Database Users

Heads Up (Canadian) Telus Subscribers

Before our American friends feel compelled to post how the Sprint SERO plan is all this and all that, here is a link to the SERO page. Yeah, we know all about it.
Some of you may or may not be aware, but Bell has introduced a 7$ unlimited data plan. For the longest time I have been nagging Telus to get with the times concerning data going all the way up to the Head Office. Now that Bell has beat them to it, they are suddenly in a negotiating mood. Here is what a simple phone call to customer service got me for 34$ a month:
- Unlimited Data (no restrictions, tethering or otherwise)
- Free incoming calls US & Canada
- 250 anytime minutes
- 100 text messages
- Voicemail 25
- Caller ID
If Rogers can get into the 21st Century, I will have to remove my signature

borealcool said:
Before our American friends feel compelled to post how the Sprint SERO plan is all this and all that, here is a link to the SERO page. Yeah, we know all about it.
Some of you may or may not be aware, but Bell has introduced a 7$ unlimited data plan. For the longest time I have been nagging Telus to get with the times concerning data going all the way up to the Head Office. Now that Bell has beat them to it, they are suddenly in a negotiating mood. Here is what a simple phone call to customer service got me for 34$ a month:
- Unlimited Data (no restrictions, tethering or otherwise)
- Free incoming calls US & Canada
- 250 anytime minutes
- 100 text messages
- Voicemail 25
- Caller ID
If Rogers can get into the 21st Century, I will have to remove my signature
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Click to collapse
:| Wow... I thought the $15 unlimited IM and Email plan was pretty good. How long have you been a customer and are you on a contract?
Thanks for the heasup!

I've been with Telus for 3 years and not on a contract, but it makes no difference. The CSR told me the Canadian wireless landscape is undergoing major changes and Telus wants to make sure all their customers take advantage of it. If you've got a PDA phone, give them a call

hey borealcool, just out of curiosity, what exactly did you say to them that convinced them to set you up with such a sweet package? And who did you talk to? I called them today (611) asking if there was anything that could be done but got nothing...i'm still stuck with the crappy $25 for 4MB plan...any help would be great. thanks

I called with the firm intention of moving to Bell saying they have an unlimited data package for 7$. The lady transfered me to another department (customer retentions?) where another lady picked up. She told me Bell's offer came with built-in restrictions and I said what, tethering? She said yes at which point I said that's not a problem, I've got friends on the Internet who can help me hack that. She said I know
Anyways to make a long story short she told me the Canadian wireless landscape is changing with deregulation, competitive prices etc. and asked what would satisfy my needs. I told her about Sprint's SERO packages (she knew about that too) and after looking at my calling pattern she said I never went over 250 outgoing minutes and 100 text messages. I said that would be fine along with unlimited data and she set me up
The plan I got is not advertised, but I think 2008 will see major announcements from wireless providers and why not? Bell, Rogers and Telus are all residential ISPs offering unmetered data and extending it to their wireless packages simply makes sense. I my case, I use data for communications and surfing the web which hardly consumes bandwidth. The teenager next door might download gigabytes of MP3s, but my low consumption balances it out and they know this.

this $7 unlimited data plan is a farse. its false advertising. the touch and all other windows mobile phones are data devices. the plan is unlimited mobile browser. i checked and thought i wasnt being billed for data... the only limitation to the plan being tethering, which i wasnt doing. long story short after a weekend of data use i had racked up $19,000 in data charges. (not a typo). check my thread for full story details.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=1727454

Following borealcool's post, I called Telus and see what it's all about. I was very straight forward with the representatives telling them I read on a forum about the unlimited offer. The 2nd rep I talked to was fully aware of it and explained it was intended for new subscribers and renewals (something of that nature). But still, they kindly gave me the plan eventhough I've been with Telus for just few months. So I can confirm that they do have an unadvertised deal where for 15$/month, you get unlimited Web. But it doesn't apply to tethering as borealcool stated.
Finally!!! I now have unlimited Web from my phone so I don't have to worry about busting my limit! Thanks borealcool for the tip!

Good on you lugom,
As stated above, what I got is not an advertised plan. It's Canadian providers waking up to the fact their ridiculous price gouging can no longer be sustained. It's extremely surprising that Bell set the ball rolling, but I think the Conservative government also had something to do with it by announcing their intention to deregulate the market. The last thing providers want is American competition!
EDIT: Btw, what you said about not having to worry about busting your limit is DEAD ON. I'm not a heavy data user, but I've got enough stress in my life without having to worry about my cell phone's data consumption!

