I suspect my AT&T grandfathered unlimited-data plan, which has the subsidy built in, will not get any lower when I outright purchase the phone.
Knowing AT&T, they'll find some way of screwing you out of your unlimited data if you don't keep doing the traditional, subsidized 2-year contract. They've pestered me and tried to get me to switch plans in an effort to get me off my unlimited data. No way.
Like the first poster, I am grandfathered in to ATTs unlimited data. They are constantly trying to entice me to switch to a "newer and better" upgrade scheme. What they don't say up front is that doing so will cancel my existing data plan. I suspect that taking advantage of Apple's new no-brainer plan will do just that: show that I have no brain.
Another issue with staying on the grandfathered plan: you won't be able to upgrade to a new iPhone either online (with AT&T or Apple) or in an Apple Store. The only way to get an iPhone on the grandfathered plan now is to visit an AT&T store. So for "Day 1" pre-ordering people like me, this is a deal-killer, as it'll be virtually impossible to get at iPhone from an AT&T store on "Day 1". I'm on the non-S upgrade cycle, so I have until fall 2016 to decide what to do when my current contract is up.
I'll probably switch to T-Mobile, as I believe you get more for the money in terms of extras (no roaming in Canada and Mexico, international 2G data roaming at no charge, no-charge international texting for many countries, etc.). Their installment plans also seem to be easier to interpret compared to AT&T Next (though Apple's new installment plan also looks good). T-Mobile is also deploying Band 12 LTE in the 700 MHz range in many cities, which works better in buildings than their higher frequency (1500 MHz?) bands. The iPhone 6S / 6S Plus now support Band 12.
I don't quite understand here ... if it is an unlocked phone, why do I have to go into a store and activate. Does this mean that if I am currently on a phone plan, I can't use my current plan and have to start a new account?
I'm sure you can continue your current plan if you want, just like always.
I think there will be some legal requirements in the fine print for the loan program. They probably want to make sure that it is activated as an end user and not a scalper. Although if you were a scalper you could probably activate it with the minimum data plan and cancel after one month and still be able to ship it overseas for a profit.
One thing to note is that if you do AT&T Next you don't pay the activation fee. With this you do. So there is $35 or $40 difference.
I would like to do this without activating a new line. I have my current AT&T phone on AT&T Next, and I want to keep it and pay it off, but I'd like to buy the new phone and switch my SIM around. This deal makes it look like you HAVE to activate it on a carrier. Which I don't want to do as I want to move my existing SIM over. Have to ask Apple about this one.
Since I do app dev work, I can't have too many phones lying around or being passed down to family members, etc.
The part that worries me is "If you don't have any carrier commitments ..."
My issue is that I am planning to sell my current iPhone 6 Plus (still on contract) before I buy the iPhone 6S Plus, and am planning on using the iPhone Upgrade Program. I don't want to show up at the Apple Store and find out I have to add another phone to my plan while still carrying my current contract.
In my experience AT&T has always been very helpful in working out your options. Perhaps you should call them.
Unless you are really strapped for cash and can't afford the first month loan payment without first selling your current phone, I think you'd be better off paying the early termination fee (approximately $200+) and then have AT&T, or whoever, legally unlock your phone before you sell it. Adding a new line is only $10 and you will more than make up that difference in the selling value if it is unlocked. Then the following month you remove the additional line.
One thing to note is that if you do AT&T Next you don't pay the activation fee. With this you do. So there is $35 or $40 difference.
I would like to do this without activating a new line. I have my current AT&T phone on AT&T Next, and I want to keep it and pay it off, but I'd like to buy the new phone and switch my SIM around. This deal makes it look like you HAVE to activate it on a carrier. Which I don't want to do as I want to move my existing SIM over. Have to ask Apple about this one.
Since I do app dev work, I can't have too many phones lying around or being passed down to family members, etc.
FWIW, my daughter regularly switched her SIM with her friends' phones when she was younger. AT&T has never batted an eye, even updating my account page to reflect the changed phone. She did this when we had a contract subsidized phone, and she also recently did it because she broke her own and hasn't had he deductible to get it replaced. We're currently on the NEXT thing with her phone. We've never paid an activation fee when doing this.
I think the "activation" fee is just so much b/s, so they can cite the "benefit" when they waive it for you, and get some free money when they go to the monumentally agonizing and costly effort of turning a new SIM on to their network.
FWIW, my daughter regularly switched her SIM with her friends' phones when she was younger. AT&T has never batted an eye, even updating my account page to reflect the changed phone. She did this when we had a contract subsidized phone, and she also recently did it because she broke her own and hasn't had he deductible to get it replaced. We're currently on the NEXT thing with her phone. We've never paid an activation fee when doing this.
Yes, you don't pay an activation fee when switching SIMs. It seems like this new Apple installment plan requires a new line activation, which would require a new activation fee.
