i got it the day it came out. well this sucks, i guess the early termination fee is the only option. my mom just got a new contract. can i make her return hers and get ATT next and then i can take her upgrade after 12 months? or is that not a thing anymore
Click to expand...

Have her return hers to do the Next or IUP. The savings is $150 per phone line over the course of two years. So if you have 3 people on your phone plan and you all do the Next or IUP that's $450 in savings.

Not sure if AT&T is still doing early upgrades with the Next - but that did require turning the phone in to AT&T and starting again with a new phone and Next agreement. That is still available for the IUP.
 
So it says I can get an upgrade in April 2017 with my two year contract. Am I able to upgrade that April to the iPhone 7, then in september 2017 to the iPhone 7S when my contract ends? I am obviously going to get ATT next at that time. Or would I have to do a lot of payments between April 2017 and next iPhone release date to be able to do the upgrade/trade in program
 
bammargera3176 said:
So it says I can get an upgrade in April 2017 with my two year contract. Am I able to upgrade that April to the iPhone 7, then in september 2017 to the iPhone 7S when my contract ends? I am obviously going to get ATT next at that time. Or would I have to do a lot of payments between April 2017 and next iPhone release date to be able to do the upgrade/trade in program
Click to expand...

To the best of my knowledge signing a two year contract plan, if you still can, is still the best value. Next is a payment plan or 'lease' of the phone, an added 40(?) a month charge in addition to whatever cellar/data plan you have. Getting a subsidized phone on a two year contract doesn't actually add any cost to your contract and you get the phone a what is usually a much lower price than full retail.

Now, granted Next starts looking more attractive if you want to upgrade every year. I have enough phone lines on my account that I can borrow the upgrade eligibility of a line every year, I'll sell the old phone on gazelle and this almost pays for the old phone every year.
 
KurtWilde said:
To the best of my knowledge signing a two year contract plan, if you still can, is still the best value. Next is a payment plan or 'lease' of the phone, an added 40(?) a month charge in addition to whatever cellar/data plan you have. Getting a subsidized phone on a two year contract doesn't actually add any cost to your contract and you get the phone a what is usually a much lower price than full retail.

Now, granted Next starts looking more attractive if you want to upgrade every year. I have enough phone lines on my account that I can borrow the upgrade eligibility of a line every year, I'll sell the old phone on gazelle and this almost pays for the old phone every year.
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That is absolutely false. When you are on a 2-year contract you are paying a $40 line access fee. When off-contract (or on a Next agreement) you are either paying a $15 or $25 line access fee depending on how much data your plan has. The subsidized price for phones is $450 off the retail price. ATT gets that money back from the $40 line access fee. Let's do some math:

Both for a 64gb iPhone 6s that retails for $749:

2-year contract price:
$299 for the iPhone at time of purchase
$40 line access fee a month x 24 months = $960
Total cost = $1,259

Next agreement price:
$749 for the full retail price paid for the iPhone over the course of the next agreement
$15 line access fee a month x 24 months = $360
Total cost = $1,109

So under a 2-year contract you are paying $150 more for the phone than you would be under the Next Agreement. The savings are substantial if you have several people on the family plan. A family of 4 could save $600 every two years by having everyone on a Next Agreement.
 
89007132 said:
That is absolutely false. When you are on a 2-year contract you are paying a $40 line access fee. When off-contract (or on a Next agreement) you are either paying a $15 or $25 line access fee depending on how much data your plan has. The subsidized price for phones is $450 off the retail price. ATT gets that money back from the $40 line access fee. Let's do some math:

Both for a 64gb iPhone 6s that retails for $749:

2-year contract price:
$299 for the iPhone at time of purchase
$40 line access fee a month x 24 months = $960
Total cost = $1,259

Next agreement price:
$749 for the full retail price paid for the iPhone over the course of the next agreement
$15 line access fee a month x 24 months = $360
Total cost = $1,109

So under a 2-year contract you are paying $150 more for the phone than you would be under the Next Agreement. The savings are substantial if you have several people on the family plan. A family of 4 could save $600 every two years by having everyone on a Next Agreement.
Click to expand...

But that's not true. Under a two year contract you pay a one time $40 upgrade fee, this was always how it was done even before carriers introduced these leasing plans, and I'll make the safe assumption they'll charge Next customers this same fee. Agreeing to a two year contract changed nothing on the ATT bill I currently had. Next would have been an added payment.
 
89007132 said:
That is absolutely false. When you are on a 2-year contract you are paying a $40 line access fee.
Let's do some math:

Both for a 64gb iPhone 6s that retails for $749:

2-year contract price:
$299 for the iPhone at time of purchase
$40 line access fee a month x 24 months = $960
Total cost = $1,259

Next agreement price:
$749 for the full retail price paid for the iPhone over the course of the next agreement
$15 line access fee a month x 24 months = $360
Total cost = $1,109
Click to expand...

I just don't understand this mysterious monthly $40 fee? Where is this fee added from the plan costs? Are you referring to the Nation 450 talk plan?

I get charged for my talk, messaging and data. I don't have any additional charges.
 

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When I did this with VZW, I was still under contract. While I enjoyed the benefits of their EDGE plan, I couldn't leave VZW w/o paying an ETF. That is you could not use their EDGE plan to short circuit the contract and leave.
 
maflynn said:
When I did this with VZW, I was still under contract. While I enjoyed the benefits of their EDGE plan, I couldn't leave VZW w/o paying an ETF. That is you could not use their EDGE plan to short circuit the contract and leave.
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I did the same thing with my 2 AT&T lines a few years ago. I was able to save $50 a month ($25 x 2), even though I just took 2 phones at the 2 year commitment price.

