Holy crap I just looked at Cricket - that might actually be the best option.
$110 for the same exact plans. Why don't people use it?
Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
Verizon Introduces New Monthly Service Plans, Eliminating Smartphone Subsidies for New Customers
- Thread starter MacRumors
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
Holy crap I just looked at Cricket - that might actually be the best option.
$110 for the same exact plans. Why don't people use it?
I've been asking myself the same question. From what I've read, the main differences between Cricket and AT&T are no tethering, no AT&T roaming service (https://www.cricketwireless.com/map.html), and LTE/4G speeds top out at 8/4mbps. I imagine that Cricket customer service is probably outsourced as well. I keep asking myself if I'm ever planning on visiting Nebraska or Wyoming.
Yeah that's what I see too... since I'm on AT&T unlimited now I don't have tethering so that's not an issue. My home and work in So Cal are completely covered (no Nebraska trips in my future either). I think the only potential stumbling block is the speed caps on LTE/4G. I just looked at my speed here at work and I'm getting less than 8GB anyway and at home I'd be on wifi. I might just make the jump to save $1,000+ per year.
Verizon is such a joke honestly. Everytime i read something about their company, its always how they can charge their customers more and more and more and give them less and less and less. Honestly don't know why anyone stays with them. Plus their customer service is just garbage.
except.........the services prices do NOT reflect the drop in no subsidy
That doesn't make any sense. So those who have a subsidy will pay $20 and nothing more per month.
Those on EDGE who pay $15 or $25 *Plus* a device access fee of $XX.XX.
I wonder how this is going to affect the "More Everything" plans? I gave up my two unlimited data line plan because the 10GB plan with two lines with paid for phones saved us over $60/month (which pays for 1 iphone outright a year).
I buy my phones outright, so the way the plan discounts work is I get a line access "discount" of $25/line off the normal $40. That always made me a bit nervous since I am not in a contract and they could just decide to discontinue that "discount" at any time. Like when they do something like this and make major plan changes.
Meh - If they screw me on the discounts I'll just go back to ATT. We buy the fully unlocked iphones, so the nice thing is, I just call VZW and tell them to screw themselves and call ATT and activate the phones on their network. (I work in a very rural desert area, so t-mob or sprint are not good options for me)
I buy my phones outright, so the way the plan discounts work is I get a line access "discount" of $25/line off the normal $40. That always made me a bit nervous since I am not in a contract and they could just decide to discontinue that "discount" at any time. Like when they do something like this and make major plan changes.
Meh - If they screw me on the discounts I'll just go back to ATT. We buy the fully unlocked iphones, so the nice thing is, I just call VZW and tell them to screw themselves and call ATT and activate the phones on their network. (I work in a very rural desert area, so t-mob or sprint are not good options for me)
The $15 or $25 is the device/line access fee, the rest is an Edge monthly payment (the financing for the phone).
But be fact that those on contract would no longer have to pay higher fees to offset the subsidy, that would be odd.
It's hard to say for sure, but I think the impending release of the next iPhone and the usual upswing of renewals, customers changing carriers, etc. had some strong influence over the decision. I think 2-year contracts will be completely eliminated by both Verizon and AT&T next year, maybe a few weeks before Apple releases the iPhone 7. A lot of customers currently on 2-year contracts are probably on their last one and they don't even realize it. No more $199, $299 and $399 prices at the iPhone introduction.
So the article at http://techcrunch.com/2015/08/07/verizon-kills-off-subsidies-and-contracts-simplifies-data-plans/ mentions that those on a contract won't be able to switch to the new plans (until they are done with their contract). Which kind of makes sense. (Unless they could switch but perhaps still pay $40/month for their line as it is still under contract.)
That article makes me doubt what the two agents told me. I hope the $15 Edge price remains. Thanks for the find.
Oh wow, buying MORE of something at once (in bulk) lowers the overall price per item? Gee, that's never been a thing before. /s
Attachments
Cell phone plans make me stressed. What I'm wondering about is this: I have been saving an "upgrade" on my wife's line so I'd be able to use it for the next iPhone release. Soon, that upgrade will be useless. I'm trying to figure out if it makes sense to use that upgrade on my wife's line while I have the chance, and then get the next iPhone on the new plan with payments spread over 24 months. On the other hand, it doesn't seem to matter.
Glad I'm not american. What a rip. I remember when I did my semester in SF, almost all the international student naturally chose T-Mobile. If you're lucky, you'll soon get Free Mobile in the US.
Is it though? Unless you tether or constantly stream video, there's almost no way you're using close to 'unlimited', and in the long run you will end up paying more for device upgrades. Unless you truly consume obscene amounts of data, the majority of consumers do not need to stay grandfathered on these plans. I work for a carrier and I see this all the time with callers. I don't understand.
So much for getting a new phone every two years.
I suspect that in the past, even though they allowed a new phone every two years, many people didn't do it, and just stayed on their contract. These days, a large number of people upgrade every two years, and that is costing the carriers a bunch of profits.
And so it ends.
I suspect that in the past, even though they allowed a new phone every two years, many people didn't do it, and just stayed on their contract. These days, a large number of people upgrade every two years, and that is costing the carriers a bunch of profits.
And so it ends.
It's 2 smartphones, 10GB of data for $80, that's just data right now. There's a line access fee for smartphones as well...$40. Which drops to $20 with this new system.
Why does it end? $45 for 3GB of data, or $60 for 6GB of data, + the $20 access, and the $20-30 device payment (or not, if you own the device already) = $85-95 monthly for a continual new-phone cycle, or $100-110 for 6GB staying with device upgrades continually. That's about just on par with T Mobile's pricing, don't think they haven't thought this through. They own most of the bandwidth, and they're just waiting for T-Mobile's unlimited offerings to catch up with them, the same way it did with Sprint.
Dang, my mom just upgraded in March to a 5s. My dad currently pays about $260 for 4 iPhones (all at $40 probably because they were subsidized, and my 'rents don't bother with out of contract discounts and such; 2 lines have upgrades and another will later next month IIRC), an iPad, a mifi, and 6gb of data. Not that we would save any money probably with the new plans. But at least it will end the cycle my parents have us in of only upgrading when the phone is no longer usable, usually long after the two years is up. I should add that my dad gets a discount from his employer.
In the mean time I need my mother to understand that 6gb is apparently plenty for us and she can use iMessage without worry of going over. She's turned it off and made it so I can't start or respond to group messages with her even on MMS.
Now the question is if my boyfriend and I will be able to eventually get our own plan and be able to afford it. He has unlimited with T-Mobile but would love to switch to Verizon. We live in Kansas and drive to Chicago to see family. T-Mobile's coverage in Iowa is pretty crummy.