Ipad Iphone
December 1, 2010 7:26 PM Subscribe
Love my iphone and I am thinking about getting a ipad for Christmas. Just one question why does AT&T limit internet usage to 2GB per month. Are there any other plans that give me more internet time>
Thanks
(As for the why: it's so it can charge $10/gig overage.)
posted by holgate at 7:33 PM on December 1, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by holgate at 7:33 PM on December 1, 2010 [1 favorite]
Are you committed to sticking with AT&T? (If so, this is probably the kind of question that a sales rep could help you with.)
Are you committed to keeping your iPhone? (If so, this will limit your choice of providers slightly.) Are you willing and able to jailbreak the phone? (If not, this will limit your choice of providers severely.)
posted by box at 7:35 PM on December 1, 2010
Are you committed to keeping your iPhone? (If so, this will limit your choice of providers slightly.) Are you willing and able to jailbreak the phone? (If not, this will limit your choice of providers severely.)
posted by box at 7:35 PM on December 1, 2010
Also, it's not actually limited to 2GB/month. It's 2GB for $25; you can pay another $25 for another 2GB.
posted by Tomorrowful at 7:36 PM on December 1, 2010
posted by Tomorrowful at 7:36 PM on December 1, 2010
That's two questions.
1) The reason why AT&T limits it to 2GB is because they can. I'd hope that VZN's data plan maxed at 5GB, and Sprint and T-Mobile at unlimited that AT&T would loosen up. So far AT&T are sticking to their guns. Perhaps a VZN iPhone iPad next year might loosen it up.
2) AT&T doesn't cut you off at 2GB. The overage rate is $10/GB so if you use more so 5GB would be $55/mth. The other option is to use WiFi+a data plan (MiFi box) from another carrier. But since data only plans cost more, and you have to buy a MiFi it would take using a lot of data over a lot of time to make the cost advantageous.
posted by birdherder at 7:42 PM on December 1, 2010
1) The reason why AT&T limits it to 2GB is because they can. I'd hope that VZN's data plan maxed at 5GB, and Sprint and T-Mobile at unlimited that AT&T would loosen up. So far AT&T are sticking to their guns. Perhaps a VZN iPhone iPad next year might loosen it up.
2) AT&T doesn't cut you off at 2GB. The overage rate is $10/GB so if you use more so 5GB would be $55/mth. The other option is to use WiFi+a data plan (MiFi box) from another carrier. But since data only plans cost more, and you have to buy a MiFi it would take using a lot of data over a lot of time to make the cost advantageous.
posted by birdherder at 7:42 PM on December 1, 2010
You can get mifi from Virgin Mobile they claim 40$ a month unlimited usage.
Virgin Mobile MiFi
posted by Ad hominem at 7:49 PM on December 1, 2010
Virgin Mobile MiFi
posted by Ad hominem at 7:49 PM on December 1, 2010
Not a direct answer to your question but another consideration is how much access to wifi do you have? My iPad connects to both the wifi network at home and at work, so the only time it is on the 3G network is if I'm not in either place. I use mine all day long and have never needed more than the $15 plan.
posted by tamitang at 7:51 PM on December 1, 2010
posted by tamitang at 7:51 PM on December 1, 2010
It's worth looking into how much broadband you really use. 2 gigs is probably more than you realize, especially if you already have wifi access and even more so if the iPad isn't going to be your main access to the internet.
posted by 2oh1 at 7:59 PM on December 1, 2010
posted by 2oh1 at 7:59 PM on December 1, 2010
Another option is to buy a wifi-only iPad and add tethering to your iPhone for $20/month. This will save you some money on the initial purchase and could end up being a better deal overall depending on your usage patterns.
By the way, are you sure you need more that 2GB a month? My understanding is that people only go over that if they are sucking lots of video or almost continuous audio.
posted by alms at 7:59 PM on December 1, 2010
By the way, are you sure you need more that 2GB a month? My understanding is that people only go over that if they are sucking lots of video or almost continuous audio.
posted by alms at 7:59 PM on December 1, 2010
AT&T is using GSM 2G. In that system, data and voice don't use the same part of the licensed spectrum. Service providers have to divide their licensed spectrum into a part which is exclusively voice and a part which is exclusively data. And they did that a long time ago, before the iPhone showed up.
Since the advent of the iPhone, which has been a spectacular sales success for AT&T, it's also brought with it a lot of service problems. Specifically, everyone out there who owns an iPhone is suddenly a huge user of data, and in some of their markets the data spectrum is severely overloaded.
