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Sent to you by Bill Boulware via Google Reader: AT&T makes sweeping
changes to data plans, iPhone tethering coming at OS 4 launch via
Engadget by Chris Ziegler on 6/2/10
You might think that AT&T would hold off for a national HSPA+
deployment or a full-on LTE launch before tweaking its data pricing
strategy, but not so much -- the carrier is coming out swinging today
with some significant changes that should benefit the overwhelming
majority of its smartphone users (and could stand to harm a select
few). Let's break down the major points:

DataPlus / DataPro
- The existing $30 fair-use "unlimited" smartphone data plan is being
replaced by two new options: $15 per month for 200MB and $25 for 2GB
(called "DataPlus" and "DataPro," respectively). Customers currently on
the $30 plan are welcome to stay on it, but they can switch at any time
without extending their contract.
- AT&T's new overage system is arguably the game changer: on the $15
plan, you'll pay $15 for each additional 200MB, but on the $25 plan,
you'll pay $10 for each additional GB. It's simple and straightforward
-- but most importantly, it won't bankrupt you if you go over by a gig
or three in a month. This compares to $50 per gigabyte of overage on
AT&T's 5GB DataConnect plan for laptops.
- The carrier's going to be very flexible about changing between the
DataPlus and DataPro plans -- if you're on DataPlus, for example, and
you discover that you're blowing past your allotment, you can choose
either to start DataPro the following billing cycle, pro-rate it, or
apply the higher plan retroactively to the beginning of your current
billing cycle. That's pretty wild. Tethering
- Tethering will be offered as an add-on to the DataPro plan for an
additional $20 per month, which means you'll pay a total of $45 a month
for 2GB of data shared between your phone and your tethered devices. If
you're light on the usage, it's a sweet deal -- but if you scale it up
and you're using the data almost exclusively on your laptop, it
compares unfavorably to the traditional DataConnect plan: $60 versus
$75 for 5GB (and in the unlikely even you've got a webOS device on
Verizon, it compares even less favorably). If you're striking a balance
of data use between a smartphone and tethered gear, AT&T's new setup is
still pretty solid considering that you would've been paying $60 for
the USB stick plus $30 for smartphone data before.
- Yes, it's finally happening: AT&T's iPhones will get access to the
tethering option, too. iPad
- iPad users are also affected by the change. The $30 iPad data plan --
lauded for being labeled by AT&T as truly unlimited -- goes away to be
replaced by the same $25 / 2GB plan that smartphone users will see,
though current subscribers to the $30 plan can continue unaffected.
Everything launches on June 7, except for iPhone tethering -- it'll
launch when OS 4 does. In the meantime, we're told users can sign up
for the $30 plans both on their phones and iPads if they'd like to be
grandfathered in. Follow the break for more details along with AT&T's
full press release.
Continue reading AT&T makes sweeping changes to data plans, iPhone
tethering coming at OS 4 launch

AT&T makes sweeping changes to data plans, iPhone tethering coming at
OS 4 launch originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010
03:00:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.
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