Of course, that was a few years ago.
 
techiegirl said:
I did the same thing with my 2 AT&T lines a few years ago. I was able to save $50 a month ($25 x 2), even though I just took 2 phones at the 2 year commitment price.

Of course, that was a few years ago.
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so two of my family members are on ATT next 12 and have an upgrade available next fall around the time the new iPhone comes out. If they don't want to take their upgrade after 12 months, am I able to take the upgrade even tho I'm in the 2 year contract?
 
bammargera3176 said:
First question - is it cheaper to do ATT next with a 16 GB iPhone 6s plus (roughly 32/month) or just sign a new 2 year contract (which I believe is $40 a month)? Is this ATT next thing actually cheaper than just doing a two year contract?

Also, after signing a new 2 year contract (I signed one for when the 6S came out), can I switch to ATT next in the middle of that contract? I would only do that if you guys say that ATT next is indeed cheaper so i will be able to upgrade every year.

BTW - I am on a family plan. We have unlimited text/call, and we share 15GB of data each month with roll over.
Click to expand...

AT&T Next is a line per line basis. You can have a mobile share plan, where one line is a 2-year subsidized iPhone contract and the other line(s) is/are AT&T Next.

I'm actually in this boat since I have a family plan where I pay for my parents' phones. My phone (primary line) on the account is still 2-year contract (reset on iPhone 6 launch date), while my dad's line is out-of-contract (2-year ended) and my mom's phone is AT&T Next. The only issue is that I'm still paying the $40 per month for my individual line, while each of my parents lines are $15 per month. Once my 2-year ends on the primary line, the primary line monthly drops from $40 to $15.
 
ocabj said:
AT&T Next is a line per line basis. You can have a mobile share plan, where one line is a 2-year subsidized iPhone contract and the other line(s) is/are AT&T Next.

I'm actually in this boat since I have a family plan where I pay for my parents' phones. My phone (primary line) on the account is still 2-year contract (reset on iPhone 6 launch date), while my dad's line is out-of-contract (2-year ended) and my mom's phone is AT&T Next. The only issue is that I'm still paying the $40 per month for my individual line, while each of my parents lines are $15 per month. Once my 2-year ends on the primary line, the primary line monthly drops from $40 to $15.
Click to expand...

so in theory, are you able to take your mom's upgrade after 12 months even though you are in the middle of the ATT 2 year contract?
 
bammargera3176 said:
so in theory, are you able to take your mom's upgrade after 12 months even though you are in the middle of the ATT 2 year contract?
Click to expand...

The AT&T Next annual upgrade process requires trading in the respective phone tied to that Next line.

Incidentally, I bought a sim free iPhone 6s Plus 64 last Saturday, swapped SIMs, gave my dad my 'old' iPhone 6 and took his iPhone 5 for a backup.
 
Further discussion on Next and cost, I think Next is good for people who don't need the latest and greatest iPhone. My parents are that type. They don't do much as far as apps and I pretty much have to setup their phones for them (e.g. configure email, etc). So for them, keeping them on data plan at a low cost per month is my goal.

Now for me, I upgrade my phone pretty much every 2 years (granted this year was an exception since I bought one in full). For me, Next doesn't really save me any money. I'm just paying the phone up from without doing the whole month to month service fee deal and paying AT&T back for the upfront subsidy.

That being said, you're not going to lose money by going with AT&T Next, but the costs upfront are going to be higher (if you buy the phone outright), or you do the deferred month-to-month Next payments on the phone with the lower data line costs. But the savings are only there if you aren't buying a new phone every 2 years (or shorter).
 
If you still have a active 2 year contract, you can switch to Next before the contract is over.

I switched in less than a year to Next for a iPhone 6 when I originally signed a 2 year contract for a HTC M7.
 
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yes I have an active 2 year contract, it started in september 20th or so. I want to switch to ATT next - didn't everyone previously just say I can't switch to next in the middle of a 2 year contract..?
 
bammargera3176 said:
yes I have an active 2 year contract, it started in september 20th or so. I want to switch to ATT next - didn't everyone previously just say I can't switch to next in the middle of a 2 year contract..?
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You cannot switch over to ATT next after you already used ur subsidy upgrade.

People are getting confused because ATT did a one time "get out of jail card" back in January 2014 to let people out of contracts and onto Next

Please read this article.

https://gigaom.com/2014/01/20/att-s...-to-lure-customers-to-its-next-upgrade-plans/

So as a one time promotion. If you had used a subsidy upgrade before January 20 2014. Att let you opt to its mobile sharing with next even if you were under contract.

But after that date. If you singed a contract with a 2 year subsidy agreement you could no longer get out of contract and onto next.

End of question. Okay? That's where the confusion is. Att had a promo that time and some people made off like bandits (those who upgraded before January 20th 2014) since they got their subsidy savings plus got to the next mobile sharing savings as well.
 
Reading some of these posts makes me want to starting shooting people. This stuff is not that confusing, but people sure make it that way.

Biggest problem is that people can not get it through their head that a new iphone can cost $700-$900. And they have for a long time, and that they have been paying it - via subsidized month rates.

Good think I do not have a gun.

I can not believe that somebody signs up for the 2 year contract and then wants to buy the phone via NEXT. @#^$%^QEGJ:KJ%$)#UR
 
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