In fact, last year (I think it was) AT&T (aka Cingular) stopped selling iPhones in the NYC area because they couldn't support any more.
One big reason for the 2GB limit, and a charge for data usage beyond that, is to deter iPhone users from using lots of data, in order to relieve the overloading.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 9:19 PM on December 1, 2010
Since the advent of the iPhone, which has been a spectacular sales success for AT&T, it's also brought with it a lot of service problems. Specifically, everyone out there who owns an iPhone is suddenly a huge user of data, and in some of their markets the data spectrum is severely overloaded.
In fact, last year (I think it was) AT&T (aka Cingular) stopped selling iPhones in the NYC area because they couldn't support any more.
One big reason for the 2GB limit, and a charge for data usage beyond that, is to deter iPhone users from using lots of data, in order to relieve the overloading.
posted by Chocolate Pickle at 9:19 PM on December 1, 2010
Also not a direct answer but I'd strongly advise you to hold off on the new iPad if you can until the early spring or thereabouts. The one on the market now has a strong whiff of last-gen technology around it--the new handhelds have much better displays and processors for the same money as ever--and it seems very likely that a new model of iPad will be announced in the next short while. The screen will be much much better-looking, and it'll probably have a much more efficient processor under the hood and a camera for video-phoning over the FaceTime software apple's putting on all their computers and ipods and stuff these days. Sometimes the next gen isn't worth waiting around for, but a new iPad built like the iPhone 4 will make the ones they're selling now look really inferior really fast and you will be sad and filled with futile regret and longing. Bad feelings!
posted by Antexit at 10:27 PM on December 1, 2010
posted by Antexit at 10:27 PM on December 1, 2010
For what it's worth T-Mobile has a soft cap where when you exceed 5G (I think) they throttle your 3G connection down to less-than-EDGE speeds.
posted by zippy at 1:13 AM on December 2, 2010
posted by zippy at 1:13 AM on December 2, 2010
Another option is to buy a wifi-only iPad and add tethering to your iPhone for $20/month.
This won't work. You can't tether an iPhone to an iPad at all. At least without Jailbreaking. Agree that 2GB might be more than you think it is. I am a pretty frequent user of 3G on my iPad and never get close to 2GB per month.
posted by rglasmann at 5:49 AM on December 2, 2010
This won't work. You can't tether an iPhone to an iPad at all. At least without Jailbreaking. Agree that 2GB might be more than you think it is. I am a pretty frequent user of 3G on my iPad and never get close to 2GB per month.
posted by rglasmann at 5:49 AM on December 2, 2010
I think some people may be confusing the tiers of the iPhone data plans with the tiers in the iPad data plans, they are similar, but I think the overage on the iPad data is in 2GB chunks, not 1GB.
I'd add this, unless you are going to be consuming a lot of streaming media when you are away from WiFi, I think it will be hard to burn through 2GB/month. If you are actually using your iPad enough on 3G to burn through 2GB/month (without consuming a lot of streaming media), then you are probably using it enough that the battery life for a 3G -> WiFi device, or an Android phone in WiFi hotspot mode, is going to cramp your style.
Finally, the trend for wireless data plans seems to be moving away from "unlimited" plans and towards usage based pricing tiers. The upside is that there are fewer plans with ridiculous overage charges. Generally your last gigabyte is the same cost, or cheaper, than the first gigabyte. In the US, Sprint and TMobile are slower in moving towards usage based pricing because their networks are generally less developed and less utilized than Verizon and AT&T.
posted by Good Brain at 9:27 AM on December 2, 2010
I'd add this, unless you are going to be consuming a lot of streaming media when you are away from WiFi, I think it will be hard to burn through 2GB/month. If you are actually using your iPad enough on 3G to burn through 2GB/month (without consuming a lot of streaming media), then you are probably using it enough that the battery life for a 3G -> WiFi device, or an Android phone in WiFi hotspot mode, is going to cramp your style.
Finally, the trend for wireless data plans seems to be moving away from "unlimited" plans and towards usage based pricing tiers. The upside is that there are fewer plans with ridiculous overage charges. Generally your last gigabyte is the same cost, or cheaper, than the first gigabyte. In the US, Sprint and TMobile are slower in moving towards usage based pricing because their networks are generally less developed and less utilized than Verizon and AT&T.
posted by Good Brain at 9:27 AM on December 2, 2010
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posted by holgate at 7:32 PM on December 1, 2010