T-Mobile ends cheaper plans and imposes new limits on unlimited data

High-speed hotspot costs $15 more, HD video costs another $25.

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[Shanrak]

Unlimited.

You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.

 

[enilc]

Cell phone bills are starting to look like medical bills. A person could probably find a niche business deciphering bills and analyzing to determine a person's optimal plan.

 

[ethd]

The forced 480p video is all right (not great), but those tethering limitations are not good. This seems like a way to boost T-Mobile's profits while sounding like a good guy, but if you read between the lines you see that T-Mobile is starting their slow decent into being just like every other carrier.

Which is too bad, because I've loved T-Mo so far.

 

[emag]

How much data do most people actually use on mobile devices excluding tethering and video/music streaming? Navigation, gaming, e-mail, RSS, messaging, and even Facebook, podcasts, and web browsing don't use that much data.

FWIW, my family's usage is typically under 2 GB per line per month (excluding streaming, which is zero-rated through Music Freedom and Binge On). T-Mobile's existing/legacy 6 GB or 10 GB buckets -- at lower prices than this new offer, with full-speed tethering, and with optional full-quality video -- is certainly preferable to me.

 

[Uxorious]

enilc[/url]":aurzmtz7]Cell phone bills are starting to look like medical bills. A person could probably find a niche business deciphering bills and analyzing to determine a person's optimal plan.

Or toilet paper. You want the triple-double roll with single-ply or extra soft wide quad-ply; 18 regular rolls for $16 or 6 big rolls for $8?

 

[azazel1024]

enilc[/url]":2sog9nrd]Cell phone bills are starting to look like medical bills. A person could probably find a niche business deciphering bills and analyzing to determine a person's optimal plan.

And it is getting as bad as the medical business trying to figure out where it would be cheaper to get service for elective procedures.

 

[Rosyna]

To be clear, that video throttle to 480p is a throttle to 1.5Mbps if T-Mobile detects the file is video.

This is a massive violation of net neutrality.

 

[ars diavoli]

tldr: The "uncarrier" has dropped the "un".

 

[MiggityMikeB]

enilc[/url]":1657x5ht]Cell phone bills are starting to look like medical bills. A person could probably find a niche business deciphering bills and analyzing to determine a person's optimal plan.

T-Mobile's invoices are actually the most straight forward, clear, and easy to understand cell phone bills I've seen. They are super easy to read compared to the nonsensical and cryptic bills I used to receive from AT&T

 

[LieutenantLefse]

Whelp, once again glad I jumped to Project Fi. No bogus promises of unlimited data that they can't keep, no restrictions on tethering, no mangling of video. Just a flat price per GB, pay for what you use, do with it as you please. Under 30 bucks most months for me.

 

[Bhairitu]

I have T-Mobile but not a "plan" program. For the last 4 years I had the $30 a month 100 minutes, unlimited texting and 5 GB data "prepay". The "prepay" was on autopay. There were months there was not one call on the phone but around 1/2 GB of data. When I got a new phone recently I decided to bump to their $40 a month prepay which has unlimited calling, texting though only 3 GB of data. This is also on autopay. Reason was relatives and friends were beginning to call the phone instead of my land line.

The odd thing was I had just reloaded the $30 plan and to switch immediately to the $40 lost me the some of the $30 plan money. Apparently T-Mobile can't figure out how to pro-rate. Otherwise you have to wait until the next prepay "refill" to switch.

I don't know why I would want a "plan" as they seem to cost more. They seem to be aimed at families.

 

[a5ehren]

My wife and I are on T-mo with 2 lines with 6GB each for $80/mo. We don't use that up and both have full 20GB data stashes - why would we ever switch to this plan that forces us to watch SD video and costs 50% more every month?

If I wanted to pay $120/mo, we'd go to Verizon and get 12GB/mo total for $110 along with a better network...

 

[HiroTheProtagonist]

eMagius[/url]":vx2u8m2p]How much data do most people actually use on mobile devices excluding tethering and video/music streaming? Navigation, gaming, e-mail, RSS, messaging, and even Facebook, podcasts, and web browsing don't use that much data.

FWIW, my family's usage is typically under 2 GB per line per month (excluding streaming, which is zero-rated through Music Freedom and Binge On). T-Mobile's existing/legacy 6 GB or 10 GB buckets -- at lower prices than this new offer, with full-speed tethering, and with optional full-quality video -- is certainly preferable to me.

My plan is about 5gb per month, and outside of streaming radio I use maybe 1.5gb or so, mostly on checking Twitter/Snapchat (which is mostly video). Once in a great while when I'm on my laptop in a place with no wifi I'll tether for a few minutes to grab some files, but even then I've never even touched 4gb in a month. But yeah, considering that they already have net-neutrality violating exceptions on certain video and music streaming, there's barely any ways the average user would hit the throttling point without tethering.