Hey guys,
Just an update...Tried again today and had no luck. The CSR told me that they couldn't do anything about my plan because the $15 unlimited email and im is only available to the touch and two other phones that aren't the p4000. He also said that it's only available to new clients with new activations.
I'm guessing they're like this because:
-I'm only 7 months into my 3 year contract
-I can't prove that other people with a p4000 have the unlimited data plan
-I'm completely missing something...
I know a guy on howardforums mentioned that while talking to the CSR he gave them a phone number of another guy that had a p4000 with the unlimited data plan and they were able to give him the same plan...

ji1386 said:
Hey guys,
Just an update...Tried again today and had no luck. The CSR told me that they couldn't do anything about my plan because the $15 unlimited email and im is only available to the touch and two other phones that aren't the p4000. He also said that it's only available to new clients with new activations.
I'm guessing they're like this because:
-I'm only 7 months into my 3 year contract
-I can't prove that other people with a p4000 have the unlimited data plan
-I'm completely missing something...
I know a guy on howardforums mentioned that while talking to the CSR he gave them a phone number of another guy that had a p4000 with the unlimited data plan and they were able to give him the same plan...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They are hardballing you and you have two choices:
1. Live with what you have.
2. Hardball back.
If option #2 is in your blood, here's what you do but be prepared to terminate your contract at the cost of 580$ (20$ per month of remaining contract). In any case it will cost more than that in overages so you don't have much to lose. Your P4000 should fetch a minimum of 200$ on eBay. We have number portability in Canada now so if keeping your number is important that's not a problem either...
Rule #1: Remain courteous, patient and polite. CSRs have no gripe against you and most want to help. Call them saying you want to terminate your contract to go with Bell's unlimited data plan. The CSR will transfer you to another, rinse & repeat. The next CSR will either offer unlimited data or, if s/he knows what they are doing, will suggest you sign up with Bell first to transfer your number without interruption of service.
Good luck!

I got the plan!!!!! It took me three days and about 8 reps but finally the last one said yes. Basically what they gave me was the talk to me 30 plan as well as the $15 unlimited messaging and email that now includes data (the data part is unadvertised). I am happy now.
My story called the other day and was flat out told "no". Asked for a supervisor and they said one would call me back.No call from a supervisor yesterday so I called first thing this morning went straight to account cancellations and told Aneshia that I want to cancel my account and get the Bell Touch (BTW I don't even have Bell in my area lol), and that a supervisor was supposed to call me back and never did. She went ahead and offered to look into getting the $15 unlimited plan added and came back after about 2 minutes and said that she would apply it and that I had to change my voice plan becuase my contract says I must spend a minimum of $45/ month. So I got the talk to me $30 plan which inlcludes more than what I get with the base Talk and Email for $45. Thanks "borealcool" for paving the way!

jjlwork said:
I got the plan!!!!! It took me three days and about 8 reps but finally the last one said yes. Basically what they gave me was the talk to me 30 plan as well as the $15 unlimited messaging and email that now includes data (the data part is unadvertised). I am happy now.
My story called the other day and was flat out told "no". Asked for a supervisor and they said one would call me back.No call from a supervisor yesterday so I called first thing this morning went straight to account cancellations and told Aneshia that I want to cancel my account and get the Bell Touch (BTW I don't even have Bell in my area lol), and that a supervisor was supposed to call me back and never did. She went ahead and offered to look into getting the $15 unlimited plan added and came back after about 2 minutes and said that she would apply it and that I had to change my voice plan becuase my contract says I must spend a minimum of $45/ month. So I got the talk to me $30 plan which inlcludes more than what I get with the base Talk and Email for $45. Thanks "borealcool" for paving the way!
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Excellent
I get the feeling they weren't ready for Bell's announcement, after all Bell & Rogers were 20 times more expensive than Telus for data. Watching Telus announcements in 2008 should prove interesting

borealcool said:
Excellent
I get the feeling they weren't ready for Bell's announcement, after all Bell & Rogers were 20 times more expensive than Telus for data. Watching Telus announcements in 2008 should prove interesting
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Click to collapse
Yeah she did mention one of the reasons they will give it to me is that they are pretty sure they will be expanding the deal to other devices in the future.

well boys,
i have called Bell about 5 times trying to get them to give me something i can be happy with.
right now i'm paying $100 for my data plan which includes 1gb. that's wayyyyy too much and i told them about the Telus $15 plan. they refused me and i terminated my contract with them as of next month. so anyone that wants to buy a Bell 6800 leave me a msg.
screw Bell to Hell!! and i was a loyal customer for 5 years!
im gonna miss my phone number

1magine said:
im gonna miss my phone number
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Click to collapse
You don't have to. If you subscribe with another carrier before the end of your contract with Bell, you can ask the new carrier to carry you current phone number with them. It's almost instantaneous. That's a law in Canada now. That's what I did when I went from Fido to Telus this summer. And, if data is really a must have for you, you can always go with Telus and ask for the 15$ unlimited data plan explaining your coming from competition (and still retain your number.) If they say they can only give the plan if you choose the Touch (and if you don't want this device), insist on the fact that you know peoples that owns P4000 and got this very plan with their current device. I know I do, as many others.

lugom said:
You don't have to. If you subscribe with another carrier before the end of your contract with Bell, you can ask the new carrier to carry you current phone number with them. It's almost instantaneous. That's a law in Canada now. That's what I did when I went from Fido to Telus this summer. And, if data is really a must have for you, you can always go with Telus and ask for the 15$ unlimited data plan explaining your coming from competition (and still retain your number.) If they say they can only give the plan if you choose the Touch (and if you don't want this device), insist on the fact that you know peoples that owns P4000 and got this very plan with their current device. I know I do, as many others.
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Click to collapse
cool thanks. is there anyway i could use my Bell 6800 on the Telus network?

