In the past few years, we have witnessed a lot of changes, but you may have overlooked the dramatic changes in the wireless industry. As the two companies merged (although some Sprint customer plans are still in transition), Sprint customers will finally become T-Mobile customers in 2020. This transaction reduces the number of major wireless operators from the four largest-AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon-to three. But the Big Four are not the only ones making waves.
Cable provider Cox Communications appealed the October 2021 court decision that stopped wireless network transactions with Verizon. Cox hopes to follow in the footsteps of other cable TV providers Comcast and Charter Communications, who enter the mobile field as Xfinity Mobile and Spectrum Mobile respectively, and have reached a network transaction with Verizon. Coupled with smaller operators, including Ting, Mint Mobile, Google Fi, etc., the competition for your dollar is fierce.
Purchasing a new plan depends on the data and phone needs of you and your family. Toni Toikka, president of Alekstra, a research company that analyzes the wireless service industry in New York City, said that by changing wireless operators, a family of four can save an average of nearly $930 a year. In addition, the operator may allow you to superimpose promotions because telephone transactions and planned transactions are separate.
Read on for planning recommendations for four typical users. To compare wireless plans, you can visit WhistleOut.com or Wirefly.com. Both sites provide search tools that allow you to compare plans and current promotions of dozens of operators. If you agree to set up automatic payments and choose paperless billing, you will usually get discounts ranging from $5 to $10 per line per month.
But don't let the price alone dictate you. In addition to your data needs, also consider how often you want to upgrade your phone and the value of promotional activities to you.
In order to discourage customers from flying to competing operators, the three giants have been offering toll-free lines and toll-free calls. In addition, wireless companies are increasingly cooperating with media companies to provide subscription services for HBO Max, Netflix, and more.
AT&T and Verizon are essentially giving away mobile phones to attract and retain customers. AT&T provides free iPhone 13 for new and old customers, with 128 GB of storage space, which you can fully own through eligible trade-in. Verizon offers up to $1,000 discount on the iPhone 13 Pro for users who open a new product line and trade with an old device (as long as it works). The starting retail price of the iPhone 13 Pro is $999.99. The newer your current phone, the higher the value of trade-in. Verizon also offers similar promotions on Android phones.
However, to take advantage of this transaction in any company, you must sign up for one of the unlimited data plan options. And because the promotion is issued as a credit line applied to your monthly bill, you will basically use the carrier until the promotion is completed, which usually takes two years. For example, if you want to change carriers after one year, you must pay the remaining balance of the phone.
As far as T-Mobile is concerned, it is giving away more. It recently offered a third line for free to eligible new and existing customers, provided they signed up for any unlimited plan. In addition, T-Mobile can give you toll-free calls, as long as you are willing to pay with bill credits and you sign up for a specific unlimited plan.
If you have cut the cable and streamed your favorite TV shows and movies from various services, you might save on signing up with an operator who will pay part or all of the cost for the service. Verizon will launch AMC for up to one year with its iPhone 13 Pro discount, depending on the unlimited plan you choose. AT&T customers who sign up for the Unlimited Elite program can get HBO Max for free.
T-Mobile’s Magenta plan pays for Apple TV for one year. For Ted Lasso fans, this means saving $24.95 a year. The plan also comes with a free Netflix basic account (meaning you can only watch one show on one screen or device at a time), which usually costs $8.99 per month. To upgrade to four screens, you need to pay an additional $9 per month. (If you sign up for Netflix yourself, the cost of the plan is $17.99.)
The four-line Magenta plan starts at $35 per line per month. The price includes a discount for registering for automatic payment, as well as a discount covering the third line of fees. (For more details, see the plan that works for you.)
Having enough data is always a problem, because most people use their smartphones to surf the Internet, play games or play shows. If you do not use your home wireless Internet connection or other Wi-Fi networks, your data usage will increase rapidly. Data availability is also an issue for remote workers who use the mobile hotspot feature of their mobile phones to connect their laptops to the Internet. According to the NPD Connected Intelligence Data Consumption report, by the end of 2020, the average amount of data used by each mobile phone per month is 17.3GB. (For context, HD movie streaming on Netflix uses 3GB of data per hour per device.)
