AT&T tried to rip me off today.

[Seliphas]

I thought that as well, until someone pointed out that if you pay off the phone under Next you are just paying the new cost of the phone over 20 months. In that scenario, you get the value of the time cost of money for 20 months. I think the best solution is to buy a discounted phone from a 3rd party if available--for instance the MS store has the 1520 for $449 right now. Otherwise, I don't really see Next as a rip-off.

I actually did the math...if you are on the newest family plan and did the 12month att Next and traded for new phone to start it over, it will actially be cheaper over the year than a 2yr contract bc of not having a line activation fee and $200 down payment. U will just have higher monthly payments than usual...before the new family value plan, Next was definitely a ripoff. I will be starting up the next program as soon as the next big windows phone release arrives

 

[spaulagain]

ATT Next on a Family Share plan is about the same because they provide a discount with it. If you're on a single plan, it's a ripoff.

 

[ohgood]

So as some of you may have read before, I'm looking for a new WP because both of the cameras on my 920 no longer work. Aside from that, I love the phone, love the platform, etc. etc. So we go into AT&T looking to upgrade my 920, and the guy says no problem, and quickly does the math for me. Having done some research online, I knew there was a $25 discount by using AT&T Next per line, so I was banking on that offsetting a large part of the monthly cost. No dice. Having recently switched over from a family plan to the new mobile share plans, I was informed that my current price per line is $15. So far so good, right?

If I had upgraded today, which I did not, they would have raised the price of the line by $25 to $40, then taken the $25 off, putting me back at $15, then added $29.25 to my bill every month for this line alone. Which brings me to a grand total of.... $44.25 for that line. Almost $30 more than what I am paying now. Disillusioned, but okay with waiting, I asked the rep what happens if I wait until November to get a new phone, and just get the standard 2-year contract. He informed me the price would STILL go up $25 a line to $40 a line. So if I had upgraded today, it would have been $29.25/month X 12 months... adding a full $351 to my bill over the year. Considering we have three lines, when we are forced to upgrade phones due to breaking them or malfunctioning (phones won't last forever, but I sure as heck won't upgrade before necessary now), it will cost us at least $1,053 more every year on my bill, no matter what.

I actually went home and did the math on breaking the contract and adding a line to my corporate account at Verizon, and it ended up being cheaper to break my contract with AT&T on that line, pay $145 in ETFs, and buy the Icon for $200 on Verizon than it would be to pay for Next. The worst part about the whole ordeal though, is how shady AT&T was with the switch to Mobile Share plans. I came in under the assumption that I would be able to keep the $15 a line price, and they pulled the rug out from underneath us by not informing us that price would go up SIGNIFICANTLY every month when we are forced to buy new phones.

Sorry for the rant, but I was extremely disappointed with how AT&T attempted to take almost $1,100 more from my wallet by changing to these mobile share plans without telling me how it would work. If this is in the wrong thread, mods, I'm sorry, but I wasn't sure where to put it, and as the original story pertains to an attempted upgrade to the 1520, I figured this worked.

I don't undersyand why you wouldn't just buy the phone you want without contract, and out the Sim card in?

Vote with your money instead of signing up for more of the same ?

 

[btbam91]

From what I understand, they just decided to give a perk to on-contract users by allowing them to reduce their monthly cost to $15 for the remainder of their existing contract only. It was nice for those of us that bought 920s because my overall cost dropped dramatically when I switched to mobile share. It's pretty clear from their pricing structure, though, that they are trying to get people to move from 2-year contracts to ATT Next.

THIS. I thought it was communicated pretty well that to keep $15/month, you have to either bring your own device or do AT&T next.

 

[TonyDedrick]

So essentially these so called savings for mobile share customers are only applicable to those in the midst of a contract or who choose to get a new phone with the Next program?

 

[Zacharyw70]

So I'm confused. Is AT&T NEXT a good deal or not, seems like we have some conflicting opinions here.
To put it in terms for our family, we have 5 Smartphones on two-year contracts and we're currently paying around $250 a month for unlimited talk/text, 2 of the lines have 300MB of data, and the other 3 have an older 200MB's of data plan. I'm currently looking to upgrade my phone soon, so would we save any money if I changed it to the NEXT program instead of the 2-Year Contract where I will likely pay at least $99 for a new phone+$36 Upgrade Fee?

