Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
How does the math work for your specific previous situation: On contract for both phones with Mobile Share

vs

AT&T Next with Mobile Share

?

Next is cheaper for us - 10gb MSVP, two lines, 24% employee discount. It's also cheaper for me to pick 10gb plan instead of 6gb because of how the employee discount works, lol.
 
Whatever I didn't read the fine print so yes technically I didn't do my due diligence and allowed the AT&T rep on the phone lie to me about the plan when they switched me.

Moving past a slimy sales tactics and being bait and switched by them.

I need to decide what's the best option. I am picking up my phone from the apple store Friday is it even possible to do Next at this point?

I know you've read everyone's comments about this BUT you need to run the numbers.

take a 2-year time period and run the numbers for each option: NEXT and 2-Year Contract pricing.

If you are using 10GB share plan, NEXT is cheaper. if you have multiple people doing upgrades at once, the NEXT might be better.

My wife and I share a (measly) 2GB month share plan. She is on NEXT (came from contract so she does NOT pay the installment price per month) I was on BYOD (Bring your own device) we both get a $15 "credit" from the $40/mo per phone price. if I went NEXT with iP6 I would pay no more per month EXCEPT for the new phone monthly price. with 2-Year CONTRACT I pay $15 MORE per month ($40/mo like 'normal') and the upfront cost.

for us, the 2-year Contract option is $50-100 cheaper over 2 years. AFTER 2 years, my contract is "up" and my rate for my phone drops from $40/mo to $25/mo...unless we opt for 10GB plan and then it drops down to $15/mo


BTW, for me, the 10GB NEXT plan is cheaper than 6GB NEXT plan! but again, we are on 2GB. 1/2/4GB plans for 2 people (in our situation) is better to have me on a 2-year CONTRACT.

***I got that TEXT today as well. this is an attempt to sway me to switch to NEXT. but I already did the math (many times over) and know what plan benefits us more.
 
Why do people hate Next? I don't see it as being lied to by AT&T or bait & switched. Next is cheaper. You should be happy they're offering it, instead of feeling you got scammed. My monthly bill decreased $25/line when I signed up for the Mobile Shared Plan, and I knew they would go back up if any of us signed a 2-yr agreement for a "discounted" phone. That's why the wife and I did Next for these 6's. Cheaper in the long run, don't have to shell out anything up front, and get to upgrade faster and not pay the last 8 payments for the phone you're replacing. I don't see the downside.

I want to do Next now.
I was bait and switched on the MobileShare i am referring too.

I was never made aware that when I upgraded my phone again on mobile share i would pay $25 a month more per phone. Apparently it was hidden in some fine print online, that I never went online to read, since my upgrade was handled by a telephone rep. That is the bait and switch.

I was literally on MobileShare since day 1. I got an email about MobileShare the day it came out and called ATT. The rep of course didn't go over the fine print stuff, (most likely in their defense, they probably weren't fully educated on day 1.) So fast forward till tonight, I wasn't aware of this fine print.

So when I ordered my phone I thought I was keeping my current plan, and paying $399 for my 128gb 6+ and signing another 2 year deal which has pretty much been the norm for the last 10 years with ATT.

I wasn't aware until tonight when I got the text from ATT about the loss of the credit.

I am totally fine going to the Next program, but it may be too late.

BTW when I called AT&T tonight the rep was very sympathetic she said they were just informed of this policy themselves today, and she also told me they have been getting an extreme amount of calls about this.

I guess when I go to pick up my preorder from Apple , I'll see if I can get put on Next. But regardless I went from being an ATT fan to literally despising them after this tactic.
 
Last edited:
I hope this is true, I just got off the phone with AT&T.
And basically was told I needed to return the phone to Apple and reorder from ATT to get the Next Plan.
Which of course are back ordered till Thanksgiving with ATT.

Which leaves me the option of only paying the extra $25 per phone.
Or just not getting the iPhone 6, at all and canceling everything.

It's fixable. I talked with a super nice ATT rep on the phone for 30 mins about this. What she recommended is first have Apple verify they can fix it for you, if they dont, head to an ATT store when you can later in the day. Also the discount you'll get for being either on Next or can be reobtained at a later date if you lose it for picking a contract for a couple days. It can be reinstated, it's an option in their system.. it's not like a limb amputation where they cut it off and it's gone forever. ;)
 
Head to an ATT store with your phone, I meant. Try to keep the phone box unopened if you can. They can return it and reclassify it, pick Next, Bob's yer uncle.

edit: this process will take about an hour of your time, so be prepared. I got this method straight from an ATT store manager.
 
Last edited:
So when I ordered my phone I thought I was keeping my current plan, and paying $399 for my 128gb 6+ and signing another 2 year deal which has pretty much been the norm for the last 10 years with ATT.

I wasn't aware until tonight when I got the text from ATT about the loss of the credit.

Did you order online? It pops up when you are ordering subsidized that you will loose the discount if you continue.
 
