iPhone 3G from AT&T: unlimited data for $30

by Chris Ziegler posted Jun 9th 2008 at 4:51PM

We still don't have a clear answer from AT&T on whether messaging is included, but if not, the data pricing of $30 per month for unlimited 3G when tied to the iPhone 3G represents a $10 bump from what folks were paying for the 2.5G model. Business owners -- presumably expected to consume considerably more bits over the course of a month -- will be paying $45. Meanwhile, voice plan pricing will start from $39.95, and we're told more details will be available on exactly how it all breaks down when the device actually goes on sale.

Filed under: ATT, Apple

Tags: apple, att, iphone, plan, pricing, wwdc, wwdc 08, wwdc 2008, Wwdc08, Wwdc2008

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

Neutral

Galley @ Jun 9th 2008 5:05PM

$10 more per month, and early tests indicate that's it not all that faster. I'll stick with my current iPhone and $20 data plan.

Highest Ranked

Alai @ Jun 9th 2008 5:15PM

...it is twice as fast. With your slow iPhone, that saves 30 seconds PER PAGE. Also, I'll pay $10/month for possibly free messaging and GPS. For $440 (New iPhone+New rate) you can get that. Don't you think you could sell your iPhone on eBay for at least half of that?

Highly Ranked

PSM @ Jun 9th 2008 5:40PM

The iPhone plan is already cheaper than the same plan for any other smartphone. I was looking forward to lowering my bills when the iPhone 3G came out, but I won't mind at all if I wind up paying the same.

Highest Ranked

THizzle7XU @ Jun 9th 2008 6:47PM

That's not entirely true. I get unlimited data from AT&T on my 3G Blackjack for only $20 a month and that's with 200 text messages as well.

Highest Ranked

Adam @ Jun 9th 2008 5:18PM

So how do they know if you are a business user or a regular user?

Highest Ranked

HBKDinobot @ Jun 9th 2008 5:21PM

well, this means I'll be jailbreaking this one as well to get the $10 less per month 3G.

Neutral

dramamoose @ Jun 9th 2008 6:04PM

Except you can't buy it unless you get a plan at the same time.

Highest Ranked

tyler @ Jun 9th 2008 11:45PM

Some math I pulled from Machinist:

"Here's how the costs break down: For the old iPhone, AT&T's cheapest unlimited-data plan went for $59.99 a month. Over 24 months, that was $1,439.76. Add in the $399 price of the phone and you were looking at $1,838.76 for two years of iPhone fun.

AT&T's new unlimited-data plan goes for $69.99 ($30 for data and $39.99 for its cheapest voice plan). For two years, that's $1,679.76, and then you've got the $199 phone -- a grand total of $1,878.76 for the iPhone over two years. So much for more affordable."

I'm sure some people are more than willing to pay that extra $10 a month. I would be too if the 3G is that noticeable. I was looking to get an iPhone once the 3G version came out, but by the time you add in some txt messages (if they don't this go around), taxes, and fees, it's getting to be in the $90 a month neighborhood. Hmm..

Highly Ranked

lolwhat @ Jun 9th 2008 5:27PM

lol like 80 bucks after taxes for unlimited data, voice and only 200 texts

the iphone isn't cheaper at all, you just pay AT&T via contract instead of apple upfront

Neutral

chris fredette @ Jun 9th 2008 5:33PM

You are correct sir. Actually it's $40 more expensive over the 2 year.
Can you get the 3G and just pay the 2G price for slower access? $30 is a deal breaker for me, I'm already paying too much for my phone and if I get one the wife will want one too. That's $60 :(

Neutral

JoJoMa @ Jun 9th 2008 5:37PM

So will existing business accounts be able to purchase and add to their account?????

Low Ranked

The1 @ Jun 9th 2008 5:37PM

ATT is not going to give messaging in the $30.00 dollar plan. ATT is greedy, furthermore, the increase in the cost of the data plan will also cover the cost of subsidizing the $199.00 price. You get nothing for free in this world.

Neutral

ijuleguy @ Jun 9th 2008 6:05PM

Texting isn't 'free'. it'll just be included with the data plan, like the plan for iPhone 2G. The 2G plan was/is $20 for data and 200 text messages. Hopefully AT&T bumps the texts to 1500 for the 3G plan (you can already pay a premium for that on the 2G plan). If not, why wouldn't they include the same 200 texts?