Illimited data plan still going on?
Hi,
6 months later, do anyone of you still have the 15$ illimited data plan? I've called Telus and they tell me there's no illimited data with this plan...8$/Mb!!!???
Thanks for your help
JF

Anyone could reply so I can call back Telus...please...

I asked Telus Mobility to add it to my existing contract Dec 2007 with my PPC-6700(Apache), Feb 2008 I've moved to a PPC-6800/P4000(Titian), contract will end Apr 2009.
The bill still states "Unlt'd Personal Email & IM 15", I'm using about a 100megs of data and about 10megs tether data a month.
Yes, I'm still on the $15 ulimited data plan and it's F$%^ amazing, I never thought I would use that much data but when its unlimited.
The deal started in July 2007 if you had a $45 voice plan, about 4 years of existing service they could add the $15 unlimited data any phone other than Blackberry's. Oct 2007 to counter Bell's offer the voice requirement drop to $30 and still no Blackberry.
In late March 2008 co-work recently tried to sign up for the plan but no go the offer expired in Feb 2008 and he's been a 11 year customer of Telus. This is the standard offer now http://www.telusmobility.com/bc/plans/pcs/email_all.shtml
The only thing to do is drop everything and move to Bell for the HTC Touch and $7 data or wait for the iPhone to start some more competition.
I still would like the $7 from Bell Mobility but it's locked to the HTC Touch and non-pda phone. I've asked Bell if I purchased the HTC Touch with $7 data could I switch to another phone while retaining the data. NO NO NO they will charge you standard data rates.
GOOD LUCK

Thanks for your info. I can't find that 7$ data plan you're talking about on Bell's website though. The cheapest plan I see is 15$/month and its not illimited: 2 Mo/month!!! Are you in Canada??
I just want the right info before I call back Telus...
Thanks again.

Wow, how lucky am I

Long story short, I changed my cellphone to N1 last month from my old Nokia 5800 XM with the unlimited $15 data plan. Not surprisingly, they forced the $25 dollars smartphone data plan on me soon after I swapped the sim card.
But considering I use wifi mainly on my phone, I called today to downgrade my data plan to the $15 200mb tier as the option doesn't show up in my online account feature section. And apparently, the lady on the phone doesn't know her business too much. She asked me what phone model I was using several times and asked me if it's a smart phone. I had to articulate word by word "google. nexus. one." to her so she could put it down. Before that, she just assumed I was using an iPhone, lol. And also she sounded quite confused about the data plans AT&T has. After some long wait on hold, she cheerfully told me she successfully changed my data plan to $15. So I logged into my account and surprisingly found out the feature of my data plan is:
Data Unlimited: Quick Messaging/Basic Phones
AT&T Recommends $15.00 N/A Unlimited Current
Didn't the honest me just tell her that I was using a nexus one and it's a smart phone? I guess she really doesn't know too much about phone tech even though she works as a customer service rep for AT&T. But I don't blame her for that. Well, even though if somehow in the future they find out there's some mistake and revoke the change, I wouldn't mind because I don't use that much 3g data anyway.

I wouldn't go out of my way, but if that force you to upgrade or realize the error just know it's the correct charge.

Wow you got an awesome plan that is hard to get anymore. Nice

Not a bad plan! Hopefully it will last...

yea i hope it lasts for you too. hey guys on a side note. is that whole "Google charing you on your phone bill" option in place already? because im buying apps and oddly enough, my AT&T bill is coming up $10-$40 dollars extra for the past 3 months
also....since we both got AT&T.....you happen to have her rep number? i wanna call and try to get her so i can try my luck with her

Oh everyone, I guess I spoke too soon. This morning I found out they changed my plan to $25 again. I guess it's the system automation.
I called them again and this time the Guy there apparently know I'm using a HTC phone. But still he couldn't change my plan as he needed me to call from another phone to get the IMEI number. I guess I'll try to call again then.
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App

Yeah that's what has been happening to everyone else. The system automatically sweeps accounts and puts the correct data plan. Oh well.

RogerPodacter said:
Yeah that's what has been happening to everyone else. The system automatically sweeps accounts and puts the correct data plan. Oh well.
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Click to collapse
Not if you're on an old att "blue" plan
* Orig att wireless, pre cingular

best of luck in getting it changed, I was tempted to jump to iphone 4 but would like to have the unlimited data. On local carrier I have the nexus one with a $14.99 unlimited data & unlimited text, tough to find another carrier that can do that.

