Since AT&T and Verizon abandoned unlimited plans years ago, Sprint and T-Mobile have each touted their unlimited offers to attract new customers.
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T-Mobile US and Sprint are revamping their rate plans to appeal to consumers who want unlimited streaming and web surfing as the industry’s battle for wireless subscribers enters a new phase.
T-Mobile One’s first line plan will cost $70 per month, whereas a second line will set you back by $50 a pop. The second line comes in at $50 and each additional line (up to 8) comes in at $20.
One of the most famous quotes by the legendary Ford Motor founder was on the availability of the Model T in only one color: “Any customer can have a vehicle painted any color that he wants so long as it is black”.
T-Mobile is quick to point out that you can not get a Verizon unlimited data plan as it does not offer it, but if you were to sign up for its highest data bucket, you’d spend over $4000 more a year. Without the family package, customers can now get 6 gigabytes of data for $50 per month for the first line, followed by $30 a month for the second one and $10 a month for subsequent lines.
AT&T unveiled new Mobile Share Advantage plans that eliminate data overage charges for its mobile customers customers.
T-Mobile also now has a 2 GB plan that costs $50 a month. The included unlimited video viewing is at typical DVD quality (480p), rather than in HD quality, and device tethering is not included but is available at extra cost each month.
In response, T-Mobile said it’s been working on its plans for nearly two years. And it’s $5 more a month per line without auto pay.
If you don’t have four lines on one account, the company is sweetening the rest of plans, too.
New Street Research analyst Vivek Stalam said it would be hard for the top two wireless companies to bring unlimited plans back to their wider subscriber base. It has launched Unlimited Freedom which provides two lines of unlimited talk, text, and data for $100 per month. With four people getting six gigabytes each, the price could rise $40, to $160; five people getting 10 gigabytes each would pay $10 less at $180. Sprint doesn’t seem to offer tethering at all, while T-Mobile limits tethering to 2G speeds.
T-Mobile One will start at $70 for the first line.
T-Mobile already offers users unlimited data for music and video streaming from services such as Netflix and Hulu.
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T-Mobile’s plan has a few catches – all videos will be in standard definition unless the customer pays about $25 a month for high-def.