I saw that text in the order process, but didn't know wtf it was talking about.. LOL. *shakes head* I mean, in my defense i've been with AT&T, then Cingular, then AT&T again after the merger for YEARS, man.. As in over 10+ years.. this was the first time they have ever removed a discount for picking a 2 year contract. I didn't even understand why they would do this until reading all the shenanigans. Basically they don't want to help us pay for our iPhones anymore. Q.Q
 
If you are using 10GB share plan, NEXT is cheaper. if you have multiple people doing upgrades at once, the NEXT might be better.

***I got that TEXT today as well. this is an attempt to sway me to switch to NEXT. but I already did the math (many times over) and know what plan benefits us more.

Yes this is our case.

Im not even sure I can go on Next at this point even if I want too, so that might be a moot point.

I am supposed to pick up 2 Phones from the Apple Store Pre-Order on Friday.
I have no clue if they can switch me from the 2yr contact to Next at Apple or not.
Guess I'll find out Friday.

----------

Agree 100% with this, I've had a cell phone with ATT 10+ years and this is something I've never dealt with before. Apparently they have decided to use more deceptive marketing tactics now, guess going forward you need to ask them 100 questions from 100 different angles so that they don't catch you in some BS hidden fine print that lets them exploit their deceptive marketing.
 
The $15 rate was for those before a certain date. After that, you won't get the $15 rate UNLESS you go for Next or pay full price for the device. This is their way of adding in the subsidy

https://www.att.com/shop/wireless/data-plans.html#fbid=bp85t3QxeTI

Image

It's not AT&T's fault failing to read the fine print. It's YOURS. It's there... crystal clear.

Doesn't mean its the right or ethical action by AT&T. It still comes as an unpleasant surprise to many people. Good advertising for T-Mobile, however.
 
Why do people hate Next? I don't see it as being lied to by AT&T or bait & switched. Next is cheaper. You should be happy they're offering it, instead of feeling you got scammed. My monthly bill decreased $25/line when I signed up for the Mobile Shared Plan, and I knew they would go back up if any of us signed a 2-yr agreement for a "discounted" phone. That's why the wife and I did Next for these 6's. Cheaper in the long run, don't have to shell out anything up front, and get to upgrade faster and not pay the last 8 payments for the phone you're replacing. I don't see the downside.

On my current 'old' nationwide family plan I have 5 lines with 3 being eligible for upgrades this year and 2 the following year; i staggered them on purpose. Once i upgrade, I can sell the old iPhones 5's and 5s' to pay off the balance on the 6s; in essence giving free upgrade. For people like me, people who know how to stack the system in our favor, who have been living since the 3G with essentially free yearly upgrades, NEXT is a terrible value. Sure the service is cheaper... at first... but you end up paying more as soon as you start upgrading your lines.
I know you've read everyone's comments about this BUT you need to run the numbers.

take a 2-year time period and run the numbers for each option: NEXT and 2-Year Contract pricing.

If you are using 10GB share plan, NEXT is cheaper. if you have multiple people doing upgrades at once, the NEXT might be better.

My wife and I share a (measly) 2GB month share plan. She is on NEXT (came from contract so she does NOT pay the installment price per month) I was on BYOD (Bring your own device) we both get a $15 "credit" from the $40/mo per phone price. if I went NEXT with iP6 I would pay no more per month EXCEPT for the new phone monthly price. with 2-Year CONTRACT I pay $15 MORE per month ($40/mo like 'normal') and the upfront cost.

for us, the 2-year Contract option is $50-100 cheaper over 2 years. AFTER 2 years, my contract is "up" and my rate for my phone drops from $40/mo to $25/mo...unless we opt for 10GB plan and then it drops down to $15/mo


BTW, for me, the 10GB NEXT plan is cheaper than 6GB NEXT plan! but again, we are on 2GB. 1/2/4GB plans for 2 people (in our situation) is better to have me on a 2-year CONTRACT.

***I got that TEXT today as well. this is an attempt to sway me to switch to NEXT. but I already did the math (many times over) and know what plan benefits us more.

When you factor in the resale price of the iPhone it kills NEXT.

The family shared plans might be good for someone who has a lot of lines that use no data and a line or two that uses a lot of data. But the older family plans were much better for people who yearly upgraded.
 
Last edited:
Next is cheaper for us - 10gb MSVP, two lines, 24% employee discount. It's also cheaper for me to pick 10gb plan instead of 6gb because of how the employee discount works, lol.
Am in exact same situation as you (w/ discount) and on Mobile Share value 10gb plan

except with 3 lines.

the discount is on the data, yes? (and not the cost for each phone)
 
If you went from a subsidized phone to the NEXT program they would LOWER your monthly rate.

This is merely a different way of recouping the money for the phone that they never partially "gave" you. You buy the phone at retail price in the end no matter which wireless plan you choose.
 