 

[Orange Crush]

The tethering restrictions sound like a clear net neutrality violation. Why do bits going through the phone need to be throttled while bits going to the phone don't?

 

[secretmanofagent]

Let's just call it the Undeal and be done with it.

 

[jb226]

enilc[/url]":3d87t28y]
People who believe they should be bound only by the laws of physics in their data rates have unrealistic expectations.

I disagree. I don't think it unreasonable at all to believe that if I buy a so-called unlimited 4G data plan that I can get 4G data speeds. I understand technological limitations, capacity and demand issues, etc and that's okay -- but when a carrier just decides "ehh, nahhhh, you don't actually get to use your unlimited plan at the speeds you bought," I don't consider it unreasonable to say that's a steaming pile of bullshit.

And no, burying it somewhere in the fine print doesn't make it better.

As far as the rest of the story... wow. T-Mobile didn't like being successful and has decided to commit suicide? These changes immediately disqualify it from my consideration. Too bad for them, because they would have been on top of my list next time I was looking for a carrier switch.

 

[TBoneT]

eMagius[/url]":2p4juoeg]How much data do most people actually use on mobile devices excluding tethering and video/music streaming? Navigation, gaming, e-mail, RSS, messaging, and even Facebook, podcasts, and web browsing don't use that much data.

FWIW, my family's usage is typically under 2 GB per line per month (excluding streaming, which is zero-rated through Music Freedom and Binge On). T-Mobile's existing/legacy 6 GB or 10 GB buckets -- at lower prices than this new offer, with full-speed tethering, and with optional full-quality video -- is certainly preferable to me.

If I'm traveling, I use my phone as a hotspot for my wifi-only iPad. It doesn't cost me anything extra.

 

[TK]

The FTC or someone really needs to smack these people around. If you are IMPOSING LIMITS then your service is NOT UNLIMITED and if you advertise it as such, you are FUCKING LYING.

 

[rick*d]

First AT&T eliminates $20 wireless plan, cuts data in half on $30 plan, now this. Tell me again how the telecommunications companies aren't working in collusion?

 

[Statistical]

Any idea on how tmobile plans on detecting hotspot usage? Especially on unlocked devices not running tmobile app?

 

[willdude]

Rosyna[/url]":238s4ecs]To be clear, that video throttle to 480p is a throttle to 1.5Mbps if T-Mobile detects the file is video.

This is a massive violation of net neutrality.

Yeah that seems pretty blatant to me. At least with BingeOn they could argue that the participating companies opted in, and users could still opt out. But with this, they're simply blanket throttling a certain type of service. Isn't that exactly what Net Neutrality says not to do?

I was on the verge of switching to a TMo prepaid plan this weekend. But with this sudden upheaval, even if it doesn't affect prepaid yet, I'm not so sure.

 

[rick*d]

TK[/url]":2g6l3yzi]The FTC or someone really needs to smack these people around. If you are IMPOSING LIMITS then your service is NOT UNLIMITED and if you advertise it as such, you are FUCKING LYING.

The FTC will get right on that as soon as they finish their case against all the ISPs who advertise "up to" data rates. You know, the case that's been under investigation for decades now because the FTC hasn't bothered to begin the investigation because they don't fucking care about the public, only their corporate masters. Yeah, as soon as they finish that one.

 

[Statistical]

Rosyna[/url]":2bw47rx2]To be clear, that video throttle to 480p is a throttle to 1.5Mbps if T-Mobile detects the file is video.

This is a massive violation of net neutrality.

The FCC disagrees. I am not a big fan of content based throttling but so far the FCC says it does not violate NN.

 

[MosquitoBait]

Statistical[/url]":ul1qg33z]Any idea on how tmobile plans on detecting hotspot usage? Especially on unlocked devices not running tmobile app?

They do user-agent sniffing. Just make sure you use an add-on to change the user agent, or use a VPN or socks/ssh proxy.

 

[ekennedy80]

How does this affect people like me who are on unlimited data. Am I grandfathered?

 

[vassago]

Statistical[/url]":2e8kl053]Any idea on how tmobile plans on detecting hotspot usage? Especially on unlocked devices not running tmobile app?

I'm sure they're smarter about it now, but years ago I got around their blocking by changing the uastring in my browser on the tethered computer...

 

[Flit]

ethd[/url]":2zxs2sie]The forced 480p video is all right (not great), but those tethering limitations are not good. This seems like a way to boost T-Mobile's profits while sounding like a good guy, but if you read between the lines you see that T-Mobile is starting their slow decent into being just like every other carrier.

