cell phone plan switcheroo, part 2

Here’s a triumphant update to the last post on switching cell phone carriers.  It’s been a long road, but we finally got there.  As of now, we are now truly paying $80 per month for two cell phones (with about $10 tacked on for taxes).

If you too want to try to make the switch, here are a few things I learned that might help you too.

1. Getting approval for unlocking from AT&T can be tricky.  I got approval right away for the main phone line.  For the second phone (mine), it was considerably harder.  After about a half dozen phone calls to support, we finally got it.  Make certain that if you have multiple lines, that all IMEI ¹Your IMEI number is like a digital fingerprint for the phone. numbers are “attached to the account” (whatever that actually means is anyone’s guess).
2. This bit is for iPhones owners.  To properly unlock the phone from AT&T, follow their instructions to the letter; don’t cheat like I did and restore a backup of the phone.  The iPhone will still be locked!  Instead, you must restore first.  Then restore your recent backup.  You can’t just skip the blank restore directly to backup.
3. After you pay your last remaining balance, don’t forget to request approval for refunding your deposit (if you had to prepay one month).  For us, this was about 7 years ago; but hey, it’s worth getting back every penny you’ve loaned to a multi-billion dollar company!

   

The only remaining uncertainty is coverage area comparison.  It’s still too soon to tell, but so far the data coverage quality is much better in my experience.  At my office, I have far better 3G data connection. We also have excellent voice coverage in our house.

Another observation, less related to service quality: T-Mobile’s website is far superior.  AT&T’s was cluttered and hard to navigate.  T-Mobile seems to have taken a web design note from Google’s latest “card” esthetic.  I like it.  It’s part of the whole clean, unobtrusive design principle.

So if you are looking to lower your bill, T-Mobile seems to be the real deal right now.  Count us as two of the recent millions of switchers from AT&T to T-Mobile.

Footnotes

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  Your IMEI number is like a digital fingerprint for the phone.