Those looking for true unlimited data plans . . .

Phokus

Lifer
Nov 20, 1999
22,994
779
126
I think T-Mobile's $30 prepaid plan is a better deal. It only comes with 100 minutes talk time, but you can just pay the per minute overage on that and still come out ahead (unless you talk an insane amount).
 

wirednuts

Diamond Member
Jan 26, 2007
7,121
4
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actually $90 for unlimited 4g/talk/text is not a bad deal. the $30 monthly plan stops at 5gb, and after that it really is dial up speed at best.

i pay $30 for internet at home... so im spending $60 already... but if they really do let you pull hundreds of gigs a month like cable internet does then $90 doesnt sound too bad because you would get unlimited calling (better reliability then voip).

im sticking with monthly 4g though. i like cable internet and i, so far, havent had much trouble using voip over the cell towers.
 

Strk

Lifer
Nov 23, 2003
10,197
4
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That's for unlimited everything. You can get it down to $55 with 500 minutes and unlimited data (or $5 more for unlimited texts). And $20 more for a subsidized phone.
 

gorcorps

aka Brandon
Jul 18, 2004
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If you're paying more for a subsidized plan, doesn't that remove the entire point of a subsidy?
 

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
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If you're paying more for a subsidized plan, doesn't that remove the entire point of a subsidy?

You pay more for the plan but get a cheaper price on the phone on a subsidized plan. On a non-subsidized plan, you buy the phone at full MSRP, and get a cheaper price on the plan because the carrier isn't paying for a chunk of the phone cost.

I like the Monthly 4G 100m/5GB plan, but this 69.99 dollar plan isn't bad either. I think its worth a look if you need more than 100 minutes, especially since I believe this plan actually gets you the mobile to mobile, free nights/weekends, etc.
 

wirednuts

Diamond Member
Jan 26, 2007
7,121
4
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If you're paying more for a subsidized plan, doesn't that remove the entire point of a subsidy?

um... thats what subsidized means. you dont pay as much up front on your phone, but you still have to pay for it somehow. thats why the phone plans are higher. its also why you get a discount every 2 years, because you paid enough in that they can offer you another subsidy.

thing is, when you do a subsidized plan, youre going to pay more over the long run if your plan runs years and years and you dont cash in by getting a new phone you dont even need.

i think its awesome tmobile is offering cheaper monthly rates by eliminating the subsidy. for people like me who like to buy used phones and never used the phone discounts, its a sweet relief.
 

wirednuts

Diamond Member
Jan 26, 2007
7,121
4
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That's for unlimited everything. You can get it down to $55 with 500 minutes and unlimited data (or $5 more for unlimited texts). And $20 more for a subsidized phone.

ok... i didnt see that. screw the $5 for texts, i dont even use texts. i mean i use like 1000 a month, but they go through data on google voice. it sucks i dont get to use shortcodes, but google is actually starting to whitelist some short codes so hopefully that process speeds up. and i use gv for texts because my google voice number is the number i give out to everyone. i dont want my texts to have a different number.

$55/month is cheaper then my current $30 4g plan + $35 charter internet bill. I could easily just use internet off my tethered phone, but i have a feeling if i run hundreds of gigs a month off it t-mobile would put a stop to it. gotta have netflix and other streaming media services!

is anyone SURE its truly unlimited? there has to be a cap at some point....

well, i cant find a limit but they have an "out" if they dont like how much your using-
Service may be slowed, suspended, terminated, or restricted for misuse, abnormal use, interference with our network or ability to provide quality service to others, or significant roaming.

and if you use their data calculator, and max out all the usage (stream video and music all the time) they say youll use 10GB per month. BWAHAHA try more like 200GB....
 
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vshah

Lifer
Sep 20, 2003
19,003
24
81
ok... i didnt see that. screw the $5 for texts, i dont even use texts. i mean i use like 1000 a month, but they go through data on google voice. it sucks i dont get to use shortcodes, but google is actually starting to whitelist some short codes so hopefully that process speeds up. and i use gv for texts because my google voice number is the number i give out to everyone. i dont want my texts to have a different number.