Edit: When UPGRADING you do however pay an activation fee when on a 2 year contract subsidized, and not when on Next with AT&T. Since Apple requires you to activate this I bet AT&T would charge you the activation fee the same as if you were on 2 year subsidized plan.
i think the numbers are incorrect. I called AT&T to see how their Next plan prices out compared to the Apple Upgrade program. The iPhone 6s Plus with 128 GB is $44.95 on the Apple upgrade site over 24 months. AT&T says the Next 20 plan price for the same model is $2.00 less per month and can be traded every year.If you want to own it outright, it is yours in 20 months, so there are 4 less payments. So that is roughly a $180 savings.The phone is locked with AT&T, but if you want to change carriers, you can pay the remaining installments.
i think the numbers are incorrect. I called AT&T to see how their Next plan prices out compared to the Apple Upgrade program. The iPhone 6s Plus with 128 GB is $44.95 on the Apple upgrade site over 24 months. AT&T says the Next 20 plan price for the same model is $2.00 less per month and can be traded every year.If you want to own it outright, it is yours in 20 months, so there are 4 less payments. So that is roughly a $180 savings.The phone is locked with AT&T, but if you want to change carriers, you can pay the remaining installments.
i think the numbers are incorrect. I called AT&T to see how their Next plan prices out compared to the Apple Upgrade program. The iPhone 6s Plus with 128 GB is $44.95 on the Apple upgrade site over 24 months. AT&T says the Next 20 plan price for the same model is $2.00 less per month and can be traded every year.If you want to own it outright, it is yours in 20 months, so there are 4 less payments. So that is roughly a $180 savings.The phone is locked with AT&T, but if you want to change carriers, you can pay the remaining installments.
I am betting that you will have to pay the $35-$40 activation fee if you buy through Apple vs buying through AT&T Next. So $129 plus say $40 = $169 which is about the difference. If you upgrade through AT&T with a 2 year contract they charge you the activation fee. If you are on the Next plan they don't charge you the activation fee. All in all they all come out to about the same price as what they are really doing is an installment plan to cover the price and the end price basically is the same for everyone.
Yes, you don't pay an activation fee when switching SIMs. It seems like this new Apple installment plan requires a new line activation, which would require a new activation fee.
It's possible. Mind you, it wouldn't surprise me to find out that Apple agreed to this to make it more palatable to carriers. On the other hand, neither would it surprise me to learn that Apple is basically just saying "We're selling phones; it's up to you carriers to attract subscribers." I can also see existing subscribers being irate at having to activate a new line when their existing line is out of contract, or no longer obligated in some other fashion.
It's possible. Mind you, it wouldn't surprise me to find out that Apple agreed to this to make it more palatable to carriers. On the other hand, neither would it surprise me to learn that Apple is basically just saying "We're selling phones; it's up to you carriers to attract subscribers." I can also see existing subscribers being irate at having to activate a new line when their existing line is out of contract, or no longer obligated in some other fashion.
Activating a new phone on an existing line also carries an activation fee with AT&T I am betting. For example, if you are on a 2 year subsidized plan, and you upgrade, you get socked with an activation fee. Since Apple is requiring actual activation of the phone with a carrier, not just you putting an old SIM in, I am betting (but don't know for sure) that you will be charged an activation fee through Apple's plan. Running the numbers for total end cost only reinforces this.
All in all they all come out to about the same price as what they are really doing is an installment plan to cover the price and the end price basically is the same for everyone.
This. I think it all comes down to what is most convenient for you given how you use it and how you'd like to pay for it.
For someone like me, who does not ever get an AppleCare plan except for my Macs and who has no plans to switch from ATT, the ATT 20-month or 24-month interest-free loan plan works out the best and the easiest.
Add: That said, I might consider waiting a few weeks and buying the iPhone outright using my "Discover Card with ApplePay" since there's a 10% discount until the end of the year -- that's $85 off the 128 6s.
Does this still make sense if you don't care about having an unlocked phone? You will be paying back the full price of the phone and not the subsidized price.
Maybe this is obvious or i'm missing but for me it still doesn't make sense
It looks like my best bet is to just pay off the total phone price (so I can keep it) on my existing AT&T Next and then either signing up for a new AT&T Next or this Apple plan... One thing I need to remember is that since AT&T bills my Next installment plan with my normal bill I get 5 points per dollar on my Chase INK business card, and not just 1 point per dollar if I just buy it outright, and on a $1000 phone that is real money
Any word if this deal would be available in Canada soon, seems like a no brainer deal nice to get a unlocked iPhone especially if you travel to Mexico, or Asia.
