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  • AT&T's No Contract Deal Explained
Technology Articles > Cell Phones > Others > AT&T's No Contract Deal Explained

Cellphone companies really have the upper hand when it comes to your contract. Being locked into a two-year contract with a phone that you only kind of like is a bad thing. That’s why AT&T has created a new no-contract plan. This plan will allow customers to avoid being locked into a contract, and will let people pay in monthly instalments. If this sounds like the plan for you, take a look at these details.

The AT&T No-Contract Details

The gist of this deal is that you pay for the full price of a phone up front ($600 for an iPhone, for example), and AT&T waives a bunch of other fees that are usually baked into a two-year contract. AT&T’s Next plan moves this concept a step further too. With Next, users can upgrade to a new phone in just one year, and this eliminates any upgrade or other fees that would normally be associated with wanting to change your phone after one year.

You can choose from the Next 18 plan, which lets you make monthly payments for 18 months, or the Next 12 plan that lets you make 12 payments for 12 months, and after either one of those periods has expired, you will be able to upgrade to a new phone. If you like to keep up with technology, there’s no better way to buy a phone – you can simply upgrade after one year. When you trade in your smartphone at the end of that monthly period, you will begin with a new plan. Really, AT&T has made upgrading to a new smartphone simpler. Plus, you get to skip all kinds of nasty fees.

The Benefits

The benefits here are somewhat obvious. You won’t get locked into a two-year contract, you can skip a bunch of fees, and you can get a new phone after twelve or eighteen months (your decision). But, there are some drawbacks too.

The Drawbacks

The biggest drawback here is that you have to pay the full price of the phone that you choose up front. The reason why phones are cheaper with a contract is that phone companies absorb that cost, and then make you pay for it in smaller instalments. With this type of contract, you pay the full price in advance, and then get a reduction on the rest of the fees.

So, it’s up to you to decide whether or not skipping a lengthy contract is worth the price of a phone at full cost. For some, buying the phone outright is a better deal. For others, making smaller payments is a much better idea. It really depends on what you can afford and what matters most to you.

If you don’t care about getting a new phone every year, this might not be the plan for you. But, technology chances rapidly, so you may want the option to change along with that technology. This plan is only available in the United State right now. If you do live in the states, check out what AT&T has to offer – it might save you some cash.