T-Mobile Automatically Moving Legacy Plan Customers to New Plans

[jlc1978]

Yea same here but they increased my prices last year anyway. There are no consequences for them.

There apparently was a mass arbitration claim that netted those who filed some money.

 

[Anchorman10]

T-Mobile just said it is “retiring” our current “One Plan Unlimited 55” plan and replacing it with the “Experience Signature w/55+ savings”. Right now, we pay $70 a month for 2 lines. The new plan would boost our monthly bill to $82 a month. We got conflicting information from Customer Service and the folks at the local T-Mobile store said they hadn’t received any information from corporate.

 

[Jumpie]

I got the text yesterday. But one thing I noticed when I opened the message from TMo is that it said they're moving me to a "modern plan with enhanced features." But also that "taxes and fees are included." I called about this and was told to prove it, I have to take the message into a store and have it verified by a store manager and then they will honor it.

Anyone else?

 

[I7guy]

It’s amazing how we keep seeing examples of companies driven to the brink of bankruptcy because of chasing profits, and then those companies recover when someone actually cares about the customers.

And yet it keeps happening.

But examples of those companies are neither Apple nor t mobile. Enron is a good example of companies that fail due to greed.

 

[jlc1978]

Business schools teach students that the ONLY reason for ANY company to be in business is to make money and funnel as much as it came to shareholders as quickly as possible. Don’t worry about anything beyond third fiscal quarters down the road. And that’s why we see these executives execute the plans they have been taught… and proceed to wreck one company after the other.

That's sort of right. B-schools certainly teach that company leadership has a fiduciary responsibilities to the shareholder; but also that accomplishing that can be done in a variety of ways beyond just gutting companies. The real problem, IMHO, is the misalignment of C-suite and shareholder interests. The C-suite is only there for a short period typically and are rewarded by short term gains, so it is in their interests to maximize them, even at the expense of long term results. Shareholders, in theory, are in it for the longer term and do not want short term gains at the cost of the company's long term outlook.

 

[CarAnalogy]

Because this is what business schools keeping teaching people who are about to enter the business world. Deutsche Telekom was trying to dump T-Mobile for several years before John Legere became CEO and decided to run the company instead of playing games with proposed mergers and corporate finance. TMO’s growth was staggering when Legere was taking care of customers. But, as soon as he was gone, the emphasis was on milking subscribers for short-term profit.

Business schools teach students that the ONLY reason for ANY company to be in business is to make money and funnel as much as it can to shareholders as quickly as possible. Don’t worry about anything beyond three fiscal quarters down the road. And that’s why we see these executives execute the plans they have been taught… and proceed to wreck one company after the other.

As Gordon Gecko once said, “Greed is good.”

Yes, it's really perverse the incentives they have. For them, it really doesn't matter much more than three quarters ahead because if it doesn't go well, they just bail/sell/take their golden parachute retirement package and do it again somewhere else. Which is why they don't treat their employees very well, either.

 

[CarAnalogy]

That's sort of right. B-schools certainly teach that company leadership has a fiduciary responsibilities to the shareholder; but also that accomplishing that can be done in a variety of ways beyond just gutting companies. The real problem, IMHO, is the misalignment of C-suite and shareholder interests. The C-suite is only there for a short period typically and are rewarded by short term gains, so it is in their interests to maximize them, even at the expense of long term results. Shareholders, in theory, are in it for the longer term and do not want short term gains at the cost of the company's long term outlook.

At even the relatively small companies I've seen executive behavior firsthand...it can be really, really gross.

It's not everybody of course, but I've seen far too many for whom the company is just their means of personally enriching themselves for a short time, and they really do not care about anyone or anything else at all.

 

[HouseLannister]

$25/mo is for one year only (now) then goes to $44/mo.

Nothing stopping you from chosing a different MVNO every year. Black Friday is the best time to port your number to someone else. I paid $180 for a year of Mint last year. Year before I was on Metro (same service). Shop around.

 

[Galley]

My “unlimited everything” plan is being retired. I chose the Essentials 50+ package which has comparable benefits and my monthly rate went down by $23. 😄

 

[alexandr]

I have not.
Amazingly (thinking to myself), I haven't left the US since before the pandemic.

Wow.
Time flies.

