AT&T Kills Unlimited Data
posted Sunday Jun 6, 2010 by Scott Ertz
June is a big month of change for AT&T. On the 1st we saw a change in the early termination fees for smartphones, almost doubling. Tomorrow we will see a change in the way data works. We didn't think AT&T would change their data pricing strategy until they were closer to a 4G network launch, but here it is anyway.
DataPlus and DataPro
If you have a smartphone and only use it for texting or some light Internet browsing, then you are in luck. The $30 unlimited plan is going the way of the dinosaur and being replaced by two limited plans: $15 for 200MB (DataPlus) and $25 for 2GB (DataPro). If you actually use your smartphone for what it was intended for, AT&T will not be forcing you to switch, so you are welcome to stay on the $30 unlimited plan.
The biggest change comes in the form of overages. Instead of $50 per gig on their laptop connect plans, the overages will be much more manageable: $15 for 200MB on DataPlus and $10 for 1GB on DataPro. Now, if you go over, you won't have to take out a second mortgage on the house. Luckily, you will be able to change the data plan at any time during a month and even retroactively fix a month halfway through.
Hit the break for the rest of the big changes.
Tethering
To be able to tether, obviously you will have to have the DataPro plan and there will be a $20 tethering fee. So, for $45 you get 2GB to share between your phone and laptop (or any other tetherable device). If you don't use it much, it is a great deal. But if you use it a lot, it is going to cost significantly more to get the same 5GB you get on the DataConnect plan. $60 gives you 5GB of data on DataConnect, versus $75 via tethering ($25 for 2GB + $20 for tethering + $30 for 3GB overage). And, of course, at the OS 4 launch, the iPhone will get the same tethering options.
iPad
Remember the great iPad deal that Apple made a big deal about at the announcement event? $30 for truly unlimited Internet on the device anywhere, anytime? Well, I hope you have activated that plan already, because in less than 12 hours it will be a thing of the past as well. It is being replaced by the same DataPlus plan available for smartphones.
The end of the unlimited plan is a sad event. AT&T is not the only company losing their unlimited plans, either. Verizon has said that in the 4G world, their plans would alter and there wouldn't be an unlimited option available. Sprint, on the other hand, revived their unlimited plan on the 4G network. It is interesting to see how different carriers think differently about the same subject.
So, are you going to be affected by the death of unlimited data on AT&T? Let us know below!