Who has the best plan these days? (US carrier, Text, >3GB data)

[nibunnoichi]

Hi everyone, I'm looking for some help on deciding on a new smartphone plan.

I've been on Verizon's unlimited data plan for a long time. Prior to their $20 raise for grandfathered unlimited data customers, I was paying a very reasonable $69.99 / mon ($75 after taxes) for the following

• 450 min voice
• Unlimited text
• Unlimited Data

This was cheaper than normal due to a promotion discount I took advantage of. But after the $20 hike, I'm now playing $97/mo after taxes (basically wiping out my former promo discount).

I've spoken to Verizon about my options, and it seems the best current plan I can go for is this:

• Unlimited Voice
• Unlimited Text
• 3GB data
• $45/mo + $20 device fee = $65/mo (~$71 after taxes)

This represents an overall $25/month savings from my current UDP plan, but of course I'd lose the unlimited data. I can pay $15 more for 4GB of data, but at that point, it probably makes more sense to simply stick with my UDP. This is a tough call.

I recently got the Moto X Pure Edition, which works with -ALL- US carriers. This makes it very easy for me to switch between any carrier at any time, and that's what I'm looking to do, if in fact the grass is greener on the other side.

It would be great if I can get another Unlimited Data Plan, but that doesn't seem realistic these days. So I'd settle for at least a 3GB plan if it's a substantial savings. Although realistically I'd probably prefer something like 4GB/mo. I also need unlimited Text, but I don't care about voice (something like 100minutes/mo would be fine).

Can you guys recommend another plan from any carrier? Thanks for any input.

 

[paperwastage]

T-mobile's prepaid plan works for you

100 min, unlimited text, 5GB data (throttled to 2G ~64kbit/s after). additional minute = $0.10/minute

$30/month available online only
https://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/other-prepaid-plans


or find a couple of other people, do a 4-line unlimited* plan on T-mobile. $150 + tax/fees (assuming 10-20%), you'll be paying $40-$50 per line. or $120+tax for 4-lines 10GB each

*after 25GB< you may be deprioritized if the current tower is congested. if you move to an uncongested tower (or your cycle restarts), you stop being deprioritized. verizon doesn't have this behavior, unlimited is unlimited





with your phone, you should test-drive T-mobile first (aka get the sim, activate plan for 1 month, see if it works out. if yes, then port your number over. tmo usually has sales where you can get the sim card for <$1)

 

[nibunnoichi]

T-mobile's prepaid plan works for you

100 min, unlimited text, 5GB data (throttled to 2G ~64kbit/s after). additional minute = $0.10/minute

$30/month available online only
https://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/other-prepaid-plans

Hmm, that almost sounds too good to be true. Is the 5GB unrestricted full LTE speed?

 

[Chocu1a]

I left Verizon for Cricket. Uses AT&T towers, Unlimited talk, text, & 10Gb 4G LTE for $55(after auto bill pay discount). Speed is capped at 8mbps, but this is fast enough for almost everything I use.
5gb plans are $45 and 2.5gb plans are $35 after auto bill pay.

 

[paperwastage]

Hmm, that almost sounds too good to be true. Is the 5GB unrestricted full LTE speed?

yup....

the first 5GB is unrestricted full LTE speed....

any data you use counts towards this limit...
if you use 5GB on 2G/3G, it still counts towards the 5GB number, and you'll be throttled to 2G speeds after




this plan does offer music freedom (music streaming through certain providers don't count towards the 5GB, and it's not throttled when you go over)

 

[dlock13]

Cricket is pretty solid. They are owned by AT&T, so they have pretty great coverage and get 3rd most priority.
1st - AT&T
2nd - GoPhone
3rd - Cricket

$45/month (with autopay)
5 GB - up to 8 Mbps then throttled
Unlimited talk/text

If you want a reference, shoot me a PM with your email. If you stay active on Cricket for 60 days, we both get a $25 credit. That's probably the best part about Cricket. I didn't have to pay for this month because I gave 2 coworkers my reference.

 

[cpacini]

Metro pcs would be a good option too, they use tmobile's network. 40 for 3 gb or 50 for 5 gb. Now includes their version of music freedom, streaming music doesn't count against your cap.