It does indeed... What about Alaska? 🙂

 

[alexandr]

Yes, we have traveled several times to Japan, Europe, Mexico, and Canada. It’s really nice to have free connection at a decent speed and free text. The $0.50/minute phone calls are also great when you really need to reach someone now, and that someone is not responding to texts. Also, when traveling, you can have access to the maps, information, etc., at no cost. It's really convenient.

Edit: forgot to say that with my wife we have the Magenta55+ plan

Oh I was referring to US Mobile that everyone is raving about here. That's one of the best parts and reasons why I've stuck with T-Mobile all these years — been to all of the locations you listed and Thailand. It's amazing not having to have to get a local sim! 🙂

 

[dontwalkhand]

Another sign that they'll get bought by SpaceX in the next year or two. The current execs are going to squeeze any last dime out of people they can before they're out of a job and the entire company gets streamlined from the top down.

And like everything else. This will probably be renamed X Mobile.

 

[Biro]

It does indeed... What about Alaska? 🙂

I have two close friends who just came back from a trip to Alaska. He has a phone on Verizon; she has one on T-Mobile (via Mint). His reception in Alaska was solidly better than hers… but neither was great.

 

[Stromos]

Only thing that sucks even more if you are screwed if you want to stick with the Apple Card payments because for whatever reason, Apple INSISTS you must have one of the big 4. Which is BS

Same boat this would be the year for Apple to fix this.

 

[DEMinSoCAL]

Nothing stopping you from chosing a different MVNO every year. Black Friday is the best time to port your number to someone else. I paid $180 for a year of Mint last year. Year before I was on Metro (same service). Shop around.

True. Some people are into that but I have 4 lines and it's just a hassle to me and the other 3 people to keep switching carriers every year. If it were just me...sure. But 2 of the 4 lines don't live in our household which makes it harder. Then if I switch from a Verizon MVNO to a TM one to get a good price, I get to hear people complain how their service sucks since switching. It's just not as simple as you make it -- for some people.

 

[alexandr]

I have two close friends who just came back from a trip to Alaska. He has a phone on Verizon; she has one on T-Mobile (via Mint). His reception in Alaska was solidly better than hers… but neither was great.

Yea, not sure about Mint, but T-Mobile doesn't have a roaming agreement there (unless this changed recently), so people get like 200 megabytes (yes megabytes) of data per month. Oddly enough T-Mo's business plans give you full (domestic) roaming there, so that was our solution. Wondering how this US Mobile is there. I mean if you can choose any carrier — should be fine, I suppose...

 

[abracadaver]

I have 3 lines on my T-Mobile account (2 voice, 1 tablet) but when I asked the chat about my new rate, it said that I would see an increase of $1.60. Not per line, total. The text said up to $6 per line, so it may not be as steep of an increase as it sounds. We shall see if the chat bot was correct.

This isn't at all meant as a defense of their decision here, people are right to be mad and looking to take their business elsewhere, but at least in my case, I'm getting a few more benefits for just a little increase.

I assume they'll text me again in 5 years to let me know that my rate is increasing 😵‍💫

 

[alexandr]

It's real. My main line is setup on Warp, which is Verizon Network, as eSIM 1. I have Multi-Network setup to use Dark Star, which is AT&T, as eSIM 2. When I'm in an area where the Verizon signal isn't the greatest but AT&T is, I use the action button to easily switch my data from eSIM 1 to eSIM 2. It's been working out great for me so far. Very happy with US Mobile. They even provide the Shortcut preset I am using for my action button.

Ok, I was looking at their site last night, and I didn't see any explanation of what the hell Dark Star, Light Speed and Warp are! So if Warp is VZ, Dark Star is AT&T — is Light Speed T-Mo?

Also out of curiosity, is your ability to switch between VZ & AT&T the option that they charge an extra $10/m for? Or is your multy-network setup different somehow?..

 

[mk313]

Paying $25 (no taxes or fees) and can jump to any network I want in a minute with USMobile. Same towers. NEVER had an issue with service, been with them for 4 years or so. I keep telling people and for some reason they're terrified to stop paying $90-$120 a month for the same thing.

No offense to US Mobile, but that not a real comparison. No one is paying $120/month & getting the same thing you are getting at US Mobile. The highest plan that T Mobile offers is $100/month, but that includes an upgraded phone ever year, Satellite connectivity, Netflix & Hulu included, $10 discount on Apple TV, 4k UHD streaming, unlimited hotspot, unlimited premium data, and texts & high-speed data access in 215 countries.