 

[wpnokia920]

I will say this. I was in a 2yr agreement with prob 20 months left. I have an addiction with phones and buy and sell alot, hate contracts. I found out though that if I switched to next plan, then payed off device(get cheapest full retail phone). You are then contract free, then sold both devices, previous device and next device for profit. Get phone you really want and have no contract. Lol woman at at&t said I see you found loop hole.

 

[btbam91]

So I'm confused. Is AT&T NEXT a good deal or not, seems like we have some conflicting opinions here.
To put it in terms for our family, we have 5 Smartphones on two-year contracts and we're currently paying around $250 a month for unlimited talk/text, 2 of the lines have 300MB of data, and the other 3 have an older 200MB's of data plan. I'm currently looking to upgrade my phone soon, so would we save any money if I changed it to the NEXT program instead of the 2-Year Contract where I will likely pay at least $99 for a new phone+$36 Upgrade Fee?

I would say that AT&T Next is a rip off, but the mobile share plan isn't a ripoff IF you buy your phones off contract. For me, I was paying $100 for 5 GB. When I switched to mobile share plan, my bill remained at $100/month but now I get 10gb. I added my GF to my plan so now I pay $115/month for two lines. We both agreed to buy phones up front from here on out, which will always be a lower price than buying a phone on AT&T Next.

 

[BobLobIaw]

So I'm confused. Is AT&T NEXT a good deal or not, seems like we have some conflicting opinions here.
To put it in terms for our family, we have 5 Smartphones on two-year contracts and we're currently paying around $250 a month for unlimited talk/text, 2 of the lines have 300MB of data, and the other 3 have an older 200MB's of data plan. I'm currently looking to upgrade my phone soon, so would we save any money if I changed it to the NEXT program instead of the 2-Year Contract where I will likely pay at least $99 for a new phone+$36 Upgrade Fee?

If you get a data plan on mobile share that is under 10gb the per phone monthly cost is $25. 10gb data bucket or more is $15/mo/phone. If you are on mobile share 10gb or more with your five phones, Next would be cheaper than contract. For example, on a 1520 32gb phone over two years you would pay $360 in monthly fees on Next ($15 X 24 mo) + $640 for the phone ($32 X 20 mo.) for a total of $1000. On a 2-year contract you would pay $960 in monthly fees ($40 X 24 mo) + $249 for the phone for a total of $1,209, plus $36 activation fee. Also, you can upgrade by trade in with Next after 12 mo.

If you are on a data plan with less than 10 gb it looks to be pretty equivalent: Next at $1240 and 2-year contract at $1245. That option probably doesn't really make sense for your family because with five phones it is much more economical to get 10gb and only pay $15/mo/phone.

 

[Bizarro_Prime]

I have 1gig of data to play with and I always end up with around 200MB left over at the end of the month. I just use my phone as I have done in the past. Just because I have a higher speed data connection, doesn't mean I'm going to start using my phone differently. I'm just now able to do my regular stuff faster.

 

[anony_mouse]

If you can afford it, I always recommend to buy the phone yourself and get a SIM-only, month by month contract. It's much more flexible, usually cheaper and altogether much less hassle. You can upgrade, change operators, change inclusive minutes and data, move between countries, etc whenever you want.

 

[ohgood]

If you can afford it, I always recommend to buy the phone yourself and get a SIM-only, month by month contract. It's much more flexible, usually cheaper and altogether much less hassle. You can upgrade, change operators, change inclusive minutes and data, move between countries, etc whenever you want.

THIS ! i'd suggest that everyone that can't afford to spend $500 for today's latest and greatest flagship (off contract) just buy a phone from 1 1/2 years ago. The functionality is the same, the OS is the same, the specs are VERY similar. You'll also realize the immediate savings in two ways: It costs 20% of todays flagship, and there are no 'hooks' into you by the carrier.

Then, if/when you tire of your phone, you can just buy another one, and sell your old phone. No contracts, no issues.

Works this way with the carriers too.....If the service sucks, ditch it and try another carrier.

I just can't see any benefit to signing a contract for cellular service. Unless you're the carrier ;-)

 

[anony_mouse]

THIS ! i'd suggest that everyone that can't afford to spend $500 for today's latest and greatest flagship (off contract) just buy a phone from 1 1/2 years ago. The functionality is the same, the OS is the same, the specs are VERY similar. You'll also realize the immediate savings in two ways: It costs 20% of todays flagship, and there are no 'hooks' into you by the carrier.

