Tutor
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6 Messages
New phone plans just SUCK
Is there any talk to bring back the original 2 year contract plan?
So I went to my local AT&T store to upgrade to an iphone6. I was told that I could get a 2 year contract but have to pay an extra 50$/mon on my phone bill or I could go for the "next plan" and pay an extra 20$/mon. I did the calculation and I am paying over $1000 to own an iphone which don't want to do.
I loved the "pay up front $100 or $200" and then my original bill- it was cheaper and less hassle.
sandblaster
ACE - Expert
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64.7K Messages
9 years ago
You got bad info. I presume you are on a mobile share value plan. If you buy a phone at the 2 year contract price you will lose the "out of contract" discount you have on that line. Your discount is either $15 or $25 depending on how many GB your mobile share plan is. In other words, the most your monthly bill will increase $25 and that will only be for the length of your contract. Once the contract is fulfilled the discount kicks back in.
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NCSUsoccer
Tutor
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6 Messages
9 years ago
Exactly, so I am paying an extra 25$ for 24 mons which is $600 extra dollars I did not have to pay before. In otherwords, I am paying more money- and that is not a better "deal". I was able to save some money with switching to the mobile share plan but I get penalized with getting a new phone so I decided NOT to get a new phone and suffer.
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guitargain
Scholar
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187 Messages
9 years ago
I have been with AT&T for 15 years. I will say (even though you will probably not believe it) that you were always paying full price for your phone one way or another. Before the Mobile Share Value Plans came along, you were paying $200 for the upgrade but the remainder of the retail price of the phone was built into your monthly plan fees. When they started offering the MSV Plans they gave users that weren't in contract a way by which to get the discount for being out of contract. If you then return to a contract you will lose the discount and in effect pay retail price for the phone anyway in the increased monthly bill. I currently have two iphones with 10 gig mobile share plan that costs me $121 (I get a 17% FAN discount) a month plus the next price of $28 per month for 30 months. I will pay off the phone early and sell it when the new one comes out and upgrade using next again. I am perfectly happy with it. It seems that lots of folks can't or won't accept the fact that you were always paying full price for the phone, it just wasn't up front and was hidden in the monthly plan charges.
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NCSUsoccer
Tutor
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6 Messages
9 years ago
So I have a 24% FAN discount. I pay roughly 90$ for the 4gig mobile share plan per month. How much extra per month and TOTAL per month would I be paying- say if I got 2 new iphones? (5S, 5C, or 6). Would I be spending less than 90$? If It is the 5C, I can trade/sell back my 4 for 100$ and thus both phones would be free and the only thing I could be paying for is an activation fee. I was okay with that before the new contracts.
I got quoted paying around 120$+ for 2 phones and mobile share plan. I am paying 90$ now. I just need a new phone and why pay more money?
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NCSUsoccer
Tutor
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6 Messages
9 years ago
If I can pay 100$ or even 110$ per month for 2 new iphones including mobile share plan. I will definitely take that to my nearest AT&T store.
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GLIMMERMAN76
ACE - Expert
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23.9K Messages
9 years ago
120 is where you would be with losing the 2 15 a month discounts.
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GeekBoy
Master
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4.1K Messages
9 years ago
Many people witched to the Mobile Share Value plans when they came out and took advanttage of that out of contract discount, even if they were inder contract. I know I did, and I saved about $50/month for our account with 2 iPhones. For many people, the switch from Family Talk to Mobile Share plans meant that their bills would not change at all, or would only change very little. For me, that change would have meant that my bill would have gone up about $2.50/month. Now when the Mobile Share Value Plans came along, that promotional discount was enticing, so I sat down and did the math. How much would is cost me if I switched to the new plan and got a new phone under contract, how much would it cost me if I switched to the new plan and got a new phone using NEXT, and how much wold it cost me if I kept my old plan. To get the most accurate comparison, I used the total cost over 2 years, and that's where I came out to the new Mobile Share Value Plan and NEXT agreement costing me about $60 more over the full 2 years, or about $2.50/month over my old Family Talk plan. For that extra little cost, I did get several benefits though. I can now use the Mobile Hotspot feature of my phone without any additional fees (as long as I don't go over my data limit), and my wife no longer got her data speeds throttled when she exceeded 5GB usage in a single month (She was averaging about 6.5GB where I was averaging closer to 2.5GB).
In the end, it was such a small amount, and I have to admit that ti was nice to spread that cost of the 128GB iPhone 6 across the 24 month NEXT term rather than having to give AT&T close to $500 for each of the 128GB phones we got. When you include the total costs (Phone, service, taxes, fees, etc.) the cost difference may be much smaller than you really think. The other nice thing is that as long as you haven't switched away from your old Family Talk plan, you can still keep it (for now at least), so if you think it's that much better, then don't switch away from it.
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formerlyknownas
ACE - Sage
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117.2K Messages
9 years ago
Before when? About 18/19 months ago AT&T announced you could get a discount if you were out of contract. What a short memory!
So here we go again... You get a DISCOUNT for being OUT OF CONTRACT.
If you enter a NEW contract, you LOSE THE DISCOUNT.
FYI, all carriers are now making it clear that you must pay for your own phone and you always have been. 2 year subsidy plans are on their way out. Enjoy them while they last.
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formerlyknownas
ACE - Sage
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117.2K Messages
9 years ago
Absolutely true!
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Busternutt
Professor
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3.2K Messages
9 years ago
If you enter into a new two year contract, that IS basically the "original 2 year contract". i.e. under the "original 2 year contract", you did not get a service plan discount that you are currently receiving depending on your data plan.
Go back and look at your bills for the first two years after you got your last phone and while you were under contract. You won't find a discount.
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