 

[Evilviking]

I left Verizon for Cricket. Uses AT&T towers, Unlimited talk, text, & 10Gb 4G LTE for $55(after auto bill pay discount). Speed is capped at 8mbps, but this is fast enough for almost everything I use.
5gb plans are $45 and 2.5gb plans are $35 after auto bill pay.

Another vote for cricket ^. Got my family on it. 3 of us its only costs $90 a month

 

[soulcougher73]

Im on cricket also. Wife and I with the 2.5GB plan. With autopay on CC i pay $70/m ($35 each). Taxes etc are already figured into the plan price.

 

[nibunnoichi]

yup....

the first 5GB is unrestricted full LTE speed....

any data you use counts towards this limit...
if you use 5GB on 2G/3G, it still counts towards the 5GB number, and you'll be throttled to 2G speeds after

this plan does offer music freedom (music streaming through certain providers don't count towards the 5GB, and it's not throttled when you go over)

This plan sounds like my best bet so far. I've already started the process by ordering the SIM card (for $0.99)

So it seems I will need to choose the $30 plan during the activation process, after receiving the SIM card?

Do you know how tethering would work on this Plan?

Also, how does the "pre-paying" process work? Would I gave a T-mobile account online that I can login to and take care of payments? Is there auto-pay?

 

[BarkingGhostar]

I left Verizon for Cricket. Uses AT&T towers, Unlimited talk, text, & 10Gb 4G LTE for $55(after auto bill pay discount). Speed is capped at 8mbps, but this is fast enough for almost everything I use.
5gb plans are $45 and 2.5gb plans are $35 after auto bill pay.

AT&T is the parent company of Cricket.

 

[paperwastage]

This plan sounds like my best bet so far. I've already started the process by ordering the SIM card (for $0.99)

So it seems I will need to choose the $30 plan during the activation process, after receiving the SIM card?

yup. I suggest testing out the network before porting over number

you should probably order a spare or so... just in case, and they're so cheap anyways

Do you know how tethering would work on this Plan?

officially, only 100MB.

unofficially, it'll just eat into your regular data

Also, how does the "pre-paying" process work? Would I gave a T-mobile account online that I can login to and take care of payments? Is there auto-pay?

i think so..

if you use more than 100 minutes, you need to keep a balance in your account (so that t-mobile can deduct $0.10/minute when you go over). If you don't have a balance, T-mobile will flat-out reject any calls, won't pull money from your credit card

 

[holden j caufield]

tmobile or metro pcs would be your best option. I know of a lot of people who switched, it's best to have a tmobile phone with wifi calling.

 

[nibunnoichi]

yup. I suggest testing out the network before porting over number

How can I do this? Just pop in the SIM card once I get it without activating? Or is there some step in the activation process I need to pay attention to? If I don't port my number over, do I just get assigned some new random number? And it's possible to port my number over later?

BTW, thanks for all your answers, you've been an amazing help!

 

[paperwastage]

How can I do this? Just pop in the SIM card once I get it without activating? Or is there some step in the activation process I need to pay attention to? If I don't port my number over, do I just get assigned some new random number? And it's possible to port my number over later?

BTW, thanks for all your answers, you've been an amazing help!

http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php/1878023-Speed-Test-on-unactivated-SIM

You can run speedtests on an unactivated sim

You can always activate and get a random number, test it properly, and port number after a few weeks*

*tmobile could have changed their policy or you run into some issues, that's why I say to buy a spare sim. It's only $1/sim

Your moto x pure has an update to get band 12+volte, but no WiFi calling


If you feel that coverage isn't good enough, go try out cricket/straight talk (as the other people suggested above? That's the beauty of a cross-carrier capable phone. Some features might not be available on other carriers though (eg volte/WiFi calling might not work on att because att uses whitelists for volte/hdvoice)

 

[paperwastage]

Also, a lot of people regret losing grandfathered unlimited based on their usage.. That's why you should test it properly to see if 5GB is enough

Also, when you port, you should do the porting process a few days(let's say 5) before your Verizon cycle ends...

