Is a price war in the making for cell phone service? Somewhat quietly, T-Mobile is offering a $50-per-month unlimited voice plan to longtime customers, according to a report in RCR Wireless and acknowledged by a T-Mobile rep I spoke with. For now, the plan is only available to those who have been with the company for at least 22 months, and the offer appears to be more of a perk for existing customers— and an incentive to stick with T-Mobile—than a straight promotion.
Still, many see the offer as a return salvo aimed at Boost Mobile, Sprint’s prepaid wireless carrier, which last month began offering a no-contract, $50 “everything” plan, including unlimited voice, texting, and data.
(T-Mobile isn't providing much information about its new plan. In an email, Amanda Ginther, a T-Mobile spokesperson, echoed verbatim the company statement provided to RCRWireless: "We are offering select customers pricing plans that reward their loyalty to T-Mobile. We are not providing further comment at this time.")
From a pricing standpoint, the advantages of Boost and T-Mobile's plans are clear. Why pay Verizon Wireless or AT&T $80 for a 1,350-minute plan when you could get unlimited minutes for only $50? Unlimited text and data are not included with the T-Mobile plan, but customers have the option to add those for an additional $35 a month.
The T-Mobile deal thus appears to offer what amounts to an everything plan for $85 a month. By comparison, Verizon offers an unlimited everything plan for $150 a month, Sprint offers one for $100, and the best unlimited plan I could find from AT&T cost $130.
T-Mobile also offers respectable service overall, according to our survey of satisfaction among readers in 23 cities, conducted by the Consumer Reports National Research Center. (Carrier Ratings are available to subscribers.) Boost Mobile uses the Sprint network, which was average among providers for connectivity across cities we surveyed.
Will Boost and T-Mobile force the other carriers to enter the budget-pricing battle? If they did, what would make you consider switching from your current plan?
—Nick K. Mandle
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