10 ms·

Researching this stuff and managing data usage like that is not worth the ROI for most people.

by manzanarama 3y ago

bhelkey 3y ago
Out of curiosity, what service do you use and how much do you pay for it?
- arantius 3y ago
  Not OP, and they said what they use (Red Pocket) but I also pay $5/mo for service from Tello ( https://tello.com/ https://tello.com/ ). 500MB/mo, data only, calls through Google Voice via data. (100 minutes of voice $1/mo extra.) Lots of choice in building your own plan.
corytheboyd 3y ago
The Mint unlimited plan is still only $35/mo, and I’m sure there’s something cheaper out there. That’s still a whole lot cheaper than the big carriers, with zero of the data usage management.
- paxys 3y ago
  Is it that much cheaper? I'm on T-Mobile's $70 plan (it is $5 or $10 more expensive now I believe) which includes unlimited 5G data (no throttling), unlimited tethering, unlimited data when traveling abroad, HD video streaming (all discount carriers limit this to 720 or even 480p), Netflix, Apple TV, free in-flight internet, and a free iPhone 14 Pro that will be fully paid off as long as I keep my plan active for two years.
  - warner25 3y ago
    That sounds like a good deal if you actually want and use all those things.
    - corytheboyd 3y ago
      Yeah agreed, I just don’t need all that so it’s not worth it to me, personally
- solardev 3y ago
  Meanwhile, an unlimited family plan on a big carrier is like $45/mo. Ten bucks less isn't that much. I don't think I know anyone who's using a single plan, though I'm sure they're out there.
  - warner25 3y ago
    I just looked at the AT&T plans and it appears that two lines with unlimited data would cost $120 per month (before they add on who knows what additional fees that aren't included in that price). The price for more lines goes up from there.
    - solardev 3y ago
      That's total, right? That's still only $60/mo, and it goes down with more people. Most big carriers are like $45 to $50 after 4 or 5 people, which is similar to what Fi costs. But yeah the misc fees are annoying, especially if you ever travel or call overseas. Edit: Wait, are you implying that Mint's pricing is $35 total, not per line?? No matter how many lines?
      - warner25 3y ago
        $120 is the total (minus fees) that I see for two lines. I thought you were suggesting that you could have a whole family paying just $45 in total. Setting aside unlimited plans for the moment: You can get 5 GB of data per month, which seems pretty generous to me, on an MVNO for only $15 per line.
        solardev 3y ago
        Ah, sorry for the confusion there. I should've specified. The family plans (whether on big carrier or MVNO) get cheaper per line while going up in total price. But yes, not everyone needs unlimited.
- warner25 3y ago
  Right, managing low data usage like I do definitely requires some thoughtfulness, but it's orthogonal to the choice of using a big carrier vs. MVNO, except for the fact that big carriers won't even sell you a low data plan. To his point, however, I acknowledge that saving a few hundred dollars per year just isn't worth it to many people when they can walk into an AT&T store, sign whatever the salesman puts in front of them without thinking about it, and have the salesman take care of all the required setup.

Researching this stuff and managing data usage like that is not worth the ROI for most people.

bhelkey 3y ago

Out of curiosity, what service do you use and how much do you pay for it?

arantius 3y ago
Not OP, and they said what they use (Red Pocket) but I also pay $5/mo for service from Tello ( https://tello.com/ https://tello.com/ ). 500MB/mo, data only, calls through Google Voice via data. (100 minutes of voice $1/mo extra.) Lots of choice in building your own plan.

corytheboyd 3y ago

The Mint unlimited plan is still only $35/mo, and I’m sure there’s something cheaper out there. That’s still a whole lot cheaper than the big carriers, with zero of the data usage management.

paxys 3y ago
Is it that much cheaper? I'm on T-Mobile's $70 plan (it is $5 or $10 more expensive now I believe) which includes unlimited 5G data (no throttling), unlimited tethering, unlimited data when traveling abroad, HD video streaming (all discount carriers limit this to 720 or even 480p), Netflix, Apple TV, free in-flight internet, and a free iPhone 14 Pro that will be fully paid off as long as I keep my plan active for two years.
- warner25 3y ago
  That sounds like a good deal if you actually want and use all those things.
  - corytheboyd 3y ago
    Yeah agreed, I just don’t need all that so it’s not worth it to me, personally
solardev 3y ago
Meanwhile, an unlimited family plan on a big carrier is like $45/mo. Ten bucks less isn't that much. I don't think I know anyone who's using a single plan, though I'm sure they're out there.
- warner25 3y ago
  I just looked at the AT&T plans and it appears that two lines with unlimited data would cost $120 per month (before they add on who knows what additional fees that aren't included in that price). The price for more lines goes up from there.
  - solardev 3y ago
    That's total, right? That's still only $60/mo, and it goes down with more people. Most big carriers are like $45 to $50 after 4 or 5 people, which is similar to what Fi costs. But yeah the misc fees are annoying, especially if you ever travel or call overseas. Edit: Wait, are you implying that Mint's pricing is $35 total, not per line?? No matter how many lines?
    - warner25 3y ago
      $120 is the total (minus fees) that I see for two lines. I thought you were suggesting that you could have a whole family paying just $45 in total. Setting aside unlimited plans for the moment: You can get 5 GB of data per month, which seems pretty generous to me, on an MVNO for only $15 per line.
      - solardev 3y ago
        Ah, sorry for the confusion there. I should've specified. The family plans (whether on big carrier or MVNO) get cheaper per line while going up in total price. But yes, not everyone needs unlimited.
warner25 3y ago
Right, managing low data usage like I do definitely requires some thoughtfulness, but it's orthogonal to the choice of using a big carrier vs. MVNO, except for the fact that big carriers won't even sell you a low data plan. To his point, however, I acknowledge that saving a few hundred dollars per year just isn't worth it to many people when they can walk into an AT&T store, sign whatever the salesman puts in front of them without thinking about it, and have the salesman take care of all the required setup.