#Data plans on #AT&T are undergoing adjustments - http://clapway.com/2015/08/16/att-next-in-line-to-adjust-its-data-plans-224/

AT&T has decided to join the club and change up the way it handles its data plans in an effort to keep up with the now rapidly changing wireless industry.

Introducing New Data Plans

On Friday AT&T announced a new set of Mobile Share Value plans which went into effect on Aug. 15. A lot of the changes are mostly positive. The company is giving more data for the same amount customers were paying before, and it’s adding free calling and texting to our neighbors on our borders (Canada and Mexico), but only for customers who are on higher tiered plans.

Details on the New Plans

AT&T’s new data plans aren’t quite as big a change as some of the other carrier’s. The best deal seems to be the $100 package: originally this offered 10GB of data, but now AT&T is offering 15GB of data for the same price. The $70 (6GB)plan has been nixed and a new $50(5GB) tier has replaced it. The last two changes are for power users or business owners. The 20GB data plan received a $10 price cut, so it now only costs $140, and a new 25GB tier has been introduced that will run $170. Here is a full rundown of all their plans:

$20 – 300MB

$30 – 2GB

$50 – 5GB

$100 – 15GB

$140 – 20GB

$170 – 25GB

For T-Mobile users, these prices might still seem a bit much, but AT&T has slightly undercut Verizon on just about every tier level they now offer.

Why AT&T is Changing Their Data Plans

Now these changes don’t really come as any surprise since it seems like every other mobile carrier has recently made major changes to their data plans, but there may be more here than meets the eye.

Previously AT&T offered 1GB and 3GB plans, so its 2GB plan is new. According to a report by analytics firm Mobidia, most users only use about 1.8GB of data. Now, that’s on average, so there are certainly times when a user may go over that amount, and for $20 more, AT&T is allowing users to purchase 150% more data, which seems like a great deal for the consumer, even if they never hit that amount. They’re purchasing a safety net, but AT&T is making that extra $20 off potentially millions of customers.

What AT&T has done is simply instilled a safety net feature into all of its plans that tries to convince users to upgrade to the next highest tier because it’s only that much more. Family plans also have a tendency to be difficult to move away from because they can be complicated since there are so many moving parts.

Either way you cut it, AT&T’s new plans are a good change for consumers.

Take a read of or watch Clapway’s week in review:

AT&T Next in Line to Adjust Its Data Plans

Verizon Kills off Contracts and Subsidies - http://clapway.com/2015/08/08/verizon-kills-off-contracts-and-subsidies-101/

Verizon has announced that it will officially be the second carrier to stop wrangling their customers into two-year contracts every time they purchase a new phone. Verizon subscribers will be able to choose from a new selection of cheaper plans (sans the subsidy fee), but that means customers will have to purchase the phone outright — by either paying for it in-full or through monthly payment installations.

Verizon Kills Subsidies

T-Mobile was the first wireless carrier in the US to cut ties with subsidizing phones for its customers, but in doing so they set forth a ripple effect that has convinced the other carriers to follow suit.

For customers, this means that they’ll now have to purchase phones outright, which incentivizes manufacturers to offer phones at more competitive prices and, hopefully, entices them to put smartphones on sale more often.

According to Verizon, the subsidy fee they charged in a two-year contract was about $19 a month. Multiplying that number by the number of months in two years means customers were paying around $456 a year. An iPhone 6 is currently $649 through Verizon, so if you tack on the $200 a user would typically pay for a subsidized iPhone 6 then it’s easy to see that users won’t really pay any more or less without a contract. Suddenly that subsidy doesn’t really seem like much of a subsidy.

Verizon to Offer a New Range of Plans

Starting on August 13, Verizon is also going to be offering a new set of plans that range from four main options: small, medium, large, and extra large. Verizon will be eliminating the subsidy fee, which will discount voice, text, and data plans by about $20 a month. The amount will depend based on each plan, however.

The different “sizes” refer to the amount of data each plan offers. A small plan only offers 1GB of data, while an extra large plan offers up to 12GB. Here is a quick price breakdown for single lines:

Small – $30/month 1GB of data

Medium – $45/month 3GB of data

Large – $60/month 6GB of data

Extra Large – $80/month 12GB of data

Grandfathering is Alive and Well

Current customers who don’t want to switch plans will still be able to keep the same plans they have now. Verizon mentioned that there would be some restrictions that may apply (perhaps with regard to the few still holding onto their unlimited data plans), but Verizon didn’t give any precise details about what the stipulations might be.

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WHEN YOU HAVE A BREAK FROM PHONE WOES, TAKE A LOOK AT ATMOPH

 

Verizon Kills off Contracts and Subsidies