Which is too bad, because I've loved T-Mo so far.

In the 20 or so years I've had a cell phone, every time the "new plans!" are released, they're always worse deals with worse restrictions while the company claims it's better for the customer. I'd give T-Mobile a pass here if they kept the 6gig plan and dropped the price $10-15/month, but no, new customers are stuck with crappy restrictions and crappy limitations to their "unlimited" data. In a few years, T-Mobile will force existing users onto the "unlimited" plan, and I'll have to switch carriers yet again.

The only exception is when unlimited texting became universal on all plans, because charging per text was criminal.

 

[MosquitoBait]

Statistical[/url]":blf8v5c8]

Rosyna[/url]":blf8v5c8]To be clear, that video throttle to 480p is a throttle to 1.5Mbps if T-Mobile detects the file is video.

This is a massive violation of net neutrality.

The FCC disagrees. I am not a big fan of content based throttling but so far the FCC says it does not violate NN.

The FCC agreed because it was completely optional and you weren't charged to turn it to "binge off". Sounds like this new plan is of the extortion "you gotta pay to get that mime-type" kind, and the FCC won't like that.

 

[lettcco]

That's disappointing...

Everyone should just go prepaid so that carriers needs to fight for our businesses on a monthly basis, not the other way around.

Is the Tmobile prepaid $30 5GB 100 mins still around? I have a company phone otherwise I would do that instead.

 

[arkiel]

Should you switch now?

If you need more than one line, no. Watch for a deal that gives you 2 lines for a 15% markup of 1 line.

If you only need one line, get unlimited before its gone. You may have to wait a couple years before it is available again.

 

[potato44819]

Project Fi: Because what you see is exactly what you get.

 

[emag]

TBoneT[/url]":1bqhucy2]
If I'm traveling, I use my phone as a hotspot for my wifi-only iPad. It doesn't cost me anything extra.

But it will cost you extra with T-Mobile's new "One" plan, unless you're okay with 128 kbps data speeds.

Again, outside of tethering (throttled on T-Mobile One, full-speed on the old plans) and streaming (zero-rated and throttled on both the old (optionally) and new plans), how much mobile data do you use?

More than the 6 or 10 GB on T-Mobile's old, less expensive plans?

 

[Rosyna]

vassago[/url]":2h8u2pl5]

Statistical[/url]":2h8u2pl5]Any idea on how tmobile plans on detecting hotspot usage? Especially on unlocked devices not running tmobile app?

I'm sure they're smarter about it now, but years ago I got around their blocking by changing the uastring in my browser on the tethered computer...

They've recently implemented significantly more aggressive Deep Packet Inspection. It'll even incorrectly mark data (especially encrypted data) as being hotspot data in some circumstances.

 

[castleblanc]

The FTC or someone really needs to smack these people around. If you are IMPOSING LIMITS then your service is NOT UNLIMITED and if you advertise it as such, you are FUCKING LYING.

Not lies. The UnTruth.

 

[JTD121]

As long as I don't have to jump through any hoops to keep my current plans and data stuff, this is fine.

I knew this 'unCarrier' bull wasn't going to last forever; eventually they were going to have to change things up to 'innovate' with the bigger carriers >_>

 

[rick*d]

Statistical[/url]":399336f7]

Rosyna[/url]":399336f7]To be clear, that video throttle to 480p is a throttle to 1.5Mbps if T-Mobile detects the file is video.

This is a massive violation of net neutrality.

The FCC disagrees. I am not a big fan of content based throttling but so far the FCC says it does not violate NN.

The FCC may disagree, the courts may disagree, but to anyone with any common sense, limiting any type of traffic based solely on the content of that traffic is not being neutral. Charging for some traffic while allowing other traffic for free (or because that traffic's source paid you to let it through) is not being neutral. Pipe companies should only be allowed to be dumb pipe companies - as soon as you give preference to one content over another you are filtering your traffic and you are no longer neutral. Besides the obvious fairness (or lack thereof) issue, there's the issue of privacy. They can't possibly throttle some traffic and let other traffic pass without spying on your traffic.

 

[cosmicjesus]

Bhairitu[/url]":2u6l0fdy]I have T-Mobile but not a "plan" program. For the last 4 years I had the $30 a month 100 minutes, unlimited texting and 5 GB data "prepay". The "prepay" was on autopay. There were months there was not one call on the phone but around 1/2 GB of data. When I got a new phone recently I decided to bump to their $40 a month prepay which has unlimited calling, texting though only 3 GB of data. This is also on autopay. Reason was relatives and friends were beginning to call the phone instead of my land line.

I have the T-mobile $30 plan too, but I use Google Voice/Hangouts for most calls so the 100 minutes isn't an issue.