Interested in getting Vibrant, but not eligible for upgrade, so was wondering........

Right now I really want the vibrant, but i'm not eligible for full upgrade from tmobile so i can't get the phone for 100 from costco where its on sale. Since my brother whose in a family plan with my parents is eligible, he could get me the phone since he says he's fine with his old sidekick.
So would it be as simple as him ordering the phone, giving it to me, and myself putting the sim card in, and using it right away? Also, I understand he has to get the data plan since it's required, but could he technically call tomobile to take it off and say he lost it? Because he's fine with his old sidekick and not wanting a data plan added on his bill. I would appreciate any responses thankyou.

Yes that should work fine. They may require you to add a data plan to your line though.

as for using a different line for upgrading the phone on another line, that is fine - I do this all the time (my company has over 30 lines, and most employees are still on the same phone they got in 2002)
the data plan will be an issue - technically, the price of the phone is subsidized by the data plan, so he would not be able to just cancel the data plan. if that were possible, tmobile would lose money, and that is a big NO-NO

But, I've heard from different people, that if you did report the phone lost, they would take the data plan off. Or that could go to your online t-mobile account and change what phone you have, like if you change that you have a "dumbphone". Can anyone else confirm this?

I was able to cancel the data plan here is how: Once you buy the phone and the data plan is active login at the t-mobile website and change the phone to another phone. On the left click on the line you just bought the phone on, then under the picture of the phone you just bought click on "not your phone/device" then choose a cheapo phone from the list (one that does not require an internet plan). Now you should be able to go under that accounts plan and cancel the internet. If this does not work then you would have to start begging tmobile to remove it (just explain to them the real situation and that you will add the plan to your line) usually if you have been a long time well paying customer they will help you.

Just have your brother, or whomever's name under the account, call in and ask to remove the Android data plan and put back the Sidekick plan. Of course, your brother's sim card needs to be in the sidekick at the time you request the change. If they ask for a reason, just say "I didn't like it, so I gave it to my brother." That's it. Keep it simple.

Cool, appreciate all the responses guys. I don't think my brother has the Sidekick plan, he just has the regular family plan line with no data or anything.

Okay, it's been about 2 weeks, and so I decided to call about the phone and switching the data plan. However, T-mobile would not allow my brother to switch his data plan over to my account. They won't allow him to get rid of the data charge on his account period. The only option the rep gave me was to downgrade to a sidekick plan for his account which basically cost the samee anyways. Anyone know what I should do now?

That will work, but like others said they will require you to have that data plan. So your brother will be stuck with his sidekick data plan and the data plan for the Vibrant. Unlike other phones I do not think he can use the Android data plan with his Sidekick. I have used my G1 plan with the Mytouch 3g, Cliq, HD2, and now my Vibrant. As you can see I used it with a non-adroid device (HD2) and it worked fine, but I think sidekicks are in a whole different league.

Just wait it out. How much longer is your contract. Also go to walmart instead of costco. If you go anywhere else you will get taxed on the full price of the phone when walmart only tax the cost shown. For example walmart taxes on 98.99. Whereas everyone else will tax 500.00.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

Talk to a T-mo representative in store and ask them if you have a equipment credit line. I'm not eligible for upgrade until Nov but I have like $300 ECL. So I still got the phone at the same price of an upgrade.

Appreciate the responses guys, but right now I have the phone and it's great and everything. I even got the data plan myself. But what im trying to figure out is how to take the data plan completely off my brothers account since he technically doesnt own the phone anymore and having the plan would be useless.
I've talked to 3 different reps and each refused to take his plan off. One rep recommended to go to the store and buy a cheap "dumbphone" for like 50 bucks which takes his data plan off. It seems like my only option now and would you guys recommend that?

Well the terms are that you signed into a 2yr contract knowing there is a data plan requirement for 2 years. And now you want help getting it off? I don't think it would be appropriate to ask that here.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

Aria IMEI

I know it is a sensitive topic, but I'm so frustrated with ATT, and was wondering if I could get any directions from you guys.
I bought for my wife new Aria (full price) so she can collaborate with me without using her brain. Few days after the change I realized att changed her unlimited data plan to tiered one. That move really pissed me off, and I had to switch her back to old nokia to preserve unlimited plan. I used to have an iphone with this plan (unlimited data for $15/month), and it looks like they are enforcing new, more expensive plans not only on new customers, but also on existing ones.
Enough said... I would like to get some hints on changing imei, so I get to keep my old plan...
Thanks

Not 100% sure but just swap the sim and it should work. ATT are assholes for doing away with unlimited data made the mistake of losing my unlimited data plan when the iPhone 4 was released thanks iphone!
Sent from my Liberty using XDA App

