T-Mobile announced new Connect by T-Mobile prepaid plans, including a new $10 plan, that targets those who want “no frills” wireless from multi-carrier retail channels. T-Mobile said it’s the lowest priced smartphone plan it’s ever offered.
According to the company, these new plans are part of its initiative to keep Americans connected during the pandemic. The Connect plans can be traced back to when it was still trying to convince regulators of how great its merger with Sprint would be.
Today, the T-Mobile Connect prepaid plans range from a $10 plan to a $35 plan with more data.
Here’s how they break down:
- $10 per month plus tax, billed as “the lowest price smartphone plan ever” from the un-carrier, that includes 1,000 minutes of talk, 1,000 texts and 1GB of high-speed smartphone data.
- $15 per month plus tax for talk and text, plus 3GB of high-speed smartphone data.
- $25 per month plus tax for talk and text, plus 6GB of high-speed smartphone data.
- $35 per month plus tax, for talk, text and 12 GB of high-speed smartphone data.
Connect by T-Mobile plans include added benefits like Scam Shield protection and free Caller ID included in the rate plan, as well as access to T-Mobile’s nationwide 5G network. Plans will be available starting Friday, March 25, online, in T-Mobile stores and at retailers across the U.S.
Interestingly, the press release makes no mention of Metro by T-Mobile, the prepaid brand that T-Mobile acquired in 2013. Back in March 2020, when T-Mobile launched T-Mobile Connect, it also announced that Metro by T-Mobile was adding new lower-cost options to ensure everyone could afford to stay connected during Covid-19.
Dealers for T-Mobile, who sell phones through independent stores – as opposed to T-Mobile’s corporate-owned stores – previously accused T-Mobile of trying to poach their customers. This latest offer would seem to add to those grievances.
Fierce reached out to the National Wireless Independent Dealers Association (NWIDA) for comment on this latest offer and will provide updates as they become available.
Several former Sprint dealers recently filed suit against T-Mobile, accusing the “un-carrier” of anti-competitive tactics and basically running them out of business. Absolute Wireless, Maycom, Solutions Center and Wireless Express each named T-Mobile in their complaints.
T-Mobile insists that dealers are an important part of its business, but NWIDA has said it definitely wants to consolidate the number of dealers with whom it works; what that exact number is remains unknown.