[ale] OT: Cell service provider recommendations

[Byron Jeff]

On Mon, Jun 16, 2014 at 04:45:50PM -0400, Derek Atkins wrote:
> Scott Castaline <skotchman at gmail.com> writes:
> 
> > Update to my cell provider:
> >
> > We wound up calling Customer Service at ATT and managed to get someone
> > that seemed to know what they were talking about. We were able to cut
> > our costs down from $340/month to $175/month for services and then
> > about $190/month to include cost of 2 new phones and all the bs taxes.
> 
> I'm curious how you talked them down..

I'll take a stab at it. It's probably their "Value Plan" pricing. I
switched about 4 months ago. Just about the same savings which amounts to
about $25/month/phone on access charges.

But now I've reached the catch point: phone upgrades. At upgrade time you
get two options:

1. The "Next" plan where you essentially rent the phone for a 12 or 18
month period. You pay between $20 and $40/month for a period of 20-24
months. Note that it's a rental so you have to give the original device
back at the end of rental period when you get your "Next" device.

2. You can go back on the 2 year contract with the heavily discounted
phone. However, if you do so you lose the $25/month discount from the value
plan on the line. In addition you cannot upgrade until the full 2 year term
of contract expires.

When you add it all up: "They screw you in the drivethrough!" by enticing
you to take the discounted plan and then essentially forcing via upgrade to
negate the discount. And each of the monthlies add up to over $500 over the
time period no matter the device or type.

Smarter money seems to be be buy your own device outright.

BAJ

> 
> -derek
> -- 
>        Derek Atkins, SB '93 MIT EE, SM '95 MIT Media Laboratory
>        Member, MIT Student Information Processing Board  (SIPB)
>        URL: http://web.mit.edu/warlord/    PP-ASEL-IA     N1NWH
>        warlord at MIT.EDU                        PGP key available
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-- 
Byron A. Jeff
Chair: Department of Computer Science and Information Technology
College of Information and Mathematical Sciences
Clayton State University
http://faculty.clayton.edu/bjeff