If you have an unlimited plan, you don't have to worry about running out of data. To participate in any new mobile phone transaction of the Big Three, you will most likely have to register for one.
If you don't need unlimited full-speed data (or a new phone), you have other options. AT&T offers Unlimited Extra, which is a mid-range plan that includes unlimited calls and texts and 50GB of premium data. Afterwards, if the network is busy, AT&T may reduce your speed. If you agree to paperless billing and autopay, the fee for each of the four lines is $40 per month (a single line fee is $75). The plan also includes 15GB of hotspot data per row. AT&T also offers Unlimited Starter, which is a package without a mobile hotspot, and a family of four charges $35 per line per month. Verizon and T-Mobile offer similar plans.
The Big Three are not the only operators with attractive plans and phone deals. If you haven't purchased a plan with a juicy subscription add-on, consider one of the new customer deals of the smaller carrier.
For example, Mint Mobile allows new customers to test its services on a three-month plan. You can choose from four plans, including an unlimited plan with a free mobile hotspot, which costs $30 per month for three months. After the three months are over, you can choose to sign up for a three-month, six-month, or 12-month plan-but to maintain a monthly fee of $30, you must sign up for a 12-month plan.
This offer does not come with a smartphone, so you will receive a SIM card that needs to be activated. Before pulling the trigger, please double check that your phone is compatible with Mint's service (see BYO Phone).
Mint also offers a new customer discount, allowing you to purchase a new phone and 6 months of service, while receiving another 6 months of service for free. For example, the total cost of an iPhone 13 Pro with 128GB of storage space and six months of service is $1,269. Mint provides you with the option of prepayment within 24 months or through Affirm (a purchase-after-payment installment company) to fund the purchase.
At Xfinity mobile, you can also choose from four plans, one of which has unlimited options. The cost of a family of four is $30 per row per month. However, to redeem the money saved, you must register for Xfinity's Internet service. If you change your internet provider later and you do not sign up for Xfinity TV or voice services, you will have to pay an additional fee of $25 per month per line.
The plans of the small operators look similar to those offered by the three major operators, but there are some caveats. On the one hand, your service may not be as fast as advertised. "These operators use one of the three major networks," Toica said. "Technically, you should be able to get the same quality because it is the same network. However, this is not always true because larger operators can prioritize their own traffic," he said.
Suppose you have registered for a plan for Mint Mobile that uses the T-Mobile network. If more T-Mobile customers (now including former Sprint users) are using the network, even if all plans boast that they have 5G or 4G LTE speeds, your Mint plan may be slowed down.
Another caveat: If you need help with service, you won’t be able to go to the physical store to talk to a customer representative. You must solve your problem over the phone, online, or through the operator’s smartphone app.
Want to keep the phone but switch to another plan? Most operators allow switchers to bring their own phones or devices (BYOP), as long as they are compatible and unlocked. You might even get a discount for it.
For example, Verizon will provide up to $500 to exchanges that hold phones on Verizon gift cards to purchase Verizon products and services, including your bill. To get the full amount, you must register online for the Do More, Play More, or Get More unlimited plans; for a family of four, the prices of these three plans range from US$45 to US$55 per month. If other family members keep their phones, each phone is eligible for a gift card. The offer will end on December 31, 2021.
To check if your phone is compatible with the carrier, check the carrier’s website. It will have a tool for you to enter the brand, model, and device identification number of your phone, called IMEI. To request unlocking, please call your carrier or check your account online to learn the steps to be performed and prepare the IMEI of your device. Equipment purchased directly from the carrier is usually locked within 40 to 60 days after purchase. After unlocking, you can replace the old SIM card with a new one.
Or, you can buy unlocked phones directly from manufacturers or retailers (such as Apple Store, Best Buy, Target, or Amazon). These unlocked devices are ready to use-you just need to insert the SIM card of the carrier of your choice. "According to experience, flagship phones such as the iPhone 13 Pro Max, Samsung Galaxy S21 5G Ultra and Samsung Z Fold 3, and the new Pixel 6 Pro equipped with Verizon or AT&T have received the highest scores," said Michael Ahene, associate editor of trading website Brad's Deals.