Then, if/when you tire of your phone, you can just buy another one, and sell your old phone. No contracts, no issues.

Works this way with the carriers too.....If the service sucks, ditch it and try another carrier.

I just can't see any benefit to signing a contract for cellular service. Unless you're the carrier ;-)

Yes! I recently bought an unlocked Moto G. It's a really great phone and I just couldn't justify paying 3 times the price for a few extra minor features. I have a month by month SIM only contract costing about 10 euros per month (I could get even cheaper, but I'm too lazy to swap every few months). No long term commitment; I can choose the phone I want and change it whenever I like; and I can change to another operator at any time while keeping my current number. Unless you really can't afford to buy a phone upfront, I'd recommend this approach to anyone.

 

[etad putta]

Yes! I recently bought an unlocked Moto G. It's a really great phone and I just couldn't justify paying 3 times the price for a few extra minor features. I have a month by month SIM only contract costing about 10 euros per month (I could get even cheaper, but I'm too lazy to swap every few months). No long term commitment; I can choose the phone I want and change it whenever I like; and I can change to another operator at any time while keeping my current number. Unless you really can't afford to buy a phone upfront, I'd recommend this approach to anyone.

What is your opinion on the camera, it's the only thing holding me back. Thanks in advance.

 

[dkp23]

Some people i know think the new mobile sharing plan is cheaper than what they have now, but if anybody just sits down and do the math, it is pricey.

If somebody opts into a mobile sharing plan and want the $15 per month per device, dont upgrade or have any lines in a contract. Just buy the phone for $650 which is pretty standard for high-end phones off contract for ATT. It will be cheaper than paying $40 a month regardless if you go on next or not. Problem is people look at the upfront cost of $650 and say no way, but ultimately, it is cheaper.

I am on the old mobile sharing plan where for 10 gb its $120 per month plus $30 for each line (if you have more than 3 or something, i have 6 lines). Opting into the new mobile sharing plan with the $15 to $40 jump if you are on contract, increases my bill so i kept it. so its $30 per month regardless if i upgrade or not.

Simply, if ATT is telling you you are saving money, in the end, you wont. YOu just have to do the math yourself to find out which option is best for you.

I dont take advice from ATT reps when it comes to billing or phones. Which is simply, i dont take advce from them for anything.

 

[DaT Franchise]

I have 1gig of data to play with and I always end up with around 200MB left over at the end of the month. I just use my phone as I have done in the past. Just because I have a higher speed data connection, doesn't mean I'm going to start using my phone differently. I'm just now able to do my regular stuff faster.

Your either on WiFi 99% of the time or you dont do much at all with it.

 

[Jan Tomsic]

A 2 gig plan??? You can't do crap with 2 gigs a month anymore, not with LTE and HD video

You don't HAVE to watch video. I rarely do anyway, and if I do, I download it at home and put it on the device itself. I had 3GB before, and never used the whole amount, now I have 2000 units (1 unit = 1min, 1txt, 1MB) and I never use the whole thing. There's wifi everywhere anyway, and I can survive one hour bus ride without looking at cat videos. Play a game, read a book, listen to music or watch offline videos.

 

[DaT Franchise]

Not all of us have WiFi 24-7 13 hours out of my day is off WiFi and I stream music alot, 10 hours of music alone will nail you for 2-3 gigs. Cat videos not my thing I prefer porn, and racing.

So one text is one MB??? No way possible sorry more like 100kb

 

[infinity12402]

theyre not ripping anyone off. when you have a share everything plan with 10gb or more, and the phones you have on the plan are not on contract, they charge you 15 a month per line. if you have a 2 yr service subsidized phone, it goes up to 40 a month per line. now, if you use att next, you pay the 15 per line, but you also have to pay what ever the price per month is for the phone. all of this info is on the website and explains it if you look at it. they didnt try to rip you off.

 

[Moiz Mian]

Next + no-contract mobile share plan is actually a really good deal now. If you're on a shared plan anyway, you're paying $40 per line on contract, otherwise you can pay $15 per line and pay the full price on the phone. If you upgrade all the time, you break even, but you're still off contract. If you never upgrade your phones, you save tons of money.