Too early, you waste your verizon plan. Too late, the porting process takes some time and Verizon charges you for another month

(When you port out, Verizon typically cancels your account and doesn't give you any prorated refund. Same deal for all providers)

 

[nibunnoichi]

Also, a lot of people regret losing grandfathered unlimited based on their usage.. That's why you should test it properly to see if 5GB is enough

Also, when you port, you should do the porting process a few days(let's say 5) before your Verizon cycle ends...

Too early, you waste your verizon plan. Too late, the porting process takes some time and Verizon charges you for another month

(When you port out, Verizon typically cancels your account and doesn't give you any prorated refund. Same deal for all providers)

Thanks. I've had the unlimited plan for over 5 yrs, but I rarely used over 3GB. I kept it in case my data usage increased in the future. But at almost $100/mo, it's a very expensive "insurance" policy. It's too bad I can no longer transfer the UDP to someone else who might take advantage of it.

With the Music Freedom on T-mobile, I might actually never go above 2gig of data, since most of my data comes from Pandora, Spotify, and Tune-In.

Do you know how I would check my data usage on T-mobile? Is there an app I should download? My phone shows data usage by default, but it won't know what is "Music Freedom" data, and what is general data that counts toward my cap.

 

[paperwastage]

Thanks. I've had the unlimited plan for over 5 yrs, but I rarely used over 3GB. I kept it in case my data usage increased in the future. But at almost $100/mo, it's a very expensive "insurance" policy. It's too bad I can no longer transfer the UDP to someone else who might take advantage of it.

With the Music Freedom on T-mobile, I might actually never go above 2gig of data, since most of my data comes from Pandora, Spotify, and Tune-In.

Do you know how I would check my data usage on T-mobile? Is there an app I should download? My phone shows data usage by default, but it won't know what is "Music Freedom" data, and what is general data that counts toward my cap.

The tmobile app(in play stores) tells you, but it has a lot of permission that I prefer not to give it

http://ma.t-mobile.com

This website gives the same info as the app.b there's a short code somewhere

 

[cpacini]

Thanks. I've had the unlimited plan for over 5 yrs, but I rarely used over 3GB. I kept it in case my data usage increased in the future. But at almost $100/mo, it's a very expensive "insurance" policy. It's too bad I can no longer transfer the UDP to someone else who might take advantage of it.

With the Music Freedom on T-mobile, I might actually never go above 2gig of data, since most of my data comes from Pandora, Spotify, and Tune-In.

Do you know how I would check my data usage on T-mobile? Is there an app I should download? My phone shows data usage by default, but it won't know what is "Music Freedom" data, and what is general data that counts toward my cap.

Quickest way is to use the short code, dial #932#, and a message will pop up with your current data usage.

 

[jhansman]

A coworker just got his 6p. Loves the phone, and while it shares two networks, he gets very few dropped calls or dead spots. Monthly bill? Averages $25. That's a third of what I'm paying for my phone and 1GB of data on T-Mobile. Hmmm....

 

[Strk]

A coworker just got his 6p. Loves the phone, and while it shares two networks, he gets very few dropped calls or dead spots. Monthly bill? Averages $25. That's a third of what I'm paying for my phone and 1GB of data on T-Mobile. Hmmm....

What plan is that? You can get 2gb data, with unlimited talk & text for $50.

 

[dlock13]

What plan is that? You can get 2gb data, with unlimited talk & text for $50.

Sounds like Google's Project Fi.

 

[Red Storm]

What plan is that? You can get 2gb data, with unlimited talk & text for $50.

He did say phone as well, so that must be including a device/lease payment.

 

[CuriousMike]

Cricket... why haven't I looked into this.
I'm liking their "5 for $100" - with a wife and three kids, this is very attractive.
https://www.cricketwireless.com/5for100

 

[paperwastage]

Cricket... why haven't I looked into this.
I'm liking their "5 for $100" - with a wife and three kids, this is very attractive.
https://www.cricketwireless.com/5for100

i thought the group rate (5 for $100) discount expires after a while...

did that change? I can't find that expiration date in their terms, might be wrong abotu it

EDIT: found it..

https://www.cricketwireless.com/legal-info/group-save-terms-and-conditions.html

"After March 1, 2016, the monthly discount for the 5th eligible line changes to $30"

you basically have to pay $110 for 5 lines