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AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

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Re: AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

#31

Post by ibelimb »

ewillbefull wrote: post #25
kevingadd wrote: post #3

AT&T are scum and this sort of stuff is standard practice with them. You shouldn't be giving them your money if you can avoid it. If you've got a GSM phone with the right radio bands, I suggest taking a look at the $30 plans here: http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/monthly-4g-plans For CDMA I believe Sprint and Verizon offer prepaid plans without contracts at around $50 for talk/data. The key is that IMO, a prepaid p…

> If you've got a GSM phone with the right radio bands, I suggest taking a look at the $30 plans here: http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/monthly-4g-plans Keep in mind the top $30 plan (unlimited data) requires you to activate a new phone that you have to buy from Walmart.

This is not true at all. I am on the $30 plan on a Galaxy Nexus purchased through the play store. You can order your sim card for the plan from T-Mobile now as well as Walmart.

Re: AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

#32

Post by jacalata »

This has been happening for at least several years now. I haven't tried it myself (I want a dataplan), but I hear that one way to avoid this is to have a smartphone that they don't sell, because they identify it by matching the device id to their database of smartphone ids, which is only populated with devices they sell? I'd be interested in hearing if this is true or not.

Re: AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

#33

Post by techsupporter »

xpaulbettsx wrote: post #17

I can confirm this, the exact same thing happened to me. No notice, just decided my phone should cost an extra $80/mo

What in the world kind of data plan did AT&T force you onto that costs $80/month?

Re: AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

#34

Post by benmccann »

ewillbefull wrote: post #25
kevingadd wrote: post #3

AT&T are scum and this sort of stuff is standard practice with them. You shouldn't be giving them your money if you can avoid it. If you've got a GSM phone with the right radio bands, I suggest taking a look at the $30 plans here: http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/monthly-4g-plans For CDMA I believe Sprint and Verizon offer prepaid plans without contracts at around $50 for talk/data. The key is that IMO, a prepaid p…

> If you've got a GSM phone with the right radio bands, I suggest taking a look at the $30 plans here: http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/monthly-4g-plans Keep in mind the top $30 plan (unlimited data) requires you to activate a new phone that you have to buy from Walmart.

It does not require a phone from WalMart. I ordered a new SIM card from t-mobile.com and activated it with the $30 plan. However, you cannot get it in T-Mobile stores.

Re: AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

#36

Post by Osmium »

paulhauggis wrote: post #23
aaronpk wrote: post #2

It's not "for all intensive purposes", it's "for all intents and purposes" http://grammarist.com/eggcorns/for-all-intensive-purposes/

The article you stated states that "for all intensive purposes" is common usage, although not correct. At some point, it becomes accepted usage. Kind of like when you try to say that hackers only tinker with things. Words and meanings change.

I agree with this, and I'm definitely not a prescriptivist, but I have to ask: what, exactly, is an "intensive purpose" in this context?

Re: AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

#37

Post by OGinparadise »

kevingadd wrote: post #3

AT&T are scum and this sort of stuff is standard practice with them. You shouldn't be giving them your money if you can avoid it. If you've got a GSM phone with the right radio bands, I suggest taking a look at the $30 plans here: http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/monthly-4g-plans For CDMA I believe Sprint and Verizon offer prepaid plans without contracts at around $50 for talk/data. The key is that IMO, a prepaid p…

AT&T are scum and this sort of stuff is standard practice with them.

"Them" is almost all wireless companies, what Verizon does, AT&T follows soon and vice-versa so consumers cannot penalize them. Startup costs are in the tens of billions and you have to fight incumbents so they essentially have a monopoly (or duopoly, or...)

Re: AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

#38

Post by SkyMarshal »

paulhauggis wrote: post #23
aaronpk wrote: post #2

It's not "for all intensive purposes", it's "for all intents and purposes" http://grammarist.com/eggcorns/for-all-intensive-purposes/

The article you stated states that "for all intensive purposes" is common usage, although not correct. At some point, it becomes accepted usage. Kind of like when you try to say that hackers only tinker with things. Words and meanings change.

Hackers generally aren't in the business of turning meaning into gibberish, which is what these 'eggcorns' are.

Imho, it's worth resisting nonsensical cargo-cult language, even if only as a matter of principle.

Re: AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

#39

Post by aharrison »

kevingadd wrote: post #3

AT&T are scum and this sort of stuff is standard practice with them. You shouldn't be giving them your money if you can avoid it. If you've got a GSM phone with the right radio bands, I suggest taking a look at the $30 plans here: http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/monthly-4g-plans For CDMA I believe Sprint and Verizon offer prepaid plans without contracts at around $50 for talk/data. The key is that IMO, a prepaid p…

I love T-Mobile, and not just for their sane plans and prices. They are also, you know, nice to me. Every time I have called their support they have been friendly, competent, and helpful. I have never gotten even 1 of 3 from any of the other carriers.

Seriously T-Mobile, come up with more excuses for me to give you money.

Re: AT&T Will Force Your Data Plan For Your Unlocked Out-of-Contract "Smart" Phone

#40

Post by mzr »

rabble wrote: post #24

I've got a xiaomi M1 which i picked up in China, it's only sold in mainland china and i've never had any problem telling AT&T that it's a dumb phone. No messages or anything. Maybe it's just an obscure enough phone. Miui is a pretty well maintained distribution of android.

I think AT&T has a database of IMEIs of known US smartphones. You used to be able to get around the scans with an imported Nokia, for example. I used to have a Nokia X6 that never got picked up for the two years I used it.
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