GoKawiilIn just the past few months, AT&T has overhauled its unlimited phone plans with 2.0 versions, added a new top-tier option and introduced a modular option for new customers who want only the basics. The 150-year-old company also hiked the prices of some now-retired plans in what appears to be a move to encourage customers to jump to the latest options, and changed the prices of some plans even since their introduction.
If you're an AT&T customer suddenly bombarded by notifications about upgrading, or you're looking to switch from another carrier, here's a breakdown of the new offerings.
These plans replace the AT&T Value Plus VL, Unlimited Extra EL and Unlimited Premium PL plans. The carrier also removed its Unlimited Starter SL plan, which served as the entry-level plan (you had to know where to look to find the limited, but cheaper, Value Plus VL plan).
Keep in mind that AT&T plans let each person on an account have their own plan. So you might set up a package where one person has the Premium 2.0 plan for unthrottled 5G speeds and another, such as a child, is set up with the Value 2.0 plan to save money.
Also, if you're on a current AT&T plan, you won't be automatically moved to one of the new plans. If you do want to make the jump, you'll incur a line activation fee of up to $50. And the pricing below is the AutoPay amount; carriers provide a discount (usually $10) if you sign up for automatic payments.
One nice change is that the new plans are priced with round numbers. For example, the Value Plus VL plan was priced at $50.99 for one line, and the Value 2.0 plan is $50 (in comparisons below, I've rounded up the old prices to full-dollar amounts). Taxes and fees get added on top of that, so you'll never see a round-number bill, but I'd like to think it's a quiet acknowledgment that pricing things one penny below a larger number is insulting to customers.
Let's dig into the details.
Choose from AT&T's mobile plans. Jeff Carlson/CNET
Value 2.0, the budget plan
The Value 2.0 plan replaces both the Value Plus VL plan and the retired Unlimited Starter SL plan and costs $50 a month for a single line or $120 a month when you have four lines on the account. That's $1 per line cheaper than Value Plus VL.
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