Unlimited Data (with asterisks)
Tuesday, August 21, 2012 at 9:34AM 
Kathy and I still have the original unlimited data plans from AT&T going back to our initial iPhone purchases in 2007.
But my definition of unlimited is very different than AT&T's definition.
Recently I received the attached text from AT&T telling me that since I have gone over 3 GB in one month, they may reduce my data speeds in the future if I keep doing so.
Fortunately, we're no longer under contract for Kathy's iPhone 3G or my iPhone 4. We now have options.
Sprint's unlimited data is appealing but their coverage is significantly less than AT&T and Verizon. I've heard grumblings about the new plans from Verizon, but at least now we have choice of carriers when the new iPhone is announced next month.
I'd be interested to hear in the comments from folks who have switched from AT&T to one of the other providers.
[This blog entry was written on my iPhone and posted via AT&T 3G out of spite.]
AT&T, iPhone in Technology
Reader Comments (5)
I switched to Sprint after my divorce (the ex got the unlimited AT&T plan) and can tell you that coverage isn't really the issue people make it out to be because Sprint has a roaming agreement with Verizon. If you wander out of a Sprint area the "3G" symbol on your phone changes to a "o" (for other) - and you just keep trucking.
Now if speed is an issue, stick with AT&T. Independent studies show that AT&T has the fastest network. Sprint feels SO slow if i'm streaming video, especially with anything less than full bars.
Gerald, that's good to know about Sprint in regard to its coverage. I'm not as concerned about the fastest network, but regardless, I assume that the next iPhone will use 4G or LTE or whatever each company calls their service that is faster than 3G regardless.
I don't think AT&T iPhones work on Sprint or Verizon but only on GSM networks - and then properly only on the AT&T network in the USA as for some technical reason they work on T-Mobile only at 2G speeds. But you do have an option in StraightTalk, which is working well for our iPhone imported from the UK. It uses the AT&T network, and has similar not really "unlimited" restrictions, but at least you are not paying AT&T direct.
Peter, I may not have been clear. We plan on getting the new iPhone when it's released next month. My phone is over two years old and Kathy's is over three years old. When the new iPhone is released, we'll be able to decide between AT&T, Verizon and Sprint.
I had Sprint from 2002 to 2011. The last three years of that, I traveled throughout the U.S. for church matters. I seldom lost coverage (Montana had some blind spots, as well as western Nebraska. Elsewhere, Northwest, Southwest, Upper Midwest, lower Midwest, southeast, mid Atlantic, Sprint coverage was as good as Verizon.
I did not want to change, but I took a call as pastor in the one place in California in the mountains where there was not cell coverage, except one spot (where our house is), and that was Verizon. Sprint was a class act all the time. I would switch back in a heart beat, if there any towers within 30 miles.