Neutral

Jon @ Jun 10th 2008 11:36AM

I haven't heard engadget mention this, but I saw it quoted directly from the ATT CEO that text IS NOT included with that $30 data plan!!

So we're probably talking probaly another $5-10 for text on top of that...$40 for data and text, plus the $40 for voice service. Ouch!
And there is still no MMS or video recording.

Yep, I'll still be buying though...lol

Actually I have a feeling that some of these issues will change ever so slightly before July 11. If enough people find out/care that text is not included, I think we may see a policy change on that.

Neutral

HBKDinobot @ Jun 9th 2008 5:45PM

Not to mention that tha 3G network is limited and only avalible in major cities. This $10 more per month is no buys. I'm pretty sure you can get 3G media net plan now for $20. So I'll be unlocking this phone and doing that as soon as an unlock/jailbreak is available.

Neutral

derX @ Jun 9th 2008 6:13PM

That is such an old argument. Go check their coverage map. Have you ever heard of Lubbock, TX? Well, I guess it's a major city now because it's covered. Seriously, their 3G coverage isn't bad.

Highly Ranked

carlo2 @ Jun 9th 2008 6:37PM

@DerX: Albuquerque, New Mexico is the only city in New Mexico with 3G. The ENTIRE central coast of California does not have 3G. The majority of Interstate Highway 40 doesn't have 3G.

ATT's coverage is abysmal. This 3g thing is just to get the rest of the world on board with the iPhone, not for U.S. customers.

Highest Ranked

elgee02 @ Jun 10th 2008 5:30PM

Come on DerX, be fair. Lubbock metro does have a population of 250k, not exactly a small city IMO.

And according to the map I do have, which says 1Q 2008, Lubbock does NOT have 3G. Edge yes, 3G no. Maybe they have added it since, I dunno.

But that is still in no way an "old" argument as there are still plenty of major markets that Sprint and VZW have with 3G goodness that AT&T does not all over this country, and a lot more less "urban" areas where AT&T is beat even worse by the EV-DO guys.

Especially in Arizona and California it is so not even close. But anyways I am not trying to turn this into a VZW vs ATT pissing match, just saying the argument that ATT's 3G coverage is lacking (although improving) is still a valid one.

Highly Ranked

elgee02 @ Jun 11th 2008 12:30AM

I just checked AT&T's very own 3G coverage locater and COME ON DerX, there is no need to lie just to make AT&T look better. Lubbock sure as hell does NOT have 3G.

There is no argument, AT&T's 3G coverage is teh suck and you know it.

Neutral

Falcom @ Jun 9th 2008 5:49PM

so, will this be just like the 2.5G iphone where you can buy it at the apple store and eventually unlock/jailbreak it as soon as its hacked freeing you from the contract?

Neutral

yea @ Jun 9th 2008 6:49PM

the 2g plan included 200 messages that would normally be 5 bucks, bundled together with the normally-$15 data plan for 2g devices. if they're announcing $30 for the new plan, its the same price as data for at&t's smartphones

Neutral

Falcom @ Jun 9th 2008 5:51PM

iphone 2.0 in the edge phone sounds like the better deal to me. I can live without GPS and faster data to save $10 a month and still get a free update with the app store, and exchange.

Neutral

pop @ Jun 9th 2008 7:52PM

if you can't afford $10 more a month, you really shouldn't be worrying about whether youre webpage is loading a few seconds faster

Neutral

M @ Jun 9th 2008 5:58PM

Count on AT&T to screw this up. $30/m for data (plus voice, and possibly messaging) makes this a really expensive proposition. I thought one of the reasons Apple pushed to lower the price was so that more consumers who were scared of the $399 price would buy an iPhone.

Well, even though the initial $199 purchase price is going to get a lot of attention, when you saddle that with $80+ per month in service fees, not many price-conscious consumers are going to sign up.

Sheesh ... thanks AT&T!

Neutral

dave @ Jun 9th 2008 6:08PM

According to Patrick Norton's twitter feed, there is also a $175 upfront fee when you purchase the new iPhone if you're already an AT&T customer. Also, there has been no mention of MMS. I was seriously waiting for this and excited, but after this news, Apple can keep that damned phone. Its just not worth it for me.

