AT&T Unveils Cheaper $80 Unlimited Plan, Introduces $65 One

Chris Holmes Staff Writer

Updated 27 February 2018

AT&T is introducing two unlimited plans March 1st, billed as "Enhanced" versions of their Unlimited Choice and Unlimited Plus offerings.

Unlimited Plus Enhanced costs $10 less than the, er, un-enhanced version, and ups the hotspot allotment from 10GB to 15GB.

Unlimited Choice Enhanced costs $5 more than the regular Unlimited Choice plan, but gives you full-strength, 4G LTE data rather than 3 Mbps speeds.

AT&T's move to cheaper unlimited is a tad surprising until you realize there's something of a catch. These cheaper prices don't kick in until you've been doing autopay for two months/bills.

Video Credit

Both plans come with a "$15 loyalty credit towards applicable AT&T video services." In the case of the $80 Unlimited Plus Enhanced plan, that means a credit towards DIRECTV, U-Verse or DIRECTV NOW that kicks in after 3 bills. Choice Enhanced customers are entitled to DIRECTV NOW only.

On a side note, AT&T publicizes free HBO for all of their unlimited customers, but it took me months to figure out how to actually start using it. I recently discovered you can't watch HBO via phone app unless you're connected to WiFi. Clearly they don't want any of their network bandwidth going to it.

Comparison with Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint

AT&T top unlimited plan is now cheaper than Verizon's Beyond Unlimited ($85), but still more expensive than standard ones belonging to T-Mobile.

#1	T-Mobile	T-Mobile Essentials Saver Unlimited Unlimited 5G & 4G LTE with 50GB of Premium Data T-Mobile 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices Unlimited mobile hotspot data Deal: Get up to $800 via virtual prepaid MasterCard when you bring an eligible phone, activate a new line on select plans and port-in your number and switch from select carriers $50.00/mo with Auto-Pay - Taxes & Fees NOT included View Plan	$50.00/mo with Auto-Pay - Taxes & Fees NOT included	View Plan
#2	Verizon	Verizon Unlimited Prepaid Phone Plan Unlimited 4G LTE/5G data Verizon 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices 5GB mobile hotspot data $50.00/mo $60 without AutoPay \| AutoPay discount applies after 1st month View Plan	$50.00/mo $60 without AutoPay \| AutoPay discount applies after 1st month	View Plan
#3	Verizon	Verizon Unlimited Welcome Unlimited 5G speeds Verizon 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices No mobile hotspot data Deal: Get $10 off per line for 1 line via monthly promo credits over 36 months. For new customers only $55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price includes AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront View Plan	$55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price includes AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront	View Plan
#4	Verizon	Verizon Unlimited Welcome (First Responders) Unlimited 5G speeds Verizon 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices No mobile hotspot data $55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible First Responders with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront View Plan	$55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible First Responders with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront	View Plan
#5	Verizon	Verizon Unlimited Welcome (Military) Unlimited 5G speeds Verizon 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices No mobile hotspot data $55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible Military Members/Veterans with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront View Plan	$55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible Military Members/Veterans with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront	View Plan
#6	Verizon	Verizon Unlimited Welcome (Nurses) Unlimited 5G speeds Verizon 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices No mobile hotspot data $55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible Nurses with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront View Plan	$55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible Nurses with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront	View Plan
#7	Verizon	Verizon Unlimited Welcome (Students) Unlimited 5G speeds Verizon 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices No mobile hotspot data $55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible Students with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront View Plan	$55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible Students with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront	View Plan
#8	Verizon	Verizon Unlimited Welcome (Teachers) Unlimited 5G speeds Verizon 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices No mobile hotspot data $55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible Teachers with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront View Plan	$55.00/mo + Taxes & Fees. Price is for eligible Teachers with AutoPay & Paperless discount. + $40 Upfront	View Plan
#9	T-Mobile	T-Mobile Essentials Unlimited Unlimited 5G & 4G LTE with 50GB of Premium Data T-Mobile 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices 3GB mobile hotspot data Deal: Get up to $800 via virtual prepaid MasterCard when you bring an eligible phone, activate a new line on select plans and port-in your number and switch from select carriers $60.00/mo with Auto-Pay - Taxes & Fees NOT included View Plan	$60.00/mo with Auto-Pay - Taxes & Fees NOT included	View Plan
#10	T-Mobile	T-Mobile Go5G \| Eligible First Responders ONLY Unlimited Unlimited 5G & 4G LTE with 100GB of Premium Data T-Mobile 5G Network in select areas with compatible devices Unlimited mobile hotspot data Deal: FREE Two-Day Shipping & waived activation fee online $60.00/mo with Auto-Pay - Taxes & Fees included. (50% off family lines) View Plan	$60.00/mo with Auto-Pay - Taxes & Fees included. (50% off family lines)	View Plan

AT&T has generally been slow to adapt their offerings to the competition--you can do this when you're one of the biggest conglomerates in the world. These new plans at least put their unlimited mobile products more in line with the other big carriers.

We'll be updating our comparison tool with AT&T's new plans when they kick in on Thursday.

Chris Holmes

Staff Writer

Chris Holmes is a Contributing Writer for WhistleOut, where he covers the cell phone and internet industries. His work has been cited in publications like The Verge, The New York Times, and WIRED.

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