Well, my old Sprint contract is up in October and I'm tempted to get a Droid or iPhone. One of the reasons I've never gotten a phone like this is the monthly cost. From what I can tell it averages at least $70-80 per month. Do you get discounts if you have two phones on a plan? Anyway, I just want some basic browsing ability I think, plus of course voice and text. Do you think it would be cheaper to just get a hotspot device and use my iPad? What do you guys pay for these things? Is 2 GB per month enough for basic browsing? Anyway, looking for comments and your thoughts.
I have a Droid (the original) on Verizon, and with NYC taxes, it comes to about $86 per month (voice, data, and texting plans). This is unlimited data, which will be discontinued soon.
I've actually been watching my account to see how much data I use on average, since I'll have to choose a new plan on my next upgrade, most likely. I tend to twitter, facebook, and browse from my phone. I don't download music to my phone, and I rarely download apps, and I very rarely open email attachments on my phone. I do, however, tweet and facebook photos from my phone. At work and home, I connect to a wireless network, so I'm not getting charged for that in the data plan. Last month, I used 214.15 MB on my data plan, which is about .2 GB. So, I would say that a 2GB plan is more than enough for simple browsing and email delivery.
And, if you're worried about overage, you can usually set up alerts in your account, so you'll get notifications when you're getting close to your limit each month.
We have unlimited through ATT for our iPhones, but from what I heard on the news this morning, ATT will be eliminating that as well. I use my iPhone a lot for browsing, social networking and some NetFlix (more on my iPad now though). I think that 2GIG should be good though.
I guess my costs are irrelevant but for what it's worth I pay £30 a month although data allowances over here are down to 500MB or so per month (one or two networks may still be higher).
It seems to be the case that pricing is fairly universal taking into account the conversion rate, as is the data restrictions!
Unless your going crazy on data, you should easily stay under 2GBs, 200MBs...eh, you'll have to restrict your data usage to pretty much text only. No video over 3G, no big downloads and careful of pictures. And definitely no app downloads.
I pay $78 right now, thanks to text plans becoming more expensive. Though if you cut down the data plan and have no texting, you can bring that to....$63? Depends.
King
I can't believe that operators still get away with charging so much for texts since they virtually cost nothing to send. Ripoff!
Quote from: Dangelus on August 01, 2011, 01:52:07 PM
I can't believe that operators still get away with charging so much for texts since they virtually cost nothing to send. Ripoff!
Because we keep saying it's fine. Until everyone drops Texting, they will continue to charge whatever they feel like. It is the biggest cash cow in the mobile industry and no company would stop getting easy $$.
King
As I've said before, it's paying to receive texts that's really alien to me. They'll be charging to receive calls next!
We're off to France next week and I'm debating paying the money to get cheaper roaming (we're still vainly trying to sell the house so I hope someone may want to call) but texts are still free to receive, even in other countries.
Back on topic, I was going to point out that my wife just got an Android device on £15 per month but the data limit there is 250MB. It doe have unlimited text messages though.
Still really seems to be expensive. So, what's the break for those of us in the US for say two devices from the same company? Any cost break at all??
Quote from: Rico on August 01, 2011, 02:25:31 PM
Still really seems to be expensive. So, what's the break for those of us in the US for say two devices from the same company? Any cost break at all??
You'll have to ask the company, I have no idea.
King
Quote from: Rico on August 01, 2011, 02:25:31 PM
Still really seems to be expensive. So, what's the break for those of us in the US for say two devices from the same company? Any cost break at all??
Nope, no price breaks really.
Well Rico, if you go with ATT, they'll give you one line for $80, or two for $200. :) The only reason Joyce and I are with ATT (besides the iPhone), is that we get a 14% discount on cell service, and between 4%-19% discount on Apple products...excluding the new iPhones of course!
I am paying ~$80US for unlimited data via AT&T - which I don't think is offered any more? Although I am grandfathered in to that plan. I don't use too much - so a 2GB limit would be fine for me.
I'm on Verizon and we have four phones on the plan. My phone is the main line and cost me like $120 a month, that then shares minutes with all the other phones on my family plan. Each line after that is $10 plus whatever they want service wise. We have shared texts and phone time, but if the kids want anything extra, they pay for them. All in all I pay WAY too much for our phones, but what do you do? We want to all communicate together, so I don't have much choice. My data plan is $30 a month and that gets me unlimited data... and I use tons of data. 2 gigs is not enough for me. At least between our family and anyone on Verizon it doesn't count towards our minutes.. in calling is on my plan for free.
If it were just me, I would drop texting. But I text SO much for work - I'm the only fulltime person in the company, so I often communicate with my staff via text. They text in timesheets sometimes, let me know when they're running late, etc. I couldn't operate without it.
I've never had a family plan with Verizon (although verizonwireless.com is really pretty accurate if you want to price it out), I did ask about a break on service cost when I bought the iPad - no discount. :/
Again, probably doesn't matter since it's Canada but I pay 60/month for unlimited local voice, unlimited texts and 500 meg data (though I have 1 gig for the next 3 months). I'm going to try and switch providers soon to get Fran and I on a family plan with shared data.