$55/month is cheaper then my current $30 4g plan + $35 charter internet bill. I could easily just use internet off my tethered phone, but i have a feeling if i run hundreds of gigs a month off it t-mobile would put a stop to it. gotta have netflix and other streaming media services!

is anyone SURE its truly unlimited? there has to be a cap at some point....

well, i cant find a limit but they have an "out" if they dont like how much your using-


and if you use their data calculator, and max out all the usage (stream video and music all the time) they say youll use 10GB per month. BWAHAHA try more like 200GB....

these new plans are truly unlimited. previously plans would throttle you after 2GB.
 

gorcorps

aka Brandon
Jul 18, 2004
30,739
454
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um... thats what subsidized means. you dont pay as much up front on your phone, but you still have to pay for it somehow. thats why the phone plans are higher. its also why you get a discount every 2 years, because you paid enough in that they can offer you another subsidy.

thing is, when you do a subsidized plan, youre going to pay more over the long run if your plan runs years and years and you dont cash in by getting a new phone you dont even need.

i think its awesome tmobile is offering cheaper monthly rates by eliminating the subsidy. for people like me who like to buy used phones and never used the phone discounts, its a sweet relief.

I'm on ATT, and if I wanted to get a cheaper or subsidized phone I just have to promise to stick with ATT for the next 2 years. I don't pay any extra than I would otherwise. So, my total cost has been "subsidized" by ATT in exchange for my loyalty.

The way this t-mobile thing works isn't subsidized at all. You just spread the extra cost through your monthly plan. You're still paying the same, or maybe even more, so that's NOT a subsidized price.
 

Chocu1a

Golden Member
Jun 24, 2009
1,386
79
91
I wonder if you can use a Galaxy Nexus with a custom rom to tether with? The unlimited says it does not support hotspot, but neither does my Verizon unlimited plan, & I can bypass that.
 

ImDonly1

Platinum Member
Dec 17, 2004
2,357
0
76
I wonder if you can use a Galaxy Nexus with a custom rom to tether with? The unlimited says it does not support hotspot, but neither does my Verizon unlimited plan, & I can bypass that.

Yes, but t-mobile detects tethering whereas verizon does not.
It used to be they just detected the useragent of the browser you use, not sure if they still use that or something else now.
 

wirednuts

Diamond Member
Jan 26, 2007
7,121
4
0
I wonder what the cut off is before "unlimited" becomes "we don't want you for a customer any longer".

this is what im saying. and because their highest plans hit 10GB before they go unlimited, i would bet their tolerance is below 50GB a month.

it could be just the way it says too. say youre the only one that pulls hundreds of gigs off a tower and it doesnt effect anyone else, then they wont care. but i doubt that will ever be the case.

and as far as tethering, how do they know? when you use a 3rd party tether app i just dont see how the phone company can tell the phone is merely relaying the data to another device. and also, im not sure why they care but thats another story.... in any case, im going to tether whenever the hell i need to. if tmo kicks me for it thats fine. theres plenty of competition.
 

vshah

Lifer
Sep 20, 2003
19,003
24
81
this is what im saying. and because their highest plans hit 10GB before they go unlimited, i would bet their tolerance is below 50GB a month.

it could be just the way it says too. say youre the only one that pulls hundreds of gigs off a tower and it doesnt effect anyone else, then they wont care. but i doubt that will ever be the case.

and as far as tethering, how do they know? when you use a 3rd party tether app i just dont see how the phone company can tell the phone is merely relaying the data to another device. and also, im not sure why they care but thats another story.... in any case, im going to tether whenever the hell i need to. if tmo kicks me for it thats fine. theres plenty of competition.


packet inspection easily yields the browser and operating system for http requests.
 

Leon

Platinum Member
Nov 14, 1999
2,215
4
81
Well, technically it is still limited ;)

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Can't wait for someone to try to leech off 9Tb of data to test this.
 

cronos

Diamond Member
Nov 7, 2001
9,380
26
101
I see 1000 minutes for 2 lines with:
no data - $50/month
200 MB data - $60/month
2 GB data - $70/month
Unlimited data - $90/month

These are some decent plans if you have good T-Mobile coverage.
 

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
8
0
Can't wait for someone to try to leech off 9Tb of data to test this.

Err, even at the theoretical max speeds for TMO's infrastructure, pulled every minute for a whole billing cycle, I don't think you'd hit 9TB. :p
 

Anonemous

Diamond Member
May 19, 2003
7,361
1
71
How's this compare to Virgin mobiles 4G? I heard it's unlimited 4G (if can you get 4G) but capped 3G at 2.5gigs before the throttle for around $35/month.