Highly Ranked

Jake @ Jun 9th 2008 8:06PM

I want to hear that from Apple or AT&T.

Not to discredit Patrick, but why would they do that? It doesn't make sense.

Neutral

aj holmes @ Jun 10th 2008 8:16AM

hey if thats all you want then why dont you jail break it? its really pretty cool to tell you the truth and best of all its free. you can also unlock it for free. the program is ziphone.org. it will add an app much like the app store but its free.

Neutral

Jonathan @ Jun 16th 2008 1:06PM

Of course it makes sense, the $175.00 discount is the same kind of incentive you get for buying any other phone when re-upping a contract. If you are already bound by a contract, no discount for you.

Neutral

Tor Slettnes @ Jun 11th 2008 4:31PM

It kindof makes sense that this would be the case, now that the iPhone 3G is subsidized in a more "normal" way like other phones.

AT&T pays a substantial portion of the cost of the iPhone 3G to Apple, and so will only subsidize one of these every 20 months (like they do for other phones).

OTOH, they no longer do any revenue sharing with Apple from subscriptions, and so you might ask yourself why they need to charge more ($30) for an iPhone data plan, vs $15 for "standard" unlmited MEdiaNet, or $20 compared to the original iPhone plan (w/200 SMS included).

Look no further than to their "smartphone" plans, such as the one for BlackBerry devices. Users of certain AT&T-subsidized phones (typcially the ones they subsidize the most) do pay more for data plan.

Also, with 3G access, iPhone users are bound to be, at large, pretty heavy data users (and thus bandwidth-consuming users) on their infrastructure.

I don't see the big wolf here. I may have felt differently if I had an iPhone (or BlackBerry, Treo, etc), but as it is, I am perfectly happy to pay a bit more for the phone itself ($650 in the case of a N95 8GB) to get far more features, fewer restrictions, and a cheaper data plan to boot. :)

Highly Ranked

JP @ Jun 13th 2008 7:21PM

Just got off the phone with an AT&T Sales Supervisor. She said (and I had her verify at the time with other Supervisors) that any current AT&T customer under a current contract is not eligible to upgrade their phone until the contract's over ("nearly over," she actually said). I asked for a specific example of someone who bought an iphone a year ago and are currently 1 yr into their 2-year contract. Since there is no concept of "full price" with the NEW iphone (always $199), the user would not be eligible to buy the phone UNLESS they added a new line (phone line, aka account, aka phone number).
Therefore, the ONLY way one could get around this predicament is to cancel your current line early, pay the early termination fee (which I believe is the $175 referred to above) and then (somehow) reclaim your old number again when you activate a new account.
Sounds crazy, yes, but I spent about a half hour nit-picking every last detail I could think of. (And I'm not even a current AT&T subscriber, I'm just interested to know what the scoop is!)

I'd love to hear someone found out another option, as I, like most, have many family, friends and co-workers who will be looking for one.

Neutral

Gibralter @ Jun 10th 2008 1:24AM

Couldn't you just put a normal phone on the account like a razr (for example) and put the $15 internet unlimiited package on the account and then switch the sim and use the iphone and just pay the 15?

Neutral

Eric @ Jun 10th 2008 3:17AM

I'm wondering this as well. I'm not that bright, so I'm assuming tons of other people have thought of this as well. Has AT&T put anything in place to stop this?

Neutral

The Weakonomist @ Jun 9th 2008 6:30PM

$30 may be a deal breaker for me as well. I'm up in the air on this one now. Maybe AT&T will get the picture and drop the plan price. I don't even use my minutes each month, nor would I use 200 text messages. Give me some a la carte options.

Sales will be great, but probably not what they're expecting given the fact that everyone's broke. My contract is up in August if I go in there threatening to leave AT&T I'll be there's some haggle room.

Neutral

Ken F @ Jun 9th 2008 7:47PM

For an extra $10, AT&T had better be including more text (at least 1500).

Neutral

Brian Richardson @ Jun 9th 2008 7:52PM

If $10 a month is make it/break for you, this device is probably not for you. Saving $200 over the original MSRP, but spending $240 more over two years is a no brainer.