I upgraded to the aria And had the unlimited data plan transfered..if u just call customer service and tell them that u have been a loyal customer for a long time now and u should be able to keep the plan u have had..u should mention being grandfathered in, be polite and tell them if they can't help u then u might be looking at other carriers. U would be amazed at the things I have gotten for free or discounted by just calling and talking to customer service..if they say they can't do it ask to be transfered to to the person who can, u might be on the phone for a minute but u can get it done I promise u
Sent from my Liberty using XDA App

Post this same info on ATT's Facebook.
Same thing happened to me, I went from an iPhone to the Aria, and had the unlimited data removed, put a post on ATT's facebook, and within the day, I was talking to a guy who gave it back, credited my account, and gave me an additonal discount, to make my bill cheaper.

Interesting... if that's what they did to you then I may actually get somewhere. I just pulled the plug on one line to get G2 from tmo, and may threaten to close another line if they refuse to keep my plan...
If it comes to sim swap then it won't work with att branded phones. The only thing that may work (it worked with my old line) is to use unlock phone and ask them to update imei. They will mark your line as unlocked phone and never update your plan again. It worked for iphone...
Thx for your input.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

How much data do you actually use on your plan? I use my phone's data very regularly throughout the month and the most I've ever managed to use in a month was a gigabyte, making the $25 plan a cheaper solution than the $30 PDA Smartphone plan that preceded it.
I work in a retail position in which I handle AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile customers on a daily basis, and I have yet to meet anyone who uses more than 2GB a month, and some of these people use the phone as if they do not have a home internet service!
Thankfully AT&T has a very easy way of checking to see the monthly data usage you use, and even gives you a nice graph of the last six months of data usage, so you can decide for yourself what data plan is right for you.
"Unlimited" 3G data (w/ 5gb limit) for $30 on a smartphone is going the way of direct connect. Verizon will not be far behind with unveiling their new data plans and T-Mobile is talking about doing the same thing. I think once it is all said and done, we won't even see unlimited plans on 4G networks, especially once Sprint gets enough people back onto their service.

Just do the switch yourself. If you bought the phone full price you could have gotten it anywhere besides AT&T, swapped the SIM and been on the same plan. that's what i did coming from my Fuze. I just moved the SIM card to the new phone, and it worked flawlessly. kept my unlimited plan and everything.
as for data usage. When i had my Fuze i used maybe .5gig a month, but as soon as i got the Aria my usage spiked. I use consistently well over 2 gigs a month, breaking 4 gigs in August. I don't use it for tethering, i don't download huge video files, in fact i'm pretty tame with my phone usage. I'll be keeping my unlimited plan when i get a free upgrade in January.

shark0807 said:
How much data do you actually use on your plan? I use my phone's data very regularly throughout the month and the most I've ever managed to use in a month was a gigabyte, making the $25 plan a cheaper solution than the $30 PDA Smartphone plan that preceded it.
I work in a retail position in which I handle AT&T, Sprint, and T-Mobile customers on a daily basis, and I have yet to meet anyone who uses more than 2GB a month, and some of these people use the phone as if they do not have a home internet service!
Thankfully AT&T has a very easy way of checking to see the monthly data usage you use, and even gives you a nice graph of the last six months of data usage, so you can decide for yourself what data plan is right for you.
"Unlimited" 3G data (w/ 5gb limit) for $30 on a smartphone is going the way of direct connect. Verizon will not be far behind with unveiling their new data plans and T-Mobile is talking about doing the same thing. I think once it is all said and done, we won't even see unlimited plans on 4G networks, especially once Sprint gets enough people back onto their service.
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You sound like att spokesperson addressing all dumbasses that purchased smartphone thinking it will make them look smarter. Your data usage statistics are off, and just because you ask your customers about their data usage, it doesn't mean it makes you right. I have observed the data usage by mobile devices in the enterprise I manage in the past 3 years. It seems people spend more time using internet driven apps when their experience improves. That pretty much means the faster mobile network becomes the more bandwidth is consumed. Another huge impact on data usage comes from pushed advertisement. People love free apps, but in order to support brightminded developers those apps have to display small banners. lets do quick math here... each banner is about 5KB. Popular apps rotate them in intervals of 10s, or display new ad whenever you go to new page. If your phone supports multitasking, for example new iphone, then if you don't close the app (for example weather app) it may actually keep rotating those ads in the background eating up your bandwidth. That's 5KB every 10s throughout billing cycle gives us total of about 1.3GB each month. That's based on single app that probably won't be running 24/7, but you may have few of such apps running at the same time, so this will definitely bring you close to that number.
Now, lets talk about 4G, and your assumption of all carriers going with tiered plans. I've been enjoying my G2 over HSPA+ so much. You tube videos are actually in visible quality now. Those very same videos over att 3g were just a joke, and waste of time. What do you think how much bandwidth those HQ videos consume? How about video calls? How about flash driven apps? Limiting users to tiered plans would mean blocking all those services, and worse it would bring technology development for mobile devices to a halt (at least in US).
Mobile carriers are facing very hard times. There is more bandwidth demand than they estimated. ATT for example chose greed, and decided to oversubscribe their infrastructure hoping iphone will save them. Verizon however, invested in their network to ensure they can handle the growth. They all should be thankful to Apple for stealing the name "smartphone", and introducing it to masses in the form of a dumbphone. That move changed the industry, and right now we're all paying for it through higher cost, development by spending more time rooting devices than coding new apps, and reliability. I love my mac, but I hate Jobs for the iphone so much...