The question to me is whether you can take this handset and go from one carrier to another. My brother is on our T-Mobile plan (which is great), but he may need to switch to Verizon because of work coverage needs. So if he gets the phone on this program and activates it against his existing T-Mobile plan, that's probably going to go smoothly. But if he then decides that he want to create a new line with Verizon and move his new handset over, he probably won't be able to. Verizon is real difficult about that. It's been pretty well documented that you can take an unlocked GSM iPhone 5S handset (say it was originally used on T-Mobile or AT&T) and install an already activated Verizon SIM card into it and it will work fine. But go and try and activate a new line where you have to activate the IMEI of the handset and they will reject it because it's not one of "their" phones.
But it's a great deal for most AT&T users or people who use a carrier like Cricket or StraightTalk where you can bring your own handset. This really brings down the cost of immediate ownership.
Comments
I suspect my AT&T grandfathered unlimited-data plan, which has the subsidy built in, will not get any lower when I outright purchase the phone.
Knowing AT&T, they'll find some way of screwing you out of your unlimited data if you don't keep doing the traditional, subsidized 2-year contract. They've pestered me and tried to get me to switch plans in an effort to get me off my unlimited data. No way.
Like the first poster, I am grandfathered in to ATTs unlimited data. They are constantly trying to entice me to switch to a "newer and better" upgrade scheme. What they don't say up front is that doing so will cancel my existing data plan. I suspect that taking advantage of Apple's new no-brainer plan will do just that: show that I have no brain.
Another issue with staying on the grandfathered plan: you won't be able to upgrade to a new iPhone either online (with AT&T or Apple) or in an Apple Store. The only way to get an iPhone on the grandfathered plan now is to visit an AT&T store. So for "Day 1" pre-ordering people like me, this is a deal-killer, as it'll be virtually impossible to get at iPhone from an AT&T store on "Day 1". I'm on the non-S upgrade cycle, so I have until fall 2016 to decide what to do when my current contract is up.
I'll probably switch to T-Mobile, as I believe you get more for the money in terms of extras (no roaming in Canada and Mexico, international 2G data roaming at no charge, no-charge international texting for many countries, etc.). Their installment plans also seem to be easier to interpret compared to AT&T Next (though Apple's new installment plan also looks good). T-Mobile is also deploying Band 12 LTE in the 700 MHz range in many cities, which works better in buildings than their higher frequency (1500 MHz?) bands. The iPhone 6S / 6S Plus now support Band 12.
I don't quite understand here ... if it is an unlocked phone, why do I have to go into a store and activate. Does this mean that if I am currently on a phone plan, I can't use my current plan and have to start a new account?
I'm sure you can continue your current plan if you want, just like always.
I think there will be some legal requirements in the fine print for the loan program. They probably want to make sure that it is activated as an end user and not a scalper. Although if you were a scalper you could probably activate it with the minimum data plan and cancel after one month and still be able to ship it overseas for a profit.
I would like to do this without activating a new line. I have my current AT&T phone on AT&T Next, and I want to keep it and pay it off, but I'd like to buy the new phone and switch my SIM around. This deal makes it look like you HAVE to activate it on a carrier. Which I don't want to do as I want to move my existing SIM over. Have to ask Apple about this one.
Since I do app dev work, I can't have too many phones lying around or being passed down to family members, etc.
The part that worries me is "If you don't have any carrier commitments ..."
My issue is that I am planning to sell my current iPhone 6 Plus (still on contract) before I buy the iPhone 6S Plus, and am planning on using the iPhone Upgrade Program. I don't want to show up at the Apple Store and find out I have to add another phone to my plan while still carrying my current contract.
In my experience AT&T has always been very helpful in working out your options. Perhaps you should call them.
Unless you are really strapped for cash and can't afford the first month loan payment without first selling your current phone, I think you'd be better off paying the early termination fee (approximately $200+) and then have AT&T, or whoever, legally unlock your phone before you sell it. Adding a new line is only $10 and you will more than make up that difference in the selling value if it is unlocked. Then the following month you remove the additional line.
One thing to note is that if you do AT&T Next you don't pay the activation fee. With this you do. So there is $35 or $40 difference.
I would like to do this without activating a new line. I have my current AT&T phone on AT&T Next, and I want to keep it and pay it off, but I'd like to buy the new phone and switch my SIM around. This deal makes it look like you HAVE to activate it on a carrier. Which I don't want to do as I want to move my existing SIM over. Have to ask Apple about this one.
Since I do app dev work, I can't have too many phones lying around or being passed down to family members, etc.
FWIW, my daughter regularly switched her SIM with her friends' phones when she was younger. AT&T has never batted an eye, even updating my account page to reflect the changed phone. She did this when we had a contract subsidized phone, and she also recently did it because she broke her own and hasn't had he deductible to get it replaced. We're currently on the NEXT thing with her phone. We've never paid an activation fee when doing this.
I think the "activation" fee is just so much b/s, so they can cite the "benefit" when they waive it for you, and get some free money when they go to the monumentally agonizing and costly effort of turning a new SIM on to their network.