Neutral

tom @ Jun 9th 2008 7:53PM

I guess it sucks to be poor. I got the funds so roll me out this phone...

Neutral

Pherball66 @ Jun 9th 2008 8:10PM

I have plenty of money but I wont be getting this because of the increased cost. It is just not worth it with all the new phones coming out. HTC Diamond, Xperia X1, HTC Dream.

Neutral

periks19 @ Jun 9th 2008 9:53PM

I don't see many people biting the iphone is cheaper in price and nice don't get me wrong but is way to expensive to be using under att. It has 3g is good but coverage area for att data is not that great you will have to be in a major city. by paying 10 more a month is like actually paying $440 but instead your giving the extra 240 to att.

Neutral

V Langs @ Jun 10th 2008 11:53AM

all i want to know is if i have the 19.99 unlimited family texting, will this 30 dollars a month still let my one line have unlimited text. cuz apparently because the 20 a month had 200 texts that's all i'd get. i'd much rather prefer the 30 with no texts for this one reason.

Low Ranked

V Langs @ Jun 9th 2008 8:37PM

it may sound stupid. but it'll save me TONS of money in the long run.

Neutral

robert @ Jun 9th 2008 8:42PM

By the way, what's the situation with the MMS anyway? Has it been confirmed that 3G Iphone is able to send/recieve video clip and picture messages? It's a shame if it doesn't.

Neutral

bernardino @ Jun 9th 2008 9:22PM

Why is everyone complaining about the $30/month unlimited data? That's the same price 3G PDA Phone users are paying currently, is it not?

Neutral

Ian @ Jun 12th 2008 10:45AM

No, existing PDA data plan costs $20/month for both EDGE 7 3G.

Neutral

Mister @ Jun 9th 2008 9:29PM

30 mo bb plan with sprint, unl messaging, telenave, tv, data, curve ftw....man some of the fanboys and defenders are funny in this comment thread.

Neutral

periks19 @ Jun 9th 2008 10:04PM

lol true to that i have the 30 plan like yours running Evdo RevA with a better data coverage than att. Att is way overpriced and as far as voice coverage here in Phoenix, AZ att is not that good also with sprint cdma i don't have to worry about having any signal, static, or droping calls when im inside buildings such as malls, stores, airport, restrooms, elevators etc.

Neutral

John @ Jun 9th 2008 9:43PM

I imagine that AT&T will encounter issues from the "mom and pop" type, non-techie buyers who pony up for the $30 for unlimited 3G data then discover that AT&T's definition of "unlimited" is not quite what it seems. Kind of like when soccer moms went overseas with their 1-gen iPhones and forgot to turn off EDGE roaming and came home to giant bills.

If Apple wants to sell iPhones to everyone they will need to push carriers to be more flexible on pricing and plans. Carriers will need to understand they can make more money by selling to everyone, rather than nickle and diming some people.

On the other hand I remember Apple saying that they wanted to change the paradigm of how carriers and manufacturers sell phones. But now they are just another manufacturer of commodity cell phones, they pump out models and carriers offer them on subsidy in return for 2 year contracts. Oh well, adapt or perish, right Jobso?

John

Neutral

Jose @ Jun 10th 2008 1:15AM

Ehhh I pay 50 for the unlimited data+unlimited texting from att on my Blackberry Curve aside from my voice plan, it doesnt matter if a phone is 3G or not to give a phone that monthly bumb in price.. im stuck on edge with my curve =/ so will I get the new iPhone??? You bet, I've been dying for 3G, 3G was a deal breaker on the first gen model iPhone...wont be hurting me at all price wise, just one question comes to mind... with the 16 gig model iPhone being priced the same as the 8 gig model iPod touch, will there be a price drop for the touch??

Neutral

David @ Jun 10th 2008 3:39AM

if i get an iphone, is it mandatory to get a data plan or can i just get the voice plan???

Neutral

Nicolas @ Jun 10th 2008 7:16AM

What? Are you serious? David, what is the point of buying a 3G iPhone if you dont intend to use data!? Save yourself the money and the hastle, if you really want an iphone, you can buy mine, it was just replace by apple and is 3 weeks old.

I have a question though, will the iPhone now not be sold through Apple directly? My contract has another year to it, so does that mean I cant buy the 3G? Or does that simply mean It will renew my contract?

Neutral