cegna09 said:
Just do the switch yourself. If you bought the phone full price you could have gotten it anywhere besides AT&T, swapped the SIM and been on the same plan. that's what i did coming from my Fuze. I just moved the SIM card to the new phone, and it worked flawlessly. kept my unlimited plan and everything.
as for data usage. When i had my Fuze i used maybe .5gig a month, but as soon as i got the Aria my usage spiked. I use consistently well over 2 gigs a month, breaking 4 gigs in August. I don't use it for tethering, i don't download huge video files, in fact i'm pretty tame with my phone usage. I'll be keeping my unlimited plan when i get a free upgrade in January.
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Aria is the only woman friendly (small) android phone that supports att 3G. I paid for it $300 (new). Legacy, which seems to be pretty much same phone is $200 more, and doesn't support att 3g frequencies. It looks like att is getting better in cat/mouse game. I may just have to threaten to leave, to get something done...
BTW
any android phone is concidered by att as smartphone, and they require smartphone plan with it. My wife previously had unlocked nokia, so they did not know what kind of phone it was, and allowed regular $15/month unlimited data plan. Once you put your sim into device that they have in their database they enforce on you smartphone plan that's currently available. If her previous plan was unlimited data for smartphone ($25/month), then I agree, she would be able to keep it.

chopperpl said:
BTW
any android phone is concidered by att as smartphone, and they require smartphone plan with it. My wife previously had unlocked nokia, so they did not know what kind of phone it was, and allowed regular $15/month unlimited data plan. Once you put your sim into device that they have in their database they enforce on you smartphone plan that's currently available. If her previous plan was unlimited data for smartphone ($25/month), then I agree, she would be able to keep it.
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didn't realize you came from a non-smartphone. I came from a Fuze (touch pro), so i was already on the $30 unlimited smartphone plan. I made the phone switch right after they announced the end of unlimited plans, and just swapped the phone on my own. Their system caught it, changed my profile on AT&T's site, but did nothing to the plan. I still have the unlimited plan, and will be keeping it as i foresee my usage staying hight.

Do what i did.
Change the sim into a dumb phone and turn it on, wait about an hour, then log into your account online. The options for the medianet packages will reappear. Remove the smartphone data plans then enable the medianet plan for unlimited data. After switch the sim back to the smart phone, if you get a text or email saying they detected your smartphone just call them up and tell them you do not have a smartphone and give them the IMEI number of the dumb phone and have them remove the data and restore the medianet.
I know its a bit much to lie to them but it is robery that pay as you go data is $2 per 1MB, $15 for 200MB and $25 for 2GB when the service sucks inside any building in lower Manhattan.

joshua54 said:
I upgraded to the aria And had the unlimited data plan transfered..if u just call customer service and tell them that u have been a loyal customer for a long time now and u should be able to keep the plan u have had..u should mention being grandfathered in, be polite and tell them if they can't help u then u might be looking at other carriers. U would be amazed at the things I have gotten for free or discounted by just calling and talking to customer service..if they say they can't do it ask to be transfered to to the person who can, u might be on the phone for a minute but u can get it done I promise u
Sent from my Liberty using XDA App
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Click to collapse
this is what i did.

I called cancellation dept, and they still refused to roll my old plan back
Going back to my initial request... Any hints on changing imei?
Thanks

Is it doable at all?
I don't want to waste anymore time on it. Can some of the bright ones just tell me, if imei on this phone is "burned-in" or is it changeable via software?
Thanks

So... I've done more research, and seems people are saying it is illegal to change imei... Illegal???? I think, if changing/spoofing for criminal activities then it is illegal. Carriers clearly abuse that id to rip more money from people. Where is the government to protect us? I wouldn’t mind, if there was an alternative, but there is none. How come I pay full price for the smartphone, and can’t deny data plan? I want to roam through local hot spots offered for free by my cable provider to sync phone instead of X fuc…ing G!!!! I think it is time for people to start filing complaints with FCC...