FWIW, my daughter regularly switched her SIM with her friends' phones when she was younger. AT&T has never batted an eye, even updating my account page to reflect the changed phone. She did this when we had a contract subsidized phone, and she also recently did it because she broke her own and hasn't had he deductible to get it replaced. We're currently on the NEXT thing with her phone. We've never paid an activation fee when doing this.
Yes, you don't pay an activation fee when switching SIMs. It seems like this new Apple installment plan requires a new line activation, which would require a new activation fee.
Edit: When UPGRADING you do however pay an activation fee when on a 2 year contract subsidized, and not when on Next with AT&T. Since Apple requires you to activate this I bet AT&T would charge you the activation fee the same as if you were on 2 year subsidized plan.
i think the numbers are incorrect. I called AT&T to see how their Next plan prices out compared to the Apple Upgrade program. The iPhone 6s Plus with 128 GB is $44.95 on the Apple upgrade site over 24 months. AT&T says the Next 20 plan price for the same model is $2.00 less per month and can be traded every year.If you want to own it outright, it is yours in 20 months, so there are 4 less payments. So that is roughly a $180 savings.The phone is locked with AT&T, but if you want to change carriers, you can pay the remaining installments.
I am betting that you will have to pay the $35-$40 activation fee if you buy through Apple vs buying through AT&T Next. So $129 plus say $40 = $169 which is about the difference. If you upgrade through AT&T with a 2 year contract they charge you the activation fee. If you are on the Next plan they don't charge you the activation fee. All in all they all come out to about the same price as what they are really doing is an installment plan to cover the price and the end price basically is the same for everyone.
Yes, you don't pay an activation fee when switching SIMs. It seems like this new Apple installment plan requires a new line activation, which would require a new activation fee.
It's possible. Mind you, it wouldn't surprise me to find out that Apple agreed to this to make it more palatable to carriers. On the other hand, neither would it surprise me to learn that Apple is basically just saying "We're selling phones; it's up to you carriers to attract subscribers." I can also see existing subscribers being irate at having to activate a new line when their existing line is out of contract, or no longer obligated in some other fashion.
It's possible. Mind you, it wouldn't surprise me to find out that Apple agreed to this to make it more palatable to carriers. On the other hand, neither would it surprise me to learn that Apple is basically just saying "We're selling phones; it's up to you carriers to attract subscribers." I can also see existing subscribers being irate at having to activate a new line when their existing line is out of contract, or no longer obligated in some other fashion.
Activating a new phone on an existing line also carries an activation fee with AT&T I am betting. For example, if you are on a 2 year subsidized plan, and you upgrade, you get socked with an activation fee. Since Apple is requiring actual activation of the phone with a carrier, not just you putting an old SIM in, I am betting (but don't know for sure) that you will be charged an activation fee through Apple's plan. Running the numbers for total end cost only reinforces this.
All in all they all come out to about the same price as what they are really doing is an installment plan to cover the price and the end price basically is the same for everyone.
This. I think it all comes down to what is most convenient for you given how you use it and how you'd like to pay for it.
For someone like me, who does not ever get an AppleCare plan except for my Macs and who has no plans to switch from ATT, the ATT 20-month or 24-month interest-free loan plan works out the best and the easiest.
Add: That said, I might consider waiting a few weeks and buying the iPhone outright using my "Discover Card with ApplePay" since there's a 10% discount until the end of the year -- that's $85 off the 128 6s.
Does this still make sense if you don't care about having an unlocked phone? You will be paying back the full price of the phone and not the subsidized price.
Maybe this is obvious or i'm missing but for me it still doesn't make sense
It looks like my best bet is to just pay off the total phone price (so I can keep it) on my existing AT&T Next and then either signing up for a new AT&T Next or this Apple plan... One thing I need to remember is that since AT&T bills my Next installment plan with my normal bill I get 5 points per dollar on my Chase INK business card, and not just 1 point per dollar if I just buy it outright, and on a $1000 phone that is real money
The question to me is whether you can take this handset and go from one carrier to another. My brother is on our T-Mobile plan (which is great), but he may need to switch to Verizon because of work coverage needs. So if he gets the phone on this program and activates it against his existing T-Mobile plan, that's probably going to go smoothly. But if he then decides that he want to create a new line with Verizon and move his new handset over, he probably won't be able to. Verizon is real difficult about that. It's been pretty well documented that you can take an unlocked GSM iPhone 5S handset (say it was originally used on T-Mobile or AT&T) and install an already activated Verizon SIM card into it and it will work fine. But go and try and activate a new line where you have to activate the IMEI of the handset and they will reject it because it's not one of "their" phones.
But it's a great deal for most AT&T users or people who use a carrier like Cricket or StraightTalk where you can bring your own handset. This really brings down the cost of immediate ownership.