The price delta is a lot closer than that for most people. My T Mobile plan includes 5 phone lines, an ipad, a watch & backup home internet for $210/month. Excluding the first year promo, it looks like US Mobile is $32.50/phone line (if you pay for the full year up front), so I'd be at $162.50 for just the phones & watch Since that is free with the $32.50 plan on US Mobile. (If you don't pay in full up front, the USMobile plan for just 5 phones would actually cost me $10 more per month than I am currently paying T Mobile). But I still have to add in a tablet data plan & backup home internet. Neither of which US mobile offers (that I can see from their website). They do have a tie-up with Starlink, but you can't access the pricing without creating an account. The best priced Starlink plan that was available when I looked at this earlier in the year was $10/month but included no data.

So, for $47.50 more per month, I get home internet, and an iPad data plan. Plus T Mobile Tuesdays, and free hulu and netflix. And higher priority calling if/when the network gets congested. and the ability to not have to spend $2K on cell service up front, at the beginning of the year. Is that worth $47.50? For some people yes, for others not, but it's a lot closer than it looks at first glance.

And with Verizon's new $30/month plan, I'll bet it's even closer than that (but I haven't looked at the details). I'm not bashing USMobile, there seem to be a lot of happy customers in this chat, and without the MVNO's, I'm certain the Big 3 customers would be paying more than we currently are. But it's not quite a simple of a decision as painted out to be above.

 

[Kar98]

Do you folks work for US Mobile?

The irony is I DO work for a major American cellphone carrier. Just not for this one.

 

[kagharaht]

I also have T-Mobile Home Internet at $50 a month. No Data Caps. Unlimited. That deal alone is worth staying for now.

 

[vbctv]

I’m paying monthly, $35 for unlimited premium on Dark Star (AT&T)

The same caveat applies to all MVNOs: you’ll show up as “Wireless Caller” instead of your name on people’s caller ID. And the various spam call stoppers only work on the actual carriers.

You sure about that, I have Visible+ Pro (paid the $225 for the year on Black Friday deal last year) and on my home phone when I call, my name comes up (and it's not programmed into the home phone). I think it depends on the MVNO carrier. The ones owned by major wireless companies like Mint, Metro, Visible, Total Wireless you would think have normal Caller ID now...
And on a second note, I think Visible is one of the best currently also, their + Pro plan is treated like a Verizon plan, same QCI and everything. Just be careful, I have the iPhone Air and it suffers for speed because my area is mostly mmWave and iPhone Air don't have that... So anything Verizon you need to know your area and if it's mmWave based or C-Band based... Now if I take the bus about 30 minutes down the street to a different suburb I'm seeing gigabit plus speeds. And it's because I found out that area is C-Band because they wouldn't allow Verizon to put up the telephone pole mmWave towers everywhere. Literally in my city they are every couple blocks away...

 

[Doug.J]

I also have T-Mobile Home Internet at $50 a month. No Data Caps. Unlimited. That deal alone is worth staying for now.

Unlimited until they slow you down at 1.2 TB or if the towers are busy...That has kept me from looking at it. Not sure how it works in reality.

 

[spazzcat]

That still seems pricey compared to our T-Mobile Military plan that includes taxes/fees even after the price increase will be at $36 a month, plus my $5 AW plan. Plus, the other benefits that T-Mobile offers like Netflix, etc that bring the price down more.

I have two networks, with one network it would be $10 less.

 

[spazzcat]

Ok, I was looking at their site last night, and I didn't see any explanation of what the hell Dark Star, Light Speed and Warp are! So if Warp is VZ, Dark Star is AT&T — is Light Speed T-Mo?

Also out of curiosity, is your ability to switch between VZ & AT&T the option that they charge an extra $10/m for? Or is your multy-network setup different somehow?..

You have different options, you can switch between the three networks anytime and if you are the main plan you don't get charged to make the change. The other option is to have two or all three networks active on your phone. But I believe with iPhones you can only have two esims active at a time. So I have Warp (VZ) and Dark Star (ATT) on my phone. So if I am in area that ATT works better then my data goes through Dark Star vs my primary network with is Warp.

Edit: You pay $10 extra for each network you have active. So, I pay $54, $44 (Warp) + $10 (Dark Star).