chopperpl said:
I don't want to waste anymore time on it. Can some of the bright ones just tell me, if imei on this phone is "burned-in" or is it changeable via software?
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
First off AT&T can see immediately when you switch, and to what phone you are using, as well as the kind of traffic, to categorize your phone... so spoofing an IMEI won't get you anywhere - the bandwidth usage from a regular phone vs a smartphone is miles apart.
Second and more importantly Unlimited data for smartphones ($30) vs unlimited data for a regular phone ($15) are two completely different plans. Your old nokia was clearly not a smartphone if you were paying $15 for unlimited data.
I had a blackberry 9700 and went to an Aria, smartphone to smartphone. They let me keep my same smartphone unlimited data plan.
Bottom line you can't switch from a regular phone unlimited data to a smartphone unlimited data plan and keep the same plan.
You're SOL.
Your best bet is to talk to a manager in a retail store - as they are the only people who can work miracles. AT&T grants them special privileges, like allowing you to "early upgrade" (essentially re-start your contract) for a fee + regular advertised phone prices (way cheaper then a new phone at full retail price), and then allowing you to spend that "fee" as a credit on retail store accessories.

dexmix said:
First off AT&T can see immediately when you switch, and to what phone you are using, as well as the kind of traffic, to categorize your phone... so spoofing an IMEI won't get you anywhere - the bandwidth usage from a regular phone vs a smartphone is miles apart.
Second and more importantly Unlimited data for smartphones ($30) vs unlimited data for a regular phone ($15) are two completely different plans. Your old nokia was clearly not a smartphone if you were paying $15 for unlimited data.
I had a blackberry 9700 and went to an Aria, smartphone to smartphone. They let me keep my same smartphone unlimited data plan.
Bottom line you can't switch from a regular phone unlimited data to a smartphone unlimited data plan and keep the same plan.
You're SOL.
Your best bet is to talk to a manager in a retail store - as they are the only people who can work miracles. AT&T grants them special privileges, like allowing you to "early upgrade" (essentially re-start your contract) for a fee + regular advertised phone prices (way cheaper then a new phone at full retail price), and then allowing you to spend that "fee" as a credit on retail store accessories.
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Click to collapse
I'm afraid you're wrong, and this is why. I've had iphone 3gs on unlimited data plan ($15/month) for over a year. Before that I had Nokia N95 (which is still much smarter than iphone 4) on the same plan also for about a year.
You're saying they monitor bandwidth usage... How come they never picked up on my international SIP calls, and radio streaming? and yes, spoofing will get me somewhere. ATT holds only imeis from att branded/approved phones. If my imei is not found they assume it is simple multimedia phone. How do I know that? I talked to cancellation dept manager two days ago, and was ensured I will get my plan back once my imei doesn't match any of those from att smartphone lineup.

dexmix said:
Bottom line you can't switch from a regular phone unlimited data to a smartphone unlimited data plan and keep the same plan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So what you are telling me is that basically, you want people on here to help you do something which is admittedly illegal in many counties, so your new smart phone appears as a multimedia phone and you can pay less and keep your unlimited data plan.
*scratches head*
edit: you would have been better off just getting an Aria for free with a 2yr contract and then paying for a 2G plan.

dexmix said:
So what you are telling me is that basically, you want people on here to help you do something which is admittedly illegal in many counties, so your new smart phone appears as a multimedia phone and you can pay less and keep your unlimited data plan.
*scratches head*
edit: you would have been better off just getting an Aria for free with a 2yr contract and then paying for a 2G plan.
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Click to collapse
Well, not exactly. I've had that plan since gen 1 iphone, which was running on Edge, and three months later I switched to n95 3g. Basically I'm trying to retain my old data plan, and that's because I have not received any special treatment, or services in order to pay more... If they rolled out LTE, and use that for justification then I would agree.

dexmix said:
edit: you would have been better off just getting an Aria for free with a 2yr contract and then paying for a 2G plan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Better off????? 2 year contract means locked in with old technology. Those contracts don't do any good to people. By signing, you let att screw you any way they want. You can't walk away, or negotiate. If I wasn't tied up with the contract when att announced new plans, then I would switch to verizon long time ago... If you are real smartphone user then you better off buying unlocked phone, and use it the way it was designed to use without extra fees (tethering $60 ), but if you are one of those guys thinking "smartphone will make me look smarter", then your best bet is to buy discounted phone with the contract.