The manufacturer or retailer may have its own financing plan. For example, Apple and Samsung provide financing, and if you have a Best Buy credit card, Best Buy provides financing. Be sure to buy a 5G compatible mobile phone.
We chose a reasonably priced and reasonably priced plan for the four profiles. If you don’t want to shop around, call your carrier and ask if it can do anything for you. For example, the plan you originally registered for may no longer be available to new customers, so you can upgrade to a newer plan at the current price.
For a family of four looking for a combination of phone calls and planning transactions, T-Mobile's Magenta plan is a good choice. Each line costs $35 per month, and comes with 100GB of high-quality data and 5GB of high-speed hotspot data (the data will be slowed down to 3G speed afterwards, but the data usage is unlimited). The plan also comes with a basic Netflix account. T-Mobile currently has a promotion where if you switch from another mobile phone operator to T-Mobile by bringing your number, you can pay up to $1,000 for eligible mobile phones. Eligible subscribers include Verizon, AT&T, Spectrum, US Cellular, etc. The promotion is limited to 5 lines per subscriber, which means that your whole family can be reimbursed for each phone and transferred number. Reimbursement is through prepaid MasterCard. (As of mid-November, the deadline for the promotion has not yet been determined.)
If getting the lowest possible price is your primary goal, and you have a compatible phone that you want to use, check out Visible's Party Pay. This is how it works: each family member signs up for their service for $25 in the first month, and one family member creates a "party" and asks others to join. Once everyone is activated and joined, the fee remains at $25 per line per month, and everyone is billed separately. Everyone can get unlimited calls, text and data, and 5GB of mobile hotspot data. Visible is supported by Verizon's network. For more information, please visit www.visible.com/plan/party-pay.
If you are 55 years or older, you have several attractive options. T-Mobile’s Unlimited 55 Magenta plan includes a basic subscription to Netflix, with two lines priced at $70 per month. This plan is similar to T-Mobile's regular Magenta plan, but two lines save $50 a month. If you need a phone upgrade, if you sign up for financing, you may be eligible for a free Android 5G compatible phone.
Do I just need to call friends and kids? Ting’s Flex account is $10 per month, or $20 per month for two lines. The data is additional (and shared with other rows in your account); you will need to pay $5 per GB of data. Ting uses T-Mobile and Verizon networks. Or consider Mint Mobile's 4GB data 3-month plan. The cost for each line is $15 per month, if you register two lines, the cost for the first three months is $90. To keep the price at $15 per row per month, you must select a 12-month plan for both plans when you renew.
In addition to satisfying existing customers and attracting new customers, all operators are focused on adding and improving their 5G infrastructure while ensuring that customers understand what all this means to them.
"It takes about two years for us to roll out 5G, and it usually takes four to six years for telecom operators to fully cover the United States," said Daniel Hayes, head of PwC US Telecom, which provides audit and tax services. Planning and consulting services.
If you can access a 5G network and your phone is 5G compatible, your access speed may still be slower than you expected. Operators are still remodeling towers and adding them to densely populated areas before expanding into rural areas. For example, in New York City, you may get speeds below 100 megabits per second on a compatible smartphone, said Toni Toikka, president of Alekstra, a research firm that analyzes the wireless service industry in New York City. He said that 4G is usually downloaded at a speed of 50 megabits per second, so the speed difference is not enough to make most people notice.
If you don't have a 5G compatible phone, 5G is meaningless until you get a new phone. All major mobile phone operators have announced the closure of 3G cellular services (see Farewell to 3G phone services). The timeline varies throughout the year, but it will be completed for Sprint's 3G network as early as January. If your device relies on the old wireless standard, you will no longer be able to use certain data services, send text messages, or make phone calls, including dialing 911. Old 4G phones that do not support modern cellular voice technology, such as LTE voice or HD voice, will also be affected. These customers may require software upgrades.
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