iPhone Users Pay More for Data Plans, but There's More to the Numbers Discussion

[Ed Hardy]

iPhone users pay a higher monthly bill than any other type of smartphone user, and it's not because of their usage habits. However, when you dig into the details, there is actually growing equality between iPhone and Android.

Read the full content of this Article: iPhone Users Pay More for Data Plans, but There's More to the Numbers

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[impavide]

"10% spending $200 or more monthly" ... this is incredible!

I am really glad to live in Canada. Here we have unlimited data plans for 10$ a month.

[Adama D. Brown]

"10% spending $200 or more monthly" ... this is incredible!

I am really glad to live in Canada. Here we have unlimited data plans for 10$ a month.

Makes me kind of wish I were there. I pay $30 for 4 gigs, which is better, although I still envy the people on Straight Talk who are paying $45 plus tax for "unlimited" everything (actually unlimited talk and text plus throttled data after a certain point, but still a damn good deal.

[questionfear]

Makes me kind of wish I were there. I pay $30 for 4 gigs, which is better, although I still envy the people on Straight Talk who are paying $45 plus tax for "unlimited" everything (actually unlimited talk and text plus throttled data after a certain point, but still a damn good deal.

I wish I could make the math work on a prepaid plan. But two smartphones at $45/month plus taxes is roughly $100/month, or $1200 per year. My Verizon bill for two smartphones with a corporate discount is around $145/month or $1740 per year. So we could save $540 a year if we switched...except we would have to buy newish phones off contract, and two newish smartphones would probably run us around $400 per phone...so in the end the savings over two years when you add in equipment costs is only around $200, at which point it makes me think the slight monthly savings isn't worth the hassle.

Or is my math wrong somewhere? Again, I am assuming we would still both want relatively new smartphones every two years or so, so buying a $100 Android phone that was out of date two years ago isn't a viable option.

[EdmundDantes]

"10% spending $200 or more monthly" ... this is incredible!

I am really glad to live in Canada. Here we have unlimited data plans for 10$ a month.

That's impressive. I know a few Canadians and I don't think they have those plans. I'll have to find out if they even know about them. I remember years ago that one PAYG provider was pretty good (I think it might have been Fido or something like 'Metro-something?'), because I bought someone a Nokia 8800 (I think that was it) aluminum-sheathed phone.

[Adama D. Brown]

I wish I could make the math work on a prepaid plan. But two smartphones at $45/month plus taxes is roughly $100/month, or $1200 per year. My Verizon bill for two smartphones with a corporate discount is around $145/month or $1740 per year. So we could save $540 a year if we switched...except we would have to buy newish phones off contract, and two newish smartphones would probably run us around $400 per phone...so in the end the savings over two years when you add in equipment costs is only around $200, at which point it makes me think the slight monthly savings isn't worth the hassle.

Or is my math wrong somewhere? Again, I am assuming we would still both want relatively new smartphones every two years or so, so buying a $100 Android phone that was out of date two years ago isn't a viable option.

Not wrong really, although it depends heavily on perceived need. For a lot of people, a 12-18 month old phone is going to be plenty for their needs. Case in point, there's some really good phones out there that age: the Verizon Droid Bionic is 17 months old, the AT&T Galaxy S II about 16 months, and both are still very fine devices in their own ways. It makes even more sense if you have a device you're already happy with and can simply take to a prepaid carrier. In essence, it's giving up a higher end experience in exchange for a lower cost.

[EdmundDantes]

Okay, it popped into my head. I think the Canadian carrier I was thinking of was Microcell. I don't think they're around anymore.

[questionfear]

Not wrong really, although it depends heavily on perceived need. For a lot of people, a 12-18 month old phone is going to be plenty for their needs. Case in point, there's some really good phones out there that age: the Verizon Droid Bionic is 17 months old, the AT&T Galaxy S II about 16 months, and both are still very fine devices in their own ways. It makes even more sense if you have a device you're already happy with and can simply take to a prepaid carrier. In essence, it's giving up a higher end experience in exchange for a lower cost.

That is very true. I think what kills me is that my corp discount is just a touch too good-if I paid full price for my plan, I could easily save $500+ even buying new phones every two years. But even spending $300 on two new phones nets me at most $360 extra after two years...

But it's all academic because the end savings isn't enough to kill our contract and pay an ETF. So maybe by October there will be a better solution...

[jigwashere]

qf, did you include the cost of new phones on contract with VZW? New, subsidized smartphones are probably going to cost $200 apiece.

VZW @ $145/month x 24 months + $400 for 2 smartphones = $3880
Prepaid @ $100/month x 24 months + $800 for 2 smartphones = $3200

Savings on prepaid appears to be $680 over a 2-year period.

[questionfear]

qf, did you include the cost of new phones on contract with VZW? New, subsidized smartphones are probably going to cost $200 apiece.

VZW @ $145/month x 24 months + $400 for 2 smartphones = $3880
Prepaid @ $100/month x 24 months + $800 for 2 smartphones = $3200

Savings on prepaid appears to be $680 over a 2-year period.

Nope! That's a good point!

I think we are locked in for another 9 months at least...