I got unlimited data on att

yep, thats right unlimited data off their premier website, activated today for $35. with my 25% discount it comes to $26.25 per month, two year contract. I was on the phone with them for 4 hours last thursday beccause I only wanted the plan because I have a Nexus, but it wouldn't check out without buying a phone, then the phone was supposed to have a $100 discount and I couldn't get the discount to show in the cart. Never did, but when i got pissed and told them to send me to cancellation, the clerk gave me a $20 dollar discount for the next three months. Good enough, so i now also own a samsung rugby smart. I talked to about half a dozen ppl there, and they all said there was no unlimited data plan. I had to give them permission to signin to my account and walk them through the process. ---->
They sent an email saying i needed to renew my plan to continue to receive the 25% discount. I followed the link to the upgrade site which started with choosing a phone. I selected smartphone link. off to the right on the next page is the cart where they have phone, accessories and data plans and something else i can't remember. Instead of selecting a phone I selected the data plans first. next page had 4 tabs, one being individual plans. all the way on the bottom is a plan "smartphone personal plan for 4g devices". This is listed as unlimited data. I put it in the cart. I couldn't check out, there was an asterisk next to the phone selection. So i had to select that, and it showed three phones, the rugby, a captivate, and some pantech phone. The rugby had the $100 discount that wouldn't show in the cart, that is when i said send me to cancellations, where I got the monthly relief. Not a hundred bucks, but close enough. i completed the checkout. Phone arrived yesterday, I activated it, and today it shows the plan on my account.
Crazy that nobody at att knew anything about the plan, and were amazed when they saw it. I was even told at one point that it would not be honored. Woo hoo..........

I find the unlimited part hard to bealive the only people that can offer that is Higher up people or if your on Media net otherwise not possible. Also I have heard Reps and people at the store call the 10GB plan Unlimated as most people 99% of the time wont know or use that much anyway

I know its hard to believe. As you can see in the OP all the folks at ATT that signed in to my account and I walked them through the steps couldn't believe it either. I just looked at the site again before reposting, and sure enough it is still showing the SMT personal plan with unlimited data. I haven't used more than 2 gb since I lowered from 4gb almost a year ago, cause i wait till i get to wifi to do large downloads and didn't like paying the outrageous costs for their darn data plans. Its a wait and see if and how it goes in the future. This is not medianet by the way.

Did you have a smart phone with AT&T before? Did you even have AT&T before and what link do I need to go to try this?
Thanks

Dial *DATA#

I have been with att forever, back b4 they became cingular, probably about 30 years. yes, i can remember the "cell" phones that had the giant battery pack attached. I currently have a Nexus b4 this phone. I only bought this phone cause it was the only way to get the plan. Pain in the ass trying to get cwm on it too.
As stated in the op, when I went to upgrade i really only wanted to update the plan because I didn't want to pay for another phone. when i went to the upgrade, it directed me to the phones first, but i skipped and went to data plans first, then when it forced me to buy a phone, it only showed 3 phones. After looking closer at the specs today, the reason it went that way is because the modem in this phone will not handle 4g. UMTS tops. They don't see it being to good for data! The signal indicator in the status bar is kinda neat because it is "4g" moniker but it is only capable of 3g. WTF ATT. Keep in mind the name of the plan is Smart phone plan for 4g devices. Kinda misleading, eh?
So, I haven't put the sim card in my Nexus yet, but hopefully I ain't hosed there. If it doesn't work I'll go to the b&m store and get a new sim. Going to wait till the first billing cycle (14th of the month) before i switch back to the Nexus. Love the fact that it is a rugged water resistant phone, but can't be my daily driver for too long. I'll update after i switch back to my nexus.
couldn't stand the wait. put the sim in my Nexus and it shows hsdpa:8 - good to go there

Did you have to wait until your phone arrived and you activated for the new plan to show up on your account? Did the new unlimited plan automatically replace your old plan?
mrphil101 said:
I have been with att forever, back b4 they became cingular, probably about 30 years. yes, i can remember the "cell" phones that had the giant battery pack attached. I currently have a Nexus b4 this phone. I only bought this phone cause it was the only way to get the plan. Pain in the ass trying to get cwm on it too.
As stated in the op, when I went to upgrade i really only wanted to update the plan because I didn't want to pay for another phone. when i went to the upgrade, it directed me to the phones first, but i skipped and went to data plans first, then when it forced me to buy a phone, it only showed 3 phones. After looking closer at the specs today, the reason it went that way is because the modem in this phone will not handle 4g. UMTS tops. They don't see it being to good for data! The signal indicator in the status bar is kinda neat because it is "4g" moniker but it is only capable of 3g. WTF ATT. Keep in mind the name of the plan is Smart phone plan for 4g devices. Kinda misleading, eh?
So, I haven't put the sim card in my Nexus yet, but hopefully I ain't hosed there. If it doesn't work I'll go to the b&m store and get a new sim. Going to wait till the first billing cycle (14th of the month) before i switch back to the Nexus. Love the fact that it is a rugged water resistant phone, but can't be my daily driver for too long. I'll update after i switch back to my nexus.
couldn't stand the wait. put the sim in my Nexus and it shows hsdpa:8 - good to go there
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Click to collapse

Our phone company partners with a couple cellular carriers and I find that in each carrier portal unlimited is not truly unlimited, it's just set to something like 999999 MB or it's capped at 2 or 10GB and refreshes when you hit that cap without charge because they will begin to throttle you after what they consider excessive use.
My company actually has some feature phones that they've provisioned with unlimited data due to technical issues. I hope no one discovers the USB modem capability