Am in exact same situation as you (w/ discount) and on Mobile Share value 10gb plan

except with 3 lines.

the discount is on the data, yes? (and not the cost for each phone)


The discount comes to $24 so it's applied to whatever they refer to the $100 fee as, and nothing else.. Primary plan service fee? So correct, employee discount doesn't effect multiple lines, just the primary plan amount. For the 10gb plan it's $100
 
My own dumb fault but I almost got bit by this as well.

I pre-ordered a 6 64GB mid contract on the mobile share plan for $549 and then realized that in addition to only a partial subsidy I would be paying the extra $25 a month for 2 years. $549 + $600 = $1149 :mad::mad::mad::mad:

Had to cancel my pre-order. :mad::mad::mad::mad:

I'll be in line tomorrow hopefully getting the same phone on Next 18.
 
Last edited:
Folks,

I spoke with an AT&T rep last night for close to an hour who CONFIRMED they are working on AT LEAST one new plan or structuring due to the uproar the $40 charge is causing. She mentioned to me they had something in the works two weeks ago, but AT&T corporate pulled it back to make a few changes. She advised I call back in about four weeks and she is "pretty sure" they will have a plan that will satisfy the customers who feel as though AT&T was trying to pull a fast one...let's wait it out and see how true it is.
 
And as someone earlier noted: the subsidized plans used to cost the same AFTER your 2-year contract if you stayed with the same phone...meaning you kept paying a subsidy.

they give a discount to NEXT lines because they actually WANT you to upgrade yearly or every 2 years because they get a decent phone back, still new enough to resell AND you stay in the ever-paying monthly plans.

for me, we keep our phones 3-4 years so we make out better than ATT and on NEXT (if it was the same pricing or better) we'd still do better than ATT.
 
I'm on AT&T, have unlimited, I haven't seen any change in my bill and I better not.

You'll be fine. A lot of people switched from the unlimited plan to this 10 GB plan to save a few dollars. Then it comes time to upgrade and all of a sudden they are paying more money than if they just stayed on the unlimited plan. There does seem to be a lot of confusion regarding the 10 GB plan, so I wouldn't be surprised if the AT&T representatives are being deceptive when getting people to switch.
 
Just got around to reading the fine print for my upgrade. A lot is changing and I don't even understand half of the stuff I agreed to. What the hell is a HumancentiPad anyway?
 
Not to start something here but it amazes me that people don't take the time to understand the agreements they get themselves into.

When the mobile share value plans came out you had to either call in or go to the store and switch to them.

At that time you switch everyone who had a contract that started before February 2014 was given a one-time pass that gave you a $25.00 bill credit per phone.

At&t wants to get out of the subsided phone business just like every other carrier. Instead of forcing everyone into the next plan they dangled a "$25.00 a month bill credit carrot".

The information is clearly posted on their website (see below).

Not to be ignorant but only a fool signs/agrees to a contract they don't understand.

Mobile Share Value Pricing: Prices include monthly plan charge and monthly access charge per device. AT&T NextSM installment charges extra. Devices sold separately. For plans 10GB or higher, customers with smartphones on 2-yr agreements prior to 2/2/14 are eligible for the $15/mo. access charge. For plans 2GB to 6GB, customers with smartphones on 2-yr agreements prior to 3/9/14 are eligible for the $25/mo. access charge. This discounted pricing is avail. as long as you keep your phone. If upgrading to a new phone the discount is only avail. via AT&T NextSM or when you bring your own phone or buy a new phone at full price. If you upgrade to a new 2-yr agmt the discount is lost. Data: If you exceed the amount of data in your plan during your billing period, an additional 300MB, 500MB, or 1GB is automatically provided as specified in your rate plan. Data allowances, including overages, must be used in billing period provided or will be forfeited. Tethering and mobile hotspot use is allowed for up to 5 simultaneous devices. Device Limits: 10 per plan for consumers and IRUs. Limit 4 financed devices per wireless account may apply. Gen. Wireless Svc Terms: Subject to Wireless Customer Agmt or applicable Business Agmt. Activation/upgrade fee per line & deposit may apply. Credit approval may be req’d. Coverage & svc not avail everywhere. Other restr’s apply & may result in svc termination. Other Monthly Charges: Apply per line and may include taxes, federal/state universal service charges, a Regulatory Cost Recovery Charge (up to $1.25), a gross receipts surcharge, an Administrative Fee, and other government assessments which are not government-required charges, including without limitation a Property Tax Allotment surcharge of $0.20-$0.45 per CRU's assigned number. Monthly access charge per device may not be eligible for discounts. Pricing subject to change.
 
My friend and I were talking about this a couple months ago when talking about our bills. We were both surprised that there wasn't more people fussing, but I guess it takes people actually getting new phones for them to look at their bill.

When AT&T changed the pricing in February and made it cheaper for everyone they didn't do that just to be nice to the customer, there was definitely thought behind it. Pretty genius if you ask me though.
 
I think it is the mobile share value plans that came out in February. Regular mobile share isn't changing.

correct. my original mobil share plan isnt changing.

they are not charging you more, then are simply not giving you the discount you had any longer
 
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.