Quote from: spaltor on August 02, 2011, 11:32:22 AM
If it were just me, I would drop texting. But I text SO much for work - I'm the only fulltime person in the company, so I often communicate with my staff via text. They text in timesheets sometimes, let me know when they're running late, etc. I couldn't operate without it.
I've never had a family plan with Verizon (although verizonwireless.com is really pretty accurate if you want to price it out), I did ask about a break on service cost when I bought the iPad - no discount. :/
See, if that were me, I'd either get a company phone or I wouldn't text anyone. Not at my expense, anyway.
Quote from: Feathers on August 03, 2011, 05:45:18 AM
Quote from: spaltor on August 02, 2011, 11:32:22 AM
If it were just me, I would drop texting. But I text SO much for work - I'm the only fulltime person in the company, so I often communicate with my staff via text. They text in timesheets sometimes, let me know when they're running late, etc. I couldn't operate without it.
I've never had a family plan with Verizon (although verizonwireless.com is really pretty accurate if you want to price it out), I did ask about a break on service cost when I bought the iPad - no discount. :/
See, if that were me, I'd either get a company phone or I wouldn't text anyone. Not at my expense, anyway.
Totally, work related cell phone use over and above your normal plan should be covered! Most plans in Canada these days have unlimited texting.
Quote from: billybob476 on August 03, 2011, 05:47:49 AM
Totally, work related cell phone use over and above your normal plan should be covered! Most plans in Canada these days have unlimited texting.
And here... just not mine.
I believe there are free texting apps that can take the place of plans for the iphone. I've never tried one but I think they make money off of ads. My wife and I both have iPhones, and as everyone has confirmed, there's no break on data plans for more than one phone. We pay about $150 a month for our two phones with data, unlimited calling, and texting, really an outrageous amount but neither of us want to give up the convenience of our devices. I would suggest, especially since you have an iPad, to not bow to the pressure and keep the cheap option since you've been doing just fine for so long. Get a portable wifi hotspot for your iPad for around $40 a month, a much more flexible option. Plus you'd have internet for all your devices at a decent bitrate, assuming you have good coverage in Michigan. That would cost at least an extra $20 per month on an iPhone.
Quote from: QuadShot on August 01, 2011, 11:40:07 AM
We have unlimited through ATT for our iPhones, but from what I heard on the news this morning, ATT will be eliminating that as well. I use my iPhone a lot for browsing, social networking and some NetFlix (more on my iPad now though). I think that 2GIG should be good though.
What I read was that ATT was not eliminating unlimited service (they already did that for new customers but allowed people that had it to keep it indefinitely for around $5 more a month than their most expensive capped data plan) but instead was going to start throttling the top 5% of users of their grandfathered unlimited plans. I have no clue how much I use, I imagine its not even close to the top 5%. I very rarely stream You Tube, Netflix or HBO over 3G because it rarely works well and is mostly an exercise in frustration.
Quote from: Jobydrone4of20 on August 03, 2011, 06:31:24 AM
I believe there are free texting apps that can take the place of plans for the iphone. I've never tried one but I think they make money off of ads. My wife and I both have iPhones, and as everyone has confirmed, there's no break on data plans for more than one phone. We pay about $150 a month for our two phones with data, unlimited calling, and texting, really an outrageous amount but neither of us want to give up the convenience of our devices. I would suggest, especially since you have an iPad, to not bow to the pressure and keep the cheap option since you've been doing just fine for so long. Get a portable wifi hotspot for your iPad for around $40 a month, a much more flexible option. Plus you'd have internet for all your devices at a decent bitrate, assuming you have good coverage in Michigan. That would cost at least an extra $20 per month on an iPhone.
Good advice Joby. Plus I really think after using the iPad for things like browsing, videos, games, etc. that if I went to an iPhone it would seem awfully small.
Quote from: Rico on August 03, 2011, 08:33:11 AM
Good advice Joby. Plus I really think after using the iPad for things like browsing, videos, games, etc. that if I went to an iPhone it would seem awfully small.
Also, if you can avoid it, don't renew your contract until you absolutely have to. That way, when the iPhone 5 or 6 comes out you have the freedom to choose one of those devices at a reasonable cost. They are about 3x as expensive without a contract. I hate being tied down to any kind of contract anyway. I am probably going to wait until the middle or end of 2012 to see what iPhone 6 looks like before I renew. Hopefully my 3GS works that long.
One of the reasons I haven't got an iPad is that the overlap with the iPhone is just too great. One or other of them wouldn't get used. For me, the iPhone wins because of the smaller, more 'use anywhere' format.
So...I agree. Do you really need a smartphone?
Does anyone really "need" a smartphone? :)
Quote from: Feathers on August 03, 2011, 08:51:53 AM
One of the reasons I haven't got an iPad is that the overlap with the iPhone is just too great. One or other of them wouldn't get used. For me, the iPhone wins because of the smaller, more 'use anywhere' format.
