AT&T’s SIM-only Plan Still Requires A Contract?
For some reason I thought I wrote about this, but I can’t find the post. In any case, if you haven’t read it somewhere else, you can now order just a SIM card from AT&T’s web site and use whatever compatible GSM handset you want. Note that this has always been possible in an AT&T store. Problem is, even without a phone subsidy, you still have to have a contract. While I seem to remember a 1 year contract being requierd, others are reporting a 2 year contract is required.
For years, we’ve been told that the contracts are needed for one reason: to subsidize the cost of the handset. Okay, done. I’ve brought my own. No handset for you to subsidize. If you’re going to give me a contract anyway, what kind of benefit do I get? Do I get cash back at the end of the term? Do I get a discount on my bill–a larger one than someone who bought a phone as part of their contract?
No, I don’t get squat. I just get a ball and chain without any benefit. Great. Thanks, AT&T.
Update:Â Apparently, this is not the case at all. Leave it to Om Malik to dig up the real truth. As long as you’re not signing up for a promotional rate plan, you can join up on a month-to-month basis, i.e. contract-free. The question is: what is considered a promotional rate plan?
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Tags: at&t, ball-and-chain, contract, subsidy Fnord
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Comment by spg
sounds to me like a plan for the idiotic. i mean you take a free phone a give it way, sell it at a pawn shop, whatever. it tells a lot about the state of the American consumer that a company would even have the guts to do such a thing. the saddest part is that i am sure people buys these things and just let at&t keep what would have been a free phone.
Comment by PhoneBoy
@spg Personally, I think it’s a trick. My personal experience is a 1 year contract with a SIM-only option. Still getting rogered, but not as badly.
Comment by Ricky
historically with Cingular, the ‘promotional element’ on the plan was the unlimited M2M.
Comment by cangel
Thank you for the update. I thought you still had to have that long term contract. This gives me another option when my promotional contract runs out.