So...I agree. Do you really need a smartphone?
The iPhone is with me at all times, I use it more as a communication device (phone, email, skype, twitter, facebook, google+ etc), camera, day planner (via Calendar and hookup to my google calendar) and 'bathroom gaming' device :)
The iPad is more a replacement for a laptop. I use it for 'couch browsing', news reading, more involved casual gaming and I've started taking it along as my main 'computer' on personal trips.
While many of the apps cross over, the form factors and specific features are different enough so that they both have clear uses.
Quote from: Rico on August 03, 2011, 08:53:31 AM
Does anyone really "need" a smartphone? :)
No, but Fran used to complain I was always holding my iPhone and now she can't put hers down either! Technically the iPad is hers as well :)
Quote from: billybob476 on August 03, 2011, 08:59:26 AM
Quote from: Feathers on August 03, 2011, 08:51:53 AM
One of the reasons I haven't got an iPad is that the overlap with the iPhone is just too great. One or other of them wouldn't get used. For me, the iPhone wins because of the smaller, more 'use anywhere' format.
So...I agree. Do you really need a smartphone?
The iPhone is with me at all times, I use it more as a communication device (phone, email, skype, twitter, facebook, google+ etc), camera, day planner (via Calendar and hookup to my google calendar) and 'bathroom gaming' device :)
The iPad is more a replacement for a laptop. I use it for 'couch browsing', news reading, more involved casual gaming and I've started taking it along as my main 'computer' on personal trips.
While many of the apps cross over, the form factors and specific features are different enough so that they both have clear uses.
This is pretty much how I use my devices. I use them both pretty equally, though the iPhone probably gets a little more usage thanks to its 3G connection, but overall, I use them both and don't regret either (except when I pay that monthly bill for the iPhone....).
King
The nice thing about the iPad is you can get away with just using it with wireless and not pay crazy high data plan fees and stuff. I'm still toying with the idea of an iPhone, but that monthly cost is just kind of killer, if you ask me.
Quote from: Rico on August 04, 2011, 05:50:00 AM
The nice thing about the iPad is you can get away with just using it with wireless and not pay crazy high data plan fees and stuff. I'm still toying with the idea of an iPhone, but that monthly cost is just kind of killer, if you ask me.
The fact is, probably 75% of the time I am plugged into either one or the other. Beyond using it as a phone, it's pretty much exclusively my podcast, music, and email device. Everything else (games, movies, books, comics, web browsing) is iPad. I have zero audio on the iPad, no podcasts, no music. I am pretty sure I could easily replace my iPhone with any other MP3 player and be just as happy, though I really do like using iTunes to manage my podcasts. I can't imagine a better way, but I'm sure there are just as easy and convenient ways to subscribe and automatically download podcasts besides iTunes.
Quote from: Jobydrone4of20 on August 04, 2011, 06:26:46 AM
Quote from: Rico on August 04, 2011, 05:50:00 AM
The nice thing about the iPad is you can get away with just using it with wireless and not pay crazy high data plan fees and stuff. I'm still toying with the idea of an iPhone, but that monthly cost is just kind of killer, if you ask me.
The fact is, probably 75% of the time I am plugged into either one or the other. Beyond using it as a phone, it's pretty much exclusively my podcast, music, and email device. Everything else (games, movies, books, comics, web browsing) is iPad. I have zero audio on the iPad, no podcasts, no music. I am pretty sure I could easily replace my iPhone with any other MP3 player and be just as happy, though I really do like using iTunes to manage my podcasts. I can't imagine a better way, but I'm sure there are just as easy and convenient ways to subscribe and automatically download podcasts besides iTunes.
Instacast!
http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/instacast/id420368235?mt=8 (http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/instacast/id420368235?mt=8)
Quote from: billybob476 on August 04, 2011, 06:28:13 AM
Quote from: Jobydrone4of20 on August 04, 2011, 06:26:46 AM
Quote from: Rico on August 04, 2011, 05:50:00 AM
The nice thing about the iPad is you can get away with just using it with wireless and not pay crazy high data plan fees and stuff. I'm still toying with the idea of an iPhone, but that monthly cost is just kind of killer, if you ask me.
The fact is, probably 75% of the time I am plugged into either one or the other. Beyond using it as a phone, it's pretty much exclusively my podcast, music, and email device. Everything else (games, movies, books, comics, web browsing) is iPad. I have zero audio on the iPad, no podcasts, no music. I am pretty sure I could easily replace my iPhone with any other MP3 player and be just as happy, though I really do like using iTunes to manage my podcasts. I can't imagine a better way, but I'm sure there are just as easy and convenient ways to subscribe and automatically download podcasts besides iTunes.
Instacast!
http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/instacast/id420368235?mt=8 (http://itunes.apple.com/ca/app/instacast/id420368235?mt=8)
Would that work for something other than an iPhone?
Well it's iOS only so I imagine it's work on the iPad as well, but